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BAYONETTA
review | XBOX 360
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Publisher: SEGA.
Developer: Platinum Games. Released: January 2010 (Europe). Genre: Hack 'n' Slash; Action/Adventure. Other versions: PS3. Posted 2nd July 2025. By Shane Battams © 2025 |
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Clover Studio produced some of the finest games of the sixth generation, including Okami, God Hand and Viewtiful Joe. Sadly, their sequence of excellence was met with a muted commercial response, leading to the closure of the studio by Capcom. Luckily for fans of these offbeat titles, a merger between two companies comprising much of the same talent led to the formation of Platinum Games, more or less picking up the baton from there. Their third title would tap into director Hideki Kamiya’s penchant for action games like Devil May Cry with Bayonetta. It marked one of the most stylish, gorgeous and frantic adventures of its generation, an excellent game sullied only by some minor blemishes.
Following the escapades of Umbra witch Bayonetta, the titular heroine is suffering a bit of amnesia after falling into a deep, 500-year sleep. Having awakened, she begins searching for the counterpart to her jewel which together form the Eyes of the World, which manages the stream of time. Along the way, she duels frequently with a myriad of angelic monsters and another witch who seems to have ties to Cereza’s past. There’s also a subplot involving a man who witnessed his father’s death and blames Bayonetta, and a lost girl who clings to the witch like she’s her mother. On the one hand, stylishly directed cut-scenes offer incredible action and some breathtaking moments which live long in the memory. On the other hand, from a narrative standpoint, Bayonetta is admittedly messy. Random time jumps, overly theatrical voicework and some gratuitous moments show silly intent, so perhaps overanalysing this yarn is fruitless, but those expecting a coherent narrative may come away perplexed.
Bayonetta doesn't do things by halves: battles and bosses regularly ascend to mammoth proportions
What certainly isn’t disappointing is the gameplay. Like a lost sequel to Devil May Cry, Bayonetta sees you cutting up enemies across a ton of levels, while evading attacks and sustaining combos earns better grades. Being a witch, Cereza’s combos often come with an impactful weave flourish, where she conjures large fists or boots to deal more damage. Response times and performance are outstanding, seeing moves flow with a smoothness not often seen at the time. Witch Time also proves a key element of combat, where a timed dodge slows everything, and allows you to dish out more damage. Bayonetta also has a magic bar, which can be filled to perform Torture Attacks: powerful quick-time events that summon a variety of unsettling machines to torture your enemies. Different enemy types come with unique Torture Attacks, and can be very helpful in clearing tougher foes’ health bars quickly. All these elements, combined with incredibly smooth gameplay, make this insanely fun.
Across 17 stages, Platinum Games would have players engaging in a myriad of insane scenarios. The opening sees you duelling with angels as a clock tower falls down a cliff, all the while a narration tries to shout over your murdering spree. Chapter 3 has you backtracking through a city explored in the previous chapter, but a range of fire hazards and eruptions test your skills even more and add a new spin on a familiar setting. Certain chapters are just fights against giant bosses, which prove an absolute highlight with incredible destruction, challenging attack patterns and satisfying finishes where you conjure kaiju-sized beasts to finish them. Quieter moments of puzzles and exploration do pop up, if only to offer a breather, but otherwise, the pace never relents. Not everything is flawless, though. A couple of vehicle sections feel a tad overlong, but a lot of the time, the hyperactive nature of Bayonetta is a sight to behold and keeps you glued to the screen.
Across 17 stages, Platinum Games would have players engaging in a myriad of insane scenarios. The opening sees you duelling with angels as a clock tower falls down a cliff, all the while a narration tries to shout over your murdering spree. Chapter 3 has you backtracking through a city explored in the previous chapter, but a range of fire hazards and eruptions test your skills even more and add a new spin on a familiar setting. Certain chapters are just fights against giant bosses, which prove an absolute highlight with incredible destruction, challenging attack patterns and satisfying finishes where you conjure kaiju-sized beasts to finish them. Quieter moments of puzzles and exploration do pop up, if only to offer a breather, but otherwise, the pace never relents. Not everything is flawless, though. A couple of vehicle sections feel a tad overlong, but a lot of the time, the hyperactive nature of Bayonetta is a sight to behold and keeps you glued to the screen.
