I've looked forward to the 3rd DMC, but when I finally got my hands on it my enthusiasm was pretty much gone.
DMC3 takes part before the great first installment of the series, and luckily also before the poor 2nd installment, so it was easier for me to forget this game even exists. Dante is much younger and pretty reckless, something that I can only praise, Dante was a bit too macho anyway.
The first DMC had a nice story, but it really made an impact pn me because of the way it was told. the biggest point of critic from part 2 was the lack of a good plot. The 3rd part exceeds both games. The story and the way it unfolds are of high quality. It can be a movie or a spectacular fighting scene, or a scene where you hear evil people talk about bad plans, it's always a big party. DMC does make use of stereotypical characters and that's a shame. You have the heavily visually handicapped accomplice of the bad guy, which reminded me of Igor, and the sexy lady that will help Dante several times. [cliché]
It is well-known that Ninja Gaiden looked alot at DMC when Team Ninja was developing it. And I can't blame them because DMC is one of the best games on the PS2 ever. This time around tough, Capcom carefully looked at Team Ninja before production.
It is important you know DMC3 is quite tricky, (playing easy mode is... bad) and if you die you have to replay the entire mission. This means dying in front of a boss can be painful. The combination of puzzling and raw action reminds of Ninja Gaiden. Just like the presentation and different weapons. But where Ninja Gaiden focusses on traditional ninja weapons, DMC throws in a great lot of guns.
DMC doesn't make use of a big combo system. But that doesn't mean the action is limited. because of the different playing styles the fights offer a good diversity. And because of the aiming system the action is fast-paced just like the good old 2D classics.
I have little to whine about DMC3; it's a mind blowing action adventure of witch Dante should be proud. Everyone that nags about the camera in a certain ninja game I mentioned before will also have a hard time with this game. I haven't experienced any problems with it so I could focus on the beautiful story and above all, the amazing action!