As a newcomer to the series, I really tried to enjoy this game. But it seems that you need an intricate understanding of this game to even have fun playing it. I found myself so consistently frustrated by the unresponsive, rough controls, the lack of any clarification on systems, enemy weaknesses or resistances, or even just what was going on 90% of the time.
I played this game for at least 6 hours and could not tell you a damn thing about the story other than what’s shown in the opening cutscene. Everyone praises the aesthetic, and sure, it is a good looking game with a pretty engaging setting. But this comes with the cost of never explaining anything that’s going on, with cutscenes exclusively being used for bosses to gush about how unbelievably strong Dante is.
The gameplay just doesn’t feel good, Dante is sluggish and his moves often lock onto enemies completely out of your control. Bosses are what showcase why this game is so frustrating; Dante has few, if any, defensive options, leading you to be forced to get up close and personal with enemies. This works for normal encounters, as it becomes about beating them to the punch. This does not work for bosses who don’t stagger, being aggressive with them isn’t an option as they’ll just eat it and then blast you to smithereens. And playing defensively doesn’t work because Dante is just so damn frustrating to control.
I put this game down once I hit the roadblock of Nightmare 1, and it really disappointed me because I had heard so much positive word of mouth about this series, including this game. But when I am consistently getting my ass handed to me with no clear way of improving, the game leaving me high and dry in terms of ANY information, and having to look up guides for every single boss in the game, I just can’t keep slogging through this mess. For the masochists that have studied and honed their skills at this game, I’m glad that they can appreciate it and have fun with the game still. But the fact is, this game is incredibly dated and only remembered fondly because of people who grew up with it, and were essentially stuck with it. I’m hoping to god I enjoy 3-5 more, as this is not a good first impression whatsoever.
I played this game for at least 6 hours and could not tell you a damn thing about the story other than what’s shown in the opening cutscene. Everyone praises the aesthetic, and sure, it is a good looking game with a pretty engaging setting. But this comes with the cost of never explaining anything that’s going on, with cutscenes exclusively being used for bosses to gush about how unbelievably strong Dante is.
The gameplay just doesn’t feel good, Dante is sluggish and his moves often lock onto enemies completely out of your control. Bosses are what showcase why this game is so frustrating; Dante has few, if any, defensive options, leading you to be forced to get up close and personal with enemies. This works for normal encounters, as it becomes about beating them to the punch. This does not work for bosses who don’t stagger, being aggressive with them isn’t an option as they’ll just eat it and then blast you to smithereens. And playing defensively doesn’t work because Dante is just so damn frustrating to control.
I put this game down once I hit the roadblock of Nightmare 1, and it really disappointed me because I had heard so much positive word of mouth about this series, including this game. But when I am consistently getting my ass handed to me with no clear way of improving, the game leaving me high and dry in terms of ANY information, and having to look up guides for every single boss in the game, I just can’t keep slogging through this mess. For the masochists that have studied and honed their skills at this game, I’m glad that they can appreciate it and have fun with the game still. But the fact is, this game is incredibly dated and only remembered fondly because of people who grew up with it, and were essentially stuck with it. I’m hoping to god I enjoy 3-5 more, as this is not a good first impression whatsoever.