Characters of Devil May Cry

Devil May Cry is a series of video games set in the modern day, developed by Capcom, created by Hideki Kamiya, and produced by Shinji Mikami. Originally intended to be a sequel in Capcom's Resident Evil series, Devil May Cry has been cited as the beginning of a sub-genre of action games called "Extreme Combat", which concentrate on powerful heroes fighting hordes of foes with a focus on stylized action. The game has also been described as being the first 3D game that "successfully captured the twitch-based, relentlessly free-flowing gameplay style of so many classic 2D action games".

The success of the video game series has led to the creation of comic books, novelizations, an anime series, guides, collectibles, and a variety of action figures. As of 2011 there are four games in the series.

The series centers on Dante's goal of avenging his mother's murder by exterminating demons. In the process, he encounters his long lost brother, with whom he develops a dysfunctional relationship. As the series progresses it is revealed that the demon emperor Mundus is responsible for the loss of Dante's mother and the enslavement of his brother. The gameplay consists of heavy combat scenes in which the player must attempt to extend long chains of attacks while avoiding damage in order to exhibit "stylish" combat; this element, along with time and the amount of items collected and used are taken under consideration when grading the player's performance.

The original character designs for Devil May Cry were based on ideas from Hideki Kamiya, a video game designer formerly employed by Capcom and subsequently by Clover Studio. He directed Devil May Cry after working on Resident Evil and Resident Evil 2. The creation of Nero and several of the characters in Devil May Cry 4 was done by Tatsuya Yoshikawa, who stated that designing Nero was one of the biggest challenges in his career. Each game in the series has introduced a different antagonist and back-up characters.

Character conception and influence
Series creator Hideki Kamiya has stated that the titular character from the manga series Cobra by Buichi Terasawa served as the basis for Dante. He also stated that Dante was designed with a cloak to make the character's intense action look more colorful. The reason behind Dante's red clothes is that in Japan red is a traditional color for a hero.

Devil May Cry 4's producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi noted prior to the release of that game that they wanted to make Dante seem significantly more powerful than the game's other protagonist, Nero. This was done in order to create an evident difference between the strength of a "veteran" when compared to a "rookie". Another reason for this portrayal is based on the series' continuity, which dictated that Dante display the power he would possess after the events of the first game and its prequel, Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening. Kobayashi said that "When creating a sequel, you don't want to make a character weak again from the start for no good reason. Everyone wanted to see Dante be just as powerful as they remembered him." emphasizing that playing as him without his previous abilities would otherwise feel "very strange". The abilities for both main characters were elected and designed in the early stages of development.

Several of the series' weapons are made and personalized for the specific character that wields them. An example of this is "Pandora", a firearm designed by Kobayashi, who noted that he wanted to include a "transforming, multi-purpose AWD in Dante's arsenal. Something that could be used as an over the shoulder rocket launcher, or a crossbow, etc. In its final form, I wanted it to transform into something that would be even bigger than Dante himself.". The weapon's creation took inspiration from anime series such as including Macross and Gundam. When developing a game, Capcom's production team makes several alterations to the character's weapons until they complete designs that satisfy them, although the results are limited by the memory available for them.

Character designer Tatsuya Yoshikawa has stated that "When working on this sort of game, the design doesn't come from just one person, it is necessary to take the history of the series and the feelings of the fans into consideration." Before commencing the designs for the characters in Devil May Cry 4, Yoshikawa consulted with several members of the staff that had worked in the series previously, in order to become familiar with previous elements. The characters were designed in order to emphasize their moves, which made the staff controlling their motions vital in the design. Some of the demonic forms of the antagonists in Devil May Cry 4 resemble angels. These were designed to be "cool" while providing a contrast when compared to other demons in the game. Yoshikawa noted that several of the boss characters presented some difficulty when creating them, but that Nero's design was one of the biggest challenges he had experienced in his career, based on the fact that the character would have to be accepted by the public and fit in the series' universe.

