Lowlander2
Banned
So, I finished it.
If you can accept that the combat has definitely slowed down and is a little less fluid, you'll have a good time. Mixing combos between different weapons is still as fun as ever. The middle of the game ramps up considerably in terms of difficulty and flair, and the game starts to get really good. It gets hard enough that I can almost forgive the stupid flashing enemies/weapons to telegraph attacks.
The story had its ups and downs. Dante himself is fine as a character; he has enough of the old stylings while having a bit more heart this time around, and without any "I should have been the one to fill your dark soul with LLLAAAAAIIIIIGGGGHHTTTTT!!!" to mess up the heartfelt moments. The most tense mission of the game is one where you don't even fight for half of it. Brilliant.
However, the backstory is explained way too quickly, the internal logic regarding Limbo is a bit inconsistent and the final plot twist is both out of nowhere and stupidly telegraphed. There's also a part where Dante somehow messes up where he's meant to be going, which is one of the most laughable moments in writing ever. That it can go from great emotions to silly contrivances pretty quickly is a sign of how the development changed over time, I imagine.
It was fairly short, but at least it didn't repeat any bosses this time around. In fact, there needed to be more. The last two, which should have been climactic, were pretty underwhelming.
Still, overall, I liked it. The essence of the combat is still there, the visual flair is astounding and circumvents a lot of the old UE3 traps and the writing, while inconsistent as hell, works when it gets it right. I'd put it above the demeaning DMC2 and the obtuse DMC 4, but it's still a ways behind 1, 3 or Bayonetta, and it'll be interesting to see how it stacks up to Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance in a month.
If you can accept that the combat has definitely slowed down and is a little less fluid, you'll have a good time. Mixing combos between different weapons is still as fun as ever. The middle of the game ramps up considerably in terms of difficulty and flair, and the game starts to get really good. It gets hard enough that I can almost forgive the stupid flashing enemies/weapons to telegraph attacks.
The story had its ups and downs. Dante himself is fine as a character; he has enough of the old stylings while having a bit more heart this time around, and without any "I should have been the one to fill your dark soul with LLLAAAAAIIIIIGGGGHHTTTTT!!!" to mess up the heartfelt moments. The most tense mission of the game is one where you don't even fight for half of it. Brilliant.
However, the backstory is explained way too quickly, the internal logic regarding Limbo is a bit inconsistent and the final plot twist is both out of nowhere and stupidly telegraphed. There's also a part where Dante somehow messes up where he's meant to be going, which is one of the most laughable moments in writing ever. That it can go from great emotions to silly contrivances pretty quickly is a sign of how the development changed over time, I imagine.
It was fairly short, but at least it didn't repeat any bosses this time around. In fact, there needed to be more. The last two, which should have been climactic, were pretty underwhelming.
Still, overall, I liked it. The essence of the combat is still there, the visual flair is astounding and circumvents a lot of the old UE3 traps and the writing, while inconsistent as hell, works when it gets it right. I'd put it above the demeaning DMC2 and the obtuse DMC 4, but it's still a ways behind 1, 3 or Bayonetta, and it'll be interesting to see how it stacks up to Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance in a month.
