Devil May Cry 4

"Just kill the fiends and stop asking why"

As the first installment of the popular Devil May Cry series on PS3, this game is a disappointment. It still preserves the familiar characters from the previous episodes and the same battle system. However, this game is better if you focusing more on the killing than its story.

This review is separated into five sections:
Gameplay
Story
Graphic and sound
Replayability and play time
Conclusion

Gameplay (4/10)

Like the previous Devil May Cry games, you have to kill foes and bosses while completing the assigned missions. No matter which combo you use, your main objective is to kill anything that stands in front of you throughout the game.

During the fight, you can choose to use your sword for close combat, gun for long range, or special attacks that could change the tide of the battle. As you progress on, you'll gain currency to obtain new combos and abilities, though it's not necessary to get them all to defeat the game.

It's fun to slash the enemies to death for a while, but it'll become boring afterwards. It's the same enemies for the whole game, except that they are smarter and stronger later on. Additionally, there are times when it's both frustrating and annoying to complete a mission. Some missions are boring and aren't entertaining at all. Also, the game doesn't exactly give you a clue of how to complete it. Unless you are familiar with the map and gameplay, you'll find yourself running back and forth the whole map and still can't get out.

Story (1/10)

In Devil May Cry 4, the game focuses on a new character named Nero. Old characters, like Dante, still exist in this game, but they play smaller roles in the story, comparing to Nero's.

In the beginning, Nero confronted a mysterious assassin who killed the high priest of a cult. He was then assigned to pursuit the assassin. During his pursuit, he began to stumble upon the true motive of the cult.

The overall storyline is quite obvious and surprisingly predictable, especially to those who are familiar with Dante. It offers no major plot twist to intensify the story; it's completely straight forward. From the first mission, where Dante made his appearance, the whole story is completely revealed. We already know who are the bad guys; we just don't know their true motive, which isn't surprising after it's revealed.

Also, the storyline is almost incomplete. For example, the true identity of the new main character Nero remains a mystery. It never revealed much about him, even at the end of the game. We may be expecting another sequel, but Devil May Cry 4 left the gamers hanging.

Graphic and sound (7/10)

The graphic is quite remarkable. Every cutscenes have good quality. Even the battle graphic is a sight to behold. Overall, the graphic is so great that you have to see for yourself.

Some songs are annoying and repetitive, like the battle music, especially at times of your frustration. Other than these, the music is something that you don't need to have. It wouldn't make a major difference to the gaming experience with or without them.

Replayability and play time (5/10)

The replayability for Devil May Cry 4 is medium. You can choose a mission that you have completed in the past. That means you can replay the game and skip the irritating missions. But you'll end up playing your other games after beating the game a few times, because the whole Devil May Cry 4 is the same thing over and over again.

It may take a long time to defeat the whole game, depending how fast you can finish each battle, since this game is mainly composed of fighting. Without completing the optional missions, it can take more than a week to defeat the game, due to the confusing objectives.

Conclusion

It's recommended for you to simply rent the game. The game's attention-grabbing point is only at the beginning; the later part is where you'll grow tired of this game. This game is definitely not worth the buy. Unless you are not interested in other games, Devil May Cry 4 should not be your primary choice.

Overall score: 4.25/10

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 08/18/08

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