Devil May Cry 4: crying not included

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amendele

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Aug 25, 2008
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[or, "Once more, into the bargain bin!"]

Depending on the store/website you visit, there's a good chance you can buy this game for about the same price it would take to rent once or twice. Admittedly, I already played it once several months ago, and didn't think much of it. However, I managed to find a working used copy for under $10, so I decided to give it another shot.

Let's get this out of the way first: Devil May Cry 4 (henceforth known as "DMC4") is not exactly a thinking-man's game. Sure, there's a sort of story about Dante appearing to shoot a religious leader in the face while the game's first playable character, Nero, strikes back and tries to figure out why. The cutscenes feature some over-the-top, anime-esque action that looks kinda cool and doesn't bother to take itself too seriously. But for the most part, the story boils down to this: "There are some demons. Kill them all. Roll credits."

Like I said, you start out as Nero, who is pretty damn similar to Dante except that he wears a bluish coat instead of a reddish one. He carries a similar gigantic sword and the same kind of gun that seems to fire spitballs at enemies instead of the surprisingly effective bullets featured in the cutscenes. Okay, his sword can be "revved up" like a motorcycle, and he carries a double-barreled revolver instead of dual semi-automatic pistols, but it's only a minor difference.

What's different about Nero, other than the fact that he happens to be voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch (who appears to have mastered the "whiny young brat" voice)? Well...he's got this magic hand called the Devil Bringer with the power to grab enemies and slam them into the ground. It sounds kind of lame, but there's a sick sort of humor to see him take a knight's lance from behind, thrust it through his chest and keep on pumping for a few seconds.

Also, when you play as Dante later in the game (SPOILER!), it takes little time to remember that you have to resort to brute force instead of grabbing things. But Dante's specialty involves actually killing bosses instead of just sending them back from whence they came, and turning their souls into new weapons from the Pandora morphing suitcase gun to the Gilgamesh metal fists and feet combo. Unfortunately, only Dante can use these new weapons, while Nero is stuck with the ones he had at the start (plus a katana that he picks up a little later, but that's more of a "special" weapon).

So those are the only big differences I can name off the top of my head. But for the most part, the differences between Nero and Dante are purely cosmetic. Both characters fight the same enemies, the same bosses (in reverse order), and both characters use something called "Proud Souls" to upgrade their weaponry and abilities, which are gained based on the grades you get at the end of each level.

Yes, the game actually grades you on how well it thinks you did based on the time, orbs, and "style" necessary to complete the level. However, you might get a few extra Proud Souls if you keep dying so much that the game takes pity on you between continues. Nothing like finally defeating a hard boss only to have that sense of triumph diminished because the game decided you suck badly enough that it had to give you an "enemy handicap" without asking.

However, for all its faults, DMC4 is still a pretty good game. Yes, you can argue about the similarities of Dante and Nero, or the schizophrenic difficulty, but mindlessly slashing through demons, knights, and bug-things is actually made kind of fun by the over-the-top combos that the DMC series is known for. For example, you can catapult a scarecrow into the air with your sword, give him a nice cushion of bullets under his ass, and then slam him into the ground on the way down.

Heck, I'd actually recommend this over a similar game released around the same time: Ninja Gaiden II. Why? Well, first of all, you can probably pick up a used copy of DMC4 for $8-15, depending on where you look. But more importantly, while NGII made me want to rip out my hair in frustration, set it on fire, and then mail the charred remains to Team Ninja [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Team_Ninja] every time I played it, DMC4 actually provided its share of challenges without getting too annoying. While most enemies in NGII had to be killed by spamming the "flying swallow" attack with the Dragon Sword, DMC4's enemies will let you slaughter them in several different ways without having to resort to cheap magic attacks (I'm looking at you, infinite-rocket-launching assholes in Chapter 8 of NGII).

