Overview
Named after Florentine poet Dante Alighieri, the protagonist of Capcom’s Devil May Cry series is not one for calm negotiations. Being descended from legendary demon Sparda, the mission entrusted to him is to finish his father’s work and destroy the ultimate evil, Mundus. In stopping the rise of Hell once again Dante is on a mission of revenge against the death of his mother.
Of course, with such power and versatility comes a personality to match the body. Dante is known to have a large ego and a penchant for insults to his foes. Being aggressive and competitive is of his nature, not to mention a bit of a womanizer. Yet his connection with his mother is a strong one, propelling him to hunt the demons that killed her. After all, by killing every demon, it figures that he'll eventually end up killing the one that killed his mother.
Appearances
The chronological order for the Devil May Cry series: DMC3, DMC, DMC4, DMC2. Dante also reprised his roles in the Devil May Cry HD Collection. A reimagined Dante also appears in DmC Devil May Cry.
Devil May Cry
Dante is hired by a woman named Trish, to stop the demon king Mundus. She is actually setting up events to get Dante killed though. Mundus has control of Dante's brother, Vergil, and tries to use him to destroy Dante. Trish betrays Mundus to save Dante and they both work together to lock Mundus in the Demon World.
Devil May Cry 2
Dante is approached by a woman named Lucia, who needs help in defeating Arius, a man who uses demonic power and is trying to conquer the world. Arius completes the ritual to open the portal between worlds and summon the demon Argosax. Dante must travel to the Demon World to stop it from escaping into the human world. As Dante defeats Argosax, the portal closes trapping him in the Demon World. With the portal closed, Dante travels further into the demon world looking for a way out.
Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening
Dante facing off against his twin brother, Vergil.A young and cocky Dante is pulled into a struggle with his twin brother, Vergil, who is trying to reopen the portal to the demon world and obtain the powers of their father, Sparda. Dante tries to stop Vergil and Arkham, a human-turned-demon, but is defeated long enough for Vergil obtain the half of their mother's amulet that Dante carries. The amulet is a key to opening the portal between the worlds. As he pursues them, he meets up with Lady, the daughter of Arkham, who is trying to avenge her mother. In the end, Dante is able to stop Vergil, leaving him in the demon world. Inspired by Lady's commitment to what she believes in, Dante continues hunting demons, opening up a business named Devil May Cry.
Devil May Cry 4
Dante with his brother's sword, Yamato, and Trish.Dante travels to Fortuna and tries to assassinate the High Priest of the Order of the Sword, Sanctus. Unknown to everyone but Dante, Sanctus is trying to bring a demon named Savior to life. Dante ends up fighting against the Order and a man named Nero. Looking for his brother's sword, Yamato, Dante is shocked that it has ended up in the possession of Nero. He lets the younger man keep the sword. It isn't long before Sanctus reveals that he needs the blood of Sparda to awaken Savior. Dante was who he intended to use, but takes Nero instead, claiming he is also a descendant of Sparda. Yamato is used to open the Hellgate and release demons into the city. Dante fights his way back into Fortuna, reclaiming Yamato and destroying the Hellgate before facing Sanctus and Savior. With the help of Nero, Dante is able to defeat both.
Voice Actors
Dante is voiced by multiple people in the games he appears in, although the role seems to have been cemented by Reuben Langdon. The voice actor of the alternate Dante created by Ninja Theory for DmC (See DmC Dante below) is unknown.
Drew Coombs - Devil May Cry
Matthew Kaminsky - Devil May Cry 2
Reuben Langdon - Devil May Cry 3, Devil May Cry 4, Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3.
Tim Phillipps - DMC Devil May Cry
Other Appearances
Aside from his role in the Devil May Cry series, Dante has made appearances in Viewtiful Joe and Viewtiful Joe: Red Hot Rumble. He also makes a special appearance in Atlus's Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne as a boss towards the beginning of the game and as an optional boss in an optional dungeon called the Labyrinth of Amala. In the Third Kalpa of the labyrinth, he plays a game of tag with the Demi-Fiend and pursues him throughout the kalpa's corridors. If the player advances to the Fifth Kalpa, he can also be recruited to join the player's party. The cost to recruit Dante is determined by a coin toss that the player must guess. If the player guesses the toss correctly, Dante will join the party at the cost of a single macca. If the player guesses incorrectly, the player will be required to pay half of their total macca.
Dante is a playable character in Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, along with fellow Devil May Cry character Trish. Dante and Trish are joined by Vergil in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Dante's move-set primarily consists of DMC3 weapons and abilities with DMC1 Devil Trigger abilities when using the Alastor sword.
Dante and other DMC characters will be playable in the Capcom/Namco/Sega crossover, Project X Zone.
Weapons and Abilities
To have devil blood flowing through one’s veins is to be blessed with heightened power, endurance and special abilities. Dante has been seen toying with launched rockets acrobatically, reacting nonchalantly to being shot in the head and mouth and suffer gaping blade wounds in the abdomen only to rise through and out of the sword (loosing an incredible amount of blood), instantly regenerating organs, skin and blood and walk away without a second thought.
Dante is never seen without his trademark handguns Ebony and Ivory and his been known to use a wide variety of Devil Arms (read: the soul of a demon turned into a weapon) which include the three swords that himself and Vergil inherited from Sparda, the Force Edge (later becoming the Sparda Sword), the Rebellion and the Yamato.
Devil Arms Dante has acquired himself include the Alastor, Gilgamesh, Ifrit, Agni and Rudra and Cerberus. While he uses these as he gains them he usually retires them on his shop wall and goes back to the Rebellion while Trish uses the Sparda sword.
Transformations/Enhancements
Devil Trigger
The Devil Trigger transformation allows Dante to use the dormant demonic powers within him. This increases his natural power even further beyond that of a normal human and gives him access to new abilities such as flight through growing a pair of wings. Dante's physical appearance in this form varies from game to game. His Devil Trigger form as seen in Devil May Cry 3 and Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is a special design by Kazuma Kaneko, a character and demon artist at Atlus renown for his demon designs in the Megami Tensei franchise. Kaneko provided the design in exchange for Capcom allowing Atlus to use Dante in Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne.
Sparda Trigger
By using the Sparda sword Dante can access the form and power of his father, putting him on the level of the most powerful demons such as Mundus. Characterized by a red aura surrounding him, his senses become even more effective and his equipment can also gain special uses.
In Devil May Cry 2, Dante uses a similar form once enough damage has been taken from enemies Dante, transforming into a form hailing from his father’s side, though the Sparda Sword is not present and this ability is not seen again.
Alternate Versions
DmC Dante
Dante as depicted in DmC Devil May CryDmC Devil May Cry is a reboot of the series which takes place in an alternate universe. It also features a reimagined version of Dante. This Dante is around the same age as his DMC3 counterpart but has a more western influenced look and black hair. DmC Dante still makes use of his classic weapons; Ebony and Ivory, and Rebellion.
Appearances
DmC Devil May Cry
Dante is contacted by the psychic Kat who takes him to meet Vergil. Vergil is the leader of an organization called The Order who fights to free mankind of the unbeknownst enslavement and brainwashing by the demons. Dante works together with Vergil and Kat to defeat the Demon Lord Mundus.
Log in to comment