Control is a ranged, ability-driven shooter built around telekinesis and improvising with the environment. Devil May Cry is melee-first character action built around launchers, air combos, weapon changes, style systems and precise execution. Control asks what you can manipulate in the room; Devil May Cry asks which move, weapon, style and timing will keep a combo alive.
At a glance: two very different meanings of “deep combat”
Both games offer several tools, upgrades and ways to approach an encounter, but their depth comes from different places. Control gives you a flexible combat sandbox. You combine Service Weapon forms, supernatural abilities and whatever objects are available in the arena. Devil May Cry gives you a technical performance system. You learn move properties, connect attacks, control enemy positions and select the right weapon or style while maintaining momentum.
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| Combat question | Control | Devil May Cry |
|---|---|---|
| Primary distance | Usually mid- to long-range, with powers controlling space | Close-range melee strings supported by ranged attacks |
| Main source of variety | Five Service Weapon forms, abilities, upgrades, mods and environmental objects | Character-specific movesets, multiple weapons, launchers, air combos, styles and weapon switching |
| Central skill | Target priority, spatial awareness and managing ability and firearm recovery | Timing, canceling, aerial control, move knowledge and combo routing |
| Mobility identity | Movement powers, including Levitate, used to reposition in an arena | Launchers, air movement, grapples and style techniques used to keep enemies in controlled positions |
| Typical reward | Finding an efficient, creative answer to the current room | Executing a stylish, sustained sequence under pressure |
| Early learning experience | The basic loop is readable quickly; options expand as powers and weapon forms arrive | The basic attacks are approachable, but depth keeps expanding as you learn properties, styles and interactions |
That distinction matters when someone asks which game has “deeper” combat. If depth means more possible interactions with a physical space, Control has the stronger claim. If it means a larger execution ceiling for deliberate combos, Devil May Cry is the deeper system.
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The Service Weapon is a flexible ranged foundation
Jesse’s Service Weapon transforms into five forms, each with different strengths. The official PlayStation gameplay overview describes switching forms according to the enemy and situation rather than treating one configuration as a permanent loadout. A player may use one form to pressure a distant target, another to deliver heavier damage or another to handle a close threat, then change again as the room develops.
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- Control Ultimate Edition contains the main game and all previously released expansions ("The Foundation" and "Awe") in one great value package
- Can you handle The Bureau's dark secrets? Unfold an epic supernatural struggle, filled with unexpected characters and bizarre events, as you search for your missing brother, and discover the truth that has brought you here.
- Unleash destruction through transforming weaponry and telekinetic powers. Discover new ways to annihilate your enemies as you harness powerful abilities to turn everything around you into a lethal weapon
- Delve deep into the ominous expanses of a secretive government agency. Explore The Bureau's shifting environments only to discover that there is always more than meets the eye
- Battle a relentless enemy through exciting missions and challenging boss fights to earn powerful upgrades that maximize abilities and customize your weaponry
This makes weapon selection a tactical decision, but it is only one layer. The gun’s ammunition recovery creates a rhythm: spend the magazine, use an ability or reposition, then return to firing when the weapon is ready. Control therefore does not ask you to memorize a long chain of sword inputs. It asks you to keep several complementary tools available and avoid being trapped by a single attack pattern.
Abilities turn the arena into part of the moveset
Launch lets Jesse lift objects and throw them as telekinetic projectiles. Shield forms a barrier from debris, providing a defensive answer when open ground is dangerous. Seize converts a weakened enemy into an ally, changing the number and direction of threats in the room. Levitate adds vertical movement and lets Jesse reposition above hazards or reach a better angle.
These powers make the environment an active combat resource. A desk, slab of concrete or piece of equipment is not merely scenery if it can become ammunition. The useful question is often not “Which gun does the most damage?” but “What can I pick up, what can I block, and which enemy should be weakened for Seize?”
Upgrades and mods support different combat priorities
Control allows upgrades for powers and weapons, while mods can improve damage, reload time, health or ability performance. Those improvements do not replace decision-making; they tune the way you prefer to solve rooms. A player who relies on frequent telekinetic attacks can emphasize ability performance, while another can build around weapon damage or faster recovery.
The result is breadth without the same execution burden as a character-action game. You can experiment with combinations and still complete an encounter without performing a prescribed sequence of cancels. Your build changes the efficiency of familiar actions, while your awareness of cover, elevation and enemy priority determines whether those actions work.
How Devil May Cry’s combat system works
The series built its identity on aerial control and expressive attacks
Capcom producer Matt Walker says the first Devil May Cry established air combos and launchers, along with Devil Trigger and Style Rank. Those systems define the series’ central challenge: start an attack, lift an enemy, keep the target in a controlled position and continue the sequence without losing rhythm or style.
