This review contains spoilers
CW: this one is...it's maybe NSFW in the same way that you wouldn't play some Bayonetta in the same room as your parents, if you catch my drift.
ben esposito, director of neon white, has claimed that that game was made "by freaks, for freaks", which got me thinking. what does such a game look like? what does a true game that flies it's freak flag high wear before it begins to peel it off, teasing all around it just enough to excite them before baring it's full naked form for an audience it knows will bark and howl for it? bayonetta. obviously.
such blood has been spilt over one question, rephrased and relitigated countless times: is bayonetta exploitative or empowering? feminist or objectivist? I'm here to tell you that the answer to these questions is Yes. bayonetta is a character designed by a woman under the direction of a man who wanted his dream woman brought to life. bayonetta is an all-powerful dominant force rarely not in complete control of the situation, that dances and parades herself for the male gaze as well as her own amusement. spank material for straight cis teenage boys and the most delightfully camp For The Gays drag show energy in the world, and earnest transition goals for transfems. bayonetta is all these things at once. the perceptions of bayonetta and what she is and does tangle up in themselves in a mess under the covers: sex, and by extension erotica, is inherently messy and you aren't going to get the clear-cut answers you want by demanding obsequious deference: you're in mommy's house now. be good, and maybe she'll give you what you want.
kinesthetic erotica to boil your blood and make the hairs on your neck stand on end like almost nothing else in the world. the thousand tiny moments of ever-building tension until it explodes into relief that the wicked weave system creates will never fail to make me shiver with delight, a bed of deep satisfaction that makes it so easy to excuse all the awkward fumbling when it reaches out of its comfort zone. it's an intoxicating (s)witch, one that's open to anything you can imagine and more besides. turn the difficulty down and you can effortlessly style on heaven's soldiers as the dominatrix supervillain of your wildest fantasies, or turn the difficulty up and have the game break you over its knee and make you beg for more, whilst still consenting to your learning how to turn the tables and show paradiso what a real witch can do.
many games are very bad at being convincingly erotic for a wide variety of reasons, whether out of the depressing commercialism of it all, the narrow audience of straight cis teenage boys most big games are aiming for, or just for taking themselves far too seriously. bayonetta succeeds because it puts such immense effort and care into fooling around, into not only its ludicrous high camp world and story, but also in the act of playing it, and enticing you to engage with it on terms both you and it consent to. dom or sub, any, all, or none of the toys of it's bedside table, in cutscenes and in play, bayonetta has one goal that overrides all others: to bring you to it's infinite climaxes, over and over again.there are many many tiny irrations and dissatisfactions with bayonetta that crawl into my mind once i'm hit with the clarity of the afterglow, but once i'm in there, it's hard to think about them, it's hard to think about anything else, other the game's intoxicating invitations push harder and faster against your limits and its, until either you or it or both of you can't take anymore, until...
...until we are all satisfied.
ben esposito, director of neon white, has claimed that that game was made "by freaks, for freaks", which got me thinking. what does such a game look like? what does a true game that flies it's freak flag high wear before it begins to peel it off, teasing all around it just enough to excite them before baring it's full naked form for an audience it knows will bark and howl for it? bayonetta. obviously.
such blood has been spilt over one question, rephrased and relitigated countless times: is bayonetta exploitative or empowering? feminist or objectivist? I'm here to tell you that the answer to these questions is Yes. bayonetta is a character designed by a woman under the direction of a man who wanted his dream woman brought to life. bayonetta is an all-powerful dominant force rarely not in complete control of the situation, that dances and parades herself for the male gaze as well as her own amusement. spank material for straight cis teenage boys and the most delightfully camp For The Gays drag show energy in the world, and earnest transition goals for transfems. bayonetta is all these things at once. the perceptions of bayonetta and what she is and does tangle up in themselves in a mess under the covers: sex, and by extension erotica, is inherently messy and you aren't going to get the clear-cut answers you want by demanding obsequious deference: you're in mommy's house now. be good, and maybe she'll give you what you want.
kinesthetic erotica to boil your blood and make the hairs on your neck stand on end like almost nothing else in the world. the thousand tiny moments of ever-building tension until it explodes into relief that the wicked weave system creates will never fail to make me shiver with delight, a bed of deep satisfaction that makes it so easy to excuse all the awkward fumbling when it reaches out of its comfort zone. it's an intoxicating (s)witch, one that's open to anything you can imagine and more besides. turn the difficulty down and you can effortlessly style on heaven's soldiers as the dominatrix supervillain of your wildest fantasies, or turn the difficulty up and have the game break you over its knee and make you beg for more, whilst still consenting to your learning how to turn the tables and show paradiso what a real witch can do.
many games are very bad at being convincingly erotic for a wide variety of reasons, whether out of the depressing commercialism of it all, the narrow audience of straight cis teenage boys most big games are aiming for, or just for taking themselves far too seriously. bayonetta succeeds because it puts such immense effort and care into fooling around, into not only its ludicrous high camp world and story, but also in the act of playing it, and enticing you to engage with it on terms both you and it consent to. dom or sub, any, all, or none of the toys of it's bedside table, in cutscenes and in play, bayonetta has one goal that overrides all others: to bring you to it's infinite climaxes, over and over again.there are many many tiny irrations and dissatisfactions with bayonetta that crawl into my mind once i'm hit with the clarity of the afterglow, but once i'm in there, it's hard to think about them, it's hard to think about anything else, other the game's intoxicating invitations push harder and faster against your limits and its, until either you or it or both of you can't take anymore, until...
...until we are all satisfied.
Bayonetta has been my number one favorite game pretty much since I first played it back in 2010, but when I had that initial realization I’d honestly barely even scratched its surface. To this day I’m still finding new ways to play and improve my strats, which speaks to just how hard it nails that sweetspot between mechanics that are intrinsically satisfying, malleable, but also highly intentional; somehow it’s the one action game that does everything. The control system is so smooth and flexible it’s influenced every genre title since; knocking dudes into each other or tearing through the battlefield with Beast Within offers a sense of physicality other comparable games still don’t come close to; the enemies are some of the most aggressive, varied and polished you’ll ever encounter in a melee combat game; and all of that is wrapped up in a scoring system that miraculously manages to give you clear rules to work with while still allowing for a huge degree of expression. Even the ridiculous Angel Weapons make sense from that perspective — they give you a generous buffer to use whatever playstyle appeals to you in and still earn a Platinum combo in the end.
Between Witch Time, the equipment system and Dodge Offset, Bayonetta makes it easy to name-drop its most obvious gimmicks and leave it there, but those last two in particular are an insane step up for the genre when it comes to freedom and intentionality. How to trip an enemy up, where to launch them, whether to use magic or not: no other action game makes you consider these questions so actively at this fast of a pace, and I can’t get enough of it.
Between Witch Time, the equipment system and Dodge Offset, Bayonetta makes it easy to name-drop its most obvious gimmicks and leave it there, but those last two in particular are an insane step up for the genre when it comes to freedom and intentionality. How to trip an enemy up, where to launch them, whether to use magic or not: no other action game makes you consider these questions so actively at this fast of a pace, and I can’t get enough of it.
Platinum fans are the Jojos fans of games, and I say this with as much derision as possible. Really, what fandom would be complete without hoards of incessant blabbermouths, who appear out of nowhere to tell you how much you’re missing out? I am certain it is a vocal minority, but it’s hard not to notice. There is a certain brand of fan that wants to make it very clear to you at every chance they can that the thing they like is both wacky and good. It’s a brand of fan I greatly dislike.
But the more I meditate on all this, the less I am able to convince myself that any of this is a bad thing. Why is people being excited about a thing, even incessantly, a bad thing? Logically, I know that being annoying is, well, annoying, but I’m not sure that the annoyance is the only thing that’s annoying me. I dislike that brand of fan, but I worry it’s pettier than that. I think I might resent them simply for being so enthusiastic. Why should I resent someone for being passionate about something they enjoy?
Through the later years of high school, I basically only had one friend. I had switched schools, and most of my human contact disappeared with it. It was an extremely dark time. That one friend really liked fighting games, (part of my apprehension around fighters starts here, too) and in that vein, really liked Platinum games. He eventually felt obligated and did dive into Jojos, too. Once, I asked if he could lend me his copy of Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2 for the Wii U. But he declined, saying, “I treasure them too much” or something of that ilk. That friendship ended quite ugly. They completely stopped talking to me one day. I would occasionally bump into them at college, but they didn’t seem to want to talk to me. One day they reached out to me, asked if I wanted to meet up for some food or something. I didn’t really know how to follow up. I sort of regret not doing anything about that.
Anyway, I started playing Bayonetta, and all I could think about were the annoying Platinum fans. I try to ignore them, but it just keeps nagging at me, this blight of contrarian twinges. I write a tweet.
Platinum game fans: yeah i love Platinum games, every game they make is great! oh except that one is bad, it sucked. oh and i heard that one was trash, i didn't even play it. oh and--
This post had been in my head for a long time, months actually, and I finally just let myself post it. And you know, it’s true, it’s a pretty good goof, but I also know it was fueled a bit by spite. I hate that about me. It was a good post, but I hate that. It got a hair of attention, including from known Platinum enjoyers, so at the very least some of them took it in good sport. But what I found was that, after I had finally let the sass out, I was able to enjoy Bayonetta a lot more.
