Devil May Cry is all about the player expression. I would argue that the series has the best controls for doing so of all the character action games and has provided solid control schemes for different playstyles.

Even Royal Guard is fantastic: high risk reward that more than just another parry; it is a conscious choice between high risk, high potential gameplay.

I also think unless you aim to play DMC without engaging Son of Sparda and Dante Must Die, you’re really short-changing yourself in terms of what these games can really be

Are they perfect? No but they’re damn solid games that really do reward players that take the time to reach those higher skill levels while being perfectly beatable for the average pleb.