Devil May Cry 4 sticks close to its roots, even if that means having the same problems as its predecessor.
One of the biggest fusses around was the fact that Dante, the loveable sarcastic son of a you know what, wasn't going to be the main character, and in fact, Devil May Cry 4 was going to suffer for the Metal Gear Solid 2 syndrome of having an inferior, less cool and pansy looking lead character. This of course is false; the new character Nero, who seems to bare a sticking resemblance to Dante, is an enjoyable character; even though you'll never really replicate that feeling of playing as Dante, Nero has his own brand of what it means to take out the trash and kick the crap out of his enemies. The duo generally does seem to make the game fun, and for the most part keep it fresh.
Truth be told, the other characters, and the story is just as good, but not good enough. Essentially, Dante comes crashing through a ritual ceremony of this special order that believes Dante's father to be their God and blows the brains out of their head honcho, which then ticks of Nero, and becomes the catalyst for the remainder of the story. Throughout the way, you'll meet some cool characters, and some not so cool ones; problem is you don't get nearly enough time with them considering that the story relies heavily on Nero and Dante. Towards the end of the game, you'll also feel like you came out of it empty handed, as you don't get any answers outside of why Dante did what he did, and the true intentions of the order which Nero serves, aside of that, you learn next to nothing else, which is a big kick in the balls. But overall, the story is enjoyable and is definitely a strong point of the game.
Remember the part about sticking to its roots? Yes this game does this extremely well. The gameplay feels like it was stripped of Devil May Cry 3 with slight modifications, and this just isn't what you would expect. Bad camera and an out dated gameplay really hinder this game. Sure Nero does bring a few interesting things, such as his Devil Bringer, and the Exceed system in this Red Queen, but aside from that the general gameplay remains the same. It's difficult to say what it could have needed improvement on, as for the most part, what is there is a polished version of probably the best there is. Perhaps Capcom needs to approach the series with a new outlook for the next installment, because if there is one thing that this game has written all over it, it's "sequel is coming".
Further looking into the gameplay, makes you think this game is unfinished and is lacking in certain aspects. Dante for example, has the same moves as he did in the previous game. While it's nostalgic and fun, it just doesn't feel like it's something that was built for the next gen experience. Level design and boss battles are beaten to death, and make you say "dam not this crap again". You'll literally have to fight some bosses as much as three times! This is only aided by the amount of backtracking which makes the game boring in certain parts, albeit not a lot. It really made the Dante section of the game kind of stale, like it was missing its own path or identity, because all he did was backtrack Nero's journey. The puzzle themselves were repetitive, and overall it just feels like the game is incomplete, because so much more could have been done, but it seems like Capcom was content with polishing what they had to make sure it was as presentable as possible.
Speaking about presentation, this is probably the only part of the game where it truly does feel "next gen". The visuals are stunning, and the audio is on par; it doesn't blow you away, but it is extremely consistent, looks great from all angles, and really adds to the intensity and feel for the game. In some ways it feels like Capcom pushed the presentation values as far as they could to make this game stand out. Cut scenes look fantastic, as does in game play; the musical score is great, and the voice work is again fantastic. As far as presentation goes, this game does raise the bar on how the genre should be approached by developers.
As far as value goes, this game is great, because you can easily find yourself playing it over and over again. It has several modes of difficulty, and a stage survival mode which is also great; coupled with online rankings and achievements, you'll want to keep playing it for quite some time. Even if the gameplay doesn't seem to be up to par with the rest of the game, Devil May Cry 4 does deliver, and is worth it. If you're a fan of the series, fret not, because you won't be disappointed, if you're a newcomer, then this game will welcome you with open arms, and if you're looking for a fun, over the top and stylistic game, then look no further because Devil May Cry 4 is your game.