Devil May Cry: Peak of Combat - A guide for complete beginners

The basic gameplay of DMC: Peak of Combat is 3D brawling. Your character automatically locks onto the character you attack, and you have a variety of attacks at your disposal to despatch them. By tapping the icon on the right-hand side of the screen you can also cycle through characters - although this isn't necessary for combos - to switch to different types of damage to deal with different enemies.

Stringing together combos is simple - for example, Dante's default combo, the Million Stab, is a simple attack, then pause, then attack. Other characters like Lady have attacks that require using a movement option, in her case 'Show Off' requires you to use a dodge after any basic attack in order to spin towards the enemy and do physical damage.

As mentioned you'll also have different characters to choose from, starting with series protagonist Dante and expanding from there with supporting character Lady as well as more members of the DMC cast as you progress. Each of these has different abilities and attacks, as well as strengths and weaknesses, but Dante is probably going to be the most comfortable for veterans of the series.

Mastering combos is simpler, at least for the simple ones, than in other DMC games. Simply aerial launches can help you take out weaker enemies, leaving them unable to fight back. Meanwhile, your line-up of hunters will allow you to switch on the fly to other characters with different damage types and abilities. Later on in the game ‘escape’ sequences will also task you with timing dodges away from an enemy in a side-scrolling perspective, as well as jumping out of the way of obstacles. Timing is key, even in a simpler form the DMC series wants you to at least

The one thing that may hold Devil May Cry: Peak of Combat back is that it adds on a lot of systems that interrupt the simplicity of the original games. Like with RPG titles you'll need to account for the damage type your character does, as well as the effect of their weapons. Fortunately, you have a relatively limited roster, and the line-up of Dante, Lady and Vergil is sure to motivate you as it's a pretty effective combination of damage values and abilities.

Another core component of the DMC series is the idea of style AND substance. A core part of the game is stringing together combos in order to both do the most damage and increase your core multiplier. The term ‘spectacle fighter’ is often used for these sorts of games (see the very-underrated God Hand for more), and NebulaJoy have mostly succeeded in bringing these aspects to mobile.

Essentially, remember that while you can easily take down most enemies with functional but boring combos and slashes, you'll want to master counters and combos in order to increase your score and the rewards obtained. It's also just a lot more interesting to put the effort in to learn these systems and get the best rank possible rather than blazing through the game as it is.

You'll also have access to an extensive amount of strategy guides and recommendations within the game, an impressively extensive one as well. This will give you recommended Hunter lineups, cards and more to peruse for building your perfect team. Unfortunately, this also means missions can be interrupted with a warning that you're not strong enough to continue, you can ignore this of course but it can make the following fights much more - perhaps unfairly - difficult. Thankfully, like many games nowadays, you get the option to automatically add the necessary components to level up your character.

You'll also notice that each Hunter does different damage types, and this is a clue-in to one of the wrinkles of the game that may put off series veterans. Each Hunter does a different damage type and is effective against different enemies. It seems that to make up for a less DMC-like combat system than some would expect, NebulaJoy has included a number of RPG-like elements, including status effects and damage types.

With the characters that you unlock, as you might've already guessed, you can build a basic three-person line-up. You automatically unlock Dante and Lady, and as of the time of writing, you can also unlock Vergil via a special event pass, or just try to get him through regular gacha.

Fortunately, you also have access to an encyclopaedia to study your enemies, and with a relatively limited number you can face off against you can easily build up your team ahead of time to deal with them. As we mentioned the basic Dante, Lady and Vergil line-up functions pretty well to deal with anything in your way.

Fortunately, if you’re worried about there being too many microtransactions we’ve found Devil May Cry: Peak of Combat to be fairly light on that front. Your main buyables are going to be unique skins for each of the characters, which you naturally redeem with gems. Outside of that you can get boosters in the form of Red Gems, familiar to players of the series, and pass cards to claim extra rewards for a set period.

You'll earn Red Gems mainly via completing missions where you can collect them and they're your standard currency for upgrading your character; the same as the main versions of DMC. Meanwhile, you'll also earn Pizza slices- sorry 'Stamina' that will replenish said Stamina for activities which require it.

Your 'Office' is also what you'll need to level up in order to upgrade your characters. Sadly there's no customisable base-building aspect where you create your own Devil May Cry business. Your Office is basically just your overall level and will upgrade as you go through the game.

While it may not necessarily measure up to the mainline console entries for Devil May Cry, if you’re craving more of the stylish action presented by the series and want to have it in the palm of your hand then Devil May Cry: Peak of Combat is well worth a shot. Give the game a try and find out how NebulaJoy has brought the joy of demon-slaying action to mobile!

And if it’s not quite your thing, why not check out our list of the best shooters on iOS? Or maybe you want something more cerebral, in which case you can see what Japanese RPGs you can play in the palm of your hand right now!