Dante
Dante is the primary protagonist of the series. He is a mercenary specializing in paranormal cases, and was the primary playable character in the first three Devil May Cry games. He is identified with his key signature red attire, short silver hair and cocky attitude, usually wielding two pistols (known as "Ebony" and "Ivory") or a greatsword (known as "Rebellion").

The character was voiced by Drew Coombs in the original Devil May Cry and by Matthew Kaminsky in Devil May Cry 2. Reuben Langdon was given the part in Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening and has returned to the role three times — the English version of Devil May Cry: The Animated Series (in which he was credited as "Justin Cause" ), Devil May Cry 4 and Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds. Dante was voiced by Toshiyuki Morikawa in the Japanese version of Devil May Cry: The Animated Series. DmC: Devil May Cry features a different Dante from a parallel universe and is non-canonical with the main series.

Sparda
Sparda is the demon knight that rebelled against his own kind for the sake of the human world two thousand years prior to the events of the Devil May Cry 3 manga. He defeated countless demons and their Emperor, Mundus, before sealing the gateway between the demon world and the human world. This act of heroist made him a legend in the human world, granting him the moniker of The Legendary Dark Knight.

Sparda left his power in the demon realm, inside his sword, known as the "Force Edge" or the "Sparda". To seal the gateway between the two worlds, Sparda "sacrificed" both his own blood and that of a mortal priestess, employing two complementary amulets as a key, which he took with him into the human world. To operate properly, these two amulets should be reunited.

Near the end of his life, Sparda settled with a human wife, Eva, and fathered twin sons, Dante and Vergil. He gave his amulets to Eva as a gift, which she in turn later separated and passed on to her sons. Both Vergil and Dante each received a powerful, enchanted sword from their father. Dante received Rebellion and Vergil acquired Yamato. While it's unknown exactly how Sparda died, Dante believes that among most people, there is a lot of confusion surrounding both Sparda and his legacy.

Trish
Trish is a scantily dressed devil who bears a great resemblances to Dante's deceased mother, Eva. She is a creation of the demon emperor Mundus. As a result of her demonic nature, she possesses supernatural strength and the ability to wield lightning.

Trish is initially introduced in Devil May Cry. She also appears in the Devil May Cry Volume 2 novel, Devil May Cry: The Animated Series and Devil May Cry 4. She is a playable character in a bonus section of Devil May Cry 2, (this section is not a part of the game's plot), in the PlayStation 2 version of Viewtiful Joe (in which Dante also appears), in the PlayStation Portable game Viewtiful Joe: Red Hot Rumble, and in the crossover fighting games Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.

In Devil May Cry, she hires Dante to help stop Mundus's plan to conquer the human world by opening a gate to the demon world on Mallet Island. Later in the game Dante learns that she is actually a servant of Mundus, and that her resemblance to Eva is part of a plan to lure Dante to the island so that Mundus' servants can kill him. However, she develops feelings for Dante and helps him defeat Mundus. In the game's epilogue, she and Dante are shown working together as partners out of the renamed "Devil Never Cry" office. In The Animated Series, she has since gone solo, although she occasionally takes work alongside Dante, who has given her an open invitation to come back at any time. Trish reappears in Devil May Cry 4 once more working with Dante. She disguises herself as Gloria, an executive of the Holy Knights of the Order of Sparda, a religious organization that worships Sparda as a god. She reaches this high position shortly after joining the cult by presenting the Order's leader, Sanctus, with Sparda's sword, for which some members appear to be suspicious of her. She eventually reveals her identity when Sanctus attempts to complete a demonic structure known as the "Savior", and she helps Dante and Nero defeat the Order.

Trish is voiced by Sarah Lafleur in Devil May Cry, Danielle Burgio in Devil May Cry 4, and Atsuko Tanaka (Japanese) and Luci Christian (English) in the anime.

Lucia
Lucia, alongside Dante, is one of the two primary protagonists of Devil May Cry 2. This game represents her only appearance in the series to date.

