Ultraviolence
Even as a hardened veteran of the excellent Devil May Cry and the not-so brilliant Devil May Cry 2, Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening is shockingly difficult from the get-go. It's not often that the first level of a video game does its very best to smash you into the dirt, and Devil May Cry 3 is no exception. From the start we are straight into it, no beating around the bush. Scythe wielding baddies slash at you from nearly every possible angle with very little breathing space. The ultra-cool hero of the first two games, Dante, is back again in the form of a prequel to the first game.
Quick preamble: Dante is the half-breed son of the Legendary Dark Knight, Sparda who having betrothed a human woman took pity on the human race being subjugated by various nasties from the demon realm. Being a pity-taker, he used all his power to close the portal to Hell. Before he departed this world, he sired two young men. One of these chose the path of good, whilst the other, Vergil, chose the path of power. Both these demon knight-offspring possess extraordinary physical powers.
Despite the knowledge from the blurb that we are in for a pretty action packed time, the game starts off on a rather low note. The opening cinematic shows Dante and Vergil facing off against each other in an extremely blurred sword fight that looks fantastic. The whole game reeks of the rather hackneyed, Matrix "Bullet-time" approach, in that although their swords look as though they're moving normally, the rain drops falling around them are moving incredibly slowly. Despite this cliché, it looks brilliant. Unfortunately for us, Dante doesn't do too well, and Vergil ends up sticking Dante's own sword straight into him. But don't worry, our cheeky hero isn't out for the count.
I'm not entirely sure if Devil May Cry 3 is particularly suitable for first timers. The opening missions have the steepest learning curve I have ever had the pleasure of playing and it would put quite a few people off playing it. Even though in a introduction to the first mission, where the hero gets blades stuck into him from every angle and simply shrugs it off, Dante is incredibly weak. He can only take a good five or so hits before he bites the dust and isn't as invincible as we've just seen. Perseverance is the key, dear boy. When Dante works his way through missions, he picks up a sort of currency in the form of red orbs that can be exchanged in learning new moves for his sword, such as the useful "Stinger" move which makes Dante rush straight at his chosen target, sword in front. He can also upgrade his hand-made pistols "Ebony & Ivory", or increase his health, which is absolutely vital in making headway through the game.
Along the way to stop his brother from wreaking havoc, Dante will acquire a variety of melee weapons, along with his sword, "Rebellion" such as the gauntlets "Beowulf" that empower Dante with heavy punches and kicks that smash through enemies. Dante also gets his hands on a quality selection of artillery, like a sawn-off shotgun. What is rather annoying is that you are limited to two of each for a level, so that means only two ranged weapons and two melee weapons. Further into the game this can present the player with a dilemma in choosing the right weapons for the job, though on higher difficulties the sword/gauntlet combo tends to be the most flexible. Certain enemies and especially certain boss characters, all of which form massive set pieces of action, are susceptible to certain weapons.
What makes the game differ from the previous installments, aside from the mandatory sequel rule of adding more weapons and new moves, is that Capcom have added a "Style" system to Dante. Capcom are famous for their Street Fighter series of fighting games, as well as the Zombie survival-horror Resident Evil. Think of Devil May Cry 3 as a sort of halfway house. For each level, Dante must choose one style and this style will directly influence the way you have to control your hero. The easiest, and default style is called "Trickster" which enables you, with the push of one button, to quickly perform a short invincible dash in any direction of your choice. It's recommended that you start off with this as trying to avoid damage by some of the larger baddies is a necessity. As well as gaining a currency in the form of Red Orbs, you also get "Style points" from beating up enemies. As you may have guessed, get enough "style points" and more actions for your style open up. Reaching the second level of Trickster lets you double-dash in quick succession, and the ability to dash in mid air.
Once your arsenal and overall character increases, and you get used to jumping and rolling out of harm's way, you can easily ditch "Trickster" in favour of the more exciting "Gunslinger" or "Swordmaster". "Gunslinger" gives you access to outlandish movements with your guns, such as where Dante whirls his shotgun around like nunchaka shooting around him in every direction. "Swordmaster" is in a similar vein, though with your weapons instead.
Unlike playing a fighting game, the interface is dead easy. You don't have to perform any finger breaking combinations to get the best out of Dante. Mostly, you'll be holding your lock on button, and from this by pressing any other button and a direction you can shoot, charge an enemy, or roll away to safety. Other buttons will switch between your selected weapons in the blink of an eye, making those break neck combos easier to pull off. A few missions into the game, Dante gets access to the "Devil Trigger" again by the press of a button. Being in Devil mode (albeit for a limited time only), Dante moves faster, hits harder and won't get knocked down so easily. It's vital for those big spectacle fights.
Graphically, it's a brilliant return to form. The original Devil May Cry appealed so much due to its gothic architecture and stylish visuals. For some reason this went out the window with Devil May Cry 2, but 3 sees Dante dashing around a bizarre looking Tower of Babel, in and out of enormous archways. Dante looks good: his sword swishes through the air neatly, holding his guns he'll shoot two enemies at a time without even looking, he'll leap across massive gaps with the swish of his red leather tailcoat. He simply oozes cool and you feel privileged to be in control.
During massive encounters, there's no noticeable slowdown in combat, though ironically at a later point in the game you do get given the ability to slow down time around you. Aside from the set-piece encounters, the enemies don't vary too much. You'll get about seven different versions of scythe wielders, weird alien statue things that shoot at you and, rather bizarrely, animated chess pieces. That doesn't make them any less difficult. What can be rather difficult is the way the perspective changes. It's in the third person, i.e. behind Dante, but it's not always behind him. Rather, the camera is fixed depending on where you are, so sometimes you're facing him. This can be a little confusing in combat, especially if you're getting your left and right mixed up.
Although it's a hack n'slash affair Devil May Cry 3 has an involving, if predictable, plot. It's the tried and tested Good twin vs. Evil twin but with a few neat twists. The voice acting, especially for Dante, sounds rather jagged but you soon warm to each individual character good and bad. The plot doesn't have too many holes and as a prequel, it establishes the premise to the first game quite well, which is a neat way of killing two birds with one stone. There are a few good exchanges, especially when Dante takes on the first boss, the massive three-headed dog of Greek legend, Cerberus.
As you chop your way through the game, the music will change to the situation. Your footsteps will echo along the large corridors to creepy ambient sounds, switching to heavy electronic-rock music as soon as someone takes a swing at you.
I've had fun playing this game, even though for the veterans it's a little short. For newcomers, it's likely that you'll be put off by the steep learning curve. Fear not. After dying a couple of times, Easy mode will open up, so suck in your pride and start over. Persevere and everything will click. You'll get used to the enemy patterns and know when to dodge and where to hit. Finishing the game will open up other difficulty modes, such as Hard. Completing that opens up the hilariously titled Dante Must Die mode, in which you can barely take more than three hits, regardless of how much health you have, and all enemies get a major boost. Finishing the game on these modes also unlocks a few bonus extras outside the game like galleries and behind-the-scenes vids.
After the majority of the boss fights, I have felt as though I'd been put through the mixer. I haven't played a game in a while that gives you sort of slightly sweaty, slightly shaky hands intermittently and it's a good rush. It's certainly reassuring considering the performance of the previous game.
Overall it's good fun. It's got a 16+ rating for obvious reasons, but the bloodshed is fantastical and in some places pretty humorous. A blend of a subtle but complex fighting system, adrenaline inducing fights, great visuals and a good soundtrack make for a rewarding and challenging experience. It's no doubt that this is one of the better games released in 2005.
