A Complete Breakdown of the Devil May Cry Series
Devil May Cry
The first Devil May Cry mainly deals with the introduction of Dante and the world around him, though there are some elements and characters that have lasting relevance in the series.
The world itself is presented as one separated between the human world and the demon world.
Both have been kept separated save for a scant amount of demons which find their way to the human world, though some groups and individuals have tried to connect the two worlds in the past in a vie to control both.
As such, demon hunters are needed to keep the peace and stop those that want to connect the two worlds, with those like series protagonist Dante acting as peacekeepers for hire.
Dante, The Son of Sparda
Enter Dante, a Devil Hunter who is half demon himself and hunts other demons as a means of tracking down the devil who killed his mother and brother.
All he has to remember them by is a mysterious amulet left to him by his mother. It is one of a pair given to him and his brother, with the other lost after his brother died.
He has an incredible aptitude for learning how to use weapons, and can implement them into his arsenal almost immediately.
However, two weapons, in particular, play a vital role in his arsenal: The Force Edge, a sword left to him by his father, and his dual pistols known as Ebony and Ivory.
Both are indispensable to him and, in several cases, can be imbued with power from Dante or other characters to take down more fearsome adversaries.
He likewise knows how to incorporate his demonic abilities into combat, surviving otherwise deadly attacks and enhancing his own agility and strength through the use of demonic energy.
Nelo Angelo
All of this comes into play when he is hired by Trish, a mysterious woman resembling his mother and has special abilities of her own, to stop the rise of the demon world’s current ruler Mundus.
As it turns out, Mundus is the demon responsible for his family’s deaths. For this reason, Dante accepts and accompanies Trish to an island with an ancient castle.
Once there, Dante battles his way through countless demons, some of which speak to his lineage as the son of the demon Sparda, a dark knight who betrayed his own kind to save the human realm.
The most important of these demons is Nelo Angelo, a silent swordsman who Dante confronts repeatedly before it is revealed he is Dante’s supposedly dead brother Vergil, stuck under the control of Mundus.
This is hinted at several times leading up to their final confrontation – most notably when Nelo stops short of killing Dante after seeing his amulet – and as such it’s unclear whether he truly wanted to kill Dante or if he wanted to be killed himself.
It’s also unclear whether Vergil is actually killed in their final confrontation, with several other boss demons returning even after being killed through some way, shape or form.
All the same, Dante frees his brother from Mundus’ control, acquiring his amulet in the process. With it, he awakens the true form of the Force Edge, revealing it to be the Sparda blade wielded by his father.
In addition to allowing Dante to manifest the true strength passed down to him by his father, the Sparda also has the power to unseal the barrier in place between the human and demon worlds.
Devils Never Cry
With this power in hand, Dante then goes to confront Mundus only to be betrayed by Trish, who reveals that she was a demon created by Mundus and had been working for him all along.
Despite this, Dante still saves her when she is nearly killed by some falling rubble after a battle with her and one of Mundus’ minions. He claims to do this because she looks like his mother, but abandons her to her punishment for failure by Mundus.
Shortly after, Dante finally comes face to face with Mundus but is quickly overpowered when Mundus threatens to kill Trish. Before he can be killed though, Trish saves him at the apparent cost of her own life.
Enraged, Dante awakens his true power as a son of Sparda, overpowering Mundus. This causes the island to start collapsing, and though he can’t kill him at first, Trish returns and assists him. Together, they deliver a finishing blow.
Trish apologizes to Dante for her betrayal, shedding tears as she does so. Dante then reveals to her that she may not be entirely demonic and evil after all, saying that devils never cry.
The two escape, working together to hunt demons as partners throughout the rest of the series. Trish is able to utilize both the powers granted to her by Mundus as well as Sparda, with Dante using his firearms and ever-growing demon weapon arsenal.
Likewise, they rename Dante’s business to Devil Never Cry, which it retains through later entries.
A Complete Breakdown of the Devil May Cry Series
Devil May Cry 2
Admittedly, there wasn’t a whole lot of new lore revealed through Devil May Cry 2. However, there was one important caveat to take note of.
Waking the Devil
Throughout the game, Dante is brought up to speed on, and subsequently has to stop, a plot to resurrect the demonic lord Argosax to harvest his power.
Though he defeats the supposed orchestrator of this plot, Dante must still face the partially resurrected form of Argosax in the demon world before he awakens and comes to the human world.
Though Dante comes out victorious in the end, this shows that demons previously thought dead can be brought back to life.
It’s not entirely clear what the specification is on how, but it does set the precedent for the return of one or all of the foes that Dante has taken out in the past.