Why? Is this small act of pettiness really enough to relieve the anxiety? Is that really a healthy relationship with discourse and art? Should I vent my spite for my own good? I try to avoid being sassy and rude online. I don’t try to target people for their taste, and I try not to dunk on anything. Everytime I do, I usually feel bad. I spend so much energy repressing it. I have no shortage of snark and spite inside me. But I bottle them up like pickles, let them lactoferment in my gyri. Does that make me seem all snooty and holier-than-thou? I dunno, I just feel like I ought not. The scruples are stuck in my teeth. Do I deserve to be a little snarky? I don’t know.
I would say its similar to my response to hype, which it is, and hype has ruined so many things for me, but this has its own dimension, too. For example, it even goes backwards. I had played Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance a long time ago, and I had enjoyed it. I had fun with it. But as time passed, and I was exposed to more and more of that certain breed of fan, I began to resent the game. How dumb is that? I liked the game, now I feel worse about it because other people I don’t like also liked it. Is that really healthy?
Some years ago, on a forum, we were discussing Astral Chain. This was before it was out, during an E3. I commented that I was weary about the theming of cops. But a Platinum fan dissuaded me. Surely, Platinum, the beloved studio, would not screw this up! I said I wasn’t optimistic, given their other games. Another Platinum fan, who from now on we will call “The Vigilante”, rode in. “Um, actually, you see, Platinum games are actually the most progressive and leftist. Actually, the trailer makes it look like the cops are the bad guys. And actually, it is your ignorance on display here.” I’m of course paraphrasing, editorializing, and reading into it. But the condescension was palpable. I recognized The Vigilante as a poster who tended to roll into threads, tell people they’re wrong and dumb, and then leave. Later on in that thread, someone shared an interview with the director who said “maybe people will come away from this game with a better perspective on the police.” But The Vigilante was gone, a shadow in the night, their duty to condescend fulfilled.
Now, Astral Chain has come out, and of course I was fucking right. The game was not some scalding critique of the cops. And all I’m really able to feel is a smug sense of satisfaction at The Vigilante being full of shit. Why are they even on my mind? The Vigilante is the same reason I couldn’t stomach to enjoy any of Utena, along with, well, trying to watch it in the presence of someone much similar to them. I was told with insistence that Utena is simply the best, and to not recognize it as such is, of course, my failing. It’s the best, most queer, most philosophical, and most best anime that there ever was. And that’s all I was ever able to think about the entire time. Trying to figure out where I’m wrong, or they are. Trying to figure out if they were right to cast judgement.
You know, I literally have to excuse myself from conversations about Jojos these days. I find myself increasingly exasperated every time it comes up. And of course it will always come up, Jojo fans love letting you know that they like Jojo, that it’s so wacky and good, and that you should really understand their references. But why should I fucking care? Seeing a thousand comments on prog rock videos will things to a person, I guess. But it’s probably more likely that it’s this… weird impulse I can’t shake, that I want to rid myself of but it just clings on me like a deertick. The sad thing is that I’d probably like Jojos if I had gotten to it before I met the fans. It seems extremely stupid and sort of bad, but I like things that are stupid and bad. But I have sworn off it to spite… I don’t know who. The incessant fans? My old friend? Maybe. I don’t know.
Have you noticed I haven’t said a word about Bayonetta? About the game this is ostensibly about? Probably. It’s because I cannot rid myself of the infection of spite.
As for the game, I mostly like Bayonetta. There’s not a lot to say in one way or the other that probably hasn’t been said. There’s almost no point in me saying anything, but whatever. I thought the combat loop was slick. I enjoyed hammering out flashy combos. I think Bayonetta is a fun character. I think she’s a bit much and very obviously one man’s fetish doll, but I’m also not above admiring her sass and her ass. I legitimately enjoy this game. I probably like it more than I’m letting on. Of course, there are things I don’t like, too. I don’t like its shitty motorcycle sections, or its shitty shmup section, either. I don’t like that it asks me to dodge attacks I can’t predict right out of a cutscene. I don’t like Luka. I don’t like its shitty quicktime events. And I dont like its awkward camera either. But all this is relatively small, right? I’ve loved games despite worse. And when I think about what I don’t like about Bayonetta (or Revengeance, for that matter), the first things that come in to my head are people like The Vigilante. Nothing to do with the game itself. Just things about discourse, people talking about how superior it is, about how the game is secretly feminist, how it’s secretly queer, how everyone says its simply the best combat in the universe, how Platinum fans are convinced these are some obscure niche kino, and… well, you get it.
These things aren’t that complicated. Sometimes the thing you like is not so transcendental. So much stuff has been pitched to me as the best, and I wish people would just tell me what it is without the effusive hyperbole. I don’t want hype, I don’t want to be told “you cannot predict what will happen” or that “you cannot oversell this”. You can, and you will. Maybe it’s my fault for taking people at their word, or my fault for getting so obsessive. I’m sure I’ve done the same. But fuck, man. Just let them be the things they are, whether they’re corny magical girl anime or sunshine pop or a wacky martial arts movie or a campy and horny hack’n’slash. Sometimes that’s all they are, and that is why they’re good. Platinum games are dumb action games, and that’s why they’re fun. It’s not complicated. I just wish people told me this stuff.
It’s so dumb. I know it’s dumb, but it just won’t go away. I felt judged, and I want to judge back. But I hate judging people. It makes me feel sick. So instead I just have this festering mass in my noggin, glowering down. I have so many examples of things like this in my life. Is this what people think about me when I talk about the things I love? Is that why I’m so afraid to do it? Is it because I can find so little in my life to enjoy enthusiastically that I feel envious? Or am I just being a snob? Am I really so petty? Am I so contrarian? Am I still upset about my old friend? Am I envious of the fans? Why do I have to obsess over what The Vigilante and other jerks think? Why do I let things be ruined by people I don’t respect? And why do I care so much about what they think about me?
There’s no moral to this. I just wish my brain wasn’t like this.
But the more I meditate on all this, the less I am able to convince myself that any of this is a bad thing. Why is people being excited about a thing, even incessantly, a bad thing? Logically, I know that being annoying is, well, annoying, but I’m not sure that the annoyance is the only thing that’s annoying me. I dislike that brand of fan, but I worry it’s pettier than that. I think I might resent them simply for being so enthusiastic. Why should I resent someone for being passionate about something they enjoy?
Through the later years of high school, I basically only had one friend. I had switched schools, and most of my human contact disappeared with it. It was an extremely dark time. That one friend really liked fighting games, (part of my apprehension around fighters starts here, too) and in that vein, really liked Platinum games. He eventually felt obligated and did dive into Jojos, too. Once, I asked if he could lend me his copy of Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2 for the Wii U. But he declined, saying, “I treasure them too much” or something of that ilk. That friendship ended quite ugly. They completely stopped talking to me one day. I would occasionally bump into them at college, but they didn’t seem to want to talk to me. One day they reached out to me, asked if I wanted to meet up for some food or something. I didn’t really know how to follow up. I sort of regret not doing anything about that.
Anyway, I started playing Bayonetta, and all I could think about were the annoying Platinum fans. I try to ignore them, but it just keeps nagging at me, this blight of contrarian twinges. I write a tweet.
Platinum game fans: yeah i love Platinum games, every game they make is great! oh except that one is bad, it sucked. oh and i heard that one was trash, i didn't even play it. oh and--
This post had been in my head for a long time, months actually, and I finally just let myself post it. And you know, it’s true, it’s a pretty good goof, but I also know it was fueled a bit by spite. I hate that about me. It was a good post, but I hate that. It got a hair of attention, including from known Platinum enjoyers, so at the very least some of them took it in good sport. But what I found was that, after I had finally let the sass out, I was able to enjoy Bayonetta a lot more.
Why? Is this small act of pettiness really enough to relieve the anxiety? Is that really a healthy relationship with discourse and art? Should I vent my spite for my own good? I try to avoid being sassy and rude online. I don’t try to target people for their taste, and I try not to dunk on anything. Everytime I do, I usually feel bad. I spend so much energy repressing it. I have no shortage of snark and spite inside me. But I bottle them up like pickles, let them lactoferment in my gyri. Does that make me seem all snooty and holier-than-thou? I dunno, I just feel like I ought not. The scruples are stuck in my teeth. Do I deserve to be a little snarky? I don’t know.
I would say its similar to my response to hype, which it is, and hype has ruined so many things for me, but this has its own dimension, too. For example, it even goes backwards. I had played Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance a long time ago, and I had enjoyed it. I had fun with it. But as time passed, and I was exposed to more and more of that certain breed of fan, I began to resent the game. How dumb is that? I liked the game, now I feel worse about it because other people I don’t like also liked it. Is that really healthy?
Some years ago, on a forum, we were discussing Astral Chain. This was before it was out, during an E3. I commented that I was weary about the theming of cops. But a Platinum fan dissuaded me. Surely, Platinum, the beloved studio, would not screw this up! I said I wasn’t optimistic, given their other games. Another Platinum fan, who from now on we will call “The Vigilante”, rode in. “Um, actually, you see, Platinum games are actually the most progressive and leftist. Actually, the trailer makes it look like the cops are the bad guys. And actually, it is your ignorance on display here.” I’m of course paraphrasing, editorializing, and reading into it. But the condescension was palpable. I recognized The Vigilante as a poster who tended to roll into threads, tell people they’re wrong and dumb, and then leave. Later on in that thread, someone shared an interview with the director who said “maybe people will come away from this game with a better perspective on the police.” But The Vigilante was gone, a shadow in the night, their duty to condescend fulfilled.