Lucia is an agile fighter; she uses two ornately crafted curved daggers. Like Dante, she can also Devil Trigger, transforming into a "Harpy", an angelic light demon similar to a bird. Lucia is a member of Vie de Marli, a clan of guardians that have the blood of devils. She invites Dante to her island so that Matier, her adoptive mother, may ask him to help them defeat Arius, a man who has turned their land into a devils' paradise. Dante accepts, and he and Lucia start their quests separately. Later in the game, it is revealed that Lucia is actually "Chi", a devil bred by Arius and abandoned as a "defect". However, this does not change Lucia's objectives and she continues her mission. When she reaches Arius, Dante has already defeated him. Dante then takes a motorcycle and goes into the demon world to kill more devils. After Dante leaves, Arius, completely turned into a monster, rises from the ruins of the buildings, whom Lucia confronts and defeats. Finally, Lucia is shown waiting in Dante's shop, flipping his coin continuously. Just then, Lucia hears a motorcycle outside the shop and goes out to see who it is. The player is not shown if it is Dante.

Lucia is voiced by Francoise Gralewski.

Lady
Lady (female human) is a freelance devil hunter who often assists Dante. As a normal human, she is exceptionally in acrobatics and armed close quarters combat. She is identified by her black hair, eyes of different colors and her key signature weapon, the Kalina-Ann (a customized missile launcher similar to a MANPADS).

Lady first appears in Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening, and later in that game's spin-off manga, where she provides the game's framing narration, telling the story of how she met Dante and Vergil, and how Dante picked the name "Devil May Cry" for his shop, which was something she says while trying to comfort Dante over the loss of his brother. She also makes appearances in Devil May Cry: The Animated Series, in which she works as a solo devil hunter who sometimes calls on Dante for help, and sometimes for the money he owes her. She has a cameo appearance in Devil May Cry 4. Though Lady only appears as a support card in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Kalina-Ann is used as part of Dante's arsenal. Lady also appears as a assist character in Project X Zone.

Her original name, Mary, was given to her by her father Arkham, but she chose to renounce that name when Arkham murdered her mother. The first mention of "Lady" appears in Devil May Cry 3, when she refuses to reveal her name to Dante, who calls her "Whatever, lady!" Lady formalizes the rechristening in the game's denouement, when she shoots Arkham.

She is voiced by Kari Wahlgren in Devil May Cry 3 and Devil May Cry 4. Her motion capture was provided by Stephanie Cheeva in Devil May Cry 3 and by Laura Napoli in Devil May Cry 4. She was voiced by Fumiko Orikasa in The Animated Series and Project X Zone, and by Melissa Davis in the English version of The Animated Series.

Nero
Nero is the protagonist of Devil May Cry 4, marking his first appearance in the franchise. In the game, he shares a leading role with the series' primary protagonist, Dante. An orphan that was adopted by the Sparda-worshiping "Order of the Sword", he has grown up to be a Holy Knight of the Order. He tends to not get along well with others and prefers to work alone, so he is usually given the Order's "special assignments." Throughout the first half of Devil May Cry 4, Nero perceives Dante as the enemy, but as the story progresses he realizes that it is the Order against whom he should be fighting. Nero shifts his allegiances, becoming a renegade, initially searching for answers and ultimately, seeking to save Kyrie, his love interest and childhood friend. In the end, Nero and Dante join forces to defeat the Savior, a giant flying statue possessed by a demon. Nero and Dante part on good terms when Dante entrusts Nero with the sword Yamato, which originally belonged to Dante's brother, Vergil.

Nero wields a sword named Red Queen and a revolver called Blue Rose. He also uses the "Devil Bringer", his demonic right arm. By defeating various demons, Nero is able to increase the size of his Devil Bringer's reach. Nero later comes into possession of Yamato, Vergil's sword, which allows him a Devil Trigger that summons a Devil-Samurai avatar to fight with him.

