Bayonetta 1 (Wii U)

BUY.

 

While technically these game are (traditionally) a package deal, and this game is pretty old by modern standards, having come out on previous generation consoles, I figured I'd still throw a review out there for any would-be digital purchasers, who are wondering if the game is worth the $10 asking price (bundled) or $30 asking price (standalone on the Wii U e-shop).

 

To keep it simple, this is likely one of the best games on the Wii U, if not on current gen consoles. This game is FANTASTIC, and getting it bundled for $60 instead of 2 alone is possibly the best value for money you can ask for, quite honestly. 

 

I'll go over the negative aspects of this game first to get them out of the way -- there are very few.

Difficulty Spikes.

This is probably the biggest problem I had with the game, playing on the normal difficulty -- the difficulty of the game would seemingly spike at random, with a previous few encounters being a complete cakewalk, the next encounter being ridiculously difficult usually killing me two to three times, before I proceeded into what seemed to be a normal difficulty again, where I completely stomped the enemies without much thought. I understand the game is difficult -- but I prefer consistency. If it's going to be hard, keep it hard, and force me to get better. 

I'd like to clarify that this is my first foray into this genre, as I've always been intrigued by the DMC games and other games in it's ilk, I've just never had the appropriate system, and when I did I just heard how they weren't "as good" as the old games. As a result, I shyed away from the genre and never gave it a second thought, until Bayonetta 2 was announced. 

Instadeath QTE's

This is admittedly more of a gripe than an actual complaint, but it was one of the most frustrating points of the game for me. I'd be engrossed in the action playing out infront of me on screen, and then suddenly "MASH THIS BUTTON!" would appear, and I'd have to quickly react -- but a lot of the time, you don't even know the QTE is coming until you've already failed it -- and then you've died, and added a death to that chapter, further reducing your reward. It was something when I was feeling like a total badass, dodging attacks left and right, not taking any damage.. and then I died to a QTE because I didn't hit Y or X+A fast enough. 

Having said all that, I'll move onto the things that made Bayonetta one of my favorite games: 

Tight, consistent combat.

In a character action game like Bayonetta, you'd obviously expect the main focus to be on the combat, and you'd expect them to get it right -- and let me tell you, they NAILED it. It's incredibly tight, getting off combos is fluid, and the attacks are visceral and satisfying. Landing a "wicked weave" on your enemies does a lot of damage and they react to it. Mashing buttons against certain opponents leads to them parrying you and counter attacking, requiring you to think instead of mindlessly mash buttons. It's fantastic,  and probably on the side of one of the best combat systems in a game I've ever played.

The variety of weapons is fantastic, and each one fills a different role. What you use is up to you -- I personally went with a katana and shotguns on my feet for the majority of the game, because I value CQC -- but someone else might use a whip and ice skates to make quick work of their enemies. It's up to the individual on how they want to approach and tackle each fight, and it feels really, really good. 

The combat encounters (outside of the aforementioned difficulty spikes) are satisfying, with enemies just strong enough to take a few hits, but not too strong that you feel like you're beating your head against a wall -- even bosses for the most part, had weakpoints and movesets that were easily exploitable, making the overall experience generally pretty satisfying, even when you were getting kicked around and losing.

Beautiful world.

The aesthic of Bayonetta, and the general world design is FANTASTIC. They nailed the setting perfectly, while matching each "worlds" general theme -- "Paradiso", which is the games equivalent of a holy land or "heaven", to put it bluntly, is sunshine filled, beautiful, and has plenty of grand architecture that really strikes home as a "land of the light". The human world, which by all rights should be pretty boring and mundane compared to the high octane action the game encompasses, actually feels very varied and different, with a variety of structures and locations you travel through, feeling almost fantastic, while still being grounded enough as to not completely suspend your disbelief. Any "out of this world" level building they have to do can be easily explained away by a alternate plane that humanity can't see nor interact with, to allow you to retain the fast pace and high action, while keeping true to the level design.

Surprisingly, the story & cinematics.

The story in Bayonetta while being ridiculous, is pretty solid. They give you enough to get you through it, while keeping bits and details here and there that truly keep the world held together. The tiny bits and pieces put into each thought of the lore was something that really caught my attention as a fan of lore; while this game is essentially japanese Die Hard, they didn't completely throw the story out the window in favor of explosions and gratuitous fanservice. Those things are of course prevalent in this game, but the story doesn't suffer for it, and in some cases of extreme action, it's enhanced by it. Seeing the mechanical workings of a divine being as you rip it limb from limb is enhanced by knowing what it's supposed to be and seeing the intricacies of each piece. 

The story is of course  predictable and a bit cliche, but it's not downright bad by any stretch of the imagination. It's serviceable, and the minute details really help sell me on this. I actually didn't want to stop playing the game simply because I wanted to see what would happen next. I wanted to see the constant action and the absurdity of it all.

Fantastic Soundtrack.

While I was already a fan of "Fly me to the Moon", the remix of it constantly playing during scenes and boss fights really drove home just how good of a song it is. The sound design in Bayonetta is fantastic, and I'm actually going to end up purchasing the OST when I get a chance. The atmospheric music is suitable to the slower periods while you're maneuvering the environment, while the battle music gets you ready to crack skulls. The boss music switches between you actually fighting the boss, which is something to get your adrenaline pumping, while something soft and almost mockingly plays while you're about to deliver a finisher to the boss. The contrast and emphasis of the soundtrack during specific scenes of the game perfectly seals the mood, and overall are enjoyable to listen to.

Buy this game if you haven't, if you've tried it in the past and gave it up -- pick it up again and play through it to the end. It's likely going to end up as one of the greats of the generation, a gem that everyone remembers fondly, and you shouldn't pass up the opportunity to pick it up before it becomes a relic.