Devil May Cry 2001

Is it still worth playing?

A 2001 action adventure for the PlayStation 2 that began as an idea for Resident Evil 4, in which the demon hunter Dante goes after the demon lord Mundus on a remote island. Its missions mix fights against crowds of enemies with platforming and the odd puzzle. Each one ends with a grade from D to S that weighs the time taken, the red orbs collected, the items used, the damage taken and the style of the fighting. Style means chaining varied attacks without getting hit: an on screen gauge climbs from Dull to Stylish as the combo grows, stops rising when the same move is repeated and falls back the moment Dante is hurt. On top of that, the Devil Trigger turns him for a while into a stronger demon form, with powers that depend on the weapon in hand. Being judged on how well you fight, not only on whether you win, still turns every encounter into a performance.