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Review: Devil May Cry 4 Special Edition

Much like a wooden club gives away the caveman dressed in a tuxedo, Devil May Cry 4 Special Edition can’t hide its Neolithic origins despite the fresh coat of paint and a wardrobe full of new features and playable characters. The fluent, deep combat engine is still as tasty as ever but if, like me, you come to Devil May Cry 4 without a sentimentality for the 2008 original, I’m afraid you could find the myriad poor design decisions difficult to digest.

This review will focus on the first-time experience Devil May Cry 4 Special Edition offers, so let’s get out of the way the core details for those experienced with the series. There are three new playable characters with significantly different play styles and move sets, a new super difficulty mode that floods the screen with enemies and of course, beautiful 1080p high resolution textures and improvements to lighting and effects.

As an ultimate edition of the game that is about all you could ask for, though forcing players to unlock all levels of the game with all three “sets” of characters (the original Nero/Dante combination plus bonus characters Vergil and Lady/Trish) plus on a per difficulty basis seems an unfortunate oversight. If you loved Devil May Cry 4 there is no reason not to jump on board here, this is the definitive version of the game and if you really don’t like the changes made there is even an option to play the game in its original form. You don’t need to keep reading me pick apart your beloved game, just go and enjoy it.

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First let me reiterate that the brawling part of this action brawler is sensational. Once mastered combat becomes a fluid dance that rewards timing, understanding and mastery of your characters move set. Dante, Nero and the newcomers all play differently enough that you must adjust your style and learn all over again with each of them, and DMC4 offers a punishing experience on any difficulty level above the basic “Human” which feels like a training mode in comparison. If you enjoyed Bayonetta or God of War then you owe it to yourself to experience Devil May Cry 4, even with all of the baggage it brings along.

That baggage, it is heavy and cumbersome. I did not enjoy one moment of the non-combat, non-cutscene aspects of Devil May Cry 4. That includes traversal, platforming, puzzle solving and the tedious staple of the genre that you must destroy any and all scenery to be rewarded with in game currency. The platforming is the worst offender, hindered by an inconsistent camera that can’t decide whether to be locked in or free roaming, often making the decision to lock in place at the exact moment you wish you could swing it around. The puzzle solving is laughable, often requiring you to backtrack through levels just to punch a switch or collect an item, too often inclined to punish failure with a tedious combat section before giving you the chance to try again. The few times Devil May Cry 4 is clever or interesting in its platforming and puzzle elements it is all over in a flash, and that it is what stands between you and enjoying more beautiful combat makes it all the more frustrating.

Traversal deserves special mention because of how much you will be doing of it. Devil May Cry 4 loves to take you back from whence you came, either to go and walk through a previously locked door or more egregiously to have you trek through entire stages (and bosses!) again as Dante for the whole second half of the game. The reused level assets I can deal with, playing as Dante is a unique experience that significantly changes the core of the game even if it doesn’t change the scenery (and he is far more entertaining than Nero as a character) but the running around required in any level feels like pointless busy work designed to pad things out. Maybe I’ve been spoiled by Bayonetta but every part of Devil May Cry 4 that wasn’t fighting, I just wanted to be over. Soon I was cursing everything in my way of fighting, the standard procedure of run a few steps into a new room, pause for pointless cutscene showing a red magical barrier appearing over the exit, then start fighting became a real bore.

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I have to admit I enjoyed the cutscenes even if I found much of the story of Devil May Cry 4 completely incomprehensible. All the genre clichés are ticked, gratuitous T&A, angels and demons, betrayals, a damsel in distress and a wisecracking “too cool for school” main character all appear. The action is well directed and completely over the top but as soon as somebody other than Dante starts talking you will be forgiven for just tuning out. Level design never reaches any great heights, hitting the standard spooky castle, dense forest, graveyards, over-elaborate torture chambers and massive stone bridges. It can look lovely, even in 2015, but it is hardly inspirational.

If you can deal with the sheer tedium in between the moments of combat euphoria, Devil May Cry 4 Special Edition is a worthwhile purchase. If you get deep enough into the game I doubt you will even notice the parts in between combat, but I couldn’t look past them. There are far better places for newcomers to the genre to dip their toes: Bayonetta, God of War, even the Ninja Theory’s 2013 reboot DmC: Devil May Cry which was remastered earlier this year for PS4 and Xbox One. Devil May Cry 4 is a classic, but it is also a relic of an age we have moved beyond.

Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition was reviewed using a download code on Xbox One, as provided by the publisher.

Review: Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition
6 out of 10

The good

  • Still some of the best combat in gaming.
  • The definitive version of Devil May Cry 4.
  • A huge amount of extras for fans including three new playable characters.

The bad

  • Everything that isn’t a ridiculous cutscene or combat.
  • Heavy recycling of content.

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About the author

Stuart Gollan

From Amiga to Xbox One, Doom to Destiny, Megazone to Stevivor, I've been gaming through it all and have the (mental) scars to prove it. I love local multiplayer, collecting ridiculous Dreamcast peripherals, and Rocket League.