Dante (Devil May Cry)
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Dante is the main protagonist of the video game franchise Devil May Cry. He is the fictional offspring of a human mother and devil father. It is common in science fiction literature for half-breeds (creatures only half-human) to have special abilities, and Dante is no exception. Dante has epic powers and heroic stamina due to his father's blood, but is humane and compassionate, unlike many devils. Of course his appearance is attributed to his human side as well.
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Origin
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Dante's past is extremely shrouded, as the games do not spend a great deal of time explaining it (however, Devil May Cry 3 provides more insight into his story, as it is a prequel to Devil May Cry). What little information that can be gleaned from cut-scenes is enough to piece together a fragmented history. From what is known, Dante's family history is quite reminiscent of another white-haired half-breed: Alucard from Castlevania. His father, Sparda, was an extremely powerful demon who felt compassion for humans. He turned on his brethren and fought for humans during a war that occurred two millennia before the events of DMC1. Sometime during or shortly after this war he falls in love and mates with Eva, a human female (a picture of her suggests she is a noble from her style of dress). Eva gives birth to twins, Dante and Vergil. Apparently, Sparda dies sometime shortly after their birth, and Dante and Vergil split at one point (though they meet again in DMC3, most likely as enemies). Eva is murdered at some point, mostly likely in Dante's and Vergil's late childhood, by demons. This in turn spurs Dante to hunt down demons.
Arsenal and Powers
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The biggest aspect of Dante's power, of course, is his Devil Trigger (DT). As Dante takes and deals damage, a meter represented by runes (starting with three, maxing at ten) begins to fill up. After three or more runes are lit up, Dante can transform into a more powerful version of himself. Normally this is characterized by a red aura that surrounds him. However, this transformation can be furthered in its appearance by the use of various magical items. An example is the Alastor sword, where Dante's aura becomes blue-violet. While Devil Triggered, Dante can assume a far less human appearance; his clothes disappear, his skin turns black and he gains demonic aspects of the magical equipment he is wielding. His transformation can be taken one step further (at the end of the first game and at periods of desperation in the second), allowing him to transform into a form similar to that of his father: a full-fledged demon.
Devil May Cry weapons
Dante also uses a wide variety of weapons. In DMC1 he starts with Force Edge (essentially a claymore) and Ebony & Ivory (two handguns, pictured). He acquires several other Devil Arms (magical melee weapons) and firearms, including Alastor (enchanted sword of lightning), Ifrit (enchanted fire gauntlets). These two weapons are actually enchanted, being that they have a will of their own, if not overpowered by the wielder. Sparda (his father's sword; created by merging Force Edge with the Perfect Amulet), a shotgun, grenade launcher, needle gun (for use underwater) and a demon gun, named Nightmare-beta.
Devil May Cry 2 weapons
In DMC2 Dante's arsenal becomes a lot less magical. Dante has access to 3 non-magical swords, named Rebellion, Vendetta, and Merciless. His firearms include Ebony & Ivory (his trusted pistols), sub-machineguns, a Shotgun, and a Rocket Launcher. He now Devil Triggers via a socketed amulet that he can fill with Demon Hearts (Electro Heart, Frost Heart, Flame Heart, Aerial Heart, Quick Heart, Offense Heart, Healing Heart, and Chrono Heart).
Devil May Cry 3 weapons
Dante's arsenal for DMC3 contains a number of new weapons, which all have independently designed devil triggers like in the first game. Dante's primary sword is the Rebellion, a keepsake sword and a gift from his father. Although at the beginning of the game its powers are dormant, contact with Dante's blood revives them and turns it into a fearsome blade. His other weapons include: The Cerberus, an ice-elemental sanchaku (a nunchaku with three rods) created from the soul of the demonic hound Cerberus itself. The Agni&Rudra, a pair of scimitars which contain the powers of fire and wind. Agni and Rudra are somewhat odd because they are both sentient and capable of speech (although Dante shuts them up quickly), and their pommels are actually their heads. The Nevan, a truly bizarre weapon, is the imprisoned soul of the succubus who bears its name, in the form of a demonic rock guitar (yes, it's serious). Evidently she knew Dante's father. The Nevan attacks with a scythe blade, and when played it creates bolts of lightning and summons swarms of electrically charged demonic bats. The final Devil Arm is Beowulf, which is a pair of light-elemental gauntlets and leg-guards. They contain the soul of the demon guardian Beowulf, a truly fearsome beast whom Sparda battled and imprisoned in the tower. Although Beowulf flees from Dante after losing its one remaining eye, it later tries to attack Vergil, and is brutally slaughtered. Vergil gains the power over light of these gauntlets and leg-guards, but after his fall into an abyss, Dante picks them up.
Dante's firearms are:
- Ebony & Ivory, his old trusty handguns.
- A Shotgun
- The Artemis, a demonic laser-rifle which resembles Nightmare Beta in both appearance and attacks, but differs in the fact that it does not consume Devil Trigger
- The Spiral, which is a large anti-tank rifle
- And the Kalina Ann, which is kind of a rocket launcher with an axe-like grappling blade, named after Lady`s mother, that Dante receives from Lady later in the game
Philosophy and Speculation
One may notice that Dante and Vergil share their names with Dante Alighieri and Publius Vergilius Maro, poets of epic works. In Dante Alighieri's work The Divine Comedy, Dante (the author) is guided through hell by Virgil (the roman poet), and heaven by Beatrice Portinari, Dante's idealistic vision of the perfect woman. Dante and Vergil share a likeness to the characters in the poem; Vergil as Nelo Angelo continuously confronts Dante as Dante delves further into Mundus' castle (Hell), egging him on and drawing him closer to Mundus himself. Trish could be seen as a parallel to Beatrice, his saviour that helps him finally defeat Mundus and escape the castle. Mundus is of course Satan, trapped at the center of his castle, and some of the enemies and areas in the game could be seen as metaphors for the concentric circles of hell and their populaces described in Alighieri's work.
See also
- Devil May Cry
- Devil May Cry 2
- Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening
- Vergil Sparda
- Sparda
- Mundus
- Lady
- Lucia
- The Divine Comedy
- Capcom
- Dante, the famous italian poet