Redesign Case Study #2: DMC: Devil May Cry

Genre: Action-Adventure, Hack & Slash
Developer: Ninja Theory
Publisher: Capcom
Platform: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Windows
Engine: Unreal Engine 3
Release Date: January 15, 2013

DMC: Devil May Cry is a reboot of Capcom's popular Devil May Cry series by Ninja Theory. The game was requested by Capcom themselves as they wanted the new game to be made from a Western perspective in the hopes that it would stand apart from its predecessors. The result was a more realistic, and grounded game in contrast to the over-the-top antics of previous Devil May Crys.

The biggest change present in the reboot, however, is the protagonist, Dante. In previous DMC games, he is easily recognisable by his long white hair and trademark red long coat. In the reboot, however, his appearance is radically different, now sporting short, black hair and a shorter black coat with red highlights. He's also a lot younger than his counterpart, which fits as the reboot is essentially an origin story. At the end of the day, however, he still retains many traits from the old Dante; he still wields his sword Rebellion and guns Ebony and Ivory (albeit all with new designs to fit the setting), he still wears a coat and he still spends much of the game fighting demons. It should also be note that his hair gradually turns white throughout the game, and both his hair and coat revert to their original colour scheme when the Devil Trigger ability is used, so it's clear that the original Dante has not been completely forgotten.

How did the Fans react?
To describe the fan reaction as unpleasant would be an understatement; initial reactions to Dante's redesign were overwhelmingly negative, as fans felt that the redesign was far too removed from the original design and some thought that the new Dante was overly crude and 'edgy' for the sake of it. This reaction can largely be attributed to the initial reveal trailer, which, in all fairness, did indeed portray the redesigned character as overly crude and 'edgy' for the sake of it.

In the months leading up to the game's release, however, it became apparent that the reboot still retained several aspects of the original's personality and opinions began to change, with some fans growing to like the new Dante. However, a percentage of the series' fans still despise it even to this day, with some refusing even to play the game. So, at the end of the day, reception towards the new design remains mixed.

Personal Verdict
Personally, I've never really a big fan the old design for Dante. It's not that he has a terrible design or anything and he does fit in with the setting of the games he appears in, but to me he's always come across as some stereotypical Shonen anime character (hell, he even HAS his own anime!), and while I can see why some others would like this, it's never really done anything for me.

The new Dante, on the other hand, is a lot more appealing to me. He just feels a lot more grounded and more like an actual person. A crude, cynical asshole of a person, granted, but a person nonetheless. Sure, the story can be overly anti-establishment at times, but that one's more on the writing than the character design. I will admit that as a massive fan of Ninja Theory, my opinion is probably pretty biased here, but as far as I'm concerned the new Dante is a superior design to the old one.