Devil May Cry is a 2001 action-adventure game developed and published by Capcom. Released from August to December, originally for the PlayStation 2, it is the first installment in the Devil May Cry series. Set in modern times on the fictional Mallet Island, the story centers on Dante, a demon hunter who uses his business to carry out a lifelong vendetta against all demons. He meets a woman named Trish who takes him on a journey to defeat the demon lord Mundus, who is responsible for the deaths of Dante's brother and mother. The story is told primarily through a mixture of cutscenes, which use the game engine and several pre-rendered full motion videos. The game is very loosely based on the Italian poem Divine Comedy by the use of allusions, including the game's protagonist Dante (named after Dante Alighieri) and other characters like Trish (Beatrice Portinari) and Vergil (Virgil).
The game was originally conceived by Capcom developers as Resident Evil 4. Due to the staff feeling it would not fit the Resident Evil franchise, the project became its own title. Several gameplay elements were also inspired by a bug found in Onimusha: Warlords. Devil May Cry received prominent coverage in the video game media due to the impact it had in the action-adventure genre, its high difficulty, and the high overall scores given to it by professional reviewers. The game has sold more than three million copies, spawned multiple sequels and a prequel, and is considered among the greatest video games ever made.
Summary
Devil May Cry begins when Dante is attacked in his office by a mysterious woman named Trish. He impresses her by easily brushing off her assault, and tells her that he hunts demons while in pursuit of those who killed his mother and brother. She says her attack was a test, and that the demon emperor Mundus, whom Dante holds responsible for murdering his family, is planning to return. The scene jumps to their arrival at an immense castle, whereupon Trish abruptly leaps and vanishes over a high wall.
Dante explores the castle and encounters the game's stock enemies, the demonic Marionettes. He also finds a new sword called Alastor, and battles the first boss, a giant spider demon named Phantom. Dante wins the battle, but in what becomes a recurring theme, the defeated boss monster reappears a short time later in a corridor, impelling the player to choose a narrow escape or to fight in the tight confines. After further exploration and combat, Dante battles a demon named Nelo Angelo, who impresses Dante with his confidence. The demon wins, but suddenly flees upon seeing the half of an amulet Dante wears. The demon attacks two times more in later missions, and is eventually revealed to be Dante's identical twin brother, Vergil. After Vergil's final defeat, his amulet joins with his brother's half, and Force Edge, the game's default sword which belonged to the twins' father, becomes the powerful Sparda sword.
When Dante next meets Trish, she betrays him and reveals that she too is working for Mundus. When her life is endangered in the aftermath of his fight, Dante chooses to save her. When she begs him to explain why, he says that he only did it because she looks like his mother. He tells Trish though she has his mother's face, Trish is still just a demon and will never have his mother's fire. Dante leaves Trish behind, and Mundus appears to her to tell her she has failed him.
Dante then finally confronts Mundus in statue form. He then directs Dante's attention to Trish, who Mundus has crucified on the wall, warning Dante that if he does anything, Trish will die. Dante turns to look at her, a transgression for which Mundus attacks him. As Mundus prepares to finish Dante off, Trish escapes her shackles and shoves Dante aside to take the attack for him. Dante becomes enraged and unleashes the full power he has inherited from Sparda. The statue starts to crack and shatter, glowing and shooting light in all directions before releasing the trapped Mundus from inside of it. Once freed, Mundus spreads his wings to shape the background into a dimension that he transports Dante into. Dante questions the reason of creating Trish while Mundus rhetorically answers that he could create anything, just like he created Trish for his plot to weaken Dante. With a mighty imperative word to silence the Demon Emperor, Mundus flies up to the clouds just to lure Dante. He transforms into Sparda´s form as the epic battle begins.
Dante is victorious, and leaves the amulet and sword with Trish's immobile body before departing. Later Mundus returns and corners Dante, who is now greatly weakened, before he can flee the island; but Trish comes in time and lends Dante her power. Dante defeats Mundus, who vows to return and rule the human world. When Trish tries to apologize she begins to cry, and Dante tells her it means she has become human and not just a devil, because "devils never cry". Dante and Trish escape on a plane as the island collapses. After the credits, it is revealed that Dante and Trish are working together as partners, and have renamed the shop "Devil Never Cry".
Gameplay
Release Date
- JP: August 23, 2001
- NA: October 17, 2001
- PAL: December 7, 2001
Also See
- Devil May Cry 2
- Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening
- Devil May Cry 4
- Devil May Cry 5
- DmC Devil May Cry
Sound Effect Used
- Sound Ideas, CROWD, CHEER - LARGE ROMAN CROWD CHEERING
- Sound Ideas, MONSTER - ROAR, ANIMAL 05 (Used for Pluto's Dragon when it gets hit by fireballs.)
Image Gallery