Bayonetta 3 ends up not only the worst, but the most disappointing entry in the series.
Bayonetta 3 follows the series trend of changing director's each entry. However, this time round, i think this was ultimately to the game's downfall. For context, Bayonetta 3 was directed by Yusuke Miyata, the director of Platinum Games' Astral Chain, and the similarities of both are endless. One of the core new mechanics of Bayonetta 3 is demon control, in that all of Bayonetta's devil servants are controllable in fights. The issue with it is that when controlling these demons, Bayonetta is left defenceless and uncontrollable. This just results in breaking up the flow of the fights and combos. It doesn't help that due to this new system, the encounters in the game are, as a result, designed for these demon's in mind, leaving you with massive arenas unfriendly to simply fighting with Bayonetta herself, as she becomes way too small to even see at points. Miyata used slightly too much of his experience directing Astral Chain in that regard.
With the new director, i feel as if some of Bayonetta's core identity also went with the previous 2 directors. The incredible thing that set the original 2 Bayonetta games apart from every other spectical fighter was its massively intense sense of complete style. Each Bayonetta game previously was accompanied by really a really funky Jazz soundtrack that both complimented Bayonetta's personality, but also went incredibly well with the high intensity action of the game. Each time you'd hit the climax, when you simply entered a battle, or even when you were in the in game store you'd have this smooth jazz soundtrack playing. The original 2 has ounces and ounces of personality because of this factor, but when you have Bayonetta 3, which has toned these aspects down significantly, if feels as if all soul has been completely ripped from the franchise. A disappointing change which feels unreasonable looking back.
Bayonetta 3 also has the issue of splitting itself in half, by way of a brand new playable character who revolves around the story massively. In 14 chapters, the game is split evenly down the middle with half of the chapters being Bayonetta's side while the other is from the POV of the franchise new character: Viola. It wouldn't be an issue within itself if Viola wasn't obscenely awful to control. In every Bayonetta, a core mechanic has been Witch Time which was activated every time Bayonetta dodged an attack, it'd give you a few brief seconds of slow motion and that was one of the defining mechanic that made Bayonetta stand out. The mecanic is still there for both Bayonetta and Viola, and works the exact same with Bayonetta however, with Viola's playstyle you have to block attacks in order to activate Witch time. This is an awful decision, as having to block in the middle of combos completely ruins the flow and even by the time you have successfully blocked an attack, been hit back, then gone to attack the enemy in Witch time, Viola has absolutely zero range on her, leaving her Witch Time utterly useless.
While the core combat on Bayonetta's side of the story is still in tact and better than ever, it's just unfortunate that so much of the game feels underdeveloped, or simply unfinished in small portions. There's a lot of really interesting ideas, they just don't come together at all.
Bayonetta 3 follows the series trend of changing director's each entry. However, this time round, i think this was ultimately to the game's downfall. For context, Bayonetta 3 was directed by Yusuke Miyata, the director of Platinum Games' Astral Chain, and the similarities of both are endless. One of the core new mechanics of Bayonetta 3 is demon control, in that all of Bayonetta's devil servants are controllable in fights. The issue with it is that when controlling these demons, Bayonetta is left defenceless and uncontrollable. This just results in breaking up the flow of the fights and combos. It doesn't help that due to this new system, the encounters in the game are, as a result, designed for these demon's in mind, leaving you with massive arenas unfriendly to simply fighting with Bayonetta herself, as she becomes way too small to even see at points. Miyata used slightly too much of his experience directing Astral Chain in that regard.
With the new director, i feel as if some of Bayonetta's core identity also went with the previous 2 directors. The incredible thing that set the original 2 Bayonetta games apart from every other spectical fighter was its massively intense sense of complete style. Each Bayonetta game previously was accompanied by really a really funky Jazz soundtrack that both complimented Bayonetta's personality, but also went incredibly well with the high intensity action of the game. Each time you'd hit the climax, when you simply entered a battle, or even when you were in the in game store you'd have this smooth jazz soundtrack playing. The original 2 has ounces and ounces of personality because of this factor, but when you have Bayonetta 3, which has toned these aspects down significantly, if feels as if all soul has been completely ripped from the franchise. A disappointing change which feels unreasonable looking back.
Bayonetta 3 also has the issue of splitting itself in half, by way of a brand new playable character who revolves around the story massively. In 14 chapters, the game is split evenly down the middle with half of the chapters being Bayonetta's side while the other is from the POV of the franchise new character: Viola. It wouldn't be an issue within itself if Viola wasn't obscenely awful to control. In every Bayonetta, a core mechanic has been Witch Time which was activated every time Bayonetta dodged an attack, it'd give you a few brief seconds of slow motion and that was one of the defining mechanic that made Bayonetta stand out. The mecanic is still there for both Bayonetta and Viola, and works the exact same with Bayonetta however, with Viola's playstyle you have to block attacks in order to activate Witch time. This is an awful decision, as having to block in the middle of combos completely ruins the flow and even by the time you have successfully blocked an attack, been hit back, then gone to attack the enemy in Witch time, Viola has absolutely zero range on her, leaving her Witch Time utterly useless.
While the core combat on Bayonetta's side of the story is still in tact and better than ever, it's just unfortunate that so much of the game feels underdeveloped, or simply unfinished in small portions. There's a lot of really interesting ideas, they just don't come together at all.