Nero has a connection with Dante's family which Devil May Cry 4 does not explain in depth. Sanctus, the leader of the Order, mentions that Nero has the blood of Sparda (Dante and Vergil's father) in his veins. Additionally, Vergil's sword responds to Nero's call and grants him his Devil Trigger form in the same fashion that Dante's sword, Rebellion, does for Dante. Nero is voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch in Devil May Cry 4.

Vergil
Vergil is Dante's older identical twin, though the two are near-polar opposites; unlike Dante, Vergil embraces his devil side. He is one of the primary antagonists of Devil May Cry 3, as well as a playable character in the game's Special Edition. He also appears in the original Devil May Cry in the form of Nelo Angelo, apparently under the control of the Emperor Mundus. He also appears as a playable character in the crossover fighting game Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.

In Devil May Cry 3, Vergil is initially has an ally named Arkham, but after he is betrayed, he temporarily teams up with Dante to help defeat Arkham, before reverting to his villainous role. Throughout the game, Vergil seeks to undo the seal of Sparda hidden within the Demonic Domain, and claim the entirety of their father's power for his own, regardless of the effects this will have on the human world. To do so he needed Dante's half of their mother's amulet, so he lured Dante out with the intent of taking it by force. He seeks this power in order to compensate for being unable to save their mother.

Vergil battles Dante three times in the Devil May Cry 3 storyline. Their first battle is on the highest level of the tower Temen-Ni-Gru, where Dante is soundly defeated by Vergil, who then takes Dante's amulet. Their second battle is at the bottom of the tower, where the twins battle to a draw before their battle is interrupted. Their final battle is near the entrance to the demon realm, where Vergil is finally defeated. While Dante escapes back to the human world, Vergil chooses to stay behind and follow in the footsteps of Sparda. After the game, should the player be able to defeat at least 100 demons before the credits finish, a cutscene depicts Vergil rising to his feet in a lake of blood, and looking into the sky to see three large glowing orbs – Mundus as he first appeared in Devil May Cry. Vergil decides that if his father was able to defeat Mundus he can too, and then charges at the orbs with his sword ready. Vergil survives his encounter with Mundus, but becomes enslaved and apparently brainwashed. In the first game, he appears as a demonic dark knight, called Nelo Angelo. Dante encounters Nelo Angelo three times, and each time when Nelo Angelo sees Dante's half of the amulet, he flees the battle. In their final encounter, Nelo Angelo uncovers his face to reveal that he is Vergil. In the end Nelo Angelo appears to explode, leaving his half of the amulet behind.

In Devil May Cry 4, The Order of the Sword used fragments of Nelo Angelo in order to create the Alto and Bianco Angelos, artificial demons consisting of a suit of armor powered by a human or demon's soul. Vergil's sword, the Yamato, is used by Nero in Devil May Cry 4, having been restored when Nero's inner demon awakens. Dante tries to reclaim the Yamato from Nero, stating that the sword was his brother's, originally used to seal the gate between the realms, and that it needed to remain in the family. In the end, Dante entrusts Nero to keep the Yamato safe. Vergil is voiced by Daniel Southworth in Devil May Cry 3, while Nelo Angelo is voiced by David Kelley in Devil May Cry.

Mundus
Mundus is king of the demon world. Resembling a godly seraph, he was defeated by Sparda two thousand years ago. He stands dozens of feet tall, with white feathered wings and a third eye on his forehead. Mundus cares little for those that serve him loyally, even going so far as to kill one of his generals for failing to defeat Dante. Mundus is considered the sworn-arch nemesis of both Dante and Sparda, and is responsible for the death of Dante's mother and the corruption of his brother.

Mundus serves as the primary antagonist of the original Devil May Cry. He created Trish to resemble Eva so she could lure Dante to Mallet Island. There, Mundus and his servants try to kill Dante, but Dante is the ultimate victor, winning Trish's loyalty and defeating Mundus, who promised to eventually return. To date, Mundus is the only demon Dante was not capable of killing, even with the help of Trish.

