Devil May Cry 4 - First Impressions

29
Dan Webb

The Devil May Cry franchise has always been known for its complex storylines, its wild imagination and of course its eye catching combos. Who can forget the over the top bosses in some of the most outrageous environments we have ever seen and on first glance, it certainly feels like Capcom have stuck to their guns for this latest reincarnation.

The demo measures in at a paltry 613Mb so it’s pretty obvious this was going to be a short demo and in all honesty, it’s possibly the shortest demo I have experienced. It’s almost something more of a taster than an actual demo, but saying that, it does what a demo needs to do. It gives you a chance to see the combos in action. It gives you the chance to see some great environments. It gives you the chance to battle an outrageous boss and to me, that was enough to cast away all the doubt that was forming in the back of my mind regarding this title.

The demo goes one of two ways and both are titled “Mission: Extermination”. The first option kicks off in the Opera Plaza and eases you in to the game. First time you get out in the open you realise that the game visually is fantastic. The fantasy ridden creatures and environment would bring a tear to the devil’s eye himself. The old archaic structures ridden with the devil’s spawn never gets old. The current option is a very short mode, you get 10 minutes only, so don’t dally and you’ll be ok. You get to fight some fairly easy demons here who rarely fight back, starting with a small pack and working your way through the storehouse and to the docks where you will take on a small crew of them. The cameras at times can be a little sickening especially as you go round the storehouse, but action games such as Devil May Cry have never been totally flawless in this department. The first option overall offers the gamer nothing too taxing, it seems like more of a warm up for the second option which can actually be reached if you finish this one quickly enough but that’s only cause you rock. Even if you do finish it, the minute or two you are left with when you get there is nowhere near enough to complete the second part as well.

The second stage when selected from the off has no time limit and is two parts. Firstly you’ll traverse Fortuna’s snowy cliff side on the way to the castle gate which is ultimately an ice palace. Once you make your way off the cliff face you’ll face a few demon ice warriors who are no match for Nero and his sword. After despatching them, you’ll make your way across a huge bridge and through the gates on to the hills of Ferrum to battle Berial who can only be described as a four legged fire demon with a sword the size of the Goodyear blimp! Berial is a typical Devil May Cry boss. He’s huge, has incredible attacks and it’s not an easy task to defeat him, so stick at it.

Capcom seem to have introduced a few new features this time round. We have the new uses of the orb colours of course, instead of the traditional red being health related in some respect in relation to the items, it is now purely upgrade orientated, the green still corresponds to health. This time, we don’t have to make the choice of whether we want health item or that awesome new power and we can actually have both our cake and eat it. A small change, granted, but one that carries a lot of weight with it and doesn’t force you to make those difficult decisions. The other change is the grab power that is introduced with Nero’s character, it allows you to do some over the top moves that allow you to keep the combo going for longer. It’s a nice addition and one that should have been included years ago. Speaking of combos, it seems as if the system has been made a bit easier this time around. I was able to string together an A grade combo on my first run through when I haven’t played a Devil May Cry title in over 5 years, but nevertheless, that only makes the game more likeable.

All in all, Capcom and Devil May Cry are back with a bang on next generation consoles. I was very apprehensive prior to the demo but it’s done what a demo should do, whet the appetite of the gamer and sell their game. I for one will now be rushing out on release day to pick up a copy.
Comments
29
  • Very nice review of the demo, sounds like it will crush my doubts as well.
  • Is it available at the Marketplace? lol
  • Where is the demo?I loaded up my PS3 and DMC4 wasn't there.WHERE IS THE DEVIL?
  • There's always been green health orbs if i'm correct in thinking. Along with silvers for DT increase. The green orbs just upped your health straight away. (Correct me if i'm wrong someone?)
  • PS3 - European demo is not for another week I think I read somewhere. But as far as the 360 goes. Available for Europe and North America now.
  • Didn't you use to have to spend red to get health items before though... I remember that and that was my point.
  • demo didnt come to the us ps3 store either... hahaha, Xbox wins again!!!
  • As much as I play my 360, playing a DMC game on an Xbox console feels just wrong.... It would be like Playing Gears of War On a Playstation Console. It's just wrong. I'll be picking this one up for PS3.
  • @ Button Masher, For Some reason Sony updates their stores in the evening instead of the morning or Afternoon. PS3 will get the update at about 4:00 EST.
  • im downloading it now it looks pretty sweet
  • *Head explodes*
  • Got this demo as soon as it hit the marketplace, have to say I really loved it, just shows that this game will yet again be another triumph for Capcom, DMC4 just shows that the developers at Capcom are some of the best in the world, this game is tweaked so well it runs so smoothly and loads so fast I was a little shocked. And the fact this is retailing in the UK at £30 for the special edition... best money I have ever spent on a game I would say. I am so excited about this game now :)
  • I was playing 3 while i was waiting for 4 to download. I can't wait to play as Dante, style switching on the fly is going to be awesome. Nero is a pretty cool character, only things i don't really like about him are his voice and the fact that revving the sword is more of a gimmick, its kinda useless.
  • Nice To Look At But The Controls Are All Wrong And All The Way In The Demo I Was Thinking Mmmm Devil May Cry 2 Feels And Plays A Lot Better On A PS2 , Very Peeved As I Was Looking Forward To This Now I Dont Think I'll Be Getting It :(
  • @ Infected - Where you finding that deal?
  • Webb UK is managing to get the game for £30 on xbox 360 which is the standard edition and you could also get the Limited edition which sold out and is different from the collectors edition which is more than a name difference because the limited edition just fearures a metal case and a art book. I would rather have collectors and also Turok is being sold for £30 over here for some reason and it beats PS3 because they have to pay the normal price
  • not bad a little lacking on diffuculty and the contorls are a bit @.@ but overall ill give it a 7/ 10
  • hmmm looks facinating
  • @ Webb, got my edition in the tin and art book pre-ordered on play.com, don't know if anywhere else has it still though, it seemed to sell out pretty fast
  • Red orbs have always been for use in the stores etc. Or at least they were in DMC 3. Also the collector's edition on play.com is like 29.99 :)
  • Gameplay.com still have the limited edition 32:99 for anyone looking for it
  • Can't wait to play the demo, just DLed it... Now they just need to make a Ninja Gaiden II demo lol. Yeah right that ain't comin' for a while...
  • rival - the red orbs no longer are used for any health related purchases. That was my point :P *note to self* be clearer on the complex issues lol Oh and cheers guys. Heading to Play.com now :)
  • I thought it was a great demo. I will probably be picking it up for sure now. :D
  • I thought it were pony... will definatly avoid this one =]
  • great, gono geat the game when its released :]
  • Dead on Arrival thanks for mentioning that to buttonmasher, SO HA WE WILL GET IT FOR THE PS3 !
  • I really liked the demo but the 1 thing that really pissed me off was the difficulty was def set on easy oh & the way he fires of his guns annoyed me & other than that i can't wait unitl this game arrives on my door step early mrng :)
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