Now, Astral Chain has come out, and of course I was fucking right. The game was not some scalding critique of the cops. And all I’m really able to feel is a smug sense of satisfaction at The Vigilante being full of shit. Why are they even on my mind? The Vigilante is the same reason I couldn’t stomach to enjoy any of Utena, along with, well, trying to watch it in the presence of someone much similar to them. I was told with insistence that Utena is simply the best, and to not recognize it as such is, of course, my failing. It’s the best, most queer, most philosophical, and most best anime that there ever was. And that’s all I was ever able to think about the entire time. Trying to figure out where I’m wrong, or they are. Trying to figure out if they were right to cast judgement.
You know, I literally have to excuse myself from conversations about Jojos these days. I find myself increasingly exasperated every time it comes up. And of course it will always come up, Jojo fans love letting you know that they like Jojo, that it’s so wacky and good, and that you should really understand their references. But why should I fucking care? Seeing a thousand comments on prog rock videos will things to a person, I guess. But it’s probably more likely that it’s this… weird impulse I can’t shake, that I want to rid myself of but it just clings on me like a deertick. The sad thing is that I’d probably like Jojos if I had gotten to it before I met the fans. It seems extremely stupid and sort of bad, but I like things that are stupid and bad. But I have sworn off it to spite… I don’t know who. The incessant fans? My old friend? Maybe. I don’t know.
Have you noticed I haven’t said a word about Bayonetta? About the game this is ostensibly about? Probably. It’s because I cannot rid myself of the infection of spite.
As for the game, I mostly like Bayonetta. There’s not a lot to say in one way or the other that probably hasn’t been said. There’s almost no point in me saying anything, but whatever. I thought the combat loop was slick. I enjoyed hammering out flashy combos. I think Bayonetta is a fun character. I think she’s a bit much and very obviously one man’s fetish doll, but I’m also not above admiring her sass and her ass. I legitimately enjoy this game. I probably like it more than I’m letting on. Of course, there are things I don’t like, too. I don’t like its shitty motorcycle sections, or its shitty shmup section, either. I don’t like that it asks me to dodge attacks I can’t predict right out of a cutscene. I don’t like Luka. I don’t like its shitty quicktime events. And I dont like its awkward camera either. But all this is relatively small, right? I’ve loved games despite worse. And when I think about what I don’t like about Bayonetta (or Revengeance, for that matter), the first things that come in to my head are people like The Vigilante. Nothing to do with the game itself. Just things about discourse, people talking about how superior it is, about how the game is secretly feminist, how it’s secretly queer, how everyone says its simply the best combat in the universe, how Platinum fans are convinced these are some obscure niche kino, and… well, you get it.
These things aren’t that complicated. Sometimes the thing you like is not so transcendental. So much stuff has been pitched to me as the best, and I wish people would just tell me what it is without the effusive hyperbole. I don’t want hype, I don’t want to be told “you cannot predict what will happen” or that “you cannot oversell this”. You can, and you will. Maybe it’s my fault for taking people at their word, or my fault for getting so obsessive. I’m sure I’ve done the same. But fuck, man. Just let them be the things they are, whether they’re corny magical girl anime or sunshine pop or a wacky martial arts movie or a campy and horny hack’n’slash. Sometimes that’s all they are, and that is why they’re good. Platinum games are dumb action games, and that’s why they’re fun. It’s not complicated. I just wish people told me this stuff.
It’s so dumb. I know it’s dumb, but it just won’t go away. I felt judged, and I want to judge back. But I hate judging people. It makes me feel sick. So instead I just have this festering mass in my noggin, glowering down. I have so many examples of things like this in my life. Is this what people think about me when I talk about the things I love? Is that why I’m so afraid to do it? Is it because I can find so little in my life to enjoy enthusiastically that I feel envious? Or am I just being a snob? Am I really so petty? Am I so contrarian? Am I still upset about my old friend? Am I envious of the fans? Why do I have to obsess over what The Vigilante and other jerks think? Why do I let things be ruined by people I don’t respect? And why do I care so much about what they think about me?
There’s no moral to this. I just wish my brain wasn’t like this.
Masterclass in indulgence and responsible for too many things in my life.
This one's for all the real witches,,,
This one's for all the real witches,,,
My first exposure to Bayonetta, as I'm sure is the case with many others, was through her addition to Super Smash Bros. on 3DS/Wii U. I was lucky enough to find a 360 copy of the game at GameStop very shortly after the fact, and I picked it up excitedly. Keep in mind, this was back in... 2016? I was a dumb little kid back then, with absolutely zero experience in the genre of hack n' slash. Yet I loved it! I absolutely loved the game back then, as awful as I was at it. Unfortunately, that love could only get me so far. Dumb child wheatie made it all the way up to Chapter XIV, before reaching an absolute barricade. I could not, for the life of me, manage to beat Jeanne that final time. A couple years later, I wound up selling that Xbox 360, to be replaced by a PS2 due to my growing interest in its absolutely stellar library.
It wouldn't be for another few years that I'd even learn the first Bayonetta was on PS4, and even then I was little skeptical after hearing the horror stories of the PS3 release. After some research, a bit of convincing, and the necessary funds to buy the game on sale in its 10 year anniversary bundle with Vanquish, I was once again in possession of Bayonetta... and then I put it off for another 2 years.
But hey! I finally did it! I managed to make my way through its entire campaign over half a decade later, and I'm glad to say I still enjoy it just as much as I did back then. Potential new record for the longest it's ever taken me to finish a game, if you don't count Wall-E for the DS.
---
Bayonetta follow a very simple philosophy. If you don't get it, you will get fucked. Similar to the Devil May Cry series, it heavily encourages replay value not only through unlockable difficulties, but through absolutely brutal encounters, whether it be with regular enemies or actual boss fights. As weird as it sounds, I really like stuff like this. It might be the fighting gamer in me, but I love the feeling of improvement a substantial amount, and that's what games like Bayonetta want. What might seem like an impossible task thrust upon you in your weakest moments, can be turned into a remarkable turn of the tables with proper knowledge and adequate experience. Bayonetta achieves this fantastically, and knows how to make it feel even better.
yhea here she goes again Accompanied through each and every battle is some of—and I mean this—some of the greatest songs of any video game I've ever listened to. To the point where I cannot begin to describe it in any more words than beautiful. Even outside of battle, it holds one of my favorite tracks (combined with one of my favorite settings in general) in Rodin's otherworldly bar, The Gates of Hell. One of the few games I can happily include in my regular playlist, I just wish I could include more of it (i lub u fly me to the moon).
I do wish, more than anything though, that I could've gotten more into the boss fights. A very large majority of them tended to boil down to waiting for the big Angel Monster to throw down their hand, dodge, wail on them for a few seconds while they're slowed down until they pull back to repeat the process. It's why I can say I enjoyed all the Jeanne fights the most, since they were some of the only ones where I felt involved and active all the way through. To add to this, frankly too many times does Bayonetta include a short little cutscene in the middle of its boss fights, that are abruptly interrupted by a Quick Time Event that will 95% of the time catch you completely off guard, and kill you in an instant. While I did praise the game earlier for incentivising replays and improvement, it can still get a bit frustrating taking such a hit to your ranking not due to being bested in your fight, but simply by not having the split second reaction time that is asked of you so often.
It's still peak though. God, it's so peak. It was so fun playing those first 14 chapters again, reminiscing on everything I could still so vividly remember, even after all these years. While I wasn't the biggest fan of everything what came after, I still enjoyed every minute of this game at least a decent amount. If I wasn't already looking forward to its sequel, I would love to just do it all again in hard mode while it's still fresh on the mind. What a cool game. One of the greatest of its kind, and I've heard even better of the second.
It wouldn't be for another few years that I'd even learn the first Bayonetta was on PS4, and even then I was little skeptical after hearing the horror stories of the PS3 release. After some research, a bit of convincing, and the necessary funds to buy the game on sale in its 10 year anniversary bundle with Vanquish, I was once again in possession of Bayonetta... and then I put it off for another 2 years.
But hey! I finally did it! I managed to make my way through its entire campaign over half a decade later, and I'm glad to say I still enjoy it just as much as I did back then. Potential new record for the longest it's ever taken me to finish a game, if you don't count Wall-E for the DS.
---
Bayonetta follow a very simple philosophy. If you don't get it, you will get fucked. Similar to the Devil May Cry series, it heavily encourages replay value not only through unlockable difficulties, but through absolutely brutal encounters, whether it be with regular enemies or actual boss fights. As weird as it sounds, I really like stuff like this. It might be the fighting gamer in me, but I love the feeling of improvement a substantial amount, and that's what games like Bayonetta want. What might seem like an impossible task thrust upon you in your weakest moments, can be turned into a remarkable turn of the tables with proper knowledge and adequate experience. Bayonetta achieves this fantastically, and knows how to make it feel even better.
I do wish, more than anything though, that I could've gotten more into the boss fights. A very large majority of them tended to boil down to waiting for the big Angel Monster to throw down their hand, dodge, wail on them for a few seconds while they're slowed down until they pull back to repeat the process. It's why I can say I enjoyed all the Jeanne fights the most, since they were some of the only ones where I felt involved and active all the way through. To add to this, frankly too many times does Bayonetta include a short little cutscene in the middle of its boss fights, that are abruptly interrupted by a Quick Time Event that will 95% of the time catch you completely off guard, and kill you in an instant. While I did praise the game earlier for incentivising replays and improvement, it can still get a bit frustrating taking such a hit to your ranking not due to being bested in your fight, but simply by not having the split second reaction time that is asked of you so often.
It's still peak though. God, it's so peak. It was so fun playing those first 14 chapters again, reminiscing on everything I could still so vividly remember, even after all these years. While I wasn't the biggest fan of everything what came after, I still enjoyed every minute of this game at least a decent amount. If I wasn't already looking forward to its sequel, I would love to just do it all again in hard mode while it's still fresh on the mind. What a cool game. One of the greatest of its kind, and I've heard even better of the second.
