Saturday 19 May 2012

DMC Vs. Devil May Cry


Ninja Theory, Ltd. The company responsible for development of the ‘re-imagining’ or ‘reboot’ of the Devil May Cry series or as Ninja Theory has now dubbed it DMC. The first announcement of the games development was in 2010 at the Tokyo Games Show as their fourth game. The Devil May Cry series began in 2001 and the first stumble began with Devil May Cry 4 when the original protagonist (Dante) was shunted into the background by new-comer Nero. After 4 installments of the DMC series it has been sent back to basics in DMC 5, the origins story of Dante to be released in late 2012 published by Capcom. The original trilogy as well as the fourth installment to the series had Dante in his original iconic demon slaying attire, white haired, wearing a blazing red coat with his brilliant overly cocky personality that half the time leaves the player laughing at his quick one liners.


Dante happily kicking a demon in the face
The combat style for each of the titles of the Devil May Cry series have stayed pretty much the same throughout with only a few exceptions to each new installment for example the transition from DMC3 to DMC4 with the introduction of Nero’s devil arm. Each game has been mainly supported on the its stylish combat using long sweeping sword strokes as well as different weapons including nunchucks dubbed ‘Cerberus’ in the series and scimitars dubbed ‘Agni & Rudra’ as well as many other weapons. Gun play also plays a large role in the combat as the character can keep an enemy aloft by using their bodies as bullet cushions. The game could be said to be a generic hack and slash game and players could easily complete the game with mindless button mashing but the main idea is to rack up combo’s and stylishly tear apart enemies. In DMC3 new types of combat was introduced to make the fighting even more exciting in the form of role types that the character could adorn. These included the ‘Trickster’ ability which is used for dodging enemies attacks and agility; the ‘Swordmaster’ ability which adds extra abilities to melee weapons; the ‘Gunslinger’ ability which adds to firearms; the ‘Royal Guard’ ability which helps the character defend oneself; the ‘Quicksilver’ ability which reduces enemies speed giving the character more of a chance to slash enemies to piece’s; and lastly the ‘Doppelganger’ ability which allows the player to have a shadow double of himself to fight alongside Dante.

To begin with lets talk about the original trilogy that was released soley on the PS2 up until recently when the DMC series received its much deserved HD remaster. DMC 1 was developed and published by the by Capcom the multi-million Japanese company that released the Resident Evil series, Dead Rising, Lost Planet as well as many others. The story has Dante as the main protagonist and centre character, Dante himself is a half-demon, half-human warrior who hunts and kills demons in pursuit of those who murdered his mother. As the game begins he is attacked by Trish (main female protagonist) in his office and after he swiftly dismisses any sign of her winning she tells him that it was a test and that she has word of the Demon Emperor Mundus’ return. Mundus is the man/demon who Dante blames for the death of his mother and so he sets forth to confront Mundus.

The second game in the series, DMC 2 was released in 2003 after the huge success of DMC 1 and received mixed reviews due to many differences of the previous title, the main issue with the game was the excessively reduced difficulty. The game begins with Dante and new female protagonist Lucia entering a museum, each through separate ‘entrances’. Lucia is attacked by a horde of demons within the museum which as subsequently dispatched by Dante who is then invited to Dumary Island and is entrusted with the task of confronting Arius, a businessman with demonic power who wishes to conquer the world.

Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening was released in 2005 for the PS2 and was based as a prequel to the very first DMC title. The game itself is set in modern times with a younger Dante being the main protagonist yet again and is centred on the the seemingly endless battle between him and his twin brother Vergil who is the main antagoist along with the mysterious man named Arkham. The first battle between Dante and Vergil results in Vergil walking away victorious but unknown to him awakens the demonic power within Dante. This game was highly praised in reviews as it far surpassed its predecessor in gameplay as well as other aspects.

Devil May Cry 4 was the first game to show Dante in a more dimmed light and bringing new comer Nero as the protagonist of this title.DMC4 was also the very first title to be produced for the  Dante is still a large part of the game and is still a playable character for half of the game. The arrival of Nero to the video game series brings a new technique of fighting style using the power of his demon arm to grab, lift and toss enemies across the battle field other than this new fighting technique the combat is the exact same as previous titles. The game opens with Nero making a dash along city streets hacking apart demons along the way to what seems like a church praising the demon lord Sparda (father of Dante). Upon his arrival the high priest is murdered by none other than Dante himself looking much older than he did in previous games. Nero challenges Dante and and in the ensuing fight Nero reveals his demonic arms powers in an attempt to defeat Dante. Eventually Nero manages to subdue Dante but is shocked by Dante’s immediate recovery. Before Dante disappears he informs Nero that the guards of the church are in fact demons themselves and this leads Nero on his journey to find out what caused the events. The story of this game follows Nero hunting down the leaders of the church to find out the truth of their treachery and to ultimately save the woman he loves (Kyrie) who has been caught between Nero and the demonic cult. Devil May Cry 4 got an overall great response upon its release due to its fluid battle system and slick design.

New Dante is the new Reaper!
And finally the upcoming release in 2012 of DMC 5 the prequel to the entire series which completely throws the character design of Dante on its head. Dante has still got every part of his old attitude and is still incredibly cocky and still enjoys his awesome one liners from what is seen in the trailers thus far the only real difference being that his traditional white hair has been changed to black and his overall style has been changed to something that resembles an emo kid. Well, more like an emo kid gone completely badass. This story takes place in Limbo City where Dante is a fugitive on the run from both demons and government officials alike. The ‘Public Enemy’ trailer  seems to suggest that the government are hunting Dante as a terrorist and the demons hunt him due to the fact he is the son of Sparda, the demon warrior who imprisoned the strongest of the demons within their own realm. In this trailer Dante is  seen hacking enemies apart in the similar fashion to the previous games the difference being that Dante’s movements seem much more swift and fluid, air bourne combo attacks have also been added to the title and the when the player is attacked it is said that it will hold true to the same ideal that the environment will close around him into some sort of arena.
The new installment to the series has so far seen only negative responses where as I myself am more than excited to see what Ninja Theory can do with such an outstanding game franchise. Negativity towards this title has went to the excess of the lead producer personally receiving death threats due to the changes to the series. These changes may very well be for the better as a new reboot of the franchise is most definitely necessary to bring a new generation the marvel that is Devil May Cry!

If you don't believe me see for yourself with the most recent trailer Ninja Theory has to offer!