A Complete Breakdown of the Devil May Cry Series
Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening
Speaking of the past, Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening is a prequel set before Dante went into the demon hunting business in earnest and covers some crucial lore related to Dante’s brother Vergil.
More inclined to his demonic side than Dante, Vergil revels in his demonic abilities. Armed with a blade from his father called the Yamato, he seeks to use the powers passed down to him to rule both the human and demon worlds.
It’s to this end that he teams up with Arkham, a man intent on becoming a demon through any means necessary. Together, they plot to undo a seal separating the two worlds by raising an ancient tower that houses the Force Edge.
To awaken the Force Edge’s true form though, they need Dante, and to that end they draw him out with a surprise attack that leaves his would-be shop in ruins.
Properly motivated, Dante then sets out to stop Vergil and ensure the human world stays safe.
Devil Trigger
Though initially only armed with Ebony and Ivory as well as a long sword from his father known as Rebellion, Dante’s arsenal and demonic abilities grow the further up the tower he progresses.
Key among them is the Devil Trigger, which allows him to fully awaken his demonic powers for a short time.
Achieved after he is nearly killed by Vergil in their first confrontation, it allows him to tap into his demonic side to pull off inhuman feats of strength and agility he doesn’t have access to while in his human form.
It also allows him to use abilities and weapons of different demons he comes across, eventually able to pull off such feats as stopping time and creating doppelgangers.
However, Vergil shows the same aptitude, wielding weapons forged from the souls of demons he kills to deadly effect while enhancing his own demonic abilities the more he clashes with Dante.
Lady the Devil Hunter
As Dante progresses through the castle, he also encounters Lady, a devil hunter and Arkham’s daughter.
Though only human, she is capable of taking on all manner of demons with the use of a wide array of firearms and a multi-purpose rocket launcher.
Intent on stopping Arkham and killing any demon she comes across, she clashes with Dante several times before finally reaching the top of the tower through her own means.
However, this is revealed to have been Arkham’s plan all along. A descendant of a woman sacrificed to create the tower’s seal in the first place, he required Lady’s blood alongside Dante and Virgil’s to undo the seal to the demon world.
Swooping in after a battle between Dante and Vergil leaves both exhausted, he takes and uses all of their blood to undo the seal, acquiring the Force Edge and incorporating its demonic power to make himself a true devil.
All three are thrown from the top of the tower, with Vergil disappearing for a brief time after passing out from his injuries.
After climbing back up the tower, Dante and Lady meet once more. After coming to blows, Dante convinces her he’s trying to save the human world and the two decide to work together.
Dante sets out to take on Arkham with Lady’s blessing, wielding her rocket launcher as a show of good faith.
Vergil’s Fate
Dante confronts Arkham, but is unable to defeat him in his new demonic form. Just as all seems lost, Vergil appears and the two work together to put down Arkham before his ambitions can be fully realized.
Once defeated, Dante and Vergil fall into a space between the human and demon world for one final battle over who will claim the Force Edge. This leaves Lady to kill Arkham once and for all.
Though Dante comes out victorious, he is unable to kill Vergil and tries to bring him to his senses. However, unable to fully change his ways, Virgil falls into the demon world, taking his amulet which would awaken the Sparda blade’s true form with him.
Dante escapes the space in-between worlds and meets up with Lady. He sheds a tear for the loss of his brother, leading Lady to point out that some things may be so sad that even a devil may cry.
The two go their separate ways, but remain allies and associates in the demon hunting business.
Meanwhile, Virgil awakens in the demon world with Mundus looming overhead. Determined to prove himself just as strong as his father, he charges into battle against the devil.
A Complete Breakdown of the Devil May Cry Series
Devil May Cry 4
Devil May Cry 4 brings plenty of new lore elements to the table, from expanding on the series’ world to introducing some crucial new characters.
After the events of the first game, Dante and Trish take on a demon hunting job from Lady.
Through her contacts, she has learned that The Order of the Sword, a religion built around Dante’s father Sparda, worship demons and believe them to be the next stage of evolution.
To this end, they carry out experiments and rituals to become demons and connect the human world and demon world, ruling over both as higher beings.
This includes using the remnants of Nelo Angelo’s armor to create demonic armor knights, erecting Hell Gates that summon powerful demons from the demon world and using the blades of Sparda to siphon demonic energy for unholy experiments.
As such, Trish must infiltrate the order from the inside by presenting them with the Sparda blade while Dante throws them off her trail with a head-on assault.
Unfortunately, the Order’s actions have been carried out in secret, resulting in Dante appearing as an evil assassin when he attacks the order’s leader High Priest Sanctus and his guards.
This results in a brawl with the young Order member and new protagonist of the game, Nero.
