On the completely opposite end of the spectrum I played both Anarchy Reigns and DmC. Sadly Anarchy Reigns didn't wow me as much as I'd hoped. Yet somehow DmC impressed me on a level that I didn't think it would be able to. I really like action games
Anarchy Reigns
After playing the Japanese Anarchy Reigns (Max Anarchy) demo I was very excited to get the full release. At first it puzzled me as to why Sega would hold off the game's U.S. release even though the localization was complete. It was even more surprising when it was announced for the reduced price of $30. Now that I've played it I know why it's $30 and I'm glad I didn't end up importing it.
I wrote up my impressions after playing the demo, so I'll try to elaborate on what I previously said to the best of my ability. My main issue with the demo was that the lag in multiplayer was unbearable. Just as I had guessed the issues I were having were due to the Japanese servers. Playing the game online works well with some occasional hiccups, but my issues with the multiplayer run a bit deeper.
Anarchy Reigns is a brawler at it's core. You have a heavy attack and a light attack. If you want to you can call out a weapon and do a light or a heavy attack with that. Mashing the button will create a combo, but if you delay inputs it will change up the combos. Overall the combos never vary a whole lot, but there is more technique involved than your standard brawler. I thought that the characters would differ, but in the end their combos are disappointingly similar. The combo system seems to be much deeper than I experienced, because there are some insane combo videos online. There's just nothing about the game that makes me want to try and learn the intricacies of the combat system.
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| Death is a constant in Anarchy Reigns. |
The online experiences I had were more frustrating than fun. When I was in a battle royale match I kept getting triple teamed and getting my combos interrupted by enemies who I couldn't see because of the camera. It was super chaotic, but I did have a bit of fun. I played a bunch more matches and ended up getting the hang of it so that I didn't get beaten into the ground every match. One on one matches were what ended up making me not care about learning the combat system. I figured that those types of matches would be better for showing off the skill involved in the system. I played a few matches and won. My third or fourth match I was handily beating someone until they decided to spam the 360 degree attack. It's meant to get you out of tough situations, but if you continually spam it there was seemingly no way to get around it.
Yes, I realize that I'm probably an idiot and there actually was a way to get around it. That doesn't make it any better that the attacks are so freakishly strong and hit from so far away. It made me not want to play any more and I didn't very much after that. I've heard really good things about deathball, which is a violent form of football. I haven't gone back to play it, but I might have to at some point.
I had a feeling that Anarchy Reigns was going to be a multiplayer focused game, but I wanted to believe it would have more to offer. It really doesn't. I probably should have prefaced this entire section with the fact that I don't really like multiplayer games. I'm more of a solitary gamer, which is probably why I was so disappointed with Anarchy Reigns overall. The single player is basically a way to have the player unlock characters while learning the combat mechanics for multiplayer. The basic enemies blow up after just a few hits though, so they're never really a challenge.
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| Deathball seems interesting. I may go back and check it out. |
You basically beat the living hell out of enemies until the next story mission unlocks. At which point you're awarded with an insane cutscene. I really like the personalities of the characters and the ridiculous things they say. To be honest I was expecting everything to be completely nonsensical, but at some point an interesting plot showed up. There was actually some potential, but the ending of the game completely squanders that and goes with something that doesn't resolve anything. It could have been so much more, but I don't really like multiplayer in games like this. If you're craving some interesting online fun it's a decent buy for $30.
DmC Devil May Cry
The Devil May Cry fan base is very loud. As soon as Capcom announced the franchise reboot long time fans began lashing out. At one point I was among the angry fans. I couldn't believe the new Dante's hair. No, I wasn't like everyone else who wanted his hair to be white. I was much more concerned with the fact that it looked like he had taken a razor to his head without looking. It was a minor gripe, but a gripe none the less.
Devil May Cry fans have a very specific idea of what Devil May Cry should be. With every trailer it was clear that the new developer Ninja Theory was changing the world and characters that they had come to love. It makes sense for long time fans to be upset about that. It was a possibility that the combat system they had come to love would change completely. What blows my mind though is the fact that so many people actively wanted the game to fail. There were people who were willing to write the game off before every having played it, while actively hoping that it would do poorly. Why fans would want a game in a franchise they love to fail is beyond me. Devil May Cry 4 wasn't received very well. If this reboot didn't sell well it's not like they were going to go back and make a Devil May Cry 5.
