Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition

Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition was among the games available right at the PlayStation 5 launch and served as an ideal showcase of what the new console could do. At its core is the return of the cult action series to Red Grave City, where a demonic tree has grown out of the ground and the demon Urizen threatens the entire world. The player alternately controls three characters: young hunter Nero with his interchangeable mechanical arms, the ever-sharp Dante with his four combat styles, and the mysterious V, who lets his summoned beasts fight while he himself only finishes off weakened enemies.

The heart of the game is the style rank. Varied, uninterrupted combos raise your grade from D all the way to the legendary SSS, along with the feeling that you've finally grasped the rhythm. Nero switches between Devil Breakers with different abilities, Dante changes both style and weapon within a single combo, and V keeps his distance while directing his panther and bird. The Special Edition additionally adds playable Vergil with his own set of attacks and the technique of splitting into two bodies, the Legendary Dark Knight difficulty with an enormous number of enemies on screen, and a Turbo mode that speeds up the entire game. On PlayStation 5 it gained ray tracing and a high-frame-rate mode, which matters most for action this fast.

The atmosphere is deliberately over the top — a rock soundtrack with vocals that intensify as your style rank rises, chatty characters, and scenes practically tailor-made for highlight reels. The original game was received brilliantly and is often described as the series' return to form, and the special edition added exactly what fans wanted most. Devil May Cry's influence on the entire stylish-action genre is well known, and the fifth entry still serves as its benchmark today: accessible on a first playthrough, practically bottomless for anyone who wants to play well. Alongside the campaign it offers the Bloody Palace, a hundred floors of timed combat, and an extensive skill tree for each character separately, so unlocking and mastering every move alone takes dozens of hours.