Devil May Cry HD Collection review: Back to the demonic roots of hack and slash
By Just Lunning
The Devil May Cry trilogy is an older collection of games that can feel dated at times, but it often feels just as modern as a game that came out last Tuesday.
Title: Devil May Cry HD Collection
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
Platforms: PS4 (Version reviewed), Xbox One, PC
Release Date: March 13, 2018
While Hack and Slash action games are now a thriving genre, that hasn’t always been the case. That abundance of love came from somewhere (that somewhere being the Devil May Cry series). The original series defined the action genre with style and a snarky protagonist, so of course, it makes for a prime franchise to give an HD facelift.
Dante is back in his original adventures which have never looked better. In this collection, the first three Devil May Cry titles have been collected and retextured to be compatible with resolutions up to 4K. Plus, the frame rates have been upped dramatically from their original 30 FPS to a fast-paced 60 fps to keep up with the high octane combat. Other than that, and a few quality of life additions, this is essentially the same collection that graced 7th generation consoles in 2012, but that doesn’t make it a bad game to pick up. The first three Devil May Cry titles still hold up as an incredible set of hack and slash games, although some of the upgrades show the collection’s age.
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Possibly the most important part of the upgrade is the change from 30 FPS to 60 FPS. By doubling the frames per second, the already fast combat is sped up immensely. When going up against the run of the mill enemies, it’s a thrilling boon to replay the trilogy at such an incredible pace. However, when it comes to bosses, this change can be a little frustrating. Many bosses have had their attack windows cut rather short. Almost immediately after tiring a boss out, during a moment when they would originally be open for a possibly fatal strike, the boss gets right back up. Their persistence would be commendable if I didn’t know that the game was created with another style of play in mind.
Other changes don’t have nearly as many pitfalls. One change I’m grateful for is the visual equalization of all three games. Every game now runs in a standard full-screen setting. The gameplay of all three titles has been de-pixelated. However, once you pop your head into a cutscene, the dated pixelated graphics do make a return, which can be a little jarring. The gothic/edgy art direction found in the trilogy’s backgrounds and character designs still hold up quite well.
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Everything has a very timeless modern feel to it. You can see the influence the Devil May Cry trilogy holds when comparing the series to its artistic successors such as the Souls franchise. People who want to see more of the art are in luck as well. The main menu houses a large collection of pieces spanning the entire series. The collection brings together all sorts of concept art with a touch of fan art cultivated from the Capcom Unity forums. There’s also a plethora of Devil May Cry soundtracks available.
Something I find great about this collection is the ability to see just how much the series grew from one game to the next. Devil May Cry 2 was famously panned upon release, and when you play this trilogy, it’s clear to see why. It’s just a retooling of many of the things from Devil May Cry, which is what makes this collection so fascinating. The series spent the entire trilogy finding its voice; once it did, boy did the franchise glimmer as can be seen in the third title.
The series spent the entire trilogy finding its voice…
The Devil May Cry trilogy is undoubtedly an older collection of games that can feel dated at times, but without considering the graphics, it often feels just as modern as a game that came out last Tuesday.
The franchise is a modern classic and a turning point in hack and slash games. This makes the collection a great pick-up for people who want to either see the historical origins of Hack and Slash or just want to enjoy another great title. It also has a ton of things for fans who haven’t played these games since their PS2 days. The game’s resolution and framerate upgrades are often quite a boon for enjoyment, but the upgrades do cause some bugs in gameplay to occur. The Devil May Cry trilogy has never looked better (or played faster).
7.5. The Devil May Cry HD collection is still just as fun as when it first came out on PS2 years ago. There are even additions such as a gallery to view concept art. However, some changes such as the framerate can hinder the experience as bosses weren’t properly adapted to handle 60 FPS. Some of the visual upgrades also just highlight the dated graphics. But it’s still quite fun to fly around and cut up foes.. Capcom. . Devil May Cry HD Collection
A copy of this game was provided to App Trigger for the purpose of this review. All scores are ranked out of 10, with .5 increments. Click here to learn more about our Review Policy.