Republished on Wednesday, January 11, 2023: We are bringing this review back from the archives after the announcement of January 2023 PS Plus lineup. The original text follows.
If you’re the type of player who spends hours and hours inventing absurdly cool combos in Devil May Cry 5, then this expanded re-release is for you. Likewise, if you’re brand new to Capcom’s bombastic action title, then this is the best version of an already exceptional game (you can read our original Devil May Cry 5 PS4 review on here). Briefly, Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition It’s brilliant.
Let’s start with what’s new. Vergil, Dante’s katana-wielding twin brother, has been added as a fourth playable character, and he’s yet another masterclass in terms of gameplay design. Vergil is ridiculously fun and possibly the most stylish fighter on this list. He has teleportation, extremely fast sword swings, and a ‘concentration’ meter that fills up when you represent the supremely arrogant bastard that Vergil is.
Casually parading towards an enemy? That’s some meter. Dodging an attack at the last possible second and then taunting your inept opponent? That’s a lot of gauge. However, you’ll lose concentration if you start running or swinging your weapons into nothing but air. It’s a mechanic that encapsulates Vergil as a character. To get the most out of him, you need to act with all the effortless flair and rage-inducing swagger we’ve come to expect from the series’ antagonist.
It’s a shame that Vergil doesn’t have his own story. If you choose to play as him, you’ll blast your way through the usual Devil May Cry 5 campaign, but with no cutscenes or narrative to trick you. It’s not a huge issue, as Vergil’s gameplay is clearly the star of the show, but it still feels a little cheap. Even just a few new scenes to help put things in context would have made a real difference.
Fortunately, the Special Edition comes equipped with a real game changer: the Legendary Dark Knight mode. An all-new difficulty level available right from the start, this mode tests your skills by throwing hordes of demons at you. Instead of fighting just a few enemies in each area, you’ll encounter a whole host of creatures. It’s a brutal but brilliant addition, and while we wouldn’t necessarily recommend it for newcomers, it does provide the perfect reason to blast the campaign all over again.
Impressively, even when you’re surrounded by countless monsters and your screen is completely covered in all sorts of visual effects, the Special Edition barely misses a frame. Performance on PS5 is rock solid, and barring a few slightly rough-looking environments, the title still looks phenomenal overall. There are a few graphics options to play around with – including a 30 frames per second mode that maximizes resolution and ray tracing – but we found ourselves sticking to a tried and true dynamic 4K setting of 60 frames per second.
Truth be told, the ray tracing on the Special Edition is nothing to write home about – and it certainly isn’t worth cutting the frame rate in half. There’s also an option that allows for 120 frames per second if you have a compatible display, but it’s nowhere near stuttering, leading to noticeable dips when things get busy. The bottom line is that while it’s nice to have all these options, Devil May Cry 5 is best played smooth and crisp.
But hey, what about loading times? In Special Edition they are basically non-existent. The game even has loading screens that feature written gameplay hints, but they disappear within seconds. Sometimes they don’t even understand it. Even getting into The Void – a practice mode that can be accessed from the character customization menu – only takes a moment. It all adds up to a seamless experience where you can immediately dive into the action whenever you’re ready. Truly next generation.
Conclusion
Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition is the definitive version of an already excellent action title. In terms of gameplay, we’d go so far as to say that Vergil is one of the best-drawn characters the genre has ever seen, and his inclusion alone is enough to make us smile from ear to ear. Devil May Cry 5 is still an absolute joy to play and remains one of the greatest action games to ever grace the PlayStation.
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