Bayonetta Demo Impressions: The Next Great Action Game?

Posted by Anton Gordon at 12:34 PM Dec 01, 2009

​On December 3, the Bayonetta demo will be released. It's only a short glimpse of the final game, but gives the players a great taste of what to expect. I had a chance to run through the demo a couple of times, and based on that small exposure, I'm ready to declare Bayonetta the next great action game.

I don't need to recap the bizarro story or setting of Bayonetta - if you're at all interested in this game you know all about its strange "hair-covered witch killing angels" concept. I originally assumed that the game would suck based on that goofball concept, but boy was I wrong. Bayonetta's gameplay has the liquid-smooth feel of Tecmo's Ninja Gaiden, coupled with the grand setpieces of God of War. In just the demo, you'll battle on falling remains of a clock tower and fight on a section of bridge being swung around by a giant monster. You'll kill a huge baby-faced creature who swings a giant axe and slaughter hordes of feathered monsters that attack in groups. Fortunately, you'll be able to make quick work of all of them, thanks to the game's sleek combat engine.

Bayonetta has three primary attack buttons, but the deadliest move in her arsenal is the dodge button. Time your dodges right, and you'll rack up ridiculous combos. A perfectly timed dodge slows time down for a moment, letting you deliver extra damage to your foes. Build those combos up and you can unleash "torture" moves - finishing moves that kill your enemy in creative and graphic fashion. The better you perform in combat, the higher the ranking you get at the end of a stage, so Bayonetta is going to cause a lot of perfectionist gamers to replay its levels again and again.

The Bayonetta demo is only a tiny bit of the game, but I can't overstress how impressed I was with it. I don't think it's hyperbole to declare this game the next Ninja Gaiden or God of War. If you like action games at all, you owe it to yourself to play Bayonetta. But don't take my word for it. Play the demo for yourself in a couple days. I think you'll be convinced.