The Devil May Cry 4 Hardcore

Published March 11, 2008

Devil May Cry® 4 has been built from the ground up for the hardcore action gamer, but with a twist. It's up to you, the gamer, to dedicate yourself not just to completing the levels, plowing your way from Nero's introduction to Dante's revelation and all the way through to the game's final drama, but instead to owning each encounter, dominating it with style and skill.

Are you ready?

The end of every level greets the player with a grade, and it's this grade alone that determines what kind of Devil May Cry 4 player you really are. Of course, it's our hardcore duty to dig even deeper, creating self-made challenges to further test our action skill, and these I now provide. Good luck.

Devil Hunter Required

Nero and Dante are no mere mortals; they are Devil Hunters, gifted with preternatural reflexes, vast acrobatic skill and overwhelming combat style and moxie. Why then would you dare to insult their native skill by eschewing Devil Hunter mode, and playing through on the Human (read: Easy) difficulty, forcing our fearless heroes to face deflated, less devious villains on their way to a hollow victory?

Scuttle any thoughts right now of using the same tired but effective combination time and time again to clear enemies.

No, indeed, Devil Hunter difficulty is required for any hardcore player. That is, until you unlock the higher difficulty settings. All hail those who clear Devil May Cry 4 on Hell Mode.

Always Combo

Devil May Cry 4 may reward those who strictly adhere to its timing-based combos, but that doesn't mean the less skillful player can't flail about, button-mashing their way to the occasional victory. The hardcore gamer though must slice, dice, and shoot with a clear purpose, using only defined combos. Never strike without the full might of the combo system behind you.

Varied Combos

There shall be no combo crutches in your use of the system, so scuttle any thoughts right now of using the same tired but effective combination time and time again to clear enemies. It may score you a decent grade, sure, but such activities fly in the face of hardcore gaming. Use your hero's full repertoire of moves, never settling on a single standby combo.

Keep that combo alive!

Earn that S

More than any other action game on the market, Devil May Cry 4 draws a clear line between merely beating a level and dominating it with Nero or Dante as intended. The given grades at the end of a mission tell a clear story, defining precisely how well you played.

Of course, the hardcore among us cannot merely pass through a level, happy simply to have moved on. Instead, we must defeat every enemy, claim every prize and wring free every point the level has to offer. Simply put, you haven't won till you've earned an S grade on every level.

Combo Clearing

Consider each enemy encounter as a prime opportunity to display Nero or Dante's considerable combat skills, rather than just an opportunity to clear your way to the exit one enemy at a time. From the battle's beginning, the hardcore goal should be to score a seamless, acrobatic combo that strings from your first strike to your last.

It's this challenge that requires the most intense focus, the most remarkable skill. More importantly though, while excruciatingly challenging at times, it is an eminently reachable goal on Devil Hunter difficulty.

Never settle on a single move.

Win the Bonus

Scattered throughout Devil May Cry 4 are a number of bonus missions, every one of them a stiff test from start to finish, and as such, they represent an easy to measure hardcore challenge. These missions exist to test your reflexes, skill and strategy. Beat them and you will know full well that you are hardcore.

Devil May Cry 4 offers a stern test of gaming skill from start to finish on its own, even on Devil Hunter difficulty. That there remains unlockable difficulty settings and a slew of white-knuckle bonus missions adds even more to the game's native challenge. Adhere to the preceding challenges and you will have truly earned your hardcore action-gaming stripes.

Article by Hardcore