My thoughts after playing a game created by teams responsible for Devil May Cry and Metal Gear Rising.
Although I had played a few of the Devil May Cry titles (and love them), Metal Gear Rising, and other similar titles, I never had much of an interest in playing Bayonetta for some reason. It could be that it missed me at launch and I never sought it out, but, after a friend purchased it for me as one of their favorite games, I am happy to say I have been shorting myself for a very long time by not starting this game. This game has absolutely wowed me…
Bayonetta starts off at an absolute rocket’s pace – immediately throwing you into gorgeous cinematics, hilarious character banter, mysterious enemies, and the most over-the-top entrance of a protagonist I have ever witnessed. This is directly after a prologue fight where you fall through the sky, fighting tons of enemies with no explanation of control while an ominous narrator gives you the history of the world. The game does not relent after these opening sequences – the game is just full of rapid-fire, stylish hack ‘n slash combat, into boss fights, into phenomenally presented story with, respectfully, the baddest bitch of all time dismantling every situation with elegant combat skills and equally as quick and impressive verbal beatings with lightning fast, witty lines. She carries herself in a way that nothing can stop her the whole game, and unlike most games that handle this poorly and makes your character feel like their shit doesn’t stink – Bayonetta’s impeccably written personality favors this approach perfectly. It would be hard not to fall in love with the powerful, confident, razor-tongued heroin the game lets you fill the shoes of.
The story is presented over the course of the game, rather than up front, and the game gives you pockets of readable lore and collectibles through the game that helps you string everything together until late game when it is finally all pulled together, and this pacing helps keep the game intriguing the entire way, as you learn Bayonetta’s forgotten past WITH her rather than before her, which is where other games mess the ol’ amnesiac protagonist bit up. The only complaint I had in my playthrough was the QTE felt a bit inconsistent in timing window’s in the later stages of the game, but this could have been Kamiya’s idea of added difficulty.
This game’s combat doesn’t miss. This game’s characters don’t miss. This game’s story doesn’t miss. Where Devil May Cry propelled the Hack ‘N Slash genre forward, Bayonetta nearly perfects it, with its stylish, sexy, hilarious and intriguing story and gameplay, making you want to see it through to the end, but alternately okay with playing inside the world forever.
Bayonetta is the culmination of the genre, as well as the golden standard. It easily has become one of my favorite games of all time.