Full of action but also full of repetition
Devil May Cry 4 is a mixed reaction for certain reasons:
Great graphics with a lot of detail but certain problems with the shadowing (especially in the forest, it is a little bit annoying...). All in all the images are great and the atmosphere created by them is excellent, but some flaws do make it annoying to look at at times.
The gameplay is also excellent and shows hardly an flaws. It is one of Devil May Cry's strongest points, the attacks are very well made and in about half an hour you can kill with style. Some times the combos can be a little awkward to master and Dante/Nero may do something you didn't expect, but I believe its more me than the game itself making the mistakes.
The characters are very well done, though at first I found it hard to differentiate Nero and Dante, they both have their own styles that complete each other. Nero's grab is just great and makes the game easier.
The story is one of DMC's weakest points. Even though it isn't all that bad, and makes you continue the game with some sort of suspense, the story is just to dull and plain.. The whole Nero becoming a demon could have been a little more developed, as many things in the story. All in all, it's really a shame that you end up just playing for the hell of it.
The biggest problem I see in the game is repetition. As you advance through the game, you will notice it follows a very very repetitive scheme: go from point a to point b, kill the boss, see your stats and repeat. Of course sometimes you're in a race against the watch, but most of the time you're just going to take as much time as you want (if you're not wanting to break your highest score). I find it a shame, but it was always like that in the DMC series.
All in all, the game is great and presents only a couple of flaws that make it impossible for Devil May Cry 4 to be excellent.