Devil May Cry 5 is out this week, and while it’s a great game it’s also understandable if this kind of game seems intimidating to newer players. If this is your first Devil May Cry game, there’s probably a few things you need to know before you start that the game might not necessarily tell you. If this is not your first Devil May Cry game, there’s still a few tips in here that I certainly wish I knew before I started playing.
As I always try to with my tips guides, there will be no spoilers in this guide, so read ahead if you’re wanting to go in blind. I encourage it!
GRAB THE VIM & VIGOR UPGRADES FOR V STRAIGHT AWAY
If you’re a Devil May Cry vet or even a newcomer to the series, you’ll no doubt find the unique combat style of V to be a little bit jarring at first. He’s a character who doesn’t make direct contact with his enemies and because of that you’ll rely on summoned demon pets to do most of your bidding.
Unfortunately, out of the gate, they’re rather weak and prone to being “stalemated” which means they’ll basically be knocked out by enemies at pretty much any moment.
Thankfully, some of the upgrades, namely the Vim and Vigor ones for both Shadow and Griffon, are super useful an are definitely the ones that you should focus on first with V.
These abilities not only give your pets more health before they’re stalemated, they’ll also be out of the action for less time if they are stalemated, making them invaluable skills that you should look into investing in first when you first gain control of V.
DON’T BE AFRAID TO BREAK YOUR DEVIL BREAKERS WITH NERO
In Devil May Cry 5, Nero has eight Devil Breakers to play around with (twelve if you got the Deluxe Edition) and they all have different features. It’s understandable if you don’t want to break any so as to save them, but we really recommend that you do. The reason being that it’s more than worth your while to try them all out individually and work out which ones work for you.
The reason I say not to be afraid to break them is because, especially on the opening difficulties, the game gives you quite a few to play around with in the environment. That being said, if you’re ever stuck in a bind, you can buy them individually from Nico for a very reasonable price at any of the points where she pops up in the story.
LEARN THE MANY WAYS TO DODGE AS SOON AS YOU CAN
Many modern action games these days have a dedicated dodge button, which definitely makes things easier but not as dynamic as a game like Devil May Cry. In Devil May Cry 5 there are heaps of different ways to dodge, many of which are unique to the character you’re playing. That being said, it’s very important to learn the best way to dodge for each character in order to make it through levels unscathed.
Every character has a dodge roll attack which is executed by pressing X or A, along with a direction on your controller while locked on to an enemy. Your character will roll in that direction and usually, if timed right, avoid damage. Similarly, the moment you jump normally is usually a point where you can’t be damage either, so get used to jumping to dodge too.
As mentioned previously, there’s no perfect way to dodge as Devil May Cry’s combat and enemies are so dynamic. There’s a few options though. Dante has a dedicated style called Trickster which lets you dash in any direction up to three times in a row. Upgrade it and you can even dodge in the sky. Keep going and you’ll even be able to teleport to or above your enemies. There’s more, but this is a good place to get you started with Dante.
Nero has access to a few different dodging techniques – you can use the Jockey ability from his Gerbera Devil Breaker to avoid damage, though if you get hit during this the breaker will break so be cautious! Nero can also dodge most attacks whenever he taunts in the air (which is super handy). V is a little bit simpler – he can use Griffon or Shadow to dodge the same way as a dodge roll would work, but be warned as it will remove those pets from whatever attack they’re initiating.
I could write about skills and techniques all day, but hopefully this one is enough to get you started.
TEACH YOURSELF HOW TO JUMP CANCEL
This is one of the handiest ways to improve your combos and subsequently your scores. It’s a technique that has existed in every Devil May Cry game, though one that is rarely explained to the player. So what is it?
Jump Cancelling is basically when you use an enemy in order to cancel whatever move you’re doing so that you can begin another one. Why would this be handy? Simple! Imagine you have a combo that only is three hits and then it ends. If just after that combo is finished, you jump off an enemy, you’ll have another opportunity to do the same combo, essentially resetting your “allowance”.
What this means is that you’ll be able to stay in the air for longer (which is largely safer than being on the ground) as well as perform as many combos as you want, as long as you jump at the right time. This is a insanely helpful tip that’ll make it much easier to get better style rankings than anything else I teach you in this guide!
Be sure to purchase Enemy Step to pull this off, it’s an absolutely essential skill that no Devil May Cry player should be without. I’d recommend it more for Dante and Nero than V, since V doesn’t get as up close and persona as the other characters do.
REPLAY MISSIONS – IT’S HOW YOU GET BETTER (AND RICHER)
Devil May Cry is designed to be played over and over, and it really doesn’t change much with Devil May Cry 5. The game is split into missions that can be completed at varying times depending on which one you’re up to, but have you ever gone back to try a mission again? Most players first runs will be abysmal or not up to their standards, but Devil May Cry is designed to be played over and over again. Not only will you know everything about the level going in, you’ll also have an opportunity to do better and work towards that coveted S-Rank.
What’s even better about getting an S-Rank? The spoils of course! The higher your rank, the more Red Orbs you’re awarded which means the better skills you get. People are quick to complain about microtransactions being in the game – but you honestly don’t need them! Just replay your favourite missions, discovering new combos or trying out new weapons, to do the best that you can and unlock the most that you can! If you’re so inclined, the game also doles out achievements for getting higher ranks and heaps of orbs, so get to it!
YOUR RED ORBS ARE IN A SHARED POOL, BUT ARE GENEROUS
One thing I did notice when playing Devil May Cry 5 is that the pool of Red Orbs you earn are not character specific. So if you earn thousands of Orbs with Nero there’s nothing to stop you with saving them all and spending them on V instead. This is what I mean by a shared pool – but I implore you – it’s not worth saving your orbs so you can power up Dante when you play as him later in the game.
The reason I say this is because it’s worth spending and investing your orbs in the character you’re playing as now because then you’re much more likely to get better rankings if you have a wider range of abilities to play around with. Better rankings, as discussed above, means better payouts. 
Obviously, Blue Orbs and Purple Orbs, which increase the capacity of your health and devil trigger gauges respectively, are shared across all characters. So if you buy one during a Nero mission from Nico, it will apply to all characters. Similarly, any you find in specific missions (or fragments, at least) will apply to all characters too. So don’t stress about who you pick up things with and where. That aspect of it is all shared.
