The game’s story is about witches and sages, two groups with different magical powers that represent hell and heaven respectively. Usual norms don’t apply as neither group is necessarily made to be good or evil.

Quite frankly, although the plot had potential, the story and characters are never properly developed and the actions not well explained. This makes the gameplay the primary focus. And boy, the gameplay is good!

Gameplay:

Since Bayonetta uses both guns and melee attacks, there are bound to be comparisons with the Devil May Cry series. However within only the first hour of the game it is easy to tell that this is not only on a completely different league, but also has a unique style of its own.

Bayonetta is able to equip weapons on her hands and feet. Weapons range from regular pistols, shotguns, a sword to wolverine like claws. The more powerful combos end with Bayonetta unleashing the demonic power that is stored in her hair. Gather enough momentum and she can perform torture techniques that take out a serious chunk of an enemy’s HP if not kill it. As weird as these sound, the developers have done a stellar job of blending them really well both in terms of combat and visual splendor.

Another great feature in combat is that dodging an attack at the last moment unleashes witch time. This slows down the surrounding enemies. Although this has been used very often in shooters, it actually works great in this game as it allows for a great transition from defense into a strong counter attack. Perhaps most important of all, the controls are highly responsive and the movement is very fluid.

Equipping different weapons in different slots (the hands of feet) makes for a greater variety and also effects the technique. This becomes more important as there is a good variety of enemies that have their own strengths and weaknesses. Failing to adjust your strategy will lead to your death, repeatedly. That being said, there are a lot of combos and therefore the game can be completed with random button smashing. But playing smart and stringing together the right combos provide for much better dividends.  

Story:

As stated earlier, there is not much in the game in terms of story or character development. With exception to the start of the game, the story does not actually move forward until the later half of the game. I tend to have a difficult time finishing games that have poor stories. However in Bayonetta’s case, I had no such issues because the combat more than made up for it.

Most of the story is told through cut scenes. Although a little heavy at the start, fortunately they are toned down for the rest of the game. Their main purpose is to put on a performance of cool moves and put the player in the right mood. Despite the cheeky dialogue, it gets the job done.

Continuation of a Stereotype

From the demonic power that makes Bayonetta half naked, to the intriguing poses and even an after credits pole dance, the character of Bayonetta is very sexual. But it feels so over-the-top that it comes out as immature. I can’t imagine anyone appreciating it except for young teenage boys.

When women are the main protagonists, they are usually shown with little clothing, let alone much armor in action games that have bullets and bombs going off. In other more frequent places women play the role of damsels in distresses that need to be rescued by the male protagonists. Fortunately not all games treat women with this same narrow stereotype or that of an sex object. Unfortunately Bayonetta falls strongly into the latter.

The Final Word:

Although light on story, the refreshing, highly entertaining and action packed combat more than makes up for it. The great combat is well complemented by some great visuals. Bayonetta is a game that I would like to see evolve into a great franchise, hopefully with a bit more maturity. 

Genre: Action / Hack n Slash

Platform: Xbox 360

Developed by: Platinum Games

Published by: Sega