I remember trying the free demo for Bayonetta way back in 2009 on my friend's Xbox 360 and, being dogshit at these types of combo-driven hack-n-slash games, struggled with the tutorial alone and left it at that... Fool ;-;
Playing this recently (and more importantly, playing this after DMCV) it definitely feels dated tbh. Which is about as much as I'd expected really, but makes it hard to score any higher because the longer I spent playing it, the more I wanted to get back to the not-playing. Not because it wasn't fun, by any stretch, I just preferred the everything else so much more.
Unfortunately for me, I'm still ass at hack-n-slash games, so I tried my hand at playing this on normal and I wasn't exactly struggling, it just felt like I went down too fast and everything else too slow, so I dropped it to easy in order to move things along a bit. Immediately after, I was having a much better time, feeling cool and less like my time was being wasted. But as I played on it was almost too far on the other end of the scale. My hand was being held so much that it felt like I only had to mash buttons and even bosses would fall in no time at all. To think there's an even easier setting as well!
Another issue I had was that because Easy automatically finishes combos for you, I kept trying to replicate what I was doing on Normal, only for the game to use a different attack pattern that I guess was more appropriate? Just felt like I had a bit less control, in a negative way as well as a positive one.
This is hardly the game's fault, but it's a shame I wasn't able to find a difficulty that was both challenging and fun, hopefully the sequels improve on that.
Aside from the combat, the levels themselves were just, so 2009... On-rails bike levels, an entire level where you're piloting a missile and shooting identical waves of enemies for near 5 minutes, god I really hope they ditch or tone those down as well lol. The set pieces were fantastic I will say, but so much of the game felt drawn out or prolongued and when the levels are only 5-15 mins each anyway they shouldn't really feel like they're dragging. The worst case of this was the final boss, which ends with a far-too-long sequence of just maneuvering something for what must have been 20-30 seconds of avoiding obstacles. The climax was so awesome why drag it out so long!? D':
With that said, Bayonetta is undeniably deserving of its status and following because the characters are just so goddamn lovable. Bayo herself carried the game with ease and the overall campy tone worked perfectly to keep me interested and wanting more from a plot that was honestly just.. I don't even know lol it wasn't exactly confusing but at the same time it felt like there were pieces of information missing that everyone knew but me. I'm gunna have to watch a smarter person explain all the shit I missed, but at the same time credit to the game for making me care regardless of what was going on.
In conclusion, Bayonetta is a PS3 game, and it's got all the rust and clunk to prove it. But nothing can take away from just how charismatic it is. I can confidently say that even though I barely followed the plot and I'm only giving it 4/5 stars, I am absolutely excited to play the 2nd one :)
Playing this recently (and more importantly, playing this after DMCV) it definitely feels dated tbh. Which is about as much as I'd expected really, but makes it hard to score any higher because the longer I spent playing it, the more I wanted to get back to the not-playing. Not because it wasn't fun, by any stretch, I just preferred the everything else so much more.
Unfortunately for me, I'm still ass at hack-n-slash games, so I tried my hand at playing this on normal and I wasn't exactly struggling, it just felt like I went down too fast and everything else too slow, so I dropped it to easy in order to move things along a bit. Immediately after, I was having a much better time, feeling cool and less like my time was being wasted. But as I played on it was almost too far on the other end of the scale. My hand was being held so much that it felt like I only had to mash buttons and even bosses would fall in no time at all. To think there's an even easier setting as well!
Another issue I had was that because Easy automatically finishes combos for you, I kept trying to replicate what I was doing on Normal, only for the game to use a different attack pattern that I guess was more appropriate? Just felt like I had a bit less control, in a negative way as well as a positive one.
This is hardly the game's fault, but it's a shame I wasn't able to find a difficulty that was both challenging and fun, hopefully the sequels improve on that.
Aside from the combat, the levels themselves were just, so 2009... On-rails bike levels, an entire level where you're piloting a missile and shooting identical waves of enemies for near 5 minutes, god I really hope they ditch or tone those down as well lol. The set pieces were fantastic I will say, but so much of the game felt drawn out or prolongued and when the levels are only 5-15 mins each anyway they shouldn't really feel like they're dragging. The worst case of this was the final boss, which ends with a far-too-long sequence of just maneuvering something for what must have been 20-30 seconds of avoiding obstacles. The climax was so awesome why drag it out so long!? D':
With that said, Bayonetta is undeniably deserving of its status and following because the characters are just so goddamn lovable. Bayo herself carried the game with ease and the overall campy tone worked perfectly to keep me interested and wanting more from a plot that was honestly just.. I don't even know lol it wasn't exactly confusing but at the same time it felt like there were pieces of information missing that everyone knew but me. I'm gunna have to watch a smarter person explain all the shit I missed, but at the same time credit to the game for making me care regardless of what was going on.
In conclusion, Bayonetta is a PS3 game, and it's got all the rust and clunk to prove it. But nothing can take away from just how charismatic it is. I can confidently say that even though I barely followed the plot and I'm only giving it 4/5 stars, I am absolutely excited to play the 2nd one :)
i’ve be eyeing this game ever since bayo was put in smash way back when, so seeing a sale for this and VANQUISH on psn was an instant purchase from me. platinum games had previously hooked me with TRANSFORMERS:DEVASTATION so i’m glad this one didn’t disappoint.
bayonetta weaves elegant hack n slash gameplay together with unique combos and customization that’ll keep you coming back for more. the beginning of the game was a little offputting due to me getting such low ranks on mission results but i later realized you just have to accept that on a first playthrough lol. there’s just a ton of depth here that’s further expanded by both your own skill and extra equipment. skill especially in the form of WITCH TIME, a mechanic i had already been familiar with from transformers devastation, but not quite familiar with being good at it this time. it’s such an ingenious mechanic that turns a passive move into one of great importance to your offensive capabilities. every kick, punch, and dodge feels immensely satisfying to pull off keeping you invested.
“FATHER!!!!” is probably one of the funniest line deliveries in a game but it works because it’s never meant to be taken completely seriously much like everything else in the game. even the more grim scenes have some form of comedic flair to them fueled by bayonetta’s fun and dare i say “dante-like” nature. never a dull moment in both gameplay and the story which interweave into a stylistic joy. LETS ROCK BABY
as much as i want to give this a 9/10, for right now as this being my first playthrough i’m keeping it at an 8. i’m sure as i play this more i’ll start to see it in much higher regard.
am i the only one who flew jubileus into the planets thinking it was an ff7 reference LOL
bayonetta weaves elegant hack n slash gameplay together with unique combos and customization that’ll keep you coming back for more. the beginning of the game was a little offputting due to me getting such low ranks on mission results but i later realized you just have to accept that on a first playthrough lol. there’s just a ton of depth here that’s further expanded by both your own skill and extra equipment. skill especially in the form of WITCH TIME, a mechanic i had already been familiar with from transformers devastation, but not quite familiar with being good at it this time. it’s such an ingenious mechanic that turns a passive move into one of great importance to your offensive capabilities. every kick, punch, and dodge feels immensely satisfying to pull off keeping you invested.
“FATHER!!!!” is probably one of the funniest line deliveries in a game but it works because it’s never meant to be taken completely seriously much like everything else in the game. even the more grim scenes have some form of comedic flair to them fueled by bayonetta’s fun and dare i say “dante-like” nature. never a dull moment in both gameplay and the story which interweave into a stylistic joy. LETS ROCK BABY
as much as i want to give this a 9/10, for right now as this being my first playthrough i’m keeping it at an 8. i’m sure as i play this more i’ll start to see it in much higher regard.
am i the only one who flew jubileus into the planets thinking it was an ff7 reference LOL
I DON'T CARE IF MY CHILDREN DON'T LIKE BAYONETTA
THEY CAN PLAY WHATEVER THEY WANT AT THE ORPHENAGE
THEY CAN PLAY WHATEVER THEY WANT AT THE ORPHENAGE
First time replaying it since release and it really made me aware of how much my second hand Catholic embarrassment has reduced in the past decade.
Man I love women
After my previous two reviews I feel like any energy I would’ve had to write a long-form review has been zapped so apologies if this review feels like a collection of thoughts rather than something truly in-depth as I couldn’t find the proper ebbs and flows to get each of my points across. Can you tell I’m trying to hit the word count yet?
You know there’s something to be said about Bayonetta’s portrayal of femininity. The classic female action hero is usually relegated into being nothing more than exactly like their male counterparts. Where, in order to fit the archetype of “badass”, they’re made to act more masculine, as if “girliness” can’t be cool. That’s a huge factor into why a character like Bayonetta is so memorable. She wears a skin-tight leather suit, all her moves look like an elegant dance, and she very often just goes naked to deliver her attacks. Not saying that this form of badassery is better than the other, but it’s really not something you see in games often, and that’s what I find commendable. Now there is something to be said in regard to if this game does this well and venture off into fanservice eye candy that’s grating considering Kamiya’s own comments, but I’m a cis man so there’s not much insight I have into these matters. But judging by this game’s own fanbase, Bayonetta seems to be a feminist icon that’s wildly beloved, and for me her actions in the game certainly didn’t feel grating.
