First off, I'm actually both surprised and really happy that you
do agree with some of my points. That's a massive relief...
Things don't usually go this well.
''incorporate the Western tone and style that Kamiya had originally envisioned for the series.''
This is wrong. Kamiya had envisioned DMC just like DMC1 was; that is, WITH mostly anime elements, and some slight western elements. Just look at the games he made after DMC1, like Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2, and MGR. Do they look western to you? No, the whole point of the games he makes is that they are anime-like. These ''unnecessary anime elements'' have been part of the series since day one. I know you don't like typical anime (in fact, I remember you calling people who liked DMC3 and basic anime 'drooling idiots' and that you despise it), but get over it.
Kamiya takes influence from a lot of things when crafting his games, not just anime. There
were anime elements in DMC1, mostly in Dante's attire and flashy moves, but a lot of the game's
emphasis was on the Gothic locales and medieval backdrops...two very Western aspects of the game. So much so, that Team Little Devils traveled to Europe to study castles and medieval architecture. You can even see the heavy Gothic influences on some of the concept artwork for the game.
And speaking of concept artwork, Dante himself was going to have a more Western look as well. You could argue that such appearences would by the byproduct of DMC's nature as a
Resident Evil game first, but even the clothes he ends up wearing in the game seems a lot more toned-down and more Western in nature than some of the exaggerated attire he wears in say,
DMC3 or
DMC4.
You're right about the anime element in DMC being a staple, but it didn't dominate Dante or
Devil May Cry as an essence like it did in later games, under different direction. Dante lived and worked in a city in America. He wielded mostly Western weapons and firearms. He even had the mannerisms of some 80's action hero of Western cinema. It's not about
my personal views on the current state of anime (notice I said
current---because contrary to popular belief,
I actually love manga, and avidly watched anime at some point), it's about things that were the centerpiece of the game in the first place. There were Western and anime elements, but there was a rational balance. Nowadays, the anime aspect has dominated the tone and characterization of the series.
''Write Dante as a more fallible character with a sizeable number of personal flaws that make him more human as a character, but give him redeeming qualities to make up for them.''
That is a pretty good point, but I don't want DMC to become some annoying try-hard melodrama.
Neither do I. But a character's strength is only further defined as his weaknesses, and Dante barely has any. He doesn't face any kind of consequences, risks, obstacles, personal problems, or anything that would remotely put him in a state of concern.
Having personal flaws is the basic
The stress should lie on the gameplay, nothing should detract from that unnecessarily.
Seeing as how the topic is about rewriting the game's story and mythos, I think it's safe to assume this hypothetical game Jak is proposing has some emphasis on the story. Besides, it's not like the recent wave of DMC games have
solely emphasized on gameplay.
If story wasn't an important factor, I'm pretty sure Capcom wouldn't put a sizeable portion of the game's budget into motion capturing and consulting American script-writers to produce over two hours of cutscenes per game, with Kobayashi stating in video interviews about "crafting a cinematic experience with dynamic storytelling and character interactions that could easily be cut from the game, and made into a standalone movie."
I want to play as a character who has flaws, but isn't some a-hole moron. He's supposed to be like a superhero underneath his flaws.
Stupidity isn't the only flaw a character can suffer from. Ignorance is a flaw. Pride is a flaw. Self-confidence is a flaw Dante already has, but seemingly never pays a price for it.
It's funny that you compare Dante to a superhero, because most superheroes are characterized by their personal flaws. Look at Todd McFarlane's Spawn, for example---he's morally-ambiguous, cold, even selfish in some ways. But he makes up for these flaws by admitting he has them, and by heeding the advice of his mentor. And the irony? He's just as superpowerful and demonic in nature as Dante. He's just characterized a lot better because he has things about him needs to improve...versus Dante, who's depicted so blissfully perfect that he has no personal flaws to remedy or overcome.
''Retain the stylish and somewhat egotistical nature of the character,''
He was only truly egotistical in DmC. In the old DMCs, I remember him joking once that ''he didn't look that bad'' in DMC3, but that was for the sake of joking and annoying his enemy. In DmC he also apparently condones murder (what happened to 'demons can be people too'?). He laughed at the death of Mundus's child like some depraved ass.
I'm not going to go into the whole "DMC vs. DmC" discussion, because that's not what this thread is about.
When I referred to Dante as "egotistical", it wasn't in a condescending way. Dante has always percieved himself as something of a lady-killer. He makes sly and classy jives at female characters, and emphasize about good-looking he is. It's a part of his character, and it sometimes yields funny results.
That's why I said
retain that part of his character. You know retain means "keep", right?
Make his relationship with Vergil something greater than “the Doppelganger version of me with a blue coat and a different hairstyle”, by developing Vergil himself.
There was nothing wrong with DMC3 Vergil as a character. DMC3 only had a few cutscenes, and didn't really get to say much about him or his background, because... wait for it... it was ONE game with Dante and Lady as the main characters. Aside from that, I think DMC needs to move on. Not Vergil again, not Mundus again... it's getting tired.
I never said anything about Vergil being the villain. He could easily play a completely different role in the rewrite. The problem is that most of his personality and traits ride off of being Dante's opposite, rather than being a strong and defined character on his own. Even in a 2-hour cinematic jaunt like DMC3 (which did
not have just a few cutscenes by the way...DMC1 had a few cutscenes, totaling to maybe half-an-hour's worth), it had enough time to present Dante and Lady as characters...I don't see why they couldn't have done the same for Vergil.
It's not a glaring issue, so much as a missed opportunity...especially given how popular Vergil is in the DMC fanbase. It'd be nice if we got a proper character study of him...but, as you said, the priority in DMC3 was Dante and Lady. Capcom themselves could give Vergil a better role in a future DMC, maybe explore his character a little bit more...but that rides on the vain hope that Capcom
will release another DMC.
''Know where the stylish, over-the-top nature should NOT impose or violate the serious moments (for a case-study on how not to do this, see also DMC3, DMC4, and DMC: The Animated Series)''
Another case of somebody claiming something is objectively bad, when it's their opinion.
I never claimed that this element was objectively horrible, I just said it needed improvement.
Even if we don't see eye-to-eye on most things, can we at least admit that even if they aren't absolutely horrible, they can also handled be significantly better as well?
Craft a villain that is not only a threat to Dante, but to both humans and demons as well. Don’t make him/her the text-book definition of “evuhl” like Arkham or Vergil,
Arkham isn't the textbook definition of evil. He did kill his wife to gain demonic power, but he was a good guy at first, and lost himself to evil at some point. The ''textbook definition'' is somebody like Sanctus in DMC4, who doesn't have a conscience and just does things for the sake of doing evil for his own benefit, and harming others.
I agree with you 100% about Sanctus. He
is the textbook definition of a cliche villain...unfortunately, both Arkham and Vergil are dragged down into the same swirling nexus of two-dimensional and unexplained motives.
Aside from that, I agree with most, if not all of your points.
Again, that's good to hear. Keep in mind, that there are a lot of things about DMC that I want to stay...things that, regrettably,
were lost in the formation of the reboot. If I were helming a rewrite for the series, I would preserve a lot of the core elements of DMC, especially Shimomura Yuji's excellent choreography, and of course, the ballistic blend of metal and Gothic chorus in the soundtrack.
