Have you ever played Devil May Cry 1 in Hard or Dante Must Die mode? You are sadly mistaken if you think that Dante is nothing. What you're doing here is saying, Squall's powerful and Dante is nothing.

But how so? Because Squall has his lovely Lion Heart? And Dante has..."swords and combos" as you so lightly phrase them. Alaster, Ifrit, Sparda, Ebony and Ivory, Shotgun, Grenade gun, Nightmare-Beta. Those are the arsenal he poccesses.

Even without his weapons, Dante can hold himself in a battle. (that's what happens after executing round-trip) With just his bare hands, Dante can do alot. That's power.

Edit:

What if he doesn't go into Devil Mode? The battle would be tougher, but still, he is not nothing. I've never said Squall is nothing, and you know, underestimating your opponent is what you should never do in a battle. In fact, when Dante is wielding his Sparda, he cannot go into Devil mode, YET he is still VERY powerful. Sparda has speed, power, and range. P.S. Once he did go into Devil Mode with Sparda, but that shouldn't be applied here.