Bayonetta – Review

1. Hideki Kamiya is one of the few game designers who has put forth some of the most remembered and influential games in the last fifteen years. Start with being a planner on the original Resident Evil, and then move to director of Resident Evil 2. Two more of his best known games are the original Devil May Cry and Viewtiful Joe, rounded out by work on Okami. Now comes the next big thing from one of the most over the top designers ever; Bayonetta.
   
   Knowing in advance what Kamiya has done will help further cement the level of awesomeness within Bayonetta. The stylish action genre is largely reminiscent of two series, Ninja Gaiden and Devil May Cry. This game takes many of the things that both did right, and even manages to fix a few wrongs along the way.
   
   Controls: This beast has some of the most fluid and complex controls in a game of this type, period. Stylish button string combos (Ninja Gaiden), blend with the mercurial combat setup (Devil May Cry 3) to make something that is simple to learn, but hard to master. There are a few moments where you are using alternate things like turrets, motorcycles, and other bizarre items. Even those controls hearken back to the classic Sega games, with one part bringing back memories of Afterburner from the Genesis.
   
   The actual combos vary from standard button mashing fare (PPPKKK) to something that looks like it belongs in a fighting game (PP * PP * P), and variants in between, including aerial based madness. Add in the ability to swap your current pair of weapons for a different set of your choice, and the possibilities get ridiculous. Then you have to consider the dodging and Witch Time mechanics that can take a brawl and leave behind corpses with the right amount of skill. Finally, there are enemy weapons you can use for a short time, with the outrageous Torture Attacks providing the icing on the cake. Adding all of that together, balancing it, and staying stylish is not easy, but it is rewarding in the long run.
   
   Game play: This was lightly touched on in the controls segment in regard to the combo system, so that will not be repeated. Every Chapter is composed of at least one Verse, with most chapters having 6-9 Verses on average, and even a few that go past 12. Once a Verse is complete, you are given a ranking based on three core stats; Time Taken, Damage Taken, and Combo. At the end of a level, an average of all the Verses caps off the mayhem, taking into account the medals acquired on each Verse, as well as any items used. Getting the highest rank of Pure Platinum on a Verse requires quick thinking, an almost uninterrupted combo chain and absolutely no damage taken, while the same feat on the entire level will take time to get down flawlessly.
   
   Outside of the Verses, you have a small amount of exploration at your disposal, which can lead to Alfheim portals (Combat Challenges), Hidden Verses, Upgrades, or even the more mundane destruction of select objects for alchemy ingredients or money. Sadly, the amount of exploration is limited in quantity and scope, as with most games in this genre.
   
   The alchemy itself is a very simple set of mixes, with only three ingredients in the entire game, thankfully appearing everywhere in the game. Varying the type and quantity of each ingredient yields health or magic restoratives, attack boosters, invulnerability items and even an item that damages all enemies on screen. Use of the items will detract from the Chapter's Award, so using them is often saved for higher difficulties when possible, although it is sometimes better to use something early and avoid taking your chances on when the last Autosave was made...or having to deal with a multi-form boss from the beginning.
   
   One final thing that was really awesome in this game is something that the Devil May Cry and Ninja Gaiden series could really stand to use. The load screens are your practice window, both temporary and infinite, depending on your choice. Press the Back button on almost ANY load screen and you can practice your moves inside an empty void without loading into the next segment, or you can try out a few moves in the transitions from point to point without enabling the full Practice Mode. The right side of the screen displays a scrollable combo list as well as the number of times each move has been used, whether or not you choose to enable the Practice Mode. To return to the action, just hit the Back button again and away you go.
   
   Graphics: Wow. Devil May Cry with curves could not look much better to be honest. The game itself runs at a solid 60 FPS through most of the game, with occasional hiccups, but nothing that is so bad it is unplayable, and even then the action itself rarely skips a beat. Cut scenes are a mixed bag of FMV and retro film style renderings. It seems to add even more atmosphere to the game when one of the slide style scenes rolls by. Vibrant colors are everywhere, and it manages to keep that solid feel even when being assaulted by half a dozen enemies or more.
   
   Sound: Always a sore spot for some games, and even Bayonetta has a dull spot here. The music in general is beautiful, but after a while, the combat music will become a touch tedious. The voice actors themselves do superb jobs themselves, even down to the random quips from Bayonetta in combat. During the second or third time through, I imagine some will have their own battle music running in the background.
   
   Story: This might be a sticking point for some, which is rather sad. Bayonetta doesn't take itself too seriously...if at all. The story itself isn't bad...but it isn't great either. It is one of the few times where I was so absorbed in the actual game play mechanics that I was not too worried at the lack of knowledge about the story itself.
   
   There are sections where you will see old bosses again, but there is not a full scale Boss Rush at the end of the game. Instead, most of the old bosses reappear as mini-bosses with only a fraction of their life, and not just in the closing chapters.
   
   Other: As was previously mentioned, this game inspires nostalgia moments, both from Kamiya's work and Sega itself. The currency are Halos...which look like rings from Sonic in the smallest size. There are lines that come from Devil May Cry and Viewtiful Joe. Some of the levels have altered music to classic Sega games.
   
   Then there are the unlockables, of which this game has plenty. Two extra characters, two extra difficulties, a Lost Chapter, weapons, costumes and moves are all there to suck you back into this wonderful game. Some of the weapons are traditional, like rocket launchers...that can be quadruple wielded...to the hidden weapons that are as over the top as the rest of the game. Add in the Achievements to this mix and the replay value is around a moderate to high level for fans of this type of game.
   
   Overall: Many consider Devil May Cry 3 to be the king of this style of game, but with Bayonetta, a possible Queen has been found. Non-stop action, one of the deepest combo systems ever, exotic and traditional weapons, and characters that will hardly be forgotten any time soon. Bayonetta may well have raised the bar for this genre, much like Devil May Cry 3 did. Some of this will look familiar, and some of the new elements will hopefully shed some light on new paths to follow. Note that there is not a 9.5 option, and this game is well above an even 9, hence the 10 rating it was given. Bayonetta is not perfect, but for the larger part, it is very close.
2. Rating: 
   10
3. Product Release: Bayonetta (JP, 10/29/2009)

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