Devil May Cry 5 is all the shit and anyone who has followed Gamersnet closely in recent years, has known that for a long time. Our own Mikey Mike Gevers gave Capcom’s bland over-the-top epic a well-deserved 8.8 his review. This final grade suggests that there is still some room for improvement and guess what … BAM! Capcom is just throwing out a special edition for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, which is simply called Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition. Not because you have to, but because you can.
But what has really changed and is it significantly better? Well… let me put it this way, the figure is not going up in a big way. In fact, I leave the figure for what it is. The changes in Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition are absolutely noticeable, but most of them are mostly graphic, and that was already top-notch. To make matters worse, there is even a downside, but it is not so bad that it makes the devil howl.
From SSS to raytraced KKKK
As befits every re-release on the latest generation of consoles, Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition now plays smoothly at 4K, including ray tracing. Yes, if you thought it all looked pico bello when you first played the game, after turning on ray tracing, you’re going to get a bump in your pants. For some players, the gameplay may be just a little too fast to really have time, but with ray tracing on it is so choked with the shinies that sometimes you just want to stop and enjoy it.
Those who want to make as few concessions as possible and prefer to enjoy the best possible performance can also choose to tick partial ray tracing in the selection menu. As a result, you still have ray tracing, but Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition does not get everything through the high gloss. If a high frame rate is more of a priority for you than all that shiny stuff, you can also turn off ray tracing. You still have 4K image quality, just without the added light effects. What you do have …
UNLIMITED FRAMERATES!!!
Well, unlimited may be a bit over-stretched, but the number of frames per second is – for a console – an enormous amount when you leave ray tracing for what it is. In 2020, 30fps is really no longer possible and 60 frames per second must become a bit of the gold standard. Still, more is always pleasant, especially in a chaotic one hack-’n’-slasher als Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition.
You know what, just throw out 120 frames per second or something. Go crazy, Capcom! Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition just does it, provided you connect a monitor or TV that supports this frame rate, of course. The result is to shed a devil’s tear. From luck, of course. PC players may shrug it off and will rookie numbers but we – the console plebs – get to rub our little hands at 120fps.
From nasty V to devilish Vergil
Okay, the next section may not be completely new, but it is certainly worth mentioning. Last-gen console owners also had the opportunity to add the character Vergil to the story for a few ekkermen, but in Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition that other kid from Sparda is simply included. That may all sound lukewarm, but Vergil’s gameplay is a nice addition to the already excellent move sets of Dante and Nero (and V, but some people prefer not to talk about that anymore).
The chapters you go through with Vergil are just not really groundbreaking. Vergil’s episodes are not wrong – just for the record – but to say that they match the level of the main story would also be wrong. Fortunately this is all amply compensated by Vergil’s way of playing, which gives a new twist to the standard formula. It’s still about the hard slaughter of demonic scum, but with Vergil’s unique weaponry and skills it all feels a bit fresher.
Which charging time …
Best of all, maybe you barely have to look at a loading screen. Where you previously might have a short sanitary stop – provided you could pee very quickly – from now on you will really have to pause the game to sit on the ceramic throne. Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition loads fast. Which is of course nice, because there is nothing that makes you feel so hypersonic killing spree then a loading screen with tips you really don’t need anymore. To give you an idea, the loading times are many times shorter than this paragraph …
The blemish on the Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition blazon
But… there is also a big downside to Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition. Those who already own the game on the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One will not be eligible for a new purchase. Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition offers no option to upgrade and costs the full price for everyone. Well, 2/3 pounds. Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition will be sold for a reduced rate of € 39.99. For the newcomers this is a huge deal, but for anyone who already knows the story, this can be a bitter pill.
So you have to ask yourself whether the additions justify the price tag. Again, Devil May Cry 5 was already an excellent game on PlayStation 5 and Xbox One, and if the addition of Vergil is all that matters to you, you can rake it in as DLC too. But, if you – like many people – sit drooling in front of your screen because you can now also play Devil May Cry 5 on your console with ray tracing or 120fps, then you will have to reach for your pockets.
Conclusion
Anyone who thinks that Devil May Cry 5 couldn’t get much better, will get proven wrong through Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition. The improvements are mainly in the graphics corner, but also the extra content makes Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition a more complete version of the original. It is only sour for the owners of that original that Capcom does not offer an option to upgrade and that they too can simply push 40 peaks for this Special Edition. The question is therefore whether 4K ray-traced visuals or the option up to 120fps justifies it. Haven’t played the original yet and were you waiting for a great deal? It won’t get any better for the time being.
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