• Going into this right after DMC5, I assumed that it would worsen the game’s combat for me but I can’t feel that it did. It’s fun, it packs a punch. There are really a lot of fun combos you can do now that you have a dedicated secondary attack button. Although I really can’t tell if this game is harder than DMC or not. I died a lot more than I did in any DMC game I should say, but it never felt like it was harder, it always felt easier. I don’t know what’s up with that, I think it may just have something to do with this game’s reliance on Witch Time, although doing more research this game may be too smart guys!!! Cause surprise, Witch Time is entirely optional it looks like. Oops, skill issue on my part? Yeah maybe. Still, I think this game should be celebrated for trying to differentiate itself from DMC when it comes to combat, not shunned.
• Controls can make or break a combat system and for Bayonetta it’s mostly good, mostly. Idk man, having lock on be R1/RB and having dodge be R2/RT is insanely uncomfortable as to get that perfect dodge against certain enemies I’ll need to have one of my fingers be on R1 and the other one on R2 so I can play the to the best of my abilities. It just ends up hurting my hands after a while, so I had to resort to playing with one finger for both actions sometimes which really did hurt how I played as I’m not the fastest with my fingers. Wouldn’t be an issue if this game had remappable controls but it doesn’t, and certainly doesn’t help that I played with a Dualsense.
• Camera is weird, lock on aims you towards the enemy but this has the downside of having it act all over the place when you’re placed in small areas with more than one enemy.
• The art direction of this game is pretty cool, it took a while but once that whole magical aesthetic clicked, I dug it. Locations are also pretty, at the beginning at least. They really fell off by the midpoint.
• Level design is nothing special. They are all pretty linear levels with easy puzzles. Although the gimmicks in some of the levels ranged from fun to downright terrible, with Mission 14 being the worst of it all. While we’re on the topic of design, boss design is alright. They’re fun to fight, albeit forgettable, but some just veneer riiiiight into that annoying category.
• I’ll start talking a bit about the story now so uhhhh yeah it’s pretty easy to see how Bayonetta has cemented herself as a bit of a gaming icon. She’s fun and likable as a character. Unfortunately I cannot say I find her “hot”, I guess my opinion on white women that I reached in my DMC4 review still stands. Alas…either I am fully gay or my dick don’t work 💔. Heartbreaking.
• The other characters are also pretty charismatic and memorable. Rodin and Enzo are fun, Cereza is inoffensive, Luka is really awesome I like him a lot.
• Not all characters are equal however, as stated previously the bosses are really forgettable and act all the same, even the final boss sadly. Same is true for Jeanne, I really think she doesn’t quite reach the height she could have.
• Despite having a mostly fun cast it’s a shame the story itself is so 🛌. The whole angel and demons along with the light and dark shtick was pretty played out by the time this game was released, so it’s pretty sad to see this game do nothing interesting. Even DMC3, despite not having a super strong narrative or anything, is really rich for me in the rivalry between Dante and Vergil, along with the whole family motif. Can’t say the same is true here.
• The game does place quite a big emphasis on the story, more than DMC4 I’d say, which released around the same time. But like DMC4 I can’t say it’s really all that good. I dunno man, I really have no deeper critiques other than me finding it bland and uninspired and seeing some of the twists coming miles away. Like the end of Mission 14 should be emotional, but I don’t think I care. I’d not care for the story but I feel like the game focuses on it a lot, so in my eyes it’d be a disservice if I just ignored it entirely.
Uhmmmm something something balls balls funny joke here. I’m running out of material. The final boss kinda sucked dick, monkey dick to be specific. Sometimes I really felt like this game wanted to deliver a spectacle but it just didn’t hit me like it intended. Still, a really solid game on its own. I do think I could’ve derived much more enjoyment from the game if it’s combat was better as sometimes it just felt very very annoying, but if I’m being completely fair I need to admit that maybe the fault doesn’t really lie with the game but with me. Bit embarrassing to admit but I was not good at this game, even though I wasn’t bad at DMC. Sometimes the problem does lie with me and I should be man enough to admit that. I’m so sure that one day I’ll revisit this game and end up liking it much more, but as it stands it’s a fun action title I recommend.
Oh yeah, happy pride month.
You know there’s something to be said about Bayonetta’s portrayal of femininity. The classic female action hero is usually relegated into being nothing more than exactly like their male counterparts. Where, in order to fit the archetype of “badass”, they’re made to act more masculine, as if “girliness” can’t be cool. That’s a huge factor into why a character like Bayonetta is so memorable. She wears a skin-tight leather suit, all her moves look like an elegant dance, and she very often just goes naked to deliver her attacks. Not saying that this form of badassery is better than the other, but it’s really not something you see in games often, and that’s what I find commendable. Now there is something to be said in regard to if this game does this well and venture off into fanservice eye candy that’s grating considering Kamiya’s own comments, but I’m a cis man so there’s not much insight I have into these matters. But judging by this game’s own fanbase, Bayonetta seems to be a feminist icon that’s wildly beloved, and for me her actions in the game certainly didn’t feel grating.
• Going into this right after DMC5, I assumed that it would worsen the game’s combat for me but I can’t feel that it did. It’s fun, it packs a punch. There are really a lot of fun combos you can do now that you have a dedicated secondary attack button. Although I really can’t tell if this game is harder than DMC or not. I died a lot more than I did in any DMC game I should say, but it never felt like it was harder, it always felt easier. I don’t know what’s up with that, I think it may just have something to do with this game’s reliance on Witch Time, although doing more research this game may be too smart guys!!! Cause surprise, Witch Time is entirely optional it looks like. Oops, skill issue on my part? Yeah maybe. Still, I think this game should be celebrated for trying to differentiate itself from DMC when it comes to combat, not shunned.
• Controls can make or break a combat system and for Bayonetta it’s mostly good, mostly. Idk man, having lock on be R1/RB and having dodge be R2/RT is insanely uncomfortable as to get that perfect dodge against certain enemies I’ll need to have one of my fingers be on R1 and the other one on R2 so I can play the to the best of my abilities. It just ends up hurting my hands after a while, so I had to resort to playing with one finger for both actions sometimes which really did hurt how I played as I’m not the fastest with my fingers. Wouldn’t be an issue if this game had remappable controls but it doesn’t, and certainly doesn’t help that I played with a Dualsense.
• Camera is weird, lock on aims you towards the enemy but this has the downside of having it act all over the place when you’re placed in small areas with more than one enemy.
• The art direction of this game is pretty cool, it took a while but once that whole magical aesthetic clicked, I dug it. Locations are also pretty, at the beginning at least. They really fell off by the midpoint.
• Level design is nothing special. They are all pretty linear levels with easy puzzles. Although the gimmicks in some of the levels ranged from fun to downright terrible, with Mission 14 being the worst of it all. While we’re on the topic of design, boss design is alright. They’re fun to fight, albeit forgettable, but some just veneer riiiiight into that annoying category.
• I’ll start talking a bit about the story now so uhhhh yeah it’s pretty easy to see how Bayonetta has cemented herself as a bit of a gaming icon. She’s fun and likable as a character. Unfortunately I cannot say I find her “hot”, I guess my opinion on white women that I reached in my DMC4 review still stands. Alas…either I am fully gay or my dick don’t work 💔. Heartbreaking.
• The other characters are also pretty charismatic and memorable. Rodin and Enzo are fun, Cereza is inoffensive, Luka is really awesome I like him a lot.
• Not all characters are equal however, as stated previously the bosses are really forgettable and act all the same, even the final boss sadly. Same is true for Jeanne, I really think she doesn’t quite reach the height she could have.
• Despite having a mostly fun cast it’s a shame the story itself is so 🛌. The whole angel and demons along with the light and dark shtick was pretty played out by the time this game was released, so it’s pretty sad to see this game do nothing interesting. Even DMC3, despite not having a super strong narrative or anything, is really rich for me in the rivalry between Dante and Vergil, along with the whole family motif. Can’t say the same is true here.
• The game does place quite a big emphasis on the story, more than DMC4 I’d say, which released around the same time. But like DMC4 I can’t say it’s really all that good. I dunno man, I really have no deeper critiques other than me finding it bland and uninspired and seeing some of the twists coming miles away. Like the end of Mission 14 should be emotional, but I don’t think I care. I’d not care for the story but I feel like the game focuses on it a lot, so in my eyes it’d be a disservice if I just ignored it entirely.
Uhmmmm something something balls balls funny joke here. I’m running out of material. The final boss kinda sucked dick, monkey dick to be specific. Sometimes I really felt like this game wanted to deliver a spectacle but it just didn’t hit me like it intended. Still, a really solid game on its own. I do think I could’ve derived much more enjoyment from the game if it’s combat was better as sometimes it just felt very very annoying, but if I’m being completely fair I need to admit that maybe the fault doesn’t really lie with the game but with me. Bit embarrassing to admit but I was not good at this game, even though I wasn’t bad at DMC. Sometimes the problem does lie with me and I should be man enough to admit that. I’m so sure that one day I’ll revisit this game and end up liking it much more, but as it stands it’s a fun action title I recommend.
Oh yeah, happy pride month.
PEAKYONETTA. Bad ass lesbian woman fighting monsters to a sick soundtrack honestly what more could you ask for. Kamiya out did himself yet again.
This game is for Boss Babes.
It's a wild ride from beginning to end with not a single train stop to process what is even going on at any moment. It's go, go, go, go, go and then it ends. Was it enjoyable? Oh, yeah. It has very fun hack and slash gameplay that will make you feel more powerful the more attacks and upgrades you unlock.
While the enemies and combat can get repetitive, you never truly feel stagnant in your abilities because there's literally so much to acquire. Even with that, I downright sucked ass at this game but it was still a thrill ride to get through. The final boss was exceptionally annoying, but it gets outweighed by the ending cutscenes.