So basically, if you're looking for some cheap, mindless fun with over-the-top action that doesn't take itself too seriously, DMC4 is your game. Just be warned that there may be times you'll be tempted to play it with the sound off, and I won't blame you at all for hitting the mute button.
 

D_987

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Jun 15, 2008
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Good review; although I disagree with a number of your points.

I personally found this game to be dreadful, and stopped playing after the first boss battle. The platforming was atrocious (fixed cameras just don't work!), the characters irritating, the music dreadful and the difficulty infuriating (because the game didn't explain anything - I got through the first part through trial and error).

The combat is fun, but then again, its not worth the hassle when there are games like Dynasty warriors 3 for that sort of gameplay =)

As for the review; it appears sort of rushed - your paragraphs don't link particularly well.
 

Unholykrumpet

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Nov 1, 2007
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...*Hides copy of Devil May Cry soundtrack*

Uh...I actually liked the music, though repetitive. The cutscenes were humorous. I enjoyed letting the opening trailer play when I first got the game while I fiddled around looking for fresh batteries...it made my jaws drop several times and did a good job of getting me pumped up for aforementioned mindless killing. The gameplay gets too repetitive though, and I stopped on the third difficulty about halfway through (son of sparta or something?)

Oh, and D, I'd rather play DMC than Dynasty Warriors personally. I never got into the Dynasty series.
 

xitel

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Aug 13, 2008
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I love the DMC series, and I didn't even mind the flaws in the camera, but I will say that I hated the story. It made NO sense, and didn't continue the franchise's over-arching story. Although I will say the Lucifer Devil Arm was my favorite weapon ever.
 

kommando367

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Oct 9, 2008
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i thought the game was pretty fun, the difficulty wasn't that bad, but then again i'm a hardcore gamer, i've played all 4 of the DMC games so the combat wasn't hard to get used to, i liked the music it went well with the game,i don't watch the cutscenes except the 2 before the beal and dagon bossfights,so they didn't really bother me,DMC 3 is my favorite game in the series and this one would have been if i didn't have to refight 3 of the bosses, speaking of witch the CHAPTER 19 savior bossfight was very confusing at first,i like the dice game becuase it was based on how fast ones reflexes are, an ability witch i excell at,the devil bringer was pretty intuitive (easpecialy when smashing berial's face in to the ground) but aside from that my favorite melee weapon:gilgamesh and my favorite gun:pandora, in closing i'd give it a 6/10
 

jboking

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Oct 10, 2008
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Unholykrumpet said:
...*Hides copy of Devil May Cry soundtrack*

Uh...I actually liked the music, though repetitive. The cutscenes were humorous. I enjoyed letting the opening trailer play when I first got the game while I fiddled around looking for fresh batteries...it made my jaws drop several times and did a good job of getting me pumped up for aforementioned mindless killing. The gameplay gets too repetitive though, and I stopped on the third difficulty about halfway through (son of sparta or something?)

Oh, and D, I'd rather play DMC than Dynasty Warriors personally. I never got into the Dynasty series.
Same, Oddly I beat DMC3 on Heaven or Hell, but can't bring myself to keep playing this one. I have to admit compaired to DMC3 it's a huge let down. I loved the other DMC's because of the number of weapons, but in DMC4 I only got 3 new ones (only 1 of which was any good). I was used to the stylish, Difficult gameplay of Dante and I get a swift one to the crotch with this cheap newcomer, Nero.

