Before Dante ever picked up a sword, he was a Resident Evil character who almost never existed — and the story of how he got his own franchise is one of the wildest pivots in gaming history.
The Devil May Cry Origin Story Nobody Talks About Enough
If you have ever wondered why Dante feels like a Resident Evil character who stumbled into the wrong game, you are not wrong for thinking that. The Devil May Cry origin story is one of the most fascinating accidents in gaming history, and it starts with a survival horror game that refused to cooperate.
With Devil May Cry Season 2 dropping on Netflix on May 12, 2026, now is the perfect time to go back to the beginning. Not the beginning Capcom puts in the press releases. The real beginning, where a desperate pivot turned a development disaster into two separate gaming franchises that shaped the next two decades of the industry.
The Devil May Cry Origin Story Starts With Resident Evil 4
Development on Resident Evil 4 began in 1999 for the PlayStation 2. Shinji Mikami, director of the first Resident Evil and overall producer for the series, handed the reins to director Hideki Kamiya. The goal was to push Resident Evil forward into a new generation. What came back was something else entirely.
Kamiya aimed to make the protagonist as cool as possible, saying he changed the game’s theme from fear to “The Stylish” to turn Resident Evil into a showy action game. The protagonist was not Leon Kennedy. He was a character named Tony Redgrave, a human who gained incredible powers through Umbrella experiments, with the story focusing on uncovering the mystery behind his abilities.
The setting was a gothic European castle. Enemies moved fast. Combat rewarded style over survival. It looked incredible. It also looked nothing like Resident Evil.
Mikami Made the Call and Changed Gaming Forever
Shinji Mikami convinced the staff to make the project into a separate game rather than continue forcing it into the Resident Evil mold. Rather than throw away months of development work, Capcom made a decision that would alter gaming history.
Kamiya reimagined the project, switching out the zombies of Resident Evil for demons. He drew inspiration from Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy, and from this, the protagonist became known as Dante. The biotechnology backstory was out. A half-demon heritage was in. Rather than abandon the project entirely, the premise was changed and it eventually became the first Devil May Cry.
That game shipped in 2001. You can read the full development breakdown at the Devil May Cry Wikipedia page and the Resident Evil 4 Wikipedia page if you want to go deep on the sourcing.
The Combat System Was Born From a Bug
Here is where the Devil May Cry origin story gets even wilder on a technical level.
During Onimusha’s development at Capcom, a bug was discovered where enemies could be kept in the air if you kept hitting them. That accidental discovery became the foundation of the juggle system that defined stylish action games for a generation. A glitch from a different Capcom project became the signature mechanic of a brand new IP.
A glitch from a completely different game became the signature mechanic of a brand new IP that reshaped an entire genre.
The combat DNA carried directly into everything that followed. The style meter, the aerial combos, the over the top boss encounters. All of it traces back to a prototype that was originally supposed to scare you.
RE4 Kept Going After the Devil May Cry Origin Story Split
After the Kamiya prototype was spun off, Capcom made multiple more attempts at Resident Evil 4 before landing on the version that shipped. One version, commonly called the fog version, was directed by Hiroshi Shibata and was 40 percent finished at one point. It featured Leon struggling to survive after infiltrating an Umbrella castle in Europe, with traditional Resident Evil monsters like zombies. When that concept also proved too far from what the team needed, it was scrapped. Elements of that ghostly atmospheric direction eventually influenced what became Haunting Ground, another cult classic born from a restart.
The version of RE4 that finally shipped was the one Mikami directed himself. Over the shoulder camera. Crowd control combat. A B movie action horror tone that respected the genre while completely modernizing it.
RE4 popularized the over-the-shoulder camera view used in Gears of War, Dead Space, and The Last of Us. It sold 15.2 million copies by March 2025 and is routinely cited as one of the best video games ever made.
You can read more about the full scope of that impact over at CBR’s breakdown of the RE4 and DMC connection.
Shinji Mikami and the Weight of That Pivot
It is worth slowing down and giving Mikami his flowers here.
The decision to spin off the Kamiya prototype rather than scrap it was not obvious. Most studios would have taken the loss and started over clean. Mikami saw something worth saving and had the conviction to reframe it entirely.
He also staked his reputation on RE4 in a very public way, telling the press that if RE4 did not deliver, he would shave his head. That kind of accountability is rare in any industry, let alone one as risk averse as AAA game development.
RE4 delivered. Mikami kept his hair.
The Devil May Cry origin story is ultimately about a director who trusted his instincts twice. Once when he said the prototype was not Resident Evil. And again when he said it was still worth something.
The Legacy That Followed
Devil May Cry’s ultra-stylish combat helped launch a new subgenre of hack-and-slash games known as character action games. Other action titles from the PS2 era, including God of War and the 2004 Ninja Gaiden reboot, were clearly influenced by Capcom’s game. Hideki Kamiya has also said that Devil May Cry was a major influence on the Bayonetta franchise.
Two legacies. One accident. And the ripple effects are still showing up in games releasing today.
The Devil May Cry Origin Story Is Perfect Timing for Season 2
The Devil May Cry animated series on Netflix premiered on April 3, 2025, and holds a 96% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The first season became Netflix’s most-watched video game adaptation in its first week, and the renewal was announced just one week after it dropped.
Season 2 premieres May 12, 2026. In the upcoming season, a war between worlds ignites as Dante must battle the only force that mirrors his own: his estranged twin brother Vergil. The voice cast includes Johnny Yong Bosch returning as Dante and Robbie Daymond as Vergil, with the season consisting of eight episodes.
Going into Season 2 with the full Devil May Cry origin story in your back pocket hits different. Dante was never supposed to have a franchise. He was a rescue operation. A creative solution to a problem Capcom did not plan for. The fact that he has now anchored games, anime, comics, and a passionate global fanbase for over two decades is a testament to what happens when creative teams trust their instincts and refuse to let good work die on the shelf.
You can get caught up on everything confirmed for Season 2 over at What’s On Netflix.
Lore Con 2026 Is Built for People Who Think This Deep About the Culture
For blerds who grew up with both franchises, the connection between RE4 and DMC is exactly the kind of behind the scenes history that validates why we pay attention to how things actually get made. If you want to be in rooms with other creators and fans who bring that same energy, Lore Con is the convention for you.
Why the Devil May Cry Origin Story Still Matters
The games industry loves to credit genius. It is a lot less comfortable crediting chaos.
But chaos is where Devil May Cry came from. A prototype that did not fit. A director willing to make a hard call. A team that figured out how to turn a pivot into a masterpiece. That process is worth understanding because it shows up everywhere. In music, in film, in comics, in the indie game scenes that blerds have been championing for years. The best stuff often starts as something else entirely.
Dante was Tony first. RE4 was four other games before it was RE4. And the genre defining impact they both had on gaming came directly from Capcom’s willingness to let good work find the right home.
That is the Devil May Cry origin story. And it is one of the best in the business.
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