Devil Kings review

Will my square button survive as Devil Kings enters my life? Once the game starts to load you just know it’s a product of Capcom’s love for similar menus in every game, I did have some expectations for this game, not through previews or news just through my knowledge that Capcom was the company that created cult game Resident Evil and slashing Devil May Cry. Is it a coincidence that these two games share the name Devil? I remember Devil May Cry burning slashing goodness into my mind with the feeling afterwards my fingers had new found springs but would this game serve me as well as Devil May Cry did.

You get a good idea of what the game is all about once the CG scene kicks in, the hectic reality of the game really starts to set in, with thousands of soldiers flying through the air caused by two enemies colliding creating a huge fireball. So video games are realistic, hmmm? Maybe not this one, but this is what makes video games so enjoyable being able to rid yourself from the real world, and the one man army is as far away from the real world as you can get.

Pop-up

I mentioned the one man army for a reason, yes you do have soldiers on your side but they are rather useless, thankfully you don’t really need them. They look more like statues than soldiers fighting in a battle. As for the enemy AI, well they come thick in numbers and thick in mind as well. Which I suppose is fine for audience that who have no patience and enjoy running in and killing masses of soldiers with vigorous compressions of one button. For those who want to use their brain a little too it’s somewhat lacking.

As you dive deeper into Devil Kings some major flaws in the game become apparent. There’s a lot of pop-up due to the poor view distance. Seeing whole sections of scenery appear in a block is rather disconcerting. The pop-up is not just a grumble over the eye-candy, it means you have very little idea what’s going on in the world around you. There’s a poor showing from the graphics all round with no exception character of scenery models in the game.

No Stutter Rap

While I may have complained about draw-distance issues I can’t really complain about how Devil Kings’ engine handles the larger battle scenes. Even during a battle with 50 soldiers you won’t see any sign of stuttering. Opponents often appear from nowhere. Granted, you may occasionally be warned by distant horn blasts when enemies are calling from support, but they still will just appear right in front of you. I’ll admit this seems a deliberate technique due to the game’s fantasy world but it does make for some rather frustrating play.

I don’t want to be too negative though, I do rather love some aspects of the game. Devil Kings is not all about slashing and button mashing. There are times when the player does have to think about what he/she is doing. Rushing into the attack will get you absolutely nowhere. Some strategy is needed, you need to bide your time and defend your position before timing your counterattack to perfection.

Unlocking

Devil Kings features two main game modes, Conquest and Free Battle. There are five main characters but more can be unlocked via success in the Conquest section. Like many games of its type you’ll be rewarded with experience at the end of each level. This experience can be used to unlock new boost moves and other add-ons. During the battles you’ll also be filling up Fury and Slain metres. Filling the former will give you a super combo attack which kills all nearby enemies. The Slain metre is simpler, merely keeping a tally of all the enemies you have despatched.

Your progress throughout the game is displayed via an in-menu map. This risk-style map is rather cluttered and not as helpful as it could be. The 15 lands included in the game are very short. Further lands are unlocked by completing the conquest mode with different characters. I did find that there was little real urge to play through the lands again though once I’d completed the game with a couple of characters.

Poor Show

The games sound is very good with sword clashing and shouting delivered perfectly along with well recorded voice-overs although these are somewhat wasted amidst battle as they are drowned out by the clatters of swords and shouts of pain, relevant in game music along with music on menus serve as a good background sound.

So what else is there to say? The sound is good, in fact it’s the most competent aspect of the game. Swords clashing and soldiers shouting are delivered perfectly along with well recorded voice-overs. The music is atmospheric too. But good sound isn’t going to save the game. There’s wasted potential here in Devil Kings, perhaps a sequel could bring that out. As it stands it is a flawed game thanks to repetition and some technical issues.