Devil May Cry 6 may have big shoes to fill, but the potential sequel has plenty going for it as well. Devil May Cry 5 restored a lot of faith in the series after a few rocky years, and will no doubt cast a huge influence on what direction the series takes next. While Capcom could continue to lean into Dante and Vergil's historic rivalry, Devil May Cry 6 shouldn't forsake the series' up-and-coming heroes.
Dante is practically the face of character action games, and Vergil has defined the role of video game rivals for generations. Both of them are icons in their own right, and certainly some of Capcom's most popular characters. Although the sibling rivalry served as the climax of Devil May Cry 5, the game did plenty to raise the profile of other characters, a fact that Devil May Cry 6 shouldn't take for granted.
Devil May Cry: Why Capcom Has Struggled With Passing the Torch to Nero
Since the release of Devil May Cry 4, Capcom has been trying to pass the torch to Nero, but this gambit is unlikely to pay off for the company.
Devil May Cry 5's Supporting Cast Should Become Devil May Cry 6's Main Protagonists
Devil May Cry 5 Left Dante and Vergil in a Tricky Situation
First and foremost, Dante and Vergil themselves aren't exactly in the best place to lead the series right now. Their stories are by no means over, but Devil May 5 deliberately stuck the brothers in a position where they can easily remain out of the spotlight for a while. In fact, Devil May Cry 5's endings left room for Dante to stay involved, and placed his allies firmly in the spotlight at the same time.
When the players last left off, both Dante and Vergil were trapped in hell due to the events of Devil May Cry 5's story. Dante is shown to be gleefully mowing down demons alongside his more begrudged brother. Although whether this alliance will survive more than a single game or not remains to be seen, one has to admit how promising this cliffhanger is.
Devil May Cry 5's Ending Perfectly Sets Up the Passing of the Torch
The series' main hero and villain are teamed up for perhaps their most perilous journey yet, and this is certainly a strong enough premise to build an entire game around. Devil May Cry 6 could feature co-op battles with Dante and Vergil, and potentially wrap up the brother's baggage. However, neither should be the sole focus, and other aspects of Devil May Cry 5's ending seem to think so as well.
Dante and Vergil have both been stuck in hell before, so at first glance this may not seem like the most pressing situation. If anything, this irony has only made some take this aspect of the ending less seriously as a result. Thankfully then, there's plenty more that seems to signal where Devil May Cry may go next.
Before players check in on Dante and Vergil, the focus is pulled to Trish and Lady. The two have been looking after Dante's office, and are quickly pulled into a new adventure. Although there isn't as much detail given about their mission compared to Dante's situation, one principle is made clear by this scene: out with the old and in with the new.
Devil May Cry 6's New Protagonists Have Big Shoes to Fill
It wouldn't be fair to call Trish new, since she's been around since the beginning. However, she's far from the only member of Devil May Cry's next generation, with V and Nero starring in Devil May Cry 5 alongside Dante. Now that Dante is stuck in hell and V is seemingly gone for good, the series' long-term plan to make Nero the main protagonist has finally gone into action.
Despite the good will the series now has thanks to Devil May Cry 5, it has certainly struggled to get any kind of reboot off the ground in the past. Though that may be the case, Devil May Cry 6 could fare much better than previous attempts. Dante's popularity is impossible to ignore, and there's a good reason attempts to move past that legacy have failed in the past. However, Devil May Cry 5 went out of its way to fully embrace that legacy, all the while paving the way for other characters to take his place.
Devil May Cry 5 showed its intent to place characters like Nero and Lady at the forefront of the series going forward, so Devil May Cry 6's story should take this concept and run with it. Putting Dante in the backseat is not the same as putting him on the back burner, and Devil May Cry can still do his story justice while lending greater focus to his former supporting cast. While Dante and Vergil may have plenty of stories left to tell, the series is due for a change of pace that only its new heroes can provide.
Devil May Cry 5
- Released
- March 8, 2019
WHERE TO PLAY
Prepare to get downright demonic with this signature blend of high-octane stylized action and otherworldly & original characters the series is known for. Director Hideaki Itsuno and the core team have returned to create the most insane, technically advanced and utterly unmissable action experience of this generation!
The threat of demonic power has returned to menace the world once again in Devil May Cry 5. The invasion begins when the seeds of a “demon tree” take root in Red Grave City. As this hellish incursion starts to take over the city, a young demon hunter Nero, arrives with his partner Nico in their “Devil May Cry” motorhome. Finding himself without the use of his right arm, Nero enlists Nico, a self-professed weapons artist, to design a variety of unique mechanical Devil Breaker arms to give him extra powers to take on evil demons such as the blood sucking flying Empusa and giant colossus enemy Goliath.
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood, Partial Nudity, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Capcom
- Publisher(s)
- Capcom
- Franchise
- Devil May Cry
- Genre(s)
- Action
- Platform(s)
- PS4, Xbox One, PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- How Long To Beat
- 11 Hours
- Metascore
- 89
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
