Many people were shocked a few years ago when Capcom announced they were handing the Devil May Cry licence over to Ninja Theory for the next instalment. Ninja Theory are the british developers responsible for the beautiful if slightly flawed Heavenly Sword on the PS3, and the criminally overlooked masterpiece Enslaved: Odyssey To The West. The internet then seemingly exploded with fan boy rage when a few images of the new look Dante surfaced, no white hair, younger look ect. When more details began to emerge about it being a prequel to the original game which would give you more background on some of the main characters of the series the hatred began to subside. Capcom have worked very closely with Team Ninja to make sure the core gameplay mechanics remained and they didn’t stray too far from the path.

So I’ve finally got my hands on Team Ninja’s re-imagining of the series and I have to say I’m shocked. Not by what they’ve done to a franchise beloved around the world, but by what a fine job they have done. For those of you new to the series you play as Dante, a demon hunter in a hack and slash style game akin to games such as Bayonetta and God of War. As you progress through the game you’ll also unlock new weapons, which can be switched on the fly using the D-pad or left & right triggers to mix up your combat. Speaking of combat, this is where the die hard fan boys will be worried, don’t be! This is some of the most fun, stylish combat I’ve seen in a Devil May Cry game. The sheer amount of abilities and weaponry you get to play around with almost lets you perform limitless combos. Sure it can get a bit confusing at times remembering all the move sets and things you’re able to do in the heat of battle, but this always makes me think after an encounter “I wonder if I could of done that better” or “Why didn’t I remember to use that move?”

Every time you slay a demon you’ll pick up what’s known as ‘Soul points’ which can then be spent on various items at shrines posted throughout the levels. Also after every battle encounter you’ll be rated via ‘Style points’ which can be spent on move upgrades for the multitude of weapons you will pick up throughout the game. Aside from the combat in the game some levels are broken up by little platforming sections which you will traverse using some of your unlocked powers. Not being a platform game fan myself I was a bit worried that I would find this aspect of the game annoying. Thankfully though I didn’t, and found it a nice addition to break up the hectic combat which seemingly tries it’s hardest to give you carpal tunnel at times. Overall the game is far more user friendly than the previous games in the series, but at the same time offers up 7 difficulty levels which should please the hardcore fans.

I found the presentation of the game to be absolutely fantastic, which wasn’t a surprise to me considering the developers previous work. The story cut scenes were very well done utilising motion capture to give the characters a realistic and movie like feel. This even extends to some of the bosses you’ll face along your journey, although not human the voice over work is still just as impressive. These boss encounters were also a highly enjoyable part of the game and seemed integral to the storyline, rather than just chucking bosses at you for the sake of it. Overall i thoroughly enjoyed almost every part of the game, the levels seemed varied and the gameplay was old school Devil May Cry. Sure there were a few moments where i found myself sighing after plunging to my death or accidentally using the wrong type of weapon on a certain enemy, but i always felt this was more my fault than the game being unfair.

I would also like to point out that once you finish the game, you are able to go back and replay old levels to improve your ratings, or to just access certain areas you may not have been able to access the first time round. All the while keeping your upgrades from your previous playthrough. There is a fair amount of concept art for you to also unlock by killing certain enemies ‘X’ amount of times, So there’s quite a bit of replay value in there too. Plus you will need to replay old levels in order to completely upgrade Dante.

For me this is a great re-boot of the series, which i think was drastically needed after my time with Devil May Cry 4. Add to that gorgeous visuals, plus an actual storyline that you can comprehend, whilst keeping the combat true to its roots and in my opinion you have the first must have game of 2013.

Overall 9/10

Written by Darren / Sensei Sw1tch