I wish it didn't look so washed out and have such a bland aesthetic, but I figure this gets better in the sequels. I went into it with zero expectations and was surprised at every turn. The music goes hard and Bayonetta doesn't give a flying fuck. I wish I was her.
It's a wild ride from beginning to end with not a single train stop to process what is even going on at any moment. It's go, go, go, go, go and then it ends. Was it enjoyable? Oh, yeah. It has very fun hack and slash gameplay that will make you feel more powerful the more attacks and upgrades you unlock.
While the enemies and combat can get repetitive, you never truly feel stagnant in your abilities because there's literally so much to acquire. Even with that, I downright sucked ass at this game but it was still a thrill ride to get through. The final boss was exceptionally annoying, but it gets outweighed by the ending cutscenes.
I wish it didn't look so washed out and have such a bland aesthetic, but I figure this gets better in the sequels. I went into it with zero expectations and was surprised at every turn. The music goes hard and Bayonetta doesn't give a flying fuck. I wish I was her.
Playing this is a rare sort of indescribable joy. There's this playful exuberance to be had, the most videogame a videogame has ever been.
I LOVE ASS
The real final boss is the camera.
The surface charm of Bayonetta, a hypersexualized spectacle, belies a sadistic seduction, the pinnacle of character action gameplay gate-kept by the genre's tradition of ball-busting difficulty. Taking after it's spindly namesake, the game by nature is a sort of dominatrix, stomping you down into the dirt and cracking the whip at your attempts to fight back. It's brutal, frustrating, agonizing to watch as your nerves fray and senses dull, with each encounter providing a fresh boot to the teeth. Broken, battered and bruised, you look for solace, only to be greeted with a stone-cold consolation prize for your struggles. Against the crushing odds, each step becomes heavier, each mistimed strike putting you at the whims of Heaven and Hell alike. Hours pass, anger boils over, resentment turns to fascination… and the highlight of any character action game, the most brilliant of afterglows, shines clearly – the flow state: the melding of mind and body, attuned to the same frequency for a singular purpose. Free from your submission to unceasing cruelty, you take the reigns as a domineering hellion, a unholy agent of divine retribution against the legions of Heaven's army.
Unshackled from preconceived notions, Bayonetta's essence breaths uninterrupted. PlatinumGames's masterwork is informed by the inescapable interplay of sex and violence; the first glance at Bayonetta herself can tell you that. But despite the game's seemingly adolescent pandering, there burns a heart of rebellion within the work, a feminist bend buried under the suffocating weight of the social gaming sphere circa 2009. The duality of Bayonetta, as sex-positive icon of empowerment versus gross exploitation of sexuality, is ingrained into every aspect of her.
This is to say that, despite the obvious trashiness inherent to the game, the blatant fanservice and standard anime bullshit lacing the game, it's hard not to see a extreme version of myself I'd want to see: a hyper-femme confidence elemental, a perfect beauty that defines human limitation, a plain-and-simple unstoppable bad-ass. Dare I say, with every tasteless shot and embarrassing line in consideration, that Bayonetta is, in fact, transition goals?
In a way, Bayonetta represents an "ideal", a splinter of me shattered and scattered across a million separate works. But with this knowledge in mind, it's difficult not to feel slightly conflicted: after all, the character exists as an amalgamation of Hideki Kamiya's fetishes and fantasies, a woman that literally lives to please a man. For all my desires to view her as some new-age feminist idol, she is a personification of the objectification of women in gaming. I suppose it's only fair to invision her divorced from her initial context, a messy reimagining to fit her into an even messier personal image. Consider it me embracing another odd inspiration into an increasingly messy queer narrative.
The scandalous spirit of Bayonetta is, at the same time, its most beautiful and most reprehensible quality. Without it, it would stand as a husk, mechanically interesting, but without a soul to prop it up. In equal senses, it's the exact reason I recommend and shy away from suggesting the game; it represents a part of me, while also being an element I'm somewhat ashamed to admit to. Needless to say… this game feels essential. Whether it clicks with you on an individual level or not, you owe it to yourself to try it.
Unshackled from preconceived notions, Bayonetta's essence breaths uninterrupted. PlatinumGames's masterwork is informed by the inescapable interplay of sex and violence; the first glance at Bayonetta herself can tell you that. But despite the game's seemingly adolescent pandering, there burns a heart of rebellion within the work, a feminist bend buried under the suffocating weight of the social gaming sphere circa 2009. The duality of Bayonetta, as sex-positive icon of empowerment versus gross exploitation of sexuality, is ingrained into every aspect of her.
This is to say that, despite the obvious trashiness inherent to the game, the blatant fanservice and standard anime bullshit lacing the game, it's hard not to see a extreme version of myself I'd want to see: a hyper-femme confidence elemental, a perfect beauty that defines human limitation, a plain-and-simple unstoppable bad-ass. Dare I say, with every tasteless shot and embarrassing line in consideration, that Bayonetta is, in fact, transition goals?
In a way, Bayonetta represents an "ideal", a splinter of me shattered and scattered across a million separate works. But with this knowledge in mind, it's difficult not to feel slightly conflicted: after all, the character exists as an amalgamation of Hideki Kamiya's fetishes and fantasies, a woman that literally lives to please a man. For all my desires to view her as some new-age feminist idol, she is a personification of the objectification of women in gaming. I suppose it's only fair to invision her divorced from her initial context, a messy reimagining to fit her into an even messier personal image. Consider it me embracing another odd inspiration into an increasingly messy queer narrative.
The scandalous spirit of Bayonetta is, at the same time, its most beautiful and most reprehensible quality. Without it, it would stand as a husk, mechanically interesting, but without a soul to prop it up. In equal senses, it's the exact reason I recommend and shy away from suggesting the game; it represents a part of me, while also being an element I'm somewhat ashamed to admit to. Needless to say… this game feels essential. Whether it clicks with you on an individual level or not, you owe it to yourself to try it.
Nancymeter - 87/100
Bayonetta is both one of the most sexy/stylish games and characters ever. The cutscene near the very start in the graveyard immediately hooked me. An incredible display of joyous insanity and honestly that cutscene alone guaranteed this game would never drop below a 4/5. But because this game is awesome half the cutscenes carry on the same batshit over the top style and I feel like you have to be really uptight to not appreciate the absurdity. Anyways now that I've said every adjective I can think of I'm ready for the real review.
The two most important things about an action game is the combat and the protagonist. As I'm sure everyone knows Bayonetta is great. She exudes confidence both in and out of battles and just has a really fun full of sarcasm attitude. Even after only one game with her I'd put her in my top five gaming protags ever no question. Shes also a really good example of an empowered sexy as hell woman without it feeling demeaning (thanks in part to her character designer being a woman) and I'm super here for it. I am glad they fought to keep her glasses. And then there's the combat. Which is fun and flashy but also fucking hard man. I ain't good at games that arent shooters and this has a difficulty spike within the first 5 or so chapters that just is pretty brutal lol, especially how frail Bayo is it just didnt feel particularly balanced for me. I had no shame eventually switching to easy difficulty at around the halfway point. Unfortunately the automatic setting is a bit much. I'm not complaining that easy difficulty is easy but considering theres even a Very Easy difficulty too I just wish the gap between easy and normal wasnt so huge. That being said, this game is a lot of fun. Im just here to have a good time and being a complete and utter badass destroying everything is perfect for me. There is something to be said about it being a deeper and more rewarding experience playing it on a harder difficulty but I simply don't enjoy getting my ass kicked (In video games anyways) so at least this way I still had my fun. There is multiple unique weapons with their own combos and shit and with the shop system and the rankings you get after each combat encounter encourage multiple playthroughs which for a short game means you will get a lot out of it and thats always a good thing. The animations are really lovely too and its got a fun amount of blood. Enemy and boss designs are all unique and cool while fitting with the setting very well. My only real issue with the combat is that a lot of the bosses suck. They're just not designed well and some of them throw in pretty awful platforming and except for the one on one battles with Jeanne they just kinda suck - but they do make up for it with spectacle.
Aside from your standard combat this is a game from the 7th console generation which of course means there are a few mandatory on the rails sections. These are fun for breaking up the pace but they all go on for just a little bit longer than they're actually fun for. Another side effect of the times is the color pallet. The art style is really good but all the colors are really muted and it just makes the game kinda ugly to look at which is a really widespread and unfortunate issue with this generation that I will always bring up in a review for any game that suffers from it because I hate it. Another thing to nitpick with the visuals is definitely a sign of low budget - some cutscenes are still images with a roll of film filter over them. It fits with the vibe of the game but theres a few instances its used for rather big plot points and idk its not really great but hey what can you do. At least this leads us into our next segment.
very smol spoilers incoming
The story of Bayonetta is... well I don't really know? We've established Bayonetta is an awesome character. The supporting cast is really good. Little Cereza is adorable, Jeanne is a cool rival, Rodan is badass (i love hearing Dave Fennoy's voice) and Luka is a loveable dumbass. But the story itself was really hard to follow. I got the slight jist of it but most of it went way over my head. Fortunately it doesnt matter much but it was kinda hard to get invested when I had no idea what was going on even with all the exposition dumps. I could of course watch a video explaining it but I dont wanna get spoilers for the sequels and that won't really change the initial impression. Despite all of that the game does a great job at showing the scale of your journey through different locations of increasing intrigue and the grand finale being in fucking space is a perfect culmination for such an adventure. I had moments where stupid platforming sections or the confusing narrative made me wonder how much I really liked this game but then it pulls out some beyond my imagination cutscene or throwing in a fucking dance scene (whenever a piece of media throws in one of those it steals my heart) and I remember how much of a treat this game really is. It does fall a bit short of being a true 9/10 for me but I've heard some really great things about the sequel and I'm very excited to see how this series evolves.