FOCAL POINT: A CHANGE OF PERSPECTIVE
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Perhaps some of the coolest moments of Bayonetta come about when Platinum alters the perspective to see you exploring in ways mere humans cannot. Being a witch of darkness, a clear moon allows Cereza to walk up walls, altering how you traverse, and partaking in combat during these moments is often trippy yet enjoyable. There seems to be a few odes to Super Mario Galaxy, of all games, as you walk around a spherical mound and the camera shifts to a wider view. Eventually, you can even traverse using animal forms, including the Panther, which allows for greater speed and longer jumps. It creates a great sense of intrigue, as you wait anxiously for the next perspective shift and how it will affect your gameplay. In particular, frequent duels with the rival witch who can also fully traverse the environment, seeing battles scale walls and onto the ceiling, which is awesome fun. Thankfully, controls and camera keep up with these shifts very well.
Character action games often come with a degree of challenge, but Bayonetta proved remarkably accessible in contrast. There are five difficulties in total, with the last two unlocked upon completion of the previous setting. The lower settings come with an Automatic function, which chains combos together with the press of one button. It allows you to experience the insanity without blocking off the game to less skilled players, though it crucially sees your rewards lessen. You earn Halos that can be spent unlocking a slew of weapons, accessories and even healing items. Special items unlock which can prove game-changing, such as the Moon of Mahaa-Kalaa, which allows you to block attacks by pushing your analogue stick in the direction of the attack, which is incredibly useful for stopping combos. Completion of higher settings rewards incredibly powerful weapons, incentivising dedication and developing your skills. The only dampener concerning the difficulty curve are the QTEs, which often feel frustratingly easy to miss and usually result in an instant death, which greatly diminishes your final rank. Still, an initial 12-hour run can easily creep towards the thirty-hour mark, with upgrades carrying over each playthrough and shortening subsequent runs.
Bayonetta’s presentation is also top-notch. A visual treat, the gorgeous tech combines with the distinctly European architecture and art style to form a memorable whole. Animations look splendid, especially during combat which see moves chain together with lightning efficiency. And performance, outside of a couple of moments, retains a rock-solid frame rate, ensuring response times remain rapid. Seeing the gigantic bosses attack, with tons of destruction, all the while the game runs at 60fps, is a joy. The sound is great too. Campy voice acting is enjoyably goofy, and combat strikes and blows sound crisp. The torture attacks, in particular, make your skin crawl. But the music proves the standout, a cavalcade of tracks ranging from epic orchestration, jazz-infused jams and even some odes to publisher SEGA’s past, with Climax Mixes of the likes of Splash Wave. It’s outstanding.
Bayonetta’s presentation is also top-notch. A visual treat, the gorgeous tech combines with the distinctly European architecture and art style to form a memorable whole. Animations look splendid, especially during combat which see moves chain together with lightning efficiency. And performance, outside of a couple of moments, retains a rock-solid frame rate, ensuring response times remain rapid. Seeing the gigantic bosses attack, with tons of destruction, all the while the game runs at 60fps, is a joy. The sound is great too. Campy voice acting is enjoyably goofy, and combat strikes and blows sound crisp. The torture attacks, in particular, make your skin crawl. But the music proves the standout, a cavalcade of tracks ranging from epic orchestration, jazz-infused jams and even some odes to publisher SEGA’s past, with Climax Mixes of the likes of Splash Wave. It’s outstanding.
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Bayonetta is an outstanding action game which revels in excess and immaturity galore, and while some of its over-the-top nature can diminish the experience, very few hack-and-slash games play so well. Top-notch gameplay, stunning graphics and tons of unlockables keep players coming for more. Some frustrations prove noticeable, such as cheap deaths from quick-time events, but frowns are very quickly replaced with grins. Whether it’s slashing through angels while slowing down time, battling one of the screen-filling bosses or watching the ludicrous choreography take over during cut-scenes, it’s hard not to enjoy this epic action game. Unless you take gaming super seriously, Platinum’s third outing proves an easy recommendation.
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VERDICT"Despite one or two noticeable frustrations, Bayonetta is an outstanding action game with top-notch gameplay, stunning graphics and tons of unlockables. It’s hard not to enjoy this one." OVERALL: 9/10 |
OTHER FULL-ON ACTION GAMES OF THE PERIOD REVIEWED
Gears of War 2 (2008, Xbox 360)
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God of War III (2010, PlayStation 3)
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