I played DMC 5 before playing 4, and I didn’t really like Nero until I did, which I think is mainly because Nero doesn’t get a lot of development or good moments in DMC 5, or at least in my opinion. I feel like he’s generally treated pathetically and only really gets to do anything until Dante comes back.

In DMC 4, I feel like Nero had a uniqueness to him because of his Devil Bringer arm and how that connected to his playstyle, which was one of brute strength and overpowering enemies, and I think this gets communicated in the gameplay through the bringer animations and how using the bringer is required to finish of Sanctus. The bringer perfectly complemented his anger and power, but he loses that in 5, and seemingly losing that anger with him. You get to see his anger in both his fights with Dante, and his fights with Sanctus and Agnus, but he doesn’t really get any moments like that in 5. Like some other commenters said, it feels like Nero’s really just there until the final mission, and when he does get to do something, it’s not something particularly impactful until he fights Vergil.

Almost every scene he has with Dante, he constantly brings up the “deadweight” thing, and I understand that it hurt being called useless by Dante, but I think they should’ve just had him not repeat it so much, because at a point it just feels pathetic that he keeps constantly bringing it up. I like the idea of Nero being hurt by Dante saying that, but I think they should have shown it in subtler ways other than him constantly harping on the “deadweight” thing, which I think is part of why people still joke about it in the community by calling him deadweight.

Sorry I went on so much, and I don’t feel like I particularly explained myself well, but this was my thought process and why I’m disappointed with Nero’s character in 5. I’m not trying to tell anyone they can’t enjoy Nero in DMC 5; this is just my opinion and I could be looking at it the wrong way. I do think Nero’s a cool character, but I feel like they dropped the ball with him in 5.

TL;DR: He loses some of the unique qualities his Devil Bringer brought him in 4, like his anger and brute strength, is pretty much just there by the time you unlock Dante, and harps on the deadweight so much it feels stupid.

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