I've restarted this review quite a few times over the past few days and i'm still not entirely happy with it but I think I've gotten just about all my thoughts out for this game and I'm ready to move on and see what's ahead of me. Thanks for reading <3
Next up is Escape Academy - and after that maybe Fire Emblem Three Houses. We'll see.
Trophy Completion - 38% (25/51)
Time Played - N/A
Game Completion #139 of 2022
November Completion #5
Bayonetta is both one of the most sexy/stylish games and characters ever. The cutscene near the very start in the graveyard immediately hooked me. An incredible display of joyous insanity and honestly that cutscene alone guaranteed this game would never drop below a 4/5. But because this game is awesome half the cutscenes carry on the same batshit over the top style and I feel like you have to be really uptight to not appreciate the absurdity. Anyways now that I've said every adjective I can think of I'm ready for the real review.
The two most important things about an action game is the combat and the protagonist. As I'm sure everyone knows Bayonetta is great. She exudes confidence both in and out of battles and just has a really fun full of sarcasm attitude. Even after only one game with her I'd put her in my top five gaming protags ever no question. Shes also a really good example of an empowered sexy as hell woman without it feeling demeaning (thanks in part to her character designer being a woman) and I'm super here for it. I am glad they fought to keep her glasses. And then there's the combat. Which is fun and flashy but also fucking hard man. I ain't good at games that arent shooters and this has a difficulty spike within the first 5 or so chapters that just is pretty brutal lol, especially how frail Bayo is it just didnt feel particularly balanced for me. I had no shame eventually switching to easy difficulty at around the halfway point. Unfortunately the automatic setting is a bit much. I'm not complaining that easy difficulty is easy but considering theres even a Very Easy difficulty too I just wish the gap between easy and normal wasnt so huge. That being said, this game is a lot of fun. Im just here to have a good time and being a complete and utter badass destroying everything is perfect for me. There is something to be said about it being a deeper and more rewarding experience playing it on a harder difficulty but I simply don't enjoy getting my ass kicked (In video games anyways) so at least this way I still had my fun. There is multiple unique weapons with their own combos and shit and with the shop system and the rankings you get after each combat encounter encourage multiple playthroughs which for a short game means you will get a lot out of it and thats always a good thing. The animations are really lovely too and its got a fun amount of blood. Enemy and boss designs are all unique and cool while fitting with the setting very well. My only real issue with the combat is that a lot of the bosses suck. They're just not designed well and some of them throw in pretty awful platforming and except for the one on one battles with Jeanne they just kinda suck - but they do make up for it with spectacle.
Aside from your standard combat this is a game from the 7th console generation which of course means there are a few mandatory on the rails sections. These are fun for breaking up the pace but they all go on for just a little bit longer than they're actually fun for. Another side effect of the times is the color pallet. The art style is really good but all the colors are really muted and it just makes the game kinda ugly to look at which is a really widespread and unfortunate issue with this generation that I will always bring up in a review for any game that suffers from it because I hate it. Another thing to nitpick with the visuals is definitely a sign of low budget - some cutscenes are still images with a roll of film filter over them. It fits with the vibe of the game but theres a few instances its used for rather big plot points and idk its not really great but hey what can you do. At least this leads us into our next segment.
very smol spoilers incoming
The story of Bayonetta is... well I don't really know? We've established Bayonetta is an awesome character. The supporting cast is really good. Little Cereza is adorable, Jeanne is a cool rival, Rodan is badass (i love hearing Dave Fennoy's voice) and Luka is a loveable dumbass. But the story itself was really hard to follow. I got the slight jist of it but most of it went way over my head. Fortunately it doesnt matter much but it was kinda hard to get invested when I had no idea what was going on even with all the exposition dumps. I could of course watch a video explaining it but I dont wanna get spoilers for the sequels and that won't really change the initial impression. Despite all of that the game does a great job at showing the scale of your journey through different locations of increasing intrigue and the grand finale being in fucking space is a perfect culmination for such an adventure. I had moments where stupid platforming sections or the confusing narrative made me wonder how much I really liked this game but then it pulls out some beyond my imagination cutscene or throwing in a fucking dance scene (whenever a piece of media throws in one of those it steals my heart) and I remember how much of a treat this game really is. It does fall a bit short of being a true 9/10 for me but I've heard some really great things about the sequel and I'm very excited to see how this series evolves.
I've restarted this review quite a few times over the past few days and i'm still not entirely happy with it but I think I've gotten just about all my thoughts out for this game and I'm ready to move on and see what's ahead of me. Thanks for reading <3
Next up is Escape Academy - and after that maybe Fire Emblem Three Houses. We'll see.
Trophy Completion - 38% (25/51)
Time Played - N/A
Game Completion #139 of 2022
November Completion #5
Fly me to the moon
And let me play among us
And let me play among us
She got a nice ass
Bayonetta ran so that Bayo 2 could walk.
As someone who doesn't care at all about sex and sex appeal.
Bayonetta could spit in my face and I would thank her. The game is also fun I guess.
Bayonetta could spit in my face and I would thank her. The game is also fun I guess.
Really stylish good time. Bayonetta is a great character and the combat is awesome. Some levels weren't that great but good game overall!
kamiya is an arcade guy, that's his sensibility, dmc3 and 4 aren't arcades and they don't mesh well with one, here there is a pretty good base for an expressive action game that gets cannibalized by vehicle sections and qtes and a lot of stuff that either limits character expression or is outright annoying in this context, this dumb mixeup now hangs on the shadow of almost all of platinum's work and that's a shame. also this is very unsexy because kamiya is incapable of charm, he tries too hard and he isn't itsuno, nothing here comes even close to the dmc3 dante pizza intro, i won't dream of bayonetta for years to come.
i was initially led to think that bayonetta was devil may cry for gays but after experiencing the might of this game it is quite apparent to me that devil may cry was the bayonetta sub species for heterosexuals all along
I don't want to cum on or in Bayonetta.
Mr. Platinum, CEO: "Alright Kamiya, but if we buy the rights to Fly Me To The Moon, you better make sure to use it"
Kamiya "Scorecel" Hideki, smiling deviously and winking with both eyes: "Sir, that won't be an issue"
Bayonetta is a Devil May Sonic Like where one man put in 5000 action game experiments and hit on about 3000 of them. You will have to swallow the remaining 2000.
In Bayonetta, you fight by clutching the controller as if it had no buttons and hope the wet noodle slopping around on screen does the combo you had in your brain. For all you know, the controller isn't connected to the console, but to a display in another room where another guy is putting in inputs to control the character on your console. For some reason Kamiya wanted it to feel like this, as he famously hates feeling good.
If you're a bit of an arcadegoon, a combofreak or in your medal era, this might be the better DMC. For everyone else, it's the PS3 DMC that doesn't have Nero.
Mr. Platinum, CEO: "Alright Kamiya, but if we buy the rights to Fly Me To The Moon, you better make sure to use it"
Kamiya "Scorecel" Hideki, smiling deviously and winking with both eyes: "Sir, that won't be an issue"
Bayonetta is a Devil May Sonic Like where one man put in 5000 action game experiments and hit on about 3000 of them. You will have to swallow the remaining 2000.
In Bayonetta, you fight by clutching the controller as if it had no buttons and hope the wet noodle slopping around on screen does the combo you had in your brain. For all you know, the controller isn't connected to the console, but to a display in another room where another guy is putting in inputs to control the character on your console. For some reason Kamiya wanted it to feel like this, as he famously hates feeling good.
If you're a bit of an arcadegoon, a combofreak or in your medal era, this might be the better DMC. For everyone else, it's the PS3 DMC that doesn't have Nero.
My first experience with Bayonetta was on the PS3 version. Suffice to say I did not have a good time. I revisited the game with Nintendo's port and holy shit I had so much fun.
I won't lie, there is some weird stupid shit in this game that you can clearly tell comes from Kamiya not having anyone take him aside and tell him that his idea isn't the best. But the combat system is so fantastic that I don't think it significantly hurts the game. I know some people disliked the After Burner, Space Harrier and turret sections and that's fair, but they didn't really bother me enough to detract from my enjoyment. The QTEs though? Yeah those suck. But even with those rough edges this is still a great action game that I find myself addictively revisiting, refining my play every time and being actively impressed with some of the stuff I can pull off once I get going. I'm not crazy about every boss fight but the Jeanne fights and the final two are some of the most engaging I've ever played in an action game.
If you're a DMC fan, please keep an open mind going into this game. Don't think of it as off brand DMC or "DMC but better." I must stress that it is a SPIRITUAL successor, it keeps the same flavor of style and genre but executed very differently. Also whatever version you play, do NOT touch the PS3 port as it is glitchy and janky as shit. I can't vouch for the PC or PS4 versions but I'm sure they're fine.
I won't lie, there is some weird stupid shit in this game that you can clearly tell comes from Kamiya not having anyone take him aside and tell him that his idea isn't the best. But the combat system is so fantastic that I don't think it significantly hurts the game. I know some people disliked the After Burner, Space Harrier and turret sections and that's fair, but they didn't really bother me enough to detract from my enjoyment. The QTEs though? Yeah those suck. But even with those rough edges this is still a great action game that I find myself addictively revisiting, refining my play every time and being actively impressed with some of the stuff I can pull off once I get going. I'm not crazy about every boss fight but the Jeanne fights and the final two are some of the most engaging I've ever played in an action game.