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| At first I didn't like new Dante, but now I'm a big fan. |
When I identified myself as a Devil May Cry fan before I don't know if that was entirely accurate. I've played the previous games in the series, but I never felt a huge connection with them. They were fun action games that had much more depth than I cared to delve into. I liked the stories and characters, but I'm not the Devil May Cry super fan who can't handle change. Close to the release of this reboot it became clear to me that I'm not a "true" Devil may Cry fan. If you are a true Devil May Cry fan, then what I'm going to say definitely won't apply to you so you should take it with a grain of salt.
I came into DmC hoping that it would be a good game and I wasn't let down. In fact now that I've had a bit of distance from the game I'd be willing to say that it's great. I'll start with the story, because that's not exactly the most important part. Humans live in the human world, and demons reside in a parallel dimension called limbo. Dante is half angel and half demon, which makes him a Nephilim. This allows him to enter limbo and combat demons. At the start of the game the demon lord Mundus is taking control of the world through the use of political media and a soft drink called virility. Dante ends up getting sucked into a battle against Mundus with his brother twin brother Vergil, and his human partner Kat. They combat the demons together in an attempt to free the world from Mundus' evil clutches.
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| Dante, Vergil, and Kat work together to take down Mundus. |
The character development in the game is fantastic. The character interactions are enhanced a great deal by the motion capturing that Ninja Theory does in all of their games. Sometimes real actors can make expressions that 3D animations just aren't capable of yet. It makes everything seem so much more lifelike than it does in other games. I think that may be the reason I like the new Dante so much as a character. In all of the pre-release media he kind of seemed like an unlikable asshole. The reason he came off like that is because almost every scene where he acts like a tool is taken completely out of context. He's still super cocky just like Dante used to be, but he's a whole lot more in your face about the whole thing. I know I might catch a lot of flack for this, but I think he might be better than the old Dante. He feels much more like a complete character to me. You can see him changing as the game progresses and things actually seem to affect him on meaningful levels.
As a whole the plot is trying to be a bit too topical, but it's a lot more ambitious than any Devil May Cry story before it. When the game ends it seems like if Ninja Theory gets a chance at a sequel they're going to be moving closer to the plot of the original games. So long time fans should breathe a small sigh of relief.
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| DmC is still all about the combos, so don't freak out! |
The gameplay is what truly matters in a character action game though and DmC does not disappoint. Long time fans of the series may be unhappy to hear that it's a whole lot more accessible than the previous games in the franchise. I can't tell if it's because the gameplay is just more accessible, or because it's easier overall. The later difficulties are still overly punishing, but I feel like I have more of a chance to survive. Dante starts off with his sword Rebellion and his pistols Ebony and Ivory. Square is used for weak attacks and triangle is used for strong attacks. Circle allows Dante to dodge, and X allows him to jump. It's all pretty standard Devil May Cry fare. Where this game changes it up is by introducing two demon and two angel weapons.
Demon weapons do massive damage while angel weapons don't pack quite as much of a punch, but they attack super fast. DmC makes it very easy to switch between weapons on the fly, which makes almost any combo look impressive. Holding the right trigger makes Dante use demon weapons and angel weapons are on the left trigger. The combo system is still about making things as flashy as possible so you'll want to switch up the weapons you're using very often. Using the same attacks repeatedly will make the combo meter build up much slower. This ended up making me rapidly switch between weapons whenever I could so that I could achieve a SSS rank. If you want to get into some insane comboing that's still an option. There are already quite a few DmC combo videos on YouTube that blew my mind. You can still hit an enemy up in the air and keep them up there for a ridiculous amount of time.
This game allows for newcomers to get into the series while still having the ability to appeal to old fans. It may be a bit easier and more accessible, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't have an insane amount of depth. It reminds me a lot of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Marvel 2 fans didn't want to accept it, but now it's the most popular game at most tournaments because it's filled with all kinds of insane infinites. I hope that Devil May Cry fans can find it in their hearts to play this game, because it totally deserves a sequel. Nina Theory did an excellent job re-imagining the Devil May Cry universe.
I've had enough action for now
It's a good thing Ni No Kuni came out, because after playing Anarchy Reigns and DmC back to back I have had my fill of action games for a while. Hopefully I'm ready for some more by the time Metal Gear Rising Revengence comes out in the middle of February.
Anarchy Reigns wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but both DmC and Ni No Kuni were incredible. This year has been awesome for video games so far and it seems like the hits will keep on coming. Fire Emblem Awakening comes out in a few days and I can't wait to get my hands on it. Sly Cooper is coming out the day after, but I don't know what to think about that. I want to like it, but we'll have to wait and see.
Well, I'm off to play some more Ni No Kuni. This has been another exciting installment of Game Time. See you next time!
-Manny
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