Devil May Cry Reboot Game Play Analysis
(preuzeto sa neoGAF-a, covek se bas potrudio )
Terms/Jargon Overview
*
DmC: This new version of Devil May Cry will simply be referred to as "DmC" (small "m") for simplicity. The other games in the series will be referred to as DMC1, DMC2, DMC3SE and DMC4.
*
Melee weapon/
Devil arm/Angel arm: Many names are given to Dante's basic sword or close ranged weapon over the course of the series. It's the main means by which Dante inflicts damage on his enemies and it's no different in DmC. The main difference here is that the melee weapon may in fact NOT be a devil arm as it was in previous games but a 3 way hybrid of human arm, devil arm and angel arm. More information on this will be explained later on but just know that these terms generally are meaning the same thing.
*
Firearm weapon/Long ranged weapon: This is usually Dante's sub or supportive weapon that are long ranged in application like his trademark dual pistols. DmC retains this as well and as of yet there is no differentiation within the firearms so they will just be referred to as firearms. Only one firearm was seen and that's Dante's classic pistols with a bit of a redesign. These are not the main way for Dante to inflict damage but help Dante greatly in increasing his style ranking or performing more advance combos.
*
Devil Bringer/Whip: This is the name that will be used to refer to Dante's new sword that is able to pull in enemies or pull him towards enemies/objects or pull out objects from the environments. This mechanic was the main focus in DMC4 as Nero's Devil Bringer arm (literally an arm in this case) and it appears that DmC is continuing off of that. This time it's in the form of a shape shifting sword/whip combo. Since it's applications are largely the same as the Devil Bringer from DMC4 it will be referred to as such or just simply as the "whip". Judging from the various previews it appears that the Devil Bringer game play aspect is tied with the Demon form of Dante.
*
Devil Trigger/Angel Trigger: In all past games all DMC game had Dante transforming into a more powerful demonic version of himself that allowed him to move/fight faster, hit harder, gain more abilities and regain health. There is a similar transformation in this game but there are many key differences. For one Dante does not actually transform into a full demon but instead transforms to look like his original Dante self in the previous games (white hair, maybe different colored eyes, red jacket). The actual mechanics of the trigger is also different, Dante doesn't actually get faster but everything around him gets slower. With the game already having both demon and angel influences to combat style, it is very likely that this might be a new form of trigger tapping into Dante's angel powers as canonically Dante doesn't develop his Devil Trigger until DMC3. This will just be referred to as Dante's "trigger" in DmC as of now.
Basic Overview of Combat
(This image clearly references Dante's dual blood attribute: demonic and angelic)
*The core engine of DmC at the base level is the same as previous games most notably DMC3 and DMC4 (more towards DMC4). It's the usual melee weapon + firearm weapon + special weapon/form set up that has been used in DMC4 particularly with Nero. There are obvious key differences but the general look and feel of the game is the same of previous game albeit at either a different pace or focus.
*
The proposed control layout of DmC is the following:
/\: Melee weapon attack
[]: Firearm attack
O: Unknown/Unspecified; maybe for particular style/form attacks
X: Jump
L1: "Trigger" button
L2/R2: Access to Angel and Demon forms for moveset
D-Pad: On the fly swap for weapons (melee and firearm)
*The striking major difference between DmC and previous games is a change from Style based combat to
Form Based Combat. Essentially Dante's move set is split into 3 forms:
Human (also referred to as default),
Angel and
Demon. It is proposed that a singular base weapon of Dante like his default sword can change forms and this may be reflected on to Dante himself. The default form (Human) of the sword can be changed into axe form (Demon) or into a scythe form (Angel) all on the fly. Essentially what was one weapon becomes 3. It is as of yet unconfirmed whether the forms affect the Devil Bringer, Devil Trigger or the firearms but if they do it pushes the envelope of combat in DMC to new heights. That is the extent of the knowledge on this form based combat but it is also used in the various platforming parts of the game as well.
It is worthy to note that outside influencing weapons that these forms affect other aspects of Dante's arsenal and base abilities as well most, importantly the Angel form giving Dante Trickster-like movements/dashes and the Demon form allowing Dante to use Devil Bringer-like moves with his sword/whip weapon.
*Since Dante is confirmed to have numerous weapons in the game (all available on the fly as the new series standard)
combined with the new form based combat it pushes the number of potential weapons to an absurd height because if Dante has 6 weapons it turns into 18. This is possibly what NT means by "pushing critical mass on number of weapons" in the game. It is also worthy to note that the Devil Bringer appears to work related to the Demon form of Dante like previously mentioned yet it can easily be used mid combos. It may however be something related to the Dante's base melee weapon which appears to be a morphing weapon of some sort.
*While there is no mention of a style button or style switch, there are
clear moves in the game already at an early stage that are similar or identical to style moves from previous games. Dante was seen performing a Trickster-like air dash against a boss. He was also seen performing 2 versions of Rainstorm with his firearms in the more recent videos ala Gunslinger. He has Swordmaster style aerial combos as well and numerous other powerful melee based moves. Quicksilver like time slow down is seen in Dante's new Trigger. This combined with the Devil Bringer means that style moves are integrated into the combat via either normal commands, form moves or Devil Bringer/Devil Trigger abilities. Other
moves were spotted that were more contact sensitive/cinematic in nature and possibly extension/finishers to particular moves. In addition to cinematic move finishers, Dante is also seen using
close quarter combat moves using his fists and kicks mid combo even in the air.
It is also important to note that as of now there is no way to confirm what the function of the O (previously the style button or Devil bringer button in DMC games) button does in the game. It is possible that it might allow Dante to perform some style specific moves or other abilities possibly the CQC moves we saw him do in the trailer.
*There is a
heavier emphasis on aerial combat in DmC even more so than previous games. Even without advance aerial moves like jump cancelling, Air Hike and Trickster teleport Dante was able to achieve long lengths of air time using a combination of his new/old abilities. Being able to pull himself towards enemy in the air with Devil bringer, relaunching enemies while in the air (ala Roulette Spin of DMC4), performing longer aerial combos with his melee weapons and of course the slow down given by the new Trigger are all indicate an emphasis to extended aerial combat which became a signature of the series in DMC3.
*Along with a bigger emphasis on aerial combat, there is also
more focus to crowd control in DmC. In previous games it was very difficult to juggle more than 2 or 3 enemies at once because of the way moves were designed in DMC3/DMC4 but in DmC there is much greater ease of controlling crowds even juggling multiple enemies. Form weapons like the angel scythe has huge range and multi-hitting launchers with the demonic axe being no exception. By using Devil Bringer, Dante can hop between launched enemies with relative ease now and keep the combo going in the air with multiple enemies. Add to this fact is that the new Trigger also causes multiple relaunches along with slowing down time. What you have is a combat in which it's not just about 1 on 1 combos anymore but 1 on many combos.
*While very little if any moves were shown that used the environment to aid Dante in combos,
it is very much hinted that there will be ways Dante can use to manipulate the environment to his advantage. This was first seen in the original DmC trailer where he is seen using the Devil Bringer whip to hurl a car at enemies. With the environment also being partly demonic and constantly changing, there is a new level of environment interactivity in DmC never before seen.
In between the combat there is a lot of platforming and traversing constantly crumpling environments. There appear to be multiple worlds too, alternating between the human and demon world that only Dante can traverse. There is a female NPC that helps Dante along his path. The platforming bits make use of Dante's Devil Bringer and Forms abilities.
Another small change to the combat is that as the style rank increases and player performs more skillful/stylish combos, the music increases in intensity with the chorus reaching a fever pitch.