Devil May Cry 4

"No crying here, give the Devil his due."

First off, I'd like to say I'm a huge fan of the Devil May Cry series. I've played through each game in the series many times. I'm assuming if your reading this review, you have already played the Devil May Cry series.

Game-play 8/10

The standard DMC fare. The series has always had fantastic game-play, and that doesn't change here. But nothing really innovative, this time around. You control two different characters (Nero and Dante), who each have different ways to defeat there enemies.

Dante plays much like his DMC3 counterpart, whereas Nero is a little different. Both characters carry there own guns, so you'll never be without some long-range firepower. Nero utilizes the "Devil Arm" which is much like a grappling hook (if you ever played the Metroid or Zelda series, you'll know what I mean). Also, Nero's sword has the ability to "Rev Up". What this does is basically power up the sword when you attack and makes combos easier to string to together and be all-around more powerful.

One knock on the this game is that it is a little rehashed. There is a lot of backtracking, which really cuts the creativity level down a notch. You have twenty-plus missions, but only really only ten-something unique stages.

Sound 10/10

Honestly, who doesn't love the sound in the game? There isn't one annoying thing about the music or the sound effects. Some games will have music that will grate on your nerves, and sound effects the get repetitive and dull.

Well, this game wins on the sound stage. The background music in this game is a dose of heavy metal, which fits in right with the atmosphere of kicking ass. The sound effects are sharp as the sword you swing, and the voice work is actually decent (not incredible, but satisfying).

Control 9/10

No problems here. At least for the most part. The PS3 controller allows fluid action within the game, so there isn't many issues here. You can pretty much hack and slash (as well as blast...but thats not a fun, eh?) with ease, but not always. Stringing together combos can be difficult early on, but gets almost too easy with enough practice. Camera angles can be controlled, to a degree. On a side note, I'd probably the rate camera in this game about a 7, but thats not really a control issue.

Replay Value 10/10

I happen to believe the DMC series has one of the best replay values of all time. This game follows suit. Not only due you have two characters to master, but special modes of play as well. Dante Must Die difficulty, Heaven or Hell mode, and Devil Hunter mode all add a lo more flavor to the game.

The best part is probably the Bloody Palace. Basically, its free-reign on enemies. Bored and just want to annihilate poor, defenseless baddies? Pop in DMC4 and play the Bloody Palace. You will face groups of enemies in which you annihilate and move on to other groups. It almost never ends and gets harder and harder as you play. Definitely a great way to practice your skills or get rid of blood lust.

Overall 9/10

Excellent game. Not groundbreaking, but you won't be disappointed if you love the kind of mayhem the Devil May Cry series brings. I didn't rate the story because opinions vary on taste. Personally, I enjoyed the story as much the first three (yes, I even liked DMC2). Although I'm not a huge fan of Nero, I throughly enjoyed his part in the story with Dante.

If you love the DMC series, this should be a pickup. As overall action game, it should considered one the PS3 greats.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 02/08/08

Game Release: Devil May Cry 4 (US, 02/05/08)