Friday, February 8, 2008

A Case Study of Devil May Cry 4

I was originally going to only buy the PS3 Collector's Edition, but I thought, why not get both! Why? I'm a greedy bastard, that's why. End of story.

An In-Depth Examination of Both NA Collector's Editions

Please note both of these are the NA Collector's Editions.

Both Devil May Cry 4 Collector's Editions come housed in a slip case with artwork on the front and back cover showing off details of this latest entry in the series. The slip case covers the back and front artwork of the tin except for Nero's head on the tin which peaks through the case of both versions. The X360 slipcase and tin is about an inch and a half taller compared to the PS3 slipcase and tin. The PS3 Collector's Edition is the size of the standard Blu-Ray disc case. Compare a Blu-Ray case to the size of a standard case and you have the correct dimensions.

Devil May Cry 4 PS3 front w/slipcase
Devil May Cry 4 PS3 back w/slipcase
Devil May Cry 4 X360 front w/slipcase
Devil May Cry 4 X360 back w/slipcase

After removing the slipcase, we are greeted with a picture of Nero on the front cover showing off his Devil Bringer. On the back is a smug picture of Dante holding one of his handguns.

Devil May Cry 4 PS3 tin front
Devil May Cry 4 PS3 tin back
Devil May Cry 4 X360 tin front
Devil May Cry 4 X360 tin back

And let's not forget the anime. The anime is held in place in between the slipcase and tin with both versions. And below you will find some pics of the anime slipcase. Now, let's get back to the DMC4 game.

DMC anime slipcase cover
DMC anime slipcase back
DMC anime slipcase inside

Upon opening both cases, the X360 version contains the game disc over the bonus DVD in the usual dual DVD case with clamps holding the instructions to the side. The PS3 version has the game disc to the right and on the left the clamps hold a slipcase that contains the Bonus DVD lying across the instruction manual. This setup with the DVD slipcase for the PS3 version was actually so tight that it tore up my PS3 instruction booklet a bit where the DVD had pressed the back of the instructions against the hole below the bottom clamp slightly destroying it's beauty... and that was the last PS3 Collector's Edition that Circuit City had.

Devil May Cry 4 PS3 inside
Devil May Cry 4 X360 inside
Devil May Cry 4 PS3 Bonus DVD slipcase cover
Devil May Cry 4 PS3 Bonus DVD slipcase back

Last but not least, here is a pic of the artbook that I received with my Gamestop X360 preorder. Anybody know if this is the same artbook that is included with the PAL Special Version?

DMC4 artbook cover


As for the game, I still haven't beaten it yet, but it is really great so far. The Dante missions sometimes feel tacked on but most of them are great. His cutscenes are much more enjoyable than Nero's. I really like his Lucifer weapon also. To me, Nero is more fun to control though since I like his Exceed system.

I may have a full review of DMC4 up in a few more days. A full guide will come eventually, though I really want to turn this game inside out before I write for it. I don't intend to rush this one like I did with my DMC3:SE guide.

8 comments:

Brian said...

I haven't gotten to Dante yet (just got to Mission 8 yesterday), but I am so itching to mess with Lucifer! Argh school ::laughs::

So far I'm enjoying Nero but are you having problems pulling out the delay combos like I am? Half the time I try to use his combo D or the alternate air combo (Roulette Spin I think) I end up just doing the regular, even with controlled button presses.

One thing I think Nero will also have over Dante though is all those special Buster animations. I dunno if fighting Berial, etc. with Dante will be the same if I can slam him into the ground :(

BTW, do you know if you can cancel moves into/out of the style changes? That's something that I always wondered about...

Anonymous said...

No, that isn't the PAL art book. The PAL art book is smaller as a has less pages.

Berserker said...

Thank for the confirmation there! :)

Nero's attacks have to be delayed a bit longer than Dante's. It takes some getting used to. I still can't use all of them effectively yet because of a few timing issues. I really do love Nero's Exceed system. Instant Revving his moves doesn't take off that much more than the standard attacks, but it sure is fun to experiment with the timing for each combo of his.

And yeah, the boss fights are a little boring with Dante if you ask me when compared to Nero.

Dante can change styles in the air or on the ground and even in the middle of the style move or any attack. While on the ground, he actually shouts out the name of the style and performs a minor animation for each one but the animation can be cancelled. Dante's a total beast in this game if you can learn how to cancel his styles effectively.

Lucifer is my favorite new weapon. It has a real cool moveset and I love the fact that I can place swords all over the screen to trap enemies.

Overall, I still like Nero better though. I'm a big fan of air combos, so I really enjoy the amount of air time he can get from that Devil Bringer.

Bobsticle said...

I don't get the whole 'Exceed' thing. When I am supposed to use it and what does it do?

Many thanks.

Berserker said...

Exceed levels up Nero's blade to where he can perform more powerful versions of his special moves, like Streak, High Roller, and his Helmet Breaker (can't remember the exact name). It also makes each attack hit harder - I really can't tell if all of them do more damage though.

For Exceed, you have two ways to charge it:

a) Rev up the blade by pushing and holding the left trigger for a few seconds. Push and hold it some more to make the levels rise faster. This is not very effective during a fight though.

b) Press the left trigger as soon as an attack ends to Instant Rev up 1 level. The timing sort of varies per attack. Each attack has a different timing. This will give you one full level per successful Rev. You can also buy the MAX-Act so that it may charge up to 3 levels per successful Instant Rev - the timing is a bit different here though. You'll only gain a single level if the left trigger press is not absolutely perfect. Keep in mind that every single attack with the Red Queen can be Instant Revved - even full combos.

I'll try to have a more detailed explanation of the Exceed system in a few days. I need to type that up anyway. It's quite fun once you can get the timing for the Instant Rev of each attack down. It's all about timing and linking the button presses together with a certain rhythm.

Anonymous said...

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Anonymous said...

how do i make my health bigger ? pls tell me i saw some pics..i'm at mission 13 and still dont know

Anonymous said...

how do i change the pal to ntsc in my television so that i can play dmc 4.i cant the options to change it.is there something i should do