Though it was ostensibly a game about confronting the gnarliest baddies Hell has to offer, the second entry in the Devil May Cry series felt to some like a walking tour akin to Dante's Inferno, all creepy gothic ambience with a conspicuous shortage of demon viscera. Even the original DMC, with its nerve-jangling mix of horror atmosphere and smashmouth action effects, could be navigated like a machete through thick brush: You might get D's for style, but so long as you kept the sword slashing and solved a few rudimentary puzzles, a triumphant cut-scene was only a long afternoon away. Clearly, the makers of the third installment have taken these criticisms to heart, because Devil May Cry 3: Programmers' Revenge will have the most nimble-fingered players spiking their controllers like one of John McEnroe's tennis rackets. Even the lowest scythe-wielding reaper in DMC3 has got some game, and the beasties come in thick, zombie-like waves.
You play Dante—half-man, half-demon, all smug Mountain Dew poster boy—the "good" progeny of the famed Demon Warrior Sparda, who once defied his evil brethren and sealed away the demon world. But Dante's cold-blooded twin brother Vergil, spurred on by scheming sycophant Arkham, resurrects the kingdom in the form of a Mordor-like tower of doom stretching to the heavens. Ascending the tower for the inevitable showdown (or in this case, three showdowns) with Vergil involves more than two dozen missions (plus secret missions) against creatures that can transport through space, vomit sand, spit blood, and hurl exploding spears—and that doesn't count the screen-filling big bosses waiting behind them. To fight them, Dante has six different fighting systems (two of which are unlockable), an accumulating arsenal of swords, guns, and other weapons, and a badass-ometer reading approaching Martin Henderson in Torque.
Beyond the gameplay: Whenever the action slows down long enough to reveal the scenery, the tower's ornate beauty shows an obsessive attention to detail. The cavernous arenas, intimate chamber rooms, and secret passageways would create a haunted-house atmosphere of madness and dread even if the tower were unoccupied.
Worth playing for: A sense of accomplishment. After repeated deaths for the cause, even the lamest cut-scenes between missions stand out like a glorious oasis of flower petals and angelic choirs. Also, one combo move lets you surf on the prostate bodies of fallen creatures. As Dante says, "Showtime!"
Frustration sets in when: Save-points are not offered within missions, so if you're short on revitalizing orbs, you're often beaten to a wheezing pulp by the time you reach a showdown with a big boss. The effect is like climbing near the peak of a mountain, losing your foothold, and sliding all the way down to the base.
Final judgment: Hardcore gamers looking for a challenge—or masochists looking for a fix—are welcome to Devil May Cry 3, but as the steam billows out of your ears after the first few missions, the desire to make it through all 20 is quickly extinguished.