On the 28th, borrowing the mouth of a game character, he said, “Looking at you, you seem awfully late. But I’m ready to give you everything you want.” The game was released. It’s been 8 years since the previous game was released, so it’s fair to say it’s bad. The late student’s name is Bayonetta. To be precise, it is Bayonetta 3, which I have even heard of vaporware.
How well would you say you’re ready to give it all away? I found out why after playing. In addition to Bayonetta, the stories of Jeanne, Enzo, Rodin, and Luca, who appeared continuously in the series, appear across the world, and the new character Viola, who cannot be missed in the new story, also showed evil presence. The quality of the story was relatively disappointing, but the appearance of a new combat system that improved the quality of the action and the ending credits that seemed to announce the next was enough to make you look forward to the next work or’ r DLC.
Well packed to satisfy the 8 year wait
In addition to Bayonetta, there are other playable characters that can be met in Bayonetta 3, Jeanne and Viola. These three show different fighting styles, and in the case of Bayonetta, ‘Summon a Beast’, described later, has ‘to add to the battle similar to the previous work. , Viola is in close combat with matchmaking and swordsmanship, and Jeanne is in charge of infiltration, fulfilling their respective roles and leading the story.
It has a different structure than the previous games Bayonetta 1 and 2, so even if Bayonetta 3 is the first game, the story is not difficult to understand. The hostile target is an unknown entity called the homunculus, which is assumed to have been created by humans. Bayonetta travels through different dimensions called the ‘multiverse’ to stop the destruction caused by the head of the homunculus, by meet another self, I also see my family. It was a disappointing story compared to the fullness of the fight, but it was meaningful enough in that it was able to see the hidden story of Bayonetta’s worldview.
In particular, the images of Bayonetta in different dimensions and her magical hair, glasses, and face spots that do not change between them clearly show Bayonetta’s identity. In addition, various magical beasts and weapons used by them can be directly equipped, and equipment switching is possible with one button, enabling more stylish actions with simple operation.
Here, not only the taste of seeing but also the ‘taste of hearing’ was fully used. Characters and spatial and temporal backgrounds are constantly changing due to the three playable characters and the multiverse background, but the BGM that suits the situation from city pop to punk rock is naturally connected and immersive. In particular, the rock BGM that comes out during the viola fight adds a sense of speed to the fight, which lacks style compared to Bayonetta, and complements the visual flatness.
It is not necessary to show great perfection in the framework of this ‘game’ only. During the game, you can collect concept art, etc. to thoroughly explore the elements in the game, and you can check the 3D modeling written in the game in addition to the location and background, etc. still It was this seems to make up for the slightly disappointing volume, which was 18 hours long and 10 hours short.
A masquerade ball made by witches and monsters
Summon Monsters is a combat system first revealed in Bayonetta 3. There are three main types of monsters: Demon Masquerade, Demon Slave, and God’s Deadly Sorcery. Demon Masquerade is a system that uses technology that borrows the power of a beast that can be summoned during battle or that assists movement, and has excellent mobility and range of effect. Daemon Masquerade, linked to a combo, adds splendor to the flow, but especially maximizes the visual impact. The vibration added along with this further enhances the flavor of the combo.
Demon Slave is a type of summoning technique, and the player can enjoy the game by controlling Bayonetta and a huge beast. However, when using the Demon Slave, Bayonetta becomes invulnerable, and the beast also disappears when taking damage, resulting in a high risk high profit. Instead, it’s worth considering the link between battles that continuously deals strong damage to slowed enemies as it can be used in ‘witch time’, which is activated when there is a correct dodge and slows down time.
Devotion of the heart is a summon that summons a giant beast to fight a giant homunculus. This huge monster battle is simple in action, but by applying the compatibility of each skill, it provokes a number of fights and maintains the tension of the battle by being able to defeat and counterattack. This monster call assists Bayonetta’s battle with various effects, but also captivates the eye with spectacular effects that fit a stylish genre.
In line with this new system, the form and characteristics of the enemy homunculus have also been introduced to match the beast so that the battle can be used more strategically. For example, the light action prediction unit ‘Mediocris’ is very mobile and cannot be caught by slow beast attacks, and there are self-destruct units specialized for demonic attacks, such as the light air combat unit ‘ Panus’, so he fits the situation, he asks for an opinion and has strategic fun.
All these monster summoning skills also use Bayonetta’s hair, so whenever you summon them, the visual concept of Bayonetta’s uniqueness is clearly revealed. In particular, the overwhelming directing that black hair is sucked in when summoning a large beast, or the powerful cut that pulls out one’s own heart to summon it, shows the strength and power of the main character at the same time, while seamlessly connecting to the battle to add fun.
It’s a game that’s too bad to only have the Switch
Bayonetta 3 is not without its flaws. The collectibles are carefully placed only in places that are difficult to look around, whether it is to forcefully increase the playing time, and the puzzle box showed a bad arrangement as if it had been default to using Devil Masquerade. In Bayonetta 3, which is characterized by fast battles and progression, it is very unfortunate that it takes a long time for one piece of content.
But these are all factors that can be ignored. The essence of the game is combat, and only the content described above are elements that players can selectively enjoy in the process. There’s another disappointment that permeates the core of Bayonetta 3. It’s a Nintendo Switch exclusive.
In fact, the Nintendo Switch is not a device that can run flashy action games smoothly. It’s inevitable because it was developed with Nintendo’s support, but this is a painful weakness in Bayonetta’s gameplay. It’s normal for the colorful effects to break in portable mode, but even in docked mode, if the screen is slightly larger, you’ll see low-resolution textures exposed. From large-scale chases that call for urgency, to frames that stop, to poor interaction between light and objects. Bayonetta’s unique impactful images, which she hoped to reveal even in the midst of spectacular actions, were overshadowed by the unintentional naive angel mode, which was a combination of several reasons.
Ironically, the fact that Bayonetta 3 is a well-made game is further emphasized by this flaw. Despite the fact that it was released as a console device where it is difficult to embrace the Bayonetta series, where fast speed and visuals are important, it has fun. The direction and planning that intertwines the giant beast, melee combat, and 2D stealth action with the originality of Bayonetta, ‘Non-Stop Stylish’, cannot be highly praised.
So Bayonetta 3 was saved by the Switch, but it’s hard to shake the thought that it was a game that killed the Switch. I wonder if it would be good if a PC version with better graphics like Monster Hunter Rise was released later. Sure, it’s a work that felt good just by releasing it, but it’s also a shame to give away Bayonetta’s charm like this.