If you're a DMC fan, please keep an open mind going into this game. Don't think of it as off brand DMC or "DMC but better." I must stress that it is a SPIRITUAL successor, it keeps the same flavor of style and genre but executed very differently. Also whatever version you play, do NOT touch the PS3 port as it is glitchy and janky as shit. I can't vouch for the PC or PS4 versions but I'm sure they're fine.
Solidamente bom, o 2 melhorou algumas coisas e piorou muitas outras em relação a gameplay, design, bosses, narrativa e trilha sonora, por isso ainda continuo preferindo bem mais, e por isso dou uma nota maior baseado nas minhas boas horas que eu fiquei curtindo esse jogo.
Having come off the DMC series a few years ago, I played Bayonetta and didn't really click with it. I found it overly hard and felt the katana was the only good weapon (I didn't unlock the others and didn't understand Kulshedra). Deciding to not remain a loser, I replayed it and found myself falling in love with it 💕
Trying to talk about Bayonetta without mentioning Devil May Cry would be a waste. Even if Kamiya's involvement with the latter stopped at the first installment, there's so much you can extrapolate to DMC and its third game. Bayonetta and Dante are both forces of reckoning in their own series, stylishly dispatching foe after foe with ease to veil their inner turmoils: with Bayonetta struggling with uncovering her past and maternity, and Dante being unable to connect with his brother Vergil, as their interactions are only articulated through violence. While Dante's vulnerability is seldom shown (although not less impactful), Bayonetta's moments of weakness are more visible and central to the identity that develops through her journey: motherhood. Whenever an enemy gets the better of Bayonetta or she gets royally pissed off it's because she is protecting Cerecita, and even after discovering her true nature she still treats her like a daughter by singing the lullaby her mother singed to her in the past.
My only gripe with this is that this development isn't part of a more cohesive story, which is a shame because it's definitely cookin' something. Call me a speed reader if you want but even by forcing synapsis I was completely incapable of making sense of what was going on outside broad strokes, leaving me a bit empty handed on how this identity stacks up in the whole scheme of things. It definitely deepens Bayonetta's character but DMC3 managed to integrate this vulnerability to its plot in a way that Bayonetta couldn't (even if DMC3's plot is inexistent outside the parts where Vergil isn't in it), which is a shame because the game does have a fair share of cutscenes for exposition which were all white noise to me, leaving Bayo's characterization to feel underused and a bit inconclusive.
On the gameplay side, I might like this game's combat more than DMC's as a whole. A perfect blend of complexity, arcade-yness, spectacle and skill ceiling that yields results for those willing to learn the ins and outs of its systems. Even if most of my learning was thru sources outside the game itself, managing Wicked Weaves to reset combo points and learning each of the weapons is so satisfying and rewarding. Witch Time is simply the coolest mechanic ever, not only as a reward for properly dodging attacks but also serving as a condition to deal with certain enemies gives it so much value that it's absence will make you beg for it to come back.
The problem with the gameplay is my also my biggest problem with the game and what keeps me from giving it a 5: the distribution of chapters in the last third of the game. It's comprised of 7 chapters of which 4 are boss fights, which are not the game's strong suit since it doesn't let you use your moveset in a fun way unlike normal mobs; and 1 is a gimmick level which is the worst level in the game, unbearably long (and you can't rush through it) and for some unholy reason also has the best boss fight in the game. This leaves you with only 2 normal chapters of which one is very short and the worst proper level IMO (Ch. XII) and the last proper level in the game that's a bit underwhelming for the place it has in the order. This was the only grievance that stuck between my playthroughs and I was very dissapointed to see that it remained unchanged. I blame Kamiya because he put a shoot 'em up segment in the last boss of DMC1 and now I see he's been given the keys to the gimmick castle, making my need to make fun of him for being bald even greater.
With that said, I'm quite happy to be now Bayopilled. I will remain so until Bayo 2 runs at 15 fps on my totally and obviously legal Wii U, and Bayo 3 makes me block Yuri Lowenthal on twitter
Trying to talk about Bayonetta without mentioning Devil May Cry would be a waste. Even if Kamiya's involvement with the latter stopped at the first installment, there's so much you can extrapolate to DMC and its third game. Bayonetta and Dante are both forces of reckoning in their own series, stylishly dispatching foe after foe with ease to veil their inner turmoils: with Bayonetta struggling with uncovering her past and maternity, and Dante being unable to connect with his brother Vergil, as their interactions are only articulated through violence. While Dante's vulnerability is seldom shown (although not less impactful), Bayonetta's moments of weakness are more visible and central to the identity that develops through her journey: motherhood. Whenever an enemy gets the better of Bayonetta or she gets royally pissed off it's because she is protecting Cerecita, and even after discovering her true nature she still treats her like a daughter by singing the lullaby her mother singed to her in the past.
My only gripe with this is that this development isn't part of a more cohesive story, which is a shame because it's definitely cookin' something. Call me a speed reader if you want but even by forcing synapsis I was completely incapable of making sense of what was going on outside broad strokes, leaving me a bit empty handed on how this identity stacks up in the whole scheme of things. It definitely deepens Bayonetta's character but DMC3 managed to integrate this vulnerability to its plot in a way that Bayonetta couldn't (even if DMC3's plot is inexistent outside the parts where Vergil isn't in it), which is a shame because the game does have a fair share of cutscenes for exposition which were all white noise to me, leaving Bayo's characterization to feel underused and a bit inconclusive.
On the gameplay side, I might like this game's combat more than DMC's as a whole. A perfect blend of complexity, arcade-yness, spectacle and skill ceiling that yields results for those willing to learn the ins and outs of its systems. Even if most of my learning was thru sources outside the game itself, managing Wicked Weaves to reset combo points and learning each of the weapons is so satisfying and rewarding. Witch Time is simply the coolest mechanic ever, not only as a reward for properly dodging attacks but also serving as a condition to deal with certain enemies gives it so much value that it's absence will make you beg for it to come back.
The problem with the gameplay is my also my biggest problem with the game and what keeps me from giving it a 5: the distribution of chapters in the last third of the game. It's comprised of 7 chapters of which 4 are boss fights, which are not the game's strong suit since it doesn't let you use your moveset in a fun way unlike normal mobs; and 1 is a gimmick level which is the worst level in the game, unbearably long (and you can't rush through it) and for some unholy reason also has the best boss fight in the game. This leaves you with only 2 normal chapters of which one is very short and the worst proper level IMO (Ch. XII) and the last proper level in the game that's a bit underwhelming for the place it has in the order. This was the only grievance that stuck between my playthroughs and I was very dissapointed to see that it remained unchanged. I blame Kamiya because he put a shoot 'em up segment in the last boss of DMC1 and now I see he's been given the keys to the gimmick castle, making my need to make fun of him for being bald even greater.
With that said, I'm quite happy to be now Bayopilled. I will remain so until Bayo 2 runs at 15 fps on my totally and obviously legal Wii U, and Bayo 3 makes me block Yuri Lowenthal on twitter
[This section in brackets is the only human-written text in this entire review. I got high, asked ChatGPT to "generate an extremely pretentious and poorly-written review of Bayonetta that analyzes its queer subtext and mentions dodge offset" and thought it'd be a good bit to put it on the site proper. I will never do this again. Seeing it get six likes overnight terrifies me and leaves me feeling intense shame about myself and this website. May god have mercy on us all.]
My dear readers, allow me to delve deep into the subtext of Bayonetta, a game that brims with queer sensibilities and tantalizing eroticism. At its core lies a narrative that challenges conventional notions of gender and sexuality, subverting tropes and expectations at every turn.
And what better way to embody this subversive spirit than through the gameplay mechanic of dodge offset? With this masterful mechanic, Bayonetta defies traditional notions of combat and deftly sidesteps the norms of heteronormative game design.
As we explore the rich tapestry of Bayonetta's world, we are treated to a veritable smorgasbord of queer delights. From the suggestive phallic imagery of Bayonetta's hair-based attacks to the homoerotic subtext of her battles with rival Jeanne, this game positively brims with subversive energy.
And at the heart of it all lies Bayonetta herself, a character who defies traditional gender roles and embraces her own sensuality with unapologetic abandon. With her sultry voice and confident swagger, she commands attention and admiration from all who cross her path.
In short, Bayonetta is a triumph of queer subtext, a game that challenges the very foundations of our assumptions and leaves us breathless with its subversive power. And with dodge offset as its guiding force, it stands as a testament to the very essence of queer creativity and innovation.
My dear readers, allow me to delve deep into the subtext of Bayonetta, a game that brims with queer sensibilities and tantalizing eroticism. At its core lies a narrative that challenges conventional notions of gender and sexuality, subverting tropes and expectations at every turn.
And what better way to embody this subversive spirit than through the gameplay mechanic of dodge offset? With this masterful mechanic, Bayonetta defies traditional notions of combat and deftly sidesteps the norms of heteronormative game design.
As we explore the rich tapestry of Bayonetta's world, we are treated to a veritable smorgasbord of queer delights. From the suggestive phallic imagery of Bayonetta's hair-based attacks to the homoerotic subtext of her battles with rival Jeanne, this game positively brims with subversive energy.
And at the heart of it all lies Bayonetta herself, a character who defies traditional gender roles and embraces her own sensuality with unapologetic abandon. With her sultry voice and confident swagger, she commands attention and admiration from all who cross her path.
In short, Bayonetta is a triumph of queer subtext, a game that challenges the very foundations of our assumptions and leaves us breathless with its subversive power. And with dodge offset as its guiding force, it stands as a testament to the very essence of queer creativity and innovation.