Devil May Cry is considered the father of the hack and slash genre, the one that initiated a new era on gaming, a masterpiece, the game that many series like God Of War took inspiration on, a new way to play never seen.
That's why this title back on the day in 2001, was considered a must-play, but does it aged well to be played in today's standards?, let's find it out!.
Graphics:
If we have to talk about the technical section, the graphics look pretty good for that era, while it is true that nowadays certain models doesn't look that good, the amount of detail on every texture and poligons is something to admire for 2001 game, seriously, not many games back then looked that good like Devil May Cry, the gothic style suits like a glove, and the artistic style is simply marvelous, the design of the weapons look pretty good and the bosses are very original, (specially Mundus, the villain).
If i have to point something out, that is not that related to graphics is the dub quality, that can be a little cheesy and overdramatic sometimes, but it's good by the way, very acceptable.
Soundtrack:
Simply outstanding, the quality is superb and it mixes various genres, from hard rock to classical music that emphasizes the use of the organ instrument, it is very memorable and catchy, really fitted on this kind of game.
same happens with the sfx sounds quality, with very good production values and very pleasant to hear, nothing more to add in this section, excellent.
Controls:
This is where opinions will differ a lot, but the controls are very stiff for today's standards, and Dante doesn't feel that responsive and fast like he should be, this will give the feeling to the players that the controls feels outdated, and not that fun to play.
However, despite the sluggish controls, there's behind a very solid combat system, that works very well even nowadays and that requires a very good amount of skill, (back in the day many players complained about the difficulty, it was too high), that will test many players abilites with the controller.
Also it has a good variety of weapons, from pistols and a saw-off shotgun, to a large broadsword and fiery fists, each of them with its set of stylish combos in which every move is well polished and very useful for each situation. Same happens with the guns, very useful and deadly if used in the correct situation.
To sum it up, the controls are stiff and outdated, very basic, but solid, very rewarding and fun.
Gameplay:
Originally, Devil May Cry was going to be Resident Evil 4, but the ideas were so crazy and blowned up, that they saved the project to create a new IP, in this case Devil May Cry.
Sometimes when you play this game it feels more like a survival horror than an action game, it's very weird, mostly because you will notice the big amount of damage you receive with each hit from the enemies, and the tone and the lack of "matrix" and overtoned gameplay and scenes. If you look closely you can see that Dante resembles a little bit to Leon S. Kennedy from Resident Evil.
Just like any hack & slash, you have to upgrade your moveset and your health bar and "magic" bar, for that you will need red orbs, (the coin of the game), along with blue orbs that boost your health bar, purple orbs that boost your "magic" bar, and yellow orbs, which it's quantity determines the number of retries you can after your save.
(When you die, you consume a yellow orb in order to keep playing, if the player reaches the point of no having more yellow orbs, you'll have to load your last save file).
Another thing to consider, is that Devil May Cry is set up on a castle, which you will have to investigate and solve certain puzzles while you beat some monsters, and it has some backtracking, but nothing heavy, and the scenarios and the map design is top-notch, it really feels like you are in a true castle, you can find libraries, tables, chairs and many other furnitures, no room or map in this game feels like a filler or out of context, each area is interconnected in a very logical way, and feels authentic.
One thing to praise too is the quality of the bosses, many of them are very original and hard to beat, you'll have to study them very close and be very careful with their movesets, just like the controls, they are very solid and needs a good amount of skills in order to beat them successfully.
The gameplay is straight up, very easy to follow, with a map to guide you in every moment of the game, and it is a mix between an hack & slash and a survival horror.
To point something "bad" about the gameplay and the context of it, about the story, we have to say that is very simple and not complicated, they just went easy on this one and it's not something to remark about.
Conclusion:
Even if this game is very old and has some stiff controls and weird gameplay, it is still a wonderful game to play even nowadays. it is very challenging, needs patience and skills, and the gameplay at first can seem a little bit odd and strange for certain people, and not very easy to introduce for casual players, because of it's high difficulty.
Still with it's pretty solid controls and mechanics, superb graphics, soundtrack and the wonderful castle, this game still rocks pretty hard today, and i can say proudly that is one of the best games made ever, and one of the most influential titles in the world of videogames, a masterpiece you have to play if you didn't.
Note: 9.2 / 10.