Kaffee
02-02-2005, 07:16 PM
Devil May Cry 3
Platform: PS2
Publisher: Capcom Developer: Capcom
ESRB Rating: N/A Genre: Action
by Matt Leone
01/31/2005
In Devil May Cry 3's opening cinema, a scene rolls showing white-haired, blue-jacketed Vergil in a dramatic rooftop battle with white-haired, red-jacketed Dante. It's dramatically presented and shows the fighters move around in slow motion, with rain falling all around and style oozing from every raindrop. The two go back and forth a bit, and as the scene ends, Dante falls to the ground as if he has lost, his fingers barely twitching on the floor.
When you actually dig into the game, you learn that battle actually takes place during the seventh mission, so the first seven levels (and the part of the game we were able to sample for this preview) lead up to that point. After a few training levels up front, the game has Dante climbing a tower through multiple levels -- the end goal being, of course, that there's a dramatic battle at the top of the tower.
As you make your way through the tower, you'll come across various puzzles and rooms to do battle in. In one mission, you come across three paths and each one leads to a different feat. As the game tells you, the best players will complete all three, so if you're up for it, you can avoid spikes, fight for your life and get into all kinds of trouble for fun on the way to the top of the tower.
The hand-to-hand-to-gun-to-sword combat is once again present and well implemented. If you've followed earlier coverage of the game, you'll be aware of the different fighting styles you can pick, and they all seem to work very well in motion. Unlike Ninja Gaiden, which has a similarly fluid and impressive combat system with lots of aerial attacks, there's no built in auto-lock-on here, so players looking to focus on one enemy at a time can choose that enemy at will by holding the R1 button.
We presume that after level seven, the game's action will start to ramp up more severely. After all, at that point, Dante acquires his demon form seen in the previous DMC games. Given that DMC 3 is a prequel, this story details how he got his demon form in the first place.
Capcom is quick to point out that Devil May Cry 3 "will not be another Devil May Cry 2." To hear Capcom describe it, the reason why lies somewhere between "the game is more difficult" and "the game is more exciting," and on both those counts, DMC 3 seems to be hitting the mark. It's too early to give an overall judgement on the game, as it feels like we've only just gotten started with the first seven levels, but we're excited to see where the story and gameplay go through the remaining thirteen.
And hey, if all that doesn't convince you of the game's more exciting approach, just wait until the release and check out the introductory cinematic that runs before the first level. It's a zoo of wackiness that includes Dante obsessively fighting over a pizza and being sarcastic all the way through. We'll be back with more on Devil May Cry 3 soon.
Platform: PS2
Publisher: Capcom Developer: Capcom
ESRB Rating: N/A Genre: Action
by Matt Leone
01/31/2005
In Devil May Cry 3's opening cinema, a scene rolls showing white-haired, blue-jacketed Vergil in a dramatic rooftop battle with white-haired, red-jacketed Dante. It's dramatically presented and shows the fighters move around in slow motion, with rain falling all around and style oozing from every raindrop. The two go back and forth a bit, and as the scene ends, Dante falls to the ground as if he has lost, his fingers barely twitching on the floor.
When you actually dig into the game, you learn that battle actually takes place during the seventh mission, so the first seven levels (and the part of the game we were able to sample for this preview) lead up to that point. After a few training levels up front, the game has Dante climbing a tower through multiple levels -- the end goal being, of course, that there's a dramatic battle at the top of the tower.
As you make your way through the tower, you'll come across various puzzles and rooms to do battle in. In one mission, you come across three paths and each one leads to a different feat. As the game tells you, the best players will complete all three, so if you're up for it, you can avoid spikes, fight for your life and get into all kinds of trouble for fun on the way to the top of the tower.
The hand-to-hand-to-gun-to-sword combat is once again present and well implemented. If you've followed earlier coverage of the game, you'll be aware of the different fighting styles you can pick, and they all seem to work very well in motion. Unlike Ninja Gaiden, which has a similarly fluid and impressive combat system with lots of aerial attacks, there's no built in auto-lock-on here, so players looking to focus on one enemy at a time can choose that enemy at will by holding the R1 button.
We presume that after level seven, the game's action will start to ramp up more severely. After all, at that point, Dante acquires his demon form seen in the previous DMC games. Given that DMC 3 is a prequel, this story details how he got his demon form in the first place.
Capcom is quick to point out that Devil May Cry 3 "will not be another Devil May Cry 2." To hear Capcom describe it, the reason why lies somewhere between "the game is more difficult" and "the game is more exciting," and on both those counts, DMC 3 seems to be hitting the mark. It's too early to give an overall judgement on the game, as it feels like we've only just gotten started with the first seven levels, but we're excited to see where the story and gameplay go through the remaining thirteen.
And hey, if all that doesn't convince you of the game's more exciting approach, just wait until the release and check out the introductory cinematic that runs before the first level. It's a zoo of wackiness that includes Dante obsessively fighting over a pizza and being sarcastic all the way through. We'll be back with more on Devil May Cry 3 soon.