The Mundus statue form is seen briefly in Devil May Cry 2, he used this form throughout the first game until Dante confronts him, he then breaks out of the "shell" and reveals himself to have an angelic appearance with a scar across his chest. Mundus also features in a bonus secene at the end of Devil May Cry 3, where Vergil sees him as three red glowing orbs in the sky surrounded by electricity; the form he displayed when first seen in Devil May Cry. In Dante's storyline in the PlayStation 2 version of Viewtiful Joe, he possesses Captain Blue to take revenge on Dante and Trish.

The character is voiced by Tony Daniels.

Arius
Arius is the primary antagonist of Devil May Cry 2. He is an extremely wealthy businessman that owns an international company called Uroboros. He wishes to find the legendary Arcana, artifacts which would allow him to raise the demon Argosax from the demon realm and use that power to control the world. While he is completely human at the outset of the game, he does have access to a variety of powerful magic which allows him to fight against capable demon hunters such as Dante. He is also capable of creating his own demons in a form of his choosing. Near the end of the game, in Lucia's scenario, Arius is shown to have survived his battle with Dante. Infused with the power of Argosax (which is implied to have possessed him), he attack Lucia, first as a demonic version of himself, but as he begins to lose he mutates further into a giant creature, with the fight coming to a close in a rift made in the destroyed streets.

Argosax the Chaos
Argosax the Chaos is a powerful devil lord. His host shell consists of various bosses from the first and second game. Inside of the shell is his true form, The Despair Embodied, a powerful and diabolical sex-changing, fiery, horned angel. Despair changes his physical appearance throughout the fight; sometimes he has a masculine frame (his true form) and attacks with a sword, other times it appears more feminine in shape and attacks with whip lashes. He serves as the final boss battle for Dante's scenario. Arius's actions opened a doorway which allowed Argosax's entrance to the human world. To stop this, Dante went through to the demon world instead and defeated the devil before he could pass through the gate.

Arkham
Arkham is one of the primary antagonists of Devil May Cry 3. He first appears in a cutscene in the game's first mission where he walks into Dante's office and offers him an invitation from Vergil.

Arkham is a scholar with supernatural abilities and knowledge about the demon world's folklore. He is taller than Dante and Vergil, bald to the extent of having no eyebrows, and has a scar covering the left side of his face, which is seen to pulsate from time to time. It is the result of a botched ritual to turn himself into a devil, in which he sacrificed his wife. Like his daughter, Mary (aka Lady), he has heterochromia. In most of Arkham's scenes he is holding a book, even in combat. He is a master manipulator, pitting Dante, Vergil and Lady against each other by preying on their personalities and desires. With Vergil, he plays the role of a sycophant, pretending to help while plotting against him. He taunts and further enrages Lady, who is driven by her need to avenge her mother and stop him, but he later convinces her that his evil acts were Vergil's fault. To Dante he appears in the form of an apparent resident of the tower named Jester, mocking the hero as he alternately advises and challenges him. His plans are successful, and he is able to open the gate to the demon world. He is the first to retrieve the Force Edge and combine its power with the restored halves of Eva's amulet, thereby acquiring a large portion of Sparda's power and temporarily taking on the demon's original form. However the power overwhelms him and he further transforms into a shapeless creature when he battles Dante. He is defeated when the brothers team up and cast him out of the demon world into the human world, where Lady ultimately kills him.

He is voiced and motion captured (as both Arkham and Jester) by Adam D Clark. Arkham's name was originally intended to be Hyne (pronounced Hai-neh), but Reuben Langdon (who voices Dante) thought it would not work in English, and convinced Capcom to change it. Jester's name was intended to be Joker.

Sanctus
Sanctus is the primary antagonist of Devil May Cry 4.