I am ranting now so I'll say that it was a fairly good review though I disagree with some points. Structure and flow could use some work. To fix flow work on transitions and say the review out loud to yourself or others, it helps alot.
 

jboking

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Oct 10, 2008
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Anyone else think Gilgamesh in DMC4 was just a giant rip-off of Beowulf in DMC3?
 

kommando367

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jboking said:
Anyone else think Gilgamesh in DMC4 was just a giant rip-off of Beowulf in DMC3?
of course it is and beowolf is a ripoff of Ifrit from DMC1 the thing is is that capcom knows how to make a character wield a gauntlet weapon intuitively and therefore no DMC game is complete without one
 

chromewarriorXIII

The One with the Cake
Oct 17, 2008
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I played DMC 3 & 1 and loved both of them. Maybe now I'll rent 4 instead of completely avoiding it. I still hate Nero though.
 

jboking

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kommando367 said:
jboking said:
Anyone else think Gilgamesh in DMC4 was just a giant rip-off of Beowulf in DMC3?
of course it is and beowolf is a ripoff of Ifrit from DMC1 the thing is is that capcom knows how to make a character wield a gauntlet weapon intuitively and therefore no DMC game is complete without one
I suppose. Though I find that the gauntlet weapons always end up my least used type...well second least, I never freaking used Nevan.
 

amendele

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Aug 25, 2008
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xitel said:
I love the DMC series, and I didn't even mind the flaws in the camera, but I will say that I hated the story. It made NO sense, and didn't continue the franchise's over-arching story. Although I will say the Lucifer Devil Arm was my favorite weapon ever.
Well, from what I've heard, the development team is trying hard to pretend that DMC2 never happened. The story chronologically goes in the order of 3-1-4-2. Then again, the only other title in the series I've played was #3, so I don't care about the story as much.

As for the writing complaints: I know. I'm usually better than this, but my computer has a tendency to randomly lock up or even BSOD right now. So I rushed it before the computer gods can screw me over. But that's a topic for another time.
 

Fruhstuck

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Jul 29, 2008
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I loved the game, however, i'm a combat junkie and anime fan
Simple mechanics for maximum carnage + big swords + "cool people" + Tits = a fun game for me
 

Duck Sandwich

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Dec 13, 2007
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I liked how Nero's sword moves included an air dash attack and a defensive "dash backwards to evade attacks, then dash forward to counterattack" move. Really useful against the gold knights that use that dash attack. His fighting style was pretty much Dante's Swordmaster + Big ass arm. It's so fun to watch him own the shit out of the boss on Mission 11 with it.

However, I do like Dante better, because his attacks are faster and more powerful. He's much better for taking out large crowds from a distance. He can use either the big ass laser, the Rebellion's shockwaves, or the Pandora form that shoots an assload of homing missiles. Bam. Style meter goes to Smokin' Sick Style in no time, especially on Legendary Dark Knight (PC exclusive) mode where enemies come in waves of 20 or so. On the other hand, Nero has to use Devil Trigger energy to use his Maximum Bet move.

Also, Dante has a shotgun.
 

Vlane

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Sep 14, 2008
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Nice review.

I am a big fan of the DMC series (3 is still my favorite) and 4 was a bit of a let down.

I expected something better. Ok the combat is good and you can throw roses with Dante which explode (most awesome weapon in the game by the way) but the level design is horrible. Those board game parts are pointless and the fact that you have to backtrack makes the game a bit boring.

Oh and I still wonder if Nero is like the rebirthed Vergil (because of Yamato).
 

CmdrGoob

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Oct 5, 2008
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I liked the game. It's one of those games that isn't great but is fun (aside from some pointless platforming and that dice game). Definitely worth getting now it's probably cheap.

I liked using Nero better than Dante, the devil snatch is great and devil busters can do awesome things to bosses. Plus the blue rose charged shot level 3 is awesome - switch the shoot key to the shoulder pad and you can hold it down and charge it while fighting, and then just release it when you want to fire off the powerful blast - it's great for interrupting enemy attacks.

Get it for the PC, if you can, turbo mode really kicks the game up a notch in terms of intensity, and legendary dark knight difficulty is hilarious, and those are both PC exclusive.
 

The Shade of Time

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Nov 22, 2008
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I think they kinda went the wrong way with the series

DMC3 was the best and they should have gone on like that but no completely the opposite way

4 was a big let down for me i had fun with it but i didnt really like the story