Devil May Cry HD Collection (PS4)
By: Capcom
THE most annoyingly hip games character since Cool Spot made the leap from 7-Up logo to Mega Drive, the emo-mopped Dante's 2001 debut, Devil May Cry, was still a brilliantly deranged slice of lickety-split action from Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami.
With the fourth already having had the remaster treatment, this is a workmanlike photocopy of the PS3's HD collection, which slapped the original three games on to one disc with assorted bells and whistles.
Break out the Sunny D and Turkey Twizzlers – it's time to party like's it's 2001 again as Capcom’s trio of fossilised frolics are back (again) for nimble-fingered nostalgics.
The original gothic masterpiece oozed style from its pores as half-demon Dante defended his bloodline from a possessed castle. A mix of exploration, platforming and beast butchery, over-top monster-slaying was the order of the day in a campy action opera.
Wielding a sword and pistols, players can mix-and-match combos, looking as stylish as possible in a game that grades each battle as you play. Setting the bar to a height its sequel couldn't quite scale, the inevitable DmC2 was considered a misstep, with half-baked ideas, bland action that ditched the original’s gothic claustrophobia and a hero that went from wise-cracking badass to brooding mope.
Third time, though, was the charm. The crown jewel of the series, DmC3 returned to the series’ roots, with rock-hard gameplay, nippier battles and the introduction of combat styles. Given the original is so old it can legally drive, don't expect this collection to drop jaws. Bar a few welcome tweaks (you can now exit your current session and return to the game selection screen with a button press), this is a straight port of the PS3 remaster.
These are games from the turn of the century, steeped in olde-worlde mechanics and with a resolution bump rendering their graphical warts even more conspicuous on your flat-screen. It also features a slew of fan-baiting extras, including soundtracks and a compendium of concept art, though they really could have squeezed the fourth game in for newcomers.
Granted, they're hardly funky fresh – and DmC2 is indeed a rather suspect filling in this sandwich – but gamers of a certain vintage will swell with nostalgic mucous at the action on offer, provided their arthritic fingers can handle it.
And for those who enjoyed them first time around, journeying through hell is all the more relevant now we're that bit closer to the real thing.