The Proclaimed Vicar of Sparda, who functions as the spiritual leader of the Order of the Sword, Sanctus is seemingly assassinated by Dante at the beginning of the game. He is regarded as one of the best leaders in the Order's history and has previously served as general of the Holy Knights. In reality, he is the one behind the events of Devil May Cry 4 and may have arranged Dante to come to Fortuna so as to fake his own death. After Dante's mission, Santus is resurrected after taking part in the "ascension ceremony", a process in which a human being receives the essence of a demon. Following this he continues his role as the leader of the Order. He eventually asks Credo, the captain of the Holy Knights, to arrest Nero after Agnus, an alchemsit working for the Order, informs Sanctus that he possesses demonic power. After Credo is unable to perform this task, Agnus kidnaps Kyrie, Nero's childhood sweetheart. Nero tries to rescue her after defeating Agnus but Sanctus intervenes and departs with her in custody. Subsequently Sanctus uses Kyrie as building material for the "Savior", a demonic structure that had been collecting spiritual and demonic energy for centuries. When Nero confronts him, Sanctus defeats him and reveals he originally intended to use Dante as the Savior's core. Using the Savior's strength, Nero is absorbed into the structure, with Sanctus taking possession of Yamato, which he uses to open the "hell's gate". When several demons attack residents of Fortuna he controls the Savior and several of the Order's "Angels" and orders them to exterminate the demons while announcing the "arrival of the Savior". Sanctus then merges with the structure and is not seen until, through Dante's efforts, Nero is released and confronts Sanctus in battle. He is defeated by Nero and absorbed into the Savior's core, where the gigantic structure of the Savior becomes his new body until Nero finally destroys him using his Devil Bringer.

He is voiced by Liam O'Brien.

Agnus
Agnus is the chief technological researcher and alchemist of the Holy Knights of the Order of Sparda in Devil May Cry 4. As part of this office, he develops demon-eradicating weapons for the Holy Knights. He seems to be introverted and a workaholic, rarely appearing outside his office. Because of this, only few people of the cult know about him. Later, it is discovered that he has been experimenting with the broken Yamato and creating demon-based weapons. Agnus also possesses an alternate form, resembling what appears to be a cross between a beetle and a moth. During times of stress he speaks with a pronounced and noticeable stutter. Towards the end of the game he is killed by Dante while trying to prevent him from taking back the Yamato.

He is voiced by T.J. Storm.

Eva
Eva was the human wife of Sparda and mother of the twins, Dante and Vergil. She was killed in a demon attack, but sometime before that she gave each of the boys half of Sparda's amulet as a birthday gift. Eva herself only appears as a photo on Dante's desk and as a voice in a flashback in the first Devil May Cry game. Trish is created to look exactly like Eva.

The character of Eva is voiced by Sarah Lafleur.

Matier
Matier is a supporting character who appears in Devil May Cry 2. Matier is an old woman and like Lucia, is part of the clan of Vie de Marli. In her younger days, she and her clan fought against the demons alongside Sparda. Matier is cheerful and optimistic, and always seems sure of Dante's eventual victory. She is the one who guides Lucia to reunite the Arcanas (mystical relics) and to lure Dante to their island, to whom she never refers by his name but rather calls "Son of Sparda". At first it is claimed that Matier is Lucia's mother, but it is later revealed that Lucia was in fact created by Arius who planned to dispose of her, until Matier found her and raised her as a daughter. In the end she tells Lucia not to worry and that Dante will eventually return from the demon world.

She is voiced by Flo Di Re.

Credo
Credo is the Captain of the Holy Knights. He is a strict man of justice and commander of hundreds of subordinates. Credo excels in the battlefield as the best of the Holy Knights and is admired by many. He is Kyrie's older brother and also sees Nero as family, but is not content with his unreliable behavior. He is the one who orders Nero on the quest to capture Dante for Sanctus's 'assassination', but it turns out that Credo was part of Sanctus's agenda to bring about the Order's 'Savior'. Later in the game, he tries to arrest Nero after learning of his possession of demonic power, and Credo himself transforms into a winged creature which he believes is his angelic form, though he inadvertently has become a demon himself. When Kyrie is kidnapped to be used by the Order for Sanctus's grand plan, Credo loses his faith in the Order for using his sister as a tool for their plan and tries to help Nero and save Kyrie. He is mortally wounded by Sanctus while trying to save Nero from capture, but his efforts were in vain as Nero is absorbed into the Savior. With his last breath, he requests Dante to save Nero and his sister Kyrie, and dies as his body dissipates into light, apparently to Heaven for his heroic sacrifice.

