It's time to kick butt and suck some lollipops, and I'm all out of lollipops.
Bayonetta was sort of a revelation to me, as in 'Why didn't I play this before?!'. I mean, I know why I didn't, Bayonetta's oversexualized design was a HUGE turn off for me, as the character only looked stupid instead of sexy, which is what they were going for. But, hey! The game was fantastic, and in some ways, it surpassed its sister series, Devil May Cry. Well, here I'm late to the party again with Bayonetta 2, but better late than never.
The worst bit about Bayonetta 2 is the fact that it's pretty much identical to the original game. Gameplay-wise there are new weapons, but for all intents and purposed, the combat remains pretty similar. But this extends to the plot. Characters return in the same roles they had before. Bayonetta is the sassy main character, once again she strikes the most egregiously sexualized poses as the camera slides through her butt in the dumbest of ways, Enzo and Luka are useless comic relief, Rodin sells you stuff and Jeanne... well, her role did change, as she is now an ally... although, once again, a damsel in distress, more literally in this game. Oh, and while Cereza is gone in this entry, there's a new annoying kid character, but this one is even more annoying because his personality is super abrasive. I just wanted him to die 'cause he was so insufferable. But the worst part about the plot... is the fact that once again, the low-budget story sequences told through still images return. What's their excuse now? If it's a stylistic choice it's a damn cheap one.
Thankfully, one doesn't play Bayonetta for its story, The combat is still delicious, letting you equip Bayonetta's hands and feet with different weapon, thus allying for wildly different combat styles. You also get two pre-sets you can switch between in real time pressing R. It's as satisfying and fast paced as it was in the original game, and not much has changed. Dodging at the last possible moment rewards you with Witch time, which makes time slow down for your enemies for a short while. One new change, is that now you can use your Moon gauge in a different way. Punish attacks return, and work just like they did before, but you can also press L to enter Ultimate Climax for a short while, which makes you deal larger and stronger attacks for a short while. QTEs have been toned down a lot too, now being relegated to Counter Attacks or finishers, thank god!
Bayonetta's combat was so good that it didn't really need to evolve, so it being like the first game but slightly better isn't a bad thing in this case, I mean, it's not like it's one of the archaic Lego games! This entry soups things up by making it more epic. The situations in which Bayonetta must battle in this game are nothing short of spectacular, as you fight over fallen debris, combat giant enemies or do battle as giant creatures fight behind you. Spectacle is something this game has got in spades.
Another neat new thing, at least considering I played the PS3 version of the original game, is that the loading times are incredibly swift. You barely get any time to try out Bayo's combos! Also, beating the game unlocks Jeanne and beating the game in Hard mode unlocks Rosa. Both alternate characters play very similarly to Bayonetta, although they have different properties. Jeanne's Witch Time activation window is much smaller, and Rosa plays like a glass cannon, high damage output but very fragile.
And then there's a new mode, Tag Climax, which you can play with a dumb AI partner or another player, locally or online. Tag Climax offers over 50 mini-arenas to play around with you, and you can use any of the playable characters. As you play these arenas, you may get 'random encounters' which allows you to unlock two other characters, Rodin and... well, a spoiler character. Sadly, they can't be used in Story Mode, but hey! It's not a bad extra.
Bayonetta 2 is amazing. I still think the idea behind Bayonetta losing clothes as she fights is idiotic, making the camera slide through her body as she moves in the cringiest 'suggestive' poses makes her look dumb instead of sexy BUT the games are top-notch hack-and-slash extravaganzas that give Devil May Cry a run for its money. In some ways, I insist, the combat mechanics in the Bayonetta game's are superior, it's just that even Dante who I find to be kinda lame is still cooler that Bayonetta and her cringy 'sexy' disposition. Honestly, I can't believe that the developers look at the way Bayonetta poses and think 'this looks sexy' and not 'this looks dumb'. But alas, c'est la vie, Japan can't live without fanservice.
9.5
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