Product Description

Devil May Cry 2, the sequel to the gothic horror classic, features more and bigger environments, including a Gotham-like city and an old European town. There are now two playable characters--allowing you to play as Dante or a brand-new heroine--and Dante is even more stylish and tough than before, having gained plenty of experience fighting demons.

The level of animation and visual detail rivals a Hollywood action flick. Devil May Cry 2 also tracks the player's skill level and adjusts the enemy challenge according to how well players perform. Dante now has more moves and attacks plus an enhanced Devil Trigger: once Dante's devil meter is full, he will be able to transform into a demon. This demon form features new visual effects and allows Dante to destroy enemies with one smashing blow.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5634 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Capcom
• Released on: 2003-03-28
• Platform: PlayStation2

Amazon.co.uk Review
Devil May Cry 2 brings us back to Dante's world, and this time his fellow demon-fighter friend, Lucia, has her own disc. Okay, she sounds a little like Celine Dion, and her plot's a little silly, but at least she's got a reasonable 13 missions of her own. She's refreshingly well clothed for a female character, and like Dante (whose disc holds 18 missions) can transform using Devil Trigger--the equivalent of rampage mode in other games. Both characters can jump off the walls, Matrix-style, shooting from mid-air, and the game allows for limitless ammo and energy. Visually stunning, Devil May Cry 2 offers minute details that envelope the player; walking on the roof of a little Italian villa, you can hear the distinct sound of tiles under your feet.

This is one game where it really pays to pick up the strategy guide, and here's why: players need to complete the mission in as little time as possible. Since lots of great powerups are found in secret rooms, you would waste a lot of time endlessly inspecting doors without it, and never reach the coveted "S" status that comes with a fast run through a level. The overall grade is a combination of your rankings in style, collected number of orbs, the amount of items you used (the fewer the better), damage and your overall clear time. This isn't just an attempt to get you to buy more: you'll get far more orbs, find many more secret chambers and enjoy the nuances of the game better with the guide.

As with the original Devil May Cry, this is not a game for children. It comes with a gore warning, but a stronger argument could be made that the Gothic elements--like the Demonochorus (possessed cherubs) or Infestants (energy-sucking insect-like things)--would be likely to disturb even an adult's sleeping pattern.

There are many facets that recommend Devil May Cry 2, even if many fans find it less engaging than the first version. It's just as addictive as other sequels from successful franchises--Final Fantasy comes to mind--and as such, let's hope there will be many more reincarnations. --Jennifer Buckendorff

Manufacturer's Description
Prepare for the next stylish chapter in Capcom's ultimate action thriller, Devil May Cry 2. Dante, the mysterious half-man, half-demon action hero is back to battle the legions of the underworld. Sporting trash-talking attitude and rock star good looks, Dante launches into a new adventure with twice the environments, twice the graphic sizzle and twice the gameplay of the original.

Customer Reviews

For better and worse......
It would have been easy to have only given this game one star simply based on the value for money you get out of it. I started this game at 10:30 on the day it came out and had both disks done by early evening. OK I had a day off work and am a veteran of the genre but even so I am disappointed. Although the moves of the main character Dante are vastly superior to the original and the locations more varied the game itself is simply too easy. Whereas the first game was hardly difficult this game takes simplicity to an extreme level and insults the player by the lack of a challenge. It seems a sad trend with the japanese survival horror genre (although this game is obviously more combat based like the first) that the games can be completed within no more than 10 hours with little hardship. The Resident Evil series is another good example as well as ICO or Metal Gear Solid 2. It is about time the programmers realised these games are not designed for young children and started giving the player a challenge that lives up to the £40 price tag.

It's good, but there's something missing
This is a good follow-up to a great game. However, it does fall down in places.

The addition of a second character (Lucia) was a good idea. It means you can follow both Dante and Lucia in their mission to stop the evil Arius. Unfortunatly, the missions for each character don't differ enough. It seemed that I was doing the same mission again.

The graphics and environments really are a great improvement. So is the fighting. You can target two enemies at the same time with your handguns, which is very good in a tight spot. Unfortunatly, with the new targeting system you can only target enemies that are directly infront of you. Which isn't good if there's something getting a little to close behind you.

The upgrade screen is good. You can now use your red orbs to upgrade your swords, and firearms, as well as buy items. This is a good addition, as it means you can now make short work of your foes. The downside is that you need to collect a lot of orbs before you can upgrade or buy anything. This makes it a little frustrating, as you nearly have enough to upgrade your sword, but then find you need another yellow orb. Which takes away your hope of a weapon upgrade.

Dante's costume has also had a stylish makeover. He now wears a fitted trenchcoat, buttened up with cool buckles on the collar. Actually, his costume looks a little like Neo's in The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions. His charcter is now more of a mercenary than a hero, and is less witty than in the first game. He's slightly more of a guy that lets a toss of a coin decide weather he'll fight or not. If he has to, then he doesn't seem to care about it. Unlike the first game, where every enemy was in his way, and he WAS and HAD to get rid of them.

This really is a good game. It's a very worthy sequel to a mighty game. Though where improvements have been made, there are also some sacrifices. Fans of the original will enjoy this less than the first, but enjoy it all the same. Those that have never played the first game may find this a little dissapointing. If this is you, then you should either buy the origianl aswell as this, or settle for the original for now, then get this later.

Almost, but no cigar
Having played the original DMC I was expecting big things from the follow up. The title sequence sets the mood to a tee and I started the game with a degree of anticipation. The trouble was that CAPCOM decided to give a muppet free reign with the storyline. This leaves you feeling a little confused as to what you're actually trying to acheive. There's also a few changes to the game overall: this time round there's two discs to play. Dante's disc has 18 missions while Lucia's (who?, I still don't know where she came from) has only 13. Their stories link (think RE2 but more vague) and each character has different areas to explore and different weapon sets.

Essentially the gameplay is the same: run around looking for the exit to the mission while killing some evil demon types (Bloody Goats! grrr....) along the way and collecting items to power you up. There's a few niffty moves you can pull off such as back flips and wall runs (Matrix style) and a few extra items/weapons to pick up which spices it up a bit. It's also a lot harder to string combos together to get that all important S rating. Fans will be disappointed to discover the new amulet system, although it provides a bit of flexibility, doesn't include lighnting attacks in Air Raid form. And where's Sparda? Dante doesn't even get the option to use it, you'll have to unlock a hidden character for that one.

Despite this its quite easy to complete first time off, players of the first game will only find "Dante must die" difficulty level, or higher levels in the Bloody Palace challenging. If you've played the original DMC then you'll enjoy this for the chop-socky action and not the strange Japenese slant on things. The original DMC is buy far the more polished of the two.