Fans got their wish when Devil May Cry not only returned with Dante but also brought back Nero as a protagonist. Due to their appearances in Devil May Cry 5, their characterizations have been furthered, with their power level also enough to be gauged.
As Nero ended up unlocking his true devil form, some of the fanbase has taken to arguing that he might have eclipsed Dante by now. Others remain convinced that it is the second son of Sparda who remains the most powerful character. In order to reach an adequate consensus seen in similar match-ups, here are a variety of factors considered to determine which of these two is the stronger Devil May Cry protagonist.
10 Experience: Dante
Having faced enemies of all kinds of power levels - from normal demons to those with godlike abilities - Dante has fought just about any being there can be. Along with that, he’s vastly experienced in traveling to different realms.
From a very young age, Dante was shown to venture into the demon world, and every game has seen him land into a separate area, meaning he’s contended with all sides of this realm. Nero hasn’t been exposed to the demon world even close to Dante’s extent, and the latter has faced every enemy Nero has.
9 Special Power: Nero
As far as variety is concerned, Dante might be ahead due to the multitude of options like the “Trickster” or “Royal Guard,” among others. However, those still aren’t a trump card like Nero’s Devil Bringer. This arm was a force of nature.
Using this special power, Nero could assimilate magical things within himself, as well as carry the ability to magnify the Devil Bringer to colossal levels. Even Dante was caught by surprise once Nero took the Devil Bringer out against him to overwhelm the odds in his favor.
8 Skills: Dante
As mentioned before, Dante has a list of fighting styles he makes use of, all of which can be switched around and suited to an enemy to maximizing potential. He’s also shown to keep several moves hidden until he’s mapped out who his opponent is, before letting his secret trick out.
Being inherently powerful, and the Devil Bringer in tow, Nero hasn’t relied on finesse in fighting skills. During times of crisis, he’s been shown to struggle to catch a pattern in his enemy, something that Dante doesn’t seem to have a problem with.
7 Weapon Mastery: Nero
This will be a point of contention among fans, as Dante has always been shown to carry dozens of weapons, but the fact that Nero has been able to have similar results with fewer weapons proves his are just as effective, or even more so.
Nero’s use of the Yamato showed devastating effects against his enemies in Devil May Cry 4, while the numerous substitutes for the Devil Bringer he had in Devil May Cry 5 more than did their job. In Dante’s case, only a few weapons like the Rebellion or Sparda have proven to be extremely powerful, with the rest being rather generic.
6 Mentality: Dante
Having a steady mental state is absolutely essential for beings of the same power level. This was proven in Devil May Cry 3, where a focused Dante was able to beat Vergil when he’d previously lost handily due to his cocky nature.
Nero is highly emotional, to the point where he acts like a punk kid and fixates on ridiculous things that mess with his mind to lead into a losing situation. Dante’s extreme mastery in this regard places him far ahead of Nero in a battle of mental prowess, as he handily beat Nero in Devil May Cry 4 by playing around with his emotions to get the advantage.
5 Enemy Power Level: Dante
As far as a fighting record is concerned, Nero just can’t match up with Dante. It’s not strictly down to experience either, as a young Dante ended up defeating the Sparda-empowered Arkham in Devil May Cry 3, and beat mythological beings like Beowulf.
Of course, the greatest enemy he’s faced remains Mundus, who was powerful enough to make Vergil into his slave as Nelo Angelo. It’s difficult to imagine Nero having the same success against someone like Mundus, meaning he’s faced enemies with lower power levels than Dante.
4 Devil Mode: Nero
The ending of Devil May Cry 5 confirmed that the devil mode that fans had been seeing of Nero the whole time wasn’t even his final form. His actual devil appearance ended up beating Vergil, and even prior to that the Yamato-empowered Nero was a sheer force.
That’s not to say that Dante’s devil mode is anything to scoff at, but even he was awestruck by Nero’s final transformation while having a visibly difficult time with Nero’s earlier form.
3 Versus Each Other: Tied
Dante did have the upper hand due to his vast experience, but Nero didn’t do too badly during their match-ups in Devil May Cry 4. In fact, his performance was incredible considering the age difference between the two.
In Devil May Cry 5, though, Nero evidently had Dante beat simply through a backhand in the climax, following which Dante sat through the entire battle between Nero and Vergil. Of course, that was something of a plot armor for Nero at the time, which means a proper battle between the two can only be considered a tie for the time being.
2 Back-Up: Dante
In this hypothetical scenario, should the situation escalate to an all-out war, there might be a need to call in their respective back-ups. Here, Dante has Nero beat pretty easily due to his connections.
The most obvious would be to call in Lady and Trish, although Dante could also be assisted by Lucia and even Vergil to an extent. For Nero, there really is only Nico who could be considered a full ally, and counting Vergil on his side doesn’t tip the scales totally in his favor since Dante would still have a lot more support.
1 Winner: Dante
Ultimately, it comes down to the list of feats and experiences since these two happen to be so similar in attributes. Another major point in Dante’s favor would be his cool mentality, something that Nero really doesn’t possess, and has proven to be the reason for his losses.
A more interesting comparison would be for a younger Dante with Nero, but that would just leave out a lot of room for interpretation. Where the series is currently placed, Dante remains the apex Devil Hunter, and characters in-universe should look to him to clean out any messes left by the demons from the underworld.