He is voiced by T.J. Rotolo.

Kyrie
Kyrie is a supporting character in Devil May Cry 4. She was born and raised in Fortuna, is the sister of Credo, and songstress for the Order of the Sword. Kyrie is the childhood friend of Nero, as well as his love interest. After being tricked into believing Nero is evil, she is held hostage by Agnus, successfully drawing Nero to the Savior, where Kyrie is fused into it before he can arrive. When Dante frees Nero from his captivity within the Savior, Nero is then able to effectively free Kyrie, who has accepted Nero once again, and wishes to spend her days with him.

She is voiced by Stephanie Sheh and motion captured by Laura Napoli.

Enzo Ferino
Enzo Ferino does not appear in any of the games within the Devil May Cry series, but he is mentioned as an associate of Dante in the manual for the first game. The character has also appeared in some of the novels/manga/anime as Dante's contact within the mercenary world, as well as a friend. In the first Devil May Cry Drama CD, which was based on The Animated Series, Enzo is featured and is voiced by Yasunori Matsumoto.

Critical reception
Upon the release of the original Devil May Cry, Dante's personality received positive reviews, IGN described the character as a "maverick head-hunter." As well as being a "believable" character, his actions and abilities were regarded as "awesome." Dante's confident and fearless attitude have gained him widespread popularity. He was ranked seventh in GameCrush's Top 10: Most Badass Video Game Characters list and third in ScrewAttack's Top Ten Coolest Video Game Characters list. Outside of the main character, the demonic enemies in the original game were perceived as "ferocious", while the sub-bosses were "incredibly tough" and the bosses (most notably Dante's villainous brother Vergil), were "very tough", providing a significant amount of the game's challenges. Eurogamer referred to the design of the demons as "some of the most bizarre looking creatures you will find this side of American McGee's Alice," while the proportion of the bosses were perceived as "vast" and their battles were described as requiring different strategies. Although the fight against Nightmare was perceived as somewhat repetitive.

When reviewing Devil May Cry 2 GameSpot felt that the characters lacked personality. This was based on the removal of distinctive traits from Dante. They also felt that Lucia's role in the plot was too short, not allowing time to develop the character. The publication labeled the game's enemies as "mindless", noting that most of them including the "bosses", could be defeated using the default attacks.

The missions where the player controls Vergil in Devil May Cry 3: Special Edition were seen as adding "an all-new and unique play style." Being able to play his story arc was called "such a blast that Capcom could probably have released his modes separately for $19.99 and gotten away with it."

The designs used for characters in Devil May Cry 4 were described as resembling a "legion of seraphim the likes of which gamers have never seen before, and it puts an interesting spin on what all of our preconceptions of 'good' are in a video game". 1UP.com said that the enemies shared visual elements with military personnel employed by real religions, noting that "considering the visual nature of the heavily-armored, winged, angelic warriors scattered around the various missions, it'd be easy to confuse these characters with crusaders of Christian origin."

Merchandise
Outside of the games, anime and manga, the characters of Devil May Cry have appeared in several types of merchandise. These include novels, comic books, a skin variation for the PlayStation Portable, a special edition of the PlayStation 3 console and several soundtracks. Capcom has made other merchandise available in their official shopping website e-Capcom. These include concept art for The Animated Series, several t-shirt designs, rings, collars and hand bags. The popularity of the Devil May Cry series lead to a line of Devil May Cry action figures produced by Toycom. Japanese company Kaiyodo produced a similar line for Devil May Cry 2 and a Devil May Cry 3 Dante action figure. Kotobukiya published statues based on the franchise's characters after the release of The Animate Series, which included Vergil and Dante, and were followed by a Devil May Cry 4 series. Micellaneous merchandise includes posters and frame stamps commemorating the series' tenth anniversary.