Reviewed: September 4, 2001
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Publisher
Capcom Entertainment
Developer
Capcom Entertainment
Released: October 17, 2001
Genre: Action
Players: 1
ESRB: Mature
10
10
10
9
9.8
Supported Features:
With all the media hype being given to the upcoming launch of the Xbox and GameCube this November the PlayStation 2 has slipped from the spotlight. Everyone seems to think the next great console war is going to be Microsoft vs. Nintendo, but don't be surprised if Sony comes blazing back with a spectacular library of holiday releases with anticipated titles like Soul Reaver 2, Shadow Man 2, Silent Hill 2, and Metal Gear Solid 2.
You may have noticed an abundance of 2's in the preceding list and while many of the hot new PS2 titles are indeed sequels, Capcom is delivering an original title with unique characters, spectacular graphics, and amazing gameplay. Devil May Cry is the latest title to come out of Japan from the makers of the Resident Evil series, and this game is truly the next generation (or rather evolution) of survival horror.
If you take Onimusha Warlords, Resident Evil, and Soul Reaver and toss them all in a software blender, Devil May Cry would be the resulting mix. Everything about this game is evolutionary. It combines the best features of several games to create something totally original. The graphics, level design, combat, and gameplay are simply incredible and push the PS2 to the very limits.
The story begins over 2000 years ago when a legendary swordsman single-handedly defeats a demon army and imprisons their emperor, Mundus, saving the human world from damnation. You join the adventure 2000 years later as you take the role of Dante, a paranormal investigator in a large American metropolis. While seeking revenge for the death of his mother and brother Dante comes face to face with his destiny, discovering the evil conspiracy that goes back thousands of years. Armed with his father's sword and a pair of pistols, Dante must enter the demon realm and avenge mankind.
The story and resulting game are even more impressive when you realize that Devil May Cry originally began as Resident Evil 4 before evolving into the masterpiece you see today. The original concept was also to have taken place on a boat. Luckily for Capcom, they scrapped that idea; otherwise with Metal Gear Solid 2 we would have two "boat games" coming out this Fall.
Veterans of Resident Evil know that much of the "fear" from that series was based on overwhelming odds and limited resources. You were always forced to count your bullets and save your powerful weapons for the big bosses or risk losing the game. Hideki Kamiya, the lead designer for Devil May Cry, has taken this game in a new and more exciting direction.
Much like the warrior, Samanosuke, in Onimusha Warlords, Dante is armed with a sword eliminating the constant worry about ammo. Dante also has a variety of combos and special attacks that can be learned, purchased, upgraded, and mastered. He pulls off these amazing moves with some of the best character animation seen on the PS2 yet. Dante can leap to great heights, stick to walls, and even bounce off the ceiling. His cloak billows behind him as he runs and the swipe of his giant sword creates a visual distortion effect that warps the surrounding graphics.
Combat is fast and furious. Monsters spawn from portals on the floor and on the ceiling. The creatures in the demo (aside from the bosses) are all tall gangly monsters than appear to be marionettes. Sometimes you can even see their ethereal strings that hold them up. When you smack them with your sword they collapse like a puppet then get right back up for more. In the demo, none of the normal monsters seemed too dangerous. In fact, most never even hit me. Only when they ganged-up on me 5 to 1 did they ever manage to sneak in a successful attack. When you finally do kill them they break apart like Pinocchio in a wood chipper and release one or more red orbs of soul energy. Dante can then collect this energy (much like Raziel in Soul Reaver) and use it to acquire special skills and weapon power-ups later in the game.
During the course of the game Dante will have access to four unique swords, each with their own special attacks. The sword available in the demo had some killer combos such as Vortex, Air Raid, and the Stinger. These combos can be powered-up several levels until you have mastered each one to inflict the maximum damage. The demo only lets Dante use his pistols, but the final game will have additional firepower such as a Shotgun and even a Rocket Launcher. Look out Demons!
Devil May Cry is a very linear game. Even though the levels are large you are "guided" around by a series of locked doors and scripted events that you must follow in order to proceed. DMC is more action oriented with less emphasis on story than you might expect from a Capcom title. Gameplay is more suited to the fighting/action genre than anything else. While there are some puzzle elements, these only serve to get you to the next battle.
The bosses available in the demo were not only original, but truly terrifying. The Shadow Lion boss appears to be some sort of black ooze that can morph into hideous shapes and attack you in a variety of deadly ways. It reminded me of the creature in John Carpenter's The Thing. One minute it would look like a black cat then it would turn into a giant Venus flytrap and swallow Dante whole. If I ran away it would shoot these long eyestalks across the courtyard and impale me. The other boss encounter consisted of a circle of giant skulls in an underwater arena. These were truly frightening not to mention very realistic (in a flying skull kinda way).
The graphics in DMC are some of the best yet for the PS2. The 3D environments are huge and designed with thousands of polygons, detailed textures, and lit with dynamic light sources that cast real-time shadows and light beams that stream in through windows.
At first the game appears to have static backgrounds (ala Resident Evil) then as you start to move the camera begins to zoom out and pan around to follow the action. It's all very smooth and very cinematic. Throughout the entire game the camera angles were always perfect. They inspired just the right amount of tension and fear while never getting in the way of combat or gameplay.
The cutscenes in DMC will blow your mind. The opening movie sparked unanimous shouts of "Holy Shit!" from everyone watching when motorcycles and swords started flying. Each additional movie grew more spectacular and intense than the one before it and served as a major driving force to complete each level.
The interface is pretty standard stuff. You can bring up a menu system and slide through the various selections with the L1/R1 buttons. The 3D map can be brought up by clicking L2, but unlike previous Capcom game maps you can pan and rotate this map. The inventory is easily accessed and items are represented with clear pictures and text descriptions. Movement and combat is perfect. The clunky controls of Resident Evil are gone. We now have smooth analog control that remains constant even when the camera angle changes.
The sound and music in Devil May Cry is excellent and rather surprising considering the look of the game. Given the gothic locales in this game I was thinking there would be your typical haunting organ music or rhythmic heartbeat bassline. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised to find my demon-slaying activities accompanied by some thumping techno tracks that gave the action an almost Matrix-like feel. When Dante starts pulling off some of his more impressive moves and combos the music really starts to blend with the action.
The sound effects sent shivers down my spine. The ghosts have this creepy cackle and the metal slicing sounds of their giant scissors made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. The voice acting is all top-notch, but admittedly there isn't a lot of dialog in this game. Dante is a man of action - not words.
You can rip through Devil May Cry in 8-12 hours depending on how good you are at these type of games. Most of the things that will slow you down are the difficult boss battles where you must learn their intricate attack patterns in order to defeat them.
As with any Capcom title, there are plenty of extra rewards given for superior gameplay and dozens of secret games. Whether these rewards/incentives are enough to make you replay the game is for you to decide.
Devil May Cry is one of the hottest new games for the PlayStation 2. This game should appeal to both survival horror fans and those who enjoy great action and fighting games where you get to learn and master all sorts of combos and weapons combat.
It's interesting that Capcom chose to package a demo of this game with the new PS2 version of Resident Evil: Code Veronica which is admittedly "old technology" by today's standards. It's almost as if Capcom is saying, "that was then and this is now". All I can say is that "now" is pretty cool!