Devil May Cry for PS2

The days of classic action gameplay have returned with Capcom’s Devil May Cry for Playstation 2. Instead of focusing on realism, Devil May Cry is a tour de force of intense, frenetic gameplay and excitement. In Devil May Cry you control Dante, a half-man, half-demon mercenary armed with a large sword and twin pistols. As you progress through the game and defeat enemies you earn red orbs that can be used to acquire new abilities and items. With the fluid control scheme you can create custom combinations of attacks such as launching an enemy into the air with the sword, jumping, shooting it with the pistols a la Matrix style and ending with a sword slash on the way down. Your combos are rated based on their “coolness” factor in the upper right corner of the screen, and successful missions are graded by rank. Unlike Resident Evil, Devil May Cry encourages you to tear through your enemies in any way you like. The fact that you have unlimited ammo for the guns keeps the pace fast without needing to backtrack or conserve yourself in combat. A “guard” button would have been a welcome addition after its success in Onimusha: Warlords, but Dante is agile enough to use diving rolls and jumps to avoid enemy attacks. Dante can also temporarily transform into a flying demon and electrify his enemies with bolts of lightning, a technique that works very well against the boss enemies. Getting the gist of the controls will be challenging, but it looks awesome once you master Dante’s movements.

Devil May Cry is a sight to behold, with full 3D backgrounds and cinematic camera angles. It moves at a liquid-smooth 60 frames per second without a hint of slowdown. The textures are rich and detailed, and the lighting effects are impressive. The PS2’s special effects such as particles and motion blur also come into both the gameplay and the cutscenes. At times the scenes look like pre-rendered backgrounds in motion. The character models are a bit rough, with some pointed edges in a few places, but are well animated and lively. The monsters are impressive and well detailed, especially the bosses, such as a demon shadow tiger that morphs and sinks into the floors while you fight it. The music of Devil May Cry is moody and mysterious when Dante is exploring the areas, but it becomes fast paced, intense rock ‘n roll when he enters battle with enemies. Loud, crisp gunfire, lightning and shouts from Dante and the enemies mix in with the pounding soundtrack. The voice acting is good, albeit slightly corny (but it appears this was done intentionally). The game dialogue was recorded in English from the beginning, so there are no translation issues at all.

If Devil May Cry has a fault, it is the difficulty. The game is insanely hard at times. Although for the most part Dante is able to thrash his enemies all over the place, if they do manage to get a hit or two in it takes off large chunks of health, and the green healing orbs are a rare find and are expensive at the item shop. The bosses are very difficult as well, and even the first boss is a potential showstopper for impatient, easily frustrated players. You can only save between missions, so you may have to fight certain enemies again if you fail to defeat the bosses following them. There is an “Easy Mode” of control available, although it does not make the game significantly easier. Unless you are a pro twitch-gamer, plan on buying a strategy guide or looking up guides on the Internet for Devil May Cry.

Action game fans, Devil May Cry is your game. It is fast, furious and has only minor puzzle elements. Beware, however, for it is difficult at times and may take several attempts to defeat enemies. If you feel nostalgic for classic action titles and/or want a good challenge, Devil May Cry is an excellent game.

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