DMC4 360 Looks Better than PS3 version

#1 August 24th, 2007, 12:22 AM

We played a build of DMC 4 last April during Capcom's annual Gamers Day on the PS3, its native console, and were happy with the demo. Capcom officially announced that the Xbox 360 version would be playable during Games Convention, so we headed over earlier today to beat the Thursday rush. Our verdict? No matter what poison you pick, you'll probably end up happy, even if we have some small misgivings about the 360 controller's configuration.

For those not in the know, DMC 4 will put you mainly in the shoes of demon-hunter Nero, who's hunting down Dante, the face of the franchise. We don't know many more details regarding the game's plot, but we're sure that, based on our time with the two sections that we played, it should maintain the quality that we saw in the first and third games in the series.

The catch to the demo was that it was a slightly modified version of the same build we played back in April and previewed in early May. In one section, now dubbed "Exterminator," Capcom shows off the game's platforming and combat fundamentals. Nero battles creatures and solves puzzles in typical DMC fashion while players learn about his abilities, which seem similar to Dante's except for the Devil Bringer, a special arm that allows for some specialized combat. In the other section, now known as "Executioner," Nero battles Berial, a fiery hellspawn that's taller than the buildings that Nero uses for shelter (or green orbs, depending on whether Berial destroys them or not), eventually bringing him to his demonic knees.

But really, what you probably want to know is what's different between the two versions, and based on our fifteen minutes with each one (PS3 first to jog our memory, then 360 to see the difference), we think that the two versions are fairly similar visually. The PS3 version looks marginally less refined to us, but anyone looking to start a console-superiority argument wouldn't have much ammo here. Both games look amazing. It's the controls, however, where we felt the biggest difference.

Argue however much you will; after five and a half years of hacking, slashing, and shooting demons, we and millions of gamers are very accustomed to the feel of the PlayStation controller, be it Dual Shock 2 or Sixaxis, for the DMC experience. Our gripe with the Xbox 360 demo is that the controls feel too directly ported over to Microsoft's controller, and it's not a good ergonomic fit. While the DMC games on PlayStation have used R1 to modify Dante's attacks, the Right Bumper doesn't feel natural to the gameplay experience, and certainly feels weird when you're targeting enemies to slay. Maybe it's just for the demo, and Capcom will allow for controller configurations that are better tuned to the Xbox 360's controller, but it felt really awkward to play during our demo. Aside from that, the face buttons feel perfectly fine, and the rest of the build, aside from the annoyance of the Right Bumper, is still very fun. We just wish Capcom hadn't slapped a ten-minute time limit on the "Exterminator" section, but then again, we've braved the Games Convention crowd on public days; those kids would never get off the machines.

Now that we've gotten to play a build of Devil May Cry 4 for Xbox 360, we can safely say that it's just as amazing-looking as the PS3 version, if not a hair more polished. It's still pretty much the same demo that we tried out a few months ago during a Capcom media event, so there weren't many surprises for us in regard to expectations. That aside, we hope that in the final product (or heck, future builds), the development team will allow for some control configuration. As it stands now, we're not sure we could tolerate using the Right Bumper so excessively on the Xbox 360 controller instead of the triggers, which are much more comfortable. Some might accuse us of nitpicking or fanboy bias, but honestly, gameplay, ergonomics and controls are king. We're hoping to see Dante and Nero rule the roost, regardless of platform, when DMC 4 drops next year.

PirateThom · #2 August 24th, 2007, 12:23 AM

But the key here is, the PS3 version plays better.

Kohi · #3 August 24th, 2007, 12:23 AM

It's the controls, however, where we felt the biggest difference

Juno · #4 August 24th, 2007, 12:24 AM

Quote:

Argue however much you will; after five and a half years of hacking, slashing, and shooting demons, we and millions of gamers are very accustomed to the feel of the PlayStation controller, be it Dual Shock 2 or Sixaxis, for the DMC experience. Our gripe with the Xbox 360 demo is that the controls feel too directly ported over to Microsoft's controller, and it's not a good ergonomic fit. While the DMC games on PlayStation have used R1 to modify Dante's attacks, the Right Bumper doesn't feel natural to the gameplay experience, and certainly feels weird when you're targeting enemies to slay. Maybe it's just for the demo, and Capcom will allow for controller configurations that are better tuned to the Xbox 360's controller, but it felt really awkward to play during our demo.

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