Later entries expanded the same foundation. Devil May Cry 2 introduced on-the-fly weapon changes. Devil May Cry 3 added fighting-game-like styles. Devil May Cry 4 introduced Nero’s pull-in and throw mechanics and real-time style switching. The series therefore accumulates depth by adding ways to alter a combo while it is already happening.
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Official Devil May Cry 5 tips describe Nero managing the chargeable Blue Rose gun and Red Queen sword, along with Devil Breakers. Timing MAX Act during Red Queen sword swings adds a precision layer: the attack is not merely selected, it is enhanced by hitting the timing window. Nero’s pull-in tools also help him bring targets into the range needed for the next part of a sequence.
V attacks through the Griffon and Shadow familiars. His combat is therefore less about standing beside an enemy and more about coordinating two attacking entities, creating openings and finishing a weakened target. Dante combines numerous guns and melee weapons with four styles: Trickster, Swordmaster, Gunslinger and Royal Guard. Each style changes the options available in the same encounter, so switching style is itself part of the decision-making.
Style Rank measures performance, not just survival
Devil May Cry can be completed by defeating enemies, but its combat system is designed to make the manner of victory matter. Style Rank encourages variety, sustained offense and avoiding interruptions. Repeating a safe move may keep you alive, yet it does not demonstrate the same mastery as changing weapons, redirecting an airborne enemy and extending a sequence through precise timing.
That performance focus is why the game can feel simple at first and extremely demanding later. The first attacks are understandable immediately. The deeper game appears when you learn which moves launch, which attacks keep an enemy suspended, when a weapon change preserves momentum and how a style answers a specific threat.
Combat distance: arena control versus melee commitment
Control is generally a ranged, arena-oriented system. Jesse can attack from a distance, throw objects without approaching a target and use movement powers to find a safer angle. Closing in is sometimes useful, but the game does not require a continuous melee commitment to make progress.
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Devil May Cry repeatedly asks you to close distance. Launchers and air combos only work when you are near the target, and many of the series’ expressive options depend on staying inside an enemy’s attack range. Ranged weapons support the melee game rather than replacing it. The risk is higher, but so is the reward for maintaining control while threats surround you.
This difference changes how you read a room. In Control, you scan for cover, objects, elevations and the most dangerous target. In Devil May Cry, you read attack tells and enemy spacing, then decide how to enter, launch and reposition without breaking the sequence.
Where variety comes from
Control combines independent tools
Control’s variety is modular. A weapon form, Launch, Shield, Seize, Levitate and a usable object can each contribute one decision. You can combine them opportunistically: weaken an enemy, seize it, shield against incoming fire, throw debris and switch Service Weapon forms while moving through the room.
Because the arena supplies part of the toolkit, the same ability can feel different in different spaces. An open room may offer many throwable objects and clear sightlines. A cluttered or hazardous area may make Shield and Levitate more valuable. The game’s improvisational quality comes from adapting the same powers to changing geometry and enemy arrangements.
Devil May Cry layers movesets and timing
Devil May Cry’s variety is combinatorial. Each weapon has attacks with different ranges, launch properties and timing. Styles add another decision layer, and character-specific mechanics alter how a combo begins, continues or ends. The number of possibilities grows because one action changes what can follow it.
For example, a launcher can create an aerial opportunity; an aerial attack can position the enemy for a weapon switch; the next style choice can preserve the sequence or create a defensive response. The arena matters, but the moveset is the primary source of variety.
Resource pressure and combat rhythm
Control alternates firearm recovery and ability use
Control’s rhythm is built around the relationship between Service Weapon ammunition and supernatural abilities. You fire until recovery is needed, then use Launch, Shield, Seize or movement to remain active instead of waiting passively. Health, ability performance and weapon behavior can also be modified, so resource management is partly a build question.
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The pressure is spatial as well as numerical. A powerful ability is valuable only if you can find a target, object or moment in which it changes the situation. Spending an ability to remove an immediate threat may leave you relying on the Service Weapon while it recovers, whereas holding it can preserve an escape route.
Devil May Cry rewards gauges and timing windows
Devil May Cry manages different kinds of opportunity. Devil Trigger provides a powerful state, style-specific techniques create defensive or offensive answers, and character mechanics reward precise timing. Nero’s MAX Act is the clearest example in the official DMC5 tips: the sword swing has an additional timing challenge that improves the result when executed correctly.
These resources are tied to execution more directly than Control’s. A player can know the correct option in Devil May Cry and still fail because the input was late, the enemy was at the wrong height or the next attack was selected too slowly. The system asks you to convert knowledge into timing under pressure.