Nero
A young man with white hair and characteristics similar to Dante and Vergil, Nero has a similar aptitude with swords and firearms as the sons of Sparda.
However, he primarily sticks to two core weapons: The Red Queen, a sword he can rev up with energy through some special modifications, and the Blue Rose, a double-barrel revolver.
Though not invincible, he displays superhuman feats of agility and strength that allow him to go toe to toe with powerful demons and Dante alike.
He also has a demonic right arm known as the Devil Bringer. Housing the spirit of a powerful demonic entity, it allows him to enter a devil trigger-like state when it comes into contact with one of Sparda’s blades.
It’s also worth noting that he dislikes his demonic qualities and frequently differs in opinion on the actions of the order, questioning their motives even before their true nature comes to light.
However, he still helps them due to his friend and love interest Kyrie being the sister of the Order’s Holy Knight Captain Credo.
Sanctus and the Order’s True Intentions
After coming to a stalemate with Dante, Nero learns that all of Sanctus’ guards were actually demons. Confused and in search of answers, he sets out to discover what the order has really been up to while also trying to get more information out of Dante.
As he travels across the island, he finds more and more proof of the Order’s foul dealings from their Hell Gates to their demonic experiments. He does his best to quell them, but many times can only beat the threats posed back for a short while.
This all comes to a head when he encounters Agnus, the order scientist responsible for the order’s demonic experiments, doing so with the broken fragments of Yamato.
It is revealed that all of the chaos he thought the order was protecting the island from was actually caused by them as a means to an end for their rituals.
Though Agnus initially overpowers Nero, the fragments of Yamato react to his demonic arm and awaken his demonic abilities and Devil Trigger.
With this newfound power, he sets out to stop the Order, even if it means taking down the religion the island is built upon.
The Savior
As Nero progresses toward his goal, he takes on and defeats Credo and Agnus. However, in a bid to deter him, Agnus kidnaps Kyrie, goading Nero into a confrontation with Sanctus on their terms.
Before arriving at the battle, Dante reveals himself once more and challenges Nero to a fight for the Yamato. Though they arrive at another stalemate, he allows Nero to keep the Yamato and take on Sanctus.
However, even with the Yamato and his newfound demonic powers, Nero is unable to take down Sanctus due to his threat of harm to Kyrie.
As a result, he is drawn into the giant, demonic statue of Sparda known as The Savior and used as its power source. This ended up being the order’s intention all along, with Sanctus revealing that the blood of Sparda is needed to fully awaken The Savior’s power.
Though it isn’t revealed how, Nero carries the blood of Sparda in him, making him the perfect candidate for powering The Savior.
This kicks off the order’s plan to connect the human and demon worlds, with demons spreading across the island through the Hell Gates.
Dante’s Return
Left with no other choice, Dante then steps in to stop the order in Nero’s place. Following close behind The Savior’s path of destruction, he destroys the Hell Gates before coming to a confrontation with Agnus and Sanctus at the island’s capital.
Once there, he tracks down Agnus, who took back the Yamato from Nero after his absorption into The Savior. After killing him, Dante takes the Yamato and confronts the Savior head-on.
Though he can’t defeat it, Dante succeeds in driving the Yamato far enough into The Savior’s body for it to reach Nero. Once again in contact with a blade of Sparda, he awakens and sets out to save Kyrie and destroy the Savior from the inside out.
A New Devil Hunter
After battling through The Savior’s interior defenses, Nero finds Kyrie being held in its core alongside Sanctus. The two clash, but with the Yamato and the Devil Bringer Nero defeats Sanctus and rescues Kyrie.
After the battle, Dante once again trusts Nero with the Yamato and leaves it with him. He leaves him to help rebuild the Island of Fortuna and live out a peaceful life with Kyrie.
A Complete Breakdown of the Devil May Cry Series
Devil May Cry 5
All of these elements lead into Devil May Cry 5, a triumphant return and culmination of the many plot threads the core series has presented.
From what’s been shown of the game so far, a new enemy has arisen to try and take control of the human and demon worlds. He isn’t messing around either, severing Nero’s Devil Bringer and laying out Dante, Lady and Trish in a fight.
Fortunately, the series’ many devil hunters are working together to stop this new threat.
They’re also joined by newcomers like Nico, a mechanic who has provided Nero with a prosthetic arm known as the Devil Breaker, and V, a devil Hunter with the power to control demonic entities.
Together, they’ll take on this new threat, uncover the motives to his plot and wrap up the many questions surrounding the origins and fates of the Sons of Sparda.
For more on the Devil May Cry series, check out our review of Devil May Cry 5 to see whether it lives up to the lineage of the series.
Published: Mar 8, 2019 01:20 pm