Released last month, Bayonetta, appears to have been a big success for Sega and Platinum Games. This is really good news, especially, for a new IP and it's very likely that a sequel will be developed.

Bayonetta, was an excellent game and easily one of the best action games I've ever played. This does not mean it was a perfect game by any means. In fact, there are quite a few ways I feel Bayonetta could be improved. With the following design changes Sega could make Bayonetta 2 not only the best action game ever made but the best piece of digital entertainment ever conceived!

Just a note there may be mild spoilers in this article. If spoilers scare you in any way and you haven't finished Bayonetta continue with caution.



First off, I'm a firm believer that game developer's should avoid using cutscenes at all costs. If they are used they should be so amazing that it feels like a reward when you get to view one. Most games don't do this. I"m usually impatiently waiting for cutscenes to end to get back to the game play. It's especially jarring in Bayonetta because the game play is so fast paced and frantic that the cutscenes take away all the momentum. I don't mind the occasional choreographed fight scene but hearing generic characters talk about a plot I'm not interested in is not my idea of fun. The strange thing is Bayonetta has some breathtaking interactive moments (like the opening scene) that many developers would have created a cutscene for. Why they decided to put so much effort into all the cutscenes is difficult to comprehend.

The story itself was way too complex and Bayonetta could have benefitted from a more minimalist approach. Look at games like Ico and Shadow of the Colossus. They aren't filling your head with all these names and plot points and they're story is much more affecting then Bayonetta's. Leave the player to start to question and try and develop what's going on rather than have them get confused and frustrated because they aren't understanding everything that's being told to them. I for one barely understood what was going on. Bayonetta has you killing off all these majestic angelic beasts and it is kind of interesting as to whether you are actually the "good guy" or not. The potential for the player to try and figure out the story is there.



A lot of people complained about the various minigames in Bayonetta. I agree with the complaints but I also loved the random nods to various Sega titles. The motorcycle (Hang-On?) section and the bullet riding (Space Harrier) portions went on way too long but for the first couple minutes I loved them. They felt like a little reward that broke up the gameplay for a little bit until diving back into the intense action. Unfortunately, there were only those two moments, which, actually made them feel kind of out of place with the rest of the game. There's so many interesting things they could do with the idea that I hope to see more if a sequel is developed. A 2D sidescroller like Shinobi? An arcade driving portion like Outrun? Streets of Rage? Virtua Fighter? Sonic?

Get rid of Angel Attack though. That was lame.



The store in Bayonetta felt unnecessary. I never used the weapons I bought as they felt underdeveloped when compared to the default weapons. Usually, I would stock up on the extra life item and some potions and occasionally buy a new move. I bought the same things almost every visit. The thing is all of the items and techniques the store offers could be integrated into the gameplay.

Collecting halos would be entirely for unlocking new techniques. Similar to Batman: Arkham Asylum when you obtained enough halos you'd be able to go into the upgrade menu and select what new move you'd want to learn.

The potions and extra lives could all be found in the environment, rewarding exploration. I liked the herb mixing element of Bayonetta and if all items could be obtained by different combinations of herbs it would give the player the choice of what item they wanted. No more going to the store and buying one of each before entering the next level.

I would remove the ability to buy and equip new weapons and accessories entirely. This would give the developers the ability to focus all their attention on making the default weaponry as good as they can. Keep Bayonetta's ability to temporarily obtain enemy weapons, though, as they were a little more powerful and added a little strategy when deciding how you used them. Plus, some of them just looked cool.



The torture attacks in Bayonetta are fun to watch the first few times you see them but, when you've seen the same attack over ten times it starts to slow the action down. Part way through the game I started intentionally not doing the torture attacks sometimes because I didn't feel like watching the same animation everytime and repeatedly pressing a button.

A better solution would be to give the player some choice in the torture attack that gets performed. When the player hits the buttons required to start a torture attack give the player a limited amount of time to enter a sequence of buttons. Depending on the complexity of buttons and what moves the player had unlocked a quick torture attack would be performed. The more complex the attack the more halos the player gets out of it. Remove the mindless tapping of a single button completely.

The final hair attacks during boss fights could also be improved. They all look amazing but the fact that your interaction with them is hitting Y as fast as you can seems to ruin the potential. Even something as simple as guiding their mouth, talon, fist, etc., similar to guiding the bullet at the end of the game would make the player feel like they were actually doing something. The reward of defeating a boss as Bayonetta and then temporarily gaining control of this giant hair beast would give the player a much bigger sense of accomplishment. The game would acknowledge the fact that you've mastered the techniques needed to defeat the boss, and in return give you control over a creature who's only purpose is to destroy the boss in the most satisfying way possible.



Two of my favorite parts of Bayonetta were moments when I didn't even expect to be interactive. Controlling the bullet to finish off the final boss was extremely cool. Then, during the credits little scenes in the background would randomly become playable. I wasn't even holding the controller at first and quickly grabbed the controller after I noticed that Bayonetta was getting the crap beat out of her. If the developers are able to think of more creative moments for interactivity and game play the game will be that much more memorable. Of all the moments in Bayonetta the bullet scene will probably be the one that sticks with me the longest.

And Sega, don't release a sloppy port.