Mobility and control of enemy position
Control uses mobility to improve a tactical position. Levitate can move Jesse vertically, cross dangerous spaces and create a line of attack that was unavailable on the floor. Shield and thrown objects help her survive while she changes location. Enemy control is mostly about reducing incoming pressure, isolating targets and turning the room’s geometry to your advantage.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsDevil May Cry uses mobility to preserve an offensive sequence. Launchers place enemies in the air; air movement keeps the player close; grapples or pull-in mechanics bring a target back into range; style techniques provide additional ways to evade or maintain position. The goal is not simply to reach a safe location but to keep the enemy where the next attack can connect.
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This is a fundamental distinction: Control’s movement is primarily positional and defensive, while Devil May Cry’s movement is frequently part of the attack itself.
Player expression: improvisation versus authored execution
Control rewards improvisation. Two players may clear the same room with different mixtures of gun forms, thrown objects, Shield and Seize, and both approaches can be effective. The game gives you a problem—multiple enemies in a physical space—and lets you assemble a solution from the available tools.
Devil May Cry rewards authored execution. The player can improvise, but the most satisfying results come from deliberately routing a sequence: launch a target, select a weapon with the right follow-up, switch style, use a timing-sensitive attack and finish without dropping the combo. Creativity comes from knowing the rules well enough to bend them.
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Learning curve and accessibility of the depth
Control reveals its main loop quickly
Control’s initial combat language is easy to read: aim the Service Weapon, use a supernatural power, move to a better position and repeat. Additional forms, abilities, upgrades and mods increase the number of choices, but the basic loop remains understandable while you learn it.
The main challenge is situational awareness. You must notice which enemies are weak enough for Seize, which objects are available for Launch, where incoming fire is coming from and when Levitate is safer than staying behind cover. Mistakes usually come from poor prioritization or positioning rather than from failing a narrow input window.
Devil May Cry hides its deepest layer behind practice
Devil May Cry’s surface is also approachable, but its ceiling is much higher. To use the system fully, you learn move properties, launch heights, cancel opportunities, aerial control, style interactions and character-specific timing. The game can be enjoyable before that knowledge is complete, yet the difference between basic completion and high-level play is substantial.
Matt Walker described the series’ goal as returning to “pure action” and to the challenge-and-accomplishment loop of overcoming demanding encounters. That philosophy explains why the game continues to expose new depth after the controls feel familiar.
Which game has deeper combat?
There is no single answer because the systems measure different skills.
- Choose Control as the deeper system if you value interactions among powers, weapon forms, upgrade choices and physical spaces. Its depth is systemic and situational: the meaningful question changes with the room, enemy mix and available objects.
- Choose Devil May Cry as the deeper system if you value move lists, execution, combo routing, aerial control, style selection and repeatable mastery. Its depth is mechanical and performance-based: the same encounter can produce better results as your timing and understanding improve.
Control can feel broader during a single encounter because many objects and powers are immediately available. Devil May Cry can feel deeper over dozens of hours because every move has follow-up possibilities that become clearer with practice.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How the systems feel in the same hypothetical encounter
Control’s likely decision path
- Identify the enemy creating the greatest immediate danger.
- Look for a throwable object, cover position or vertical route.
- Use a Service Weapon form that suits the target’s distance and durability.
- Spend Launch, Shield or Seize to change the room’s threat pattern.
- Use Levitate or another movement option to relocate before the next wave of fire.
- Return to the weapon when its ammunition has recovered and repeat with the new battlefield state.
The sequence is flexible. If the room changes, your plan changes with it.
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Devil May Cry’s likely decision path
- Read the enemy’s opening and enter at a range where a launcher or starter attack can connect.
- Launch the target and select an aerial follow-up that keeps it within reach.
- Change weapon, style or character-specific option to extend the sequence.
- Use a defensive or movement technique if another enemy threatens the combo.
- Apply a timing-sensitive mechanic, such as Nero’s MAX Act opportunity, when the attack window appears.
- End or redirect the sequence deliberately rather than allowing the enemy to recover unpredictably.
The route is more authored. Success depends on performing the intended transitions cleanly while reacting to interruptions.
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How the series’ history explains the difference
Capcom’s account of the series describes a steady expansion of character-action vocabulary. The first Devil May Cry established the 3D template with launchers, air combos, Devil Trigger and Style Rank. Later games added on-the-fly weapon changes, fighting-game-like styles, Nero’s pull-in and throw mechanics, and real-time style switching. Each addition increased the number of ways an expert could continue or redirect a combo.
