Hideki Kamiya is at it again with his most recent work,
Bayonetta. Kamiya's work includes the acclaimed
Devil May Cry series,
Viewtiful Joe, and
Okami. Anyone who's played
Devil May Cry or
Viewtiful Joe will immediately see the resemblance, but this is much more than the clones that are rampant throughout the game industry these days (Dante's Inferno=God of War). However, this is not the female
Devil May Cry. (Insert
angel will weep pun here)
Bayonetta takes you into the world of the dark Umbran Witches and their light counterparts, the Lumen Sages. The leading lady, Bayonetta, is searching for the Eyes of the World, a sort of all powerful relic split between each clan in order to maintain balance. This game breaks the mold in the sense of Good vs. Evil: You're one of the bad girls, taking down the angels that get in your way and anyone else who feels like bothering you. It's not the first game to do this, but I rarely have been able to enjoy beating up the "good" guys to this extent before. Story-wise, there's a little work involved. With the occasional clip inserted before and after-even sometimes during-a level, there are pieces of a journal found throughout the game that flesh out the finer details. Though the supporting cast is small, the acting is on point (for a video game) and not many cliches are used.
Some of the angels of Bayonetta. copyright IGNThe graphics are sharp and leave little to be desired. Each level looks and feels different, and the bosses are huge and amazing in detail and design, as expected. Even with the recurring theme, nothing feels recycled. The way the game is put together, it needs strong, smooth visuals, and it delivers. The soundtrack is something out of a Japanese pop nightmare, which strangely fits.
The game play is quite solid. This is the first time where I haven't been able to blame shoddy controls or a camera angle for getting hit. There was several times while playing it where I'd say "Yup, should've dodged" or "Well that was dumb of me." Jumping, evading, transforming, air combos, and attacking are all seamless, with more options than ever. There's a slew of combo options, some that change depending on your weapon, and even some weapons that are attached at the arms or legs, changing the style or function. And then there's the Wicked Weave ability. Using her hair (yes, hair), Bayonetta summons demons to attack the enemies; sometimes at the end of a combo, other times as a finishing move (called a Climax) for the larger enemies and bosses. Consequently, Umbran Witches use their hair as clothing, so the more complicated and extensive her moves get, the less clothes Bayonetta is wearing, to the point that one of the ESRB sub-ratings includes "Partial Nudity".
An excellent example of a Wicked Weave (and partial nudity). copyright IGNThough the MA rating seemed to be destined for Bayonetta, partial nudity or not. Some of the characters can't finish a sentence without swearing, and the gore factor is turned up to 11, especially with some of the more gruesome torture attacks.
One of the things I felt differently about with Bayonetta was recurring battles. Normally these are an annoyance, something I don't look forward to. But in this case I looked forward to fighting certain enemies again, only because I wanted to enact vengeance on those enemies that had given me problems earlier on. With new moves, new weapons and more practice, it's quite gratifying when an angel I'm fighting again takes far less time or effort to dispatch.
Another point that needs to be addressed is Witch Time. Not exactly copied from
Viewtiful Joe, Witch Time rewards the completion of a well time dodge with a few seconds of slow motion and increased damage. Bad timing can result in damage -and more importantly, losing your combo- but the reward is well worth it. Keeping a combo is just as important in Bayonetta as it has been in other Kamiya games, since it affects the grade of each verse and each verse adds up to score the chapter. Aside from time and combo points the other large determining factor of your score is damage, the Simon Cowell of video game judges. Essentially, the age old rules apply: don't get hit and you have nothing to worry about, but woe to those who die and choose to continue.
With all that goes so well with this game, the one hangup I didn't expect was load times. Sadly, it's not even the really long cool load times where you can read a book or cook some food. I'm talking about the painful, way too long for what you're doing but too short to do anything else load times. I was shocked to find when I paused to skip a cut scene (which should be a staple in any game where the chance of repeating a level is above 20%), I was presented the fabled message: Now Loading....seriously!? For the pause screen? You've gotta be kidding me.
And not just the pause screen. Every time you access the menu, attempt to read a journal, or wait for a cut scene, let the loading commence. It was a serious take-away from all the fun I was having playing the game. Thankfully that's all in the past now, as a patch was released allowing players to install part of the game to the hard drive, which eliminated the unsightly load times.
Even if just looked at as the first in a series, Bayonetta delivers. When almost every game that comes out needs a sequel or two to look and feel as polished as this, you could almost believe you're playing Bayonetta 2. But of course, now the bar has been raised excessively high. Let's see what Kamiya comes up with next.
Some may call it fan service, others may call it the female (insert action game), but no matter what they call it, they better call it a blast.
Worth Every Penny!
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