Demon slayers, look no further.
"Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening" published by Capcom, and recently released for Playstation 2, takes the series to new levels of appeal.
The gothic action game is intense and should not be attempted by those looking for a slow-paced, easygoing adventure. Want to stop and take a breath? Too bad.
The game is so difficult that gamers are not even given the option to play on 'easy' until they die a number of times. Expect to become frustrated at points and take solace in the knowledge that victory will be that much sweeter.
This third installment in the "Devil May Cry" series is actually a prequel, but oddly, a prequel with cooler weapons and more style than the original. Dante, the hero, takes on his twin-brother Virgil, the other son of the rouge demon Sparda.
As the epic, if oft chosen, names suggests, players will notice hellish themes and characters like those in previous games. Fans of the series will also notice familiar locales, weapons, puzzles and combat styles. By no means, however, does this mean boredom.
If this entire game was deleted, except the first two or three opening cinematic movies, the game would still be worth a rental just to watch Dante beat the crap out of stuff for those first few minutes.
During the opening scenes, Dante rips heads off demons, cuts a pool table in half, uses an ememy as a surfboard, and still has time to eat a pizza.
In a later cinematic scene, Dante does a back-bend in "bullet-time" to avoid a missile, but then grabs it out of the air and goes for a ride. That's how cool he is. Of course, he is no mere mortal, so physics are no obstacle.
The combat system is intricate, and as in previous games, swords and guns have the ability to level up with your character.
However, this game does offer new combat stance modes. Each of the four modes grants the character different abilities. The abilities to dodge quickly, do a mid-air sword attack, and fire double pistols in different directions are just some of the techniques to which gamers will be granted access when playing in the different modes.
The graphics are superb. Think "Onimusha 3," only better. Spectacular lighting and shadow effects dance and glide; glowing weapons and fluid motions appease the optic nerve.
The music, by itself, is not great, but it is appropriate. The soundtrack to the furiously paced game is all heavy metal. Add to that the voice acting talent of Dante and it is an awesome auditory backdrop for some great game play.
On the other side of the spectrum, there are still some problems that need to be worked out.
The camera angles still aren't working. Expect to be blind-sided by hordes of demons. To truly insane gamers, this might be considered an advantage, in that it definitely adds to the overall difficulty of the game. In the end however, being able to see what you're expected to fight is basic, and the blindsiding is a flaw.
The repetitive nature of the battles is the biggest problem. Yes, there are many enemies, and it is not often that there is time enough to think, but slaughtering the same demon over and over can become frustrating by itself.
For anyone new to the series, it might be best to try out the original game first, as this installment is rather difficult.
Overall, this game is worth checking out, and worth buying for those whose want their adrenaline glands on overload for hours at a time. In here, salvation is only found by wielding the sword, and the man holding that sword is Dante.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