“The first Devil May Cry really established the template for stage-based 3D action games,” Matt Walker said in a 2019 PlayStation Blog interview, adding that it translated the appeal of side-scrolling 2D action games into 3D.
Devil May Cry 5 continues that design through multiple character kits and a system that makes movement, weapon choice and timing visible in every exchange. Capcom’s corporate overview also highlights motion capture and the RE ENGINE’s combination of individual animation parts to express detailed character action. The presentation serves the same design goal as the mechanics: attacks should communicate weight, timing and personality.
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Control comes from a different design priority. Its combat is built around Jesse’s supernatural abilities and a transforming Service Weapon, with the room functioning as an extension of those powers. The official PlayStation description emphasizes switching the five weapon forms for different enemies and situations, then combining them with Launch, Shield, Seize and Levitate. The result is an action system where the physical space is as important as the protagonist’s moveset.
Which game should you choose?
Choose Control if you want
- Telekinetic attacks that make ordinary objects useful.
- A ranged combat loop with frequent repositioning.
- Several weapon forms that cover different situations without requiring long combo strings.
- Build customization through weapon and ability upgrades and mods affecting damage, reload, health or ability performance.
- Encounters solved through target priority, cover, elevation and environmental improvisation.
Choose Devil May Cry if you want
- Melee-first combat centered on launchers, air combos and close-range commitment.
- Multiple weapons and styles that change what can follow an attack.
- Character-specific mechanics such as Nero’s chargeable Blue Rose, Red Queen timing, Devil Breakers, V’s Griffon and Shadow familiars, or Dante’s four styles.
- A performance system where variety, timing and sustained sequences matter.
- A high execution ceiling that rewards repeated practice and precise control.
If you enjoy both
Play Control when you want to experiment with a room and its objects. Play Devil May Cry when you want to practice a character’s vocabulary and make a difficult sequence look deliberate. They complement rather than replace one another: Control broadens the battlefield, while Devil May Cry deepens the individual attack.
Common mistakes when moving between the games
Control players entering Devil May Cry
- Do not stay at maximum range expecting ranged attacks to carry the encounter. The system’s strongest expression comes from entering melee range and controlling the target there.
- Do not treat every attack as an isolated hit. Learn what launches, what extends an aerial sequence and what option brings the enemy back into range.
- Do not wait until you are comfortable with every style before experimenting. Style selection is part of the combat decision, not an optional advanced menu.
Devil May Cry players entering Control
- Do not ignore the room. Objects, cover and vertical space are active resources, not decoration.
- Do not spend every ability as soon as it becomes available. Keep a defensive or control option for the moment when enemy pressure changes.
- Do not judge a weapon form by damage alone. Reload behavior, range and how it fits your movement can matter more in a particular encounter.
Bottom line
Control and Devil May Cry are not near-identical action systems separated only by camera angle. Control is a supernatural ranged sandbox: its depth comes from combining five Service Weapon forms, telekinetic powers, upgrades and the physical arena. Devil May Cry is a technical character-action system: its depth comes from launchers, air combos, weapon changes, styles, timing and sustained execution. Choose Control for environmental improvisation and flexible ranged problem-solving; choose Devil May Cry for melee mastery and the satisfaction of turning precise inputs into expressive combos.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Control a character-action game like Devil May Cry?
Control shares fast third-person action with Devil May Cry, but its combat is better described as an ability-driven shooter. Its defining interactions are Service Weapon forms, telekinesis, defensive powers, possession and levitation rather than a melee combo-and-style framework.
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Can Devil May Cry be enjoyed without learning advanced combos?
Yes. The basic attacks and character abilities are usable before you understand every cancel or timing window. The advanced systems are there for players who want higher style ranks, longer sequences and more consistent control over enemy position.
Does Control require precise timing in the same way as DMC5?
Control has timing and resource decisions, but its main skill test is spatial awareness and choosing the right tool for the room. DMC5 places more emphasis on narrow execution windows, such as Nero’s MAX Act timing, aerial control and transitions between weapons or styles.
Which game offers more playable combat styles?
Devil May Cry 5 has explicitly defined style systems, including Dante’s Trickster, Swordmaster, Gunslinger and Royal Guard, while its characters also have distinct kits. Control offers variety through weapon forms, abilities, upgrades and environmental interactions rather than named fighting styles.
What does Devil Trigger contribute to the comparison?
Devil Trigger is one of the foundational systems identified by Capcom as part of the first Devil May Cry’s template. It represents the series’ use of combat states and gauges to reward timing and commitment, contrasting with Control’s emphasis on cycling firearm recovery and supernatural abilities.
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