Developer : Sega
Release date : October 29, 2009
Synopsis :
Bayonetta is a 2009 action-adventure game developed by PlatinumGames and published by Sega. The game was originally released for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in Japan in October 2009, and in North America and Europe in January 2010. The game was later released on the Wii U alongside its sequel, Bayonetta 2, releasing in September 2014 in Japan and worldwide the following month – the two games were later released worldwide on the Nintendo Switch in February 2018. An enhanced port for Microsoft Windows was released in April 2017 with 4K support. A remastered version of Bayonetta as well as another PlatinumGames title, Vanquish, was released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on February 18, 2020, as part of a compilation to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the game.
Bayonetta takes place in Vigrid, a fictional city in Europe. The game stars the eponymous character, a witch who is capable of shapeshifting and using various firearms. She possesses magical attacks and she can use her hair to summon demons to dispatch her foes. The game features a rating system, which gives players a grade based on their performance, and a combat system that is similar to the Devil May Cry series.
Development of the game was started in January 2007, with Hideki Kamiya being the game’s director. The development team’s name, “Team Little Angels”, is a play on the name of the team who developed the first Devil May Cry game, “Team Little Devils”. According to Kamiya, the game was completely original, though he drew some inspirations from Scandinavian mythology and played Devil May Cry 4 for reference. The game’s theme is “sexiness” and “partial nudity” and that the characters were designed to be “fashionable”. Kamiya and artist Mari Shimazaki spent more than a year to create Bayonetta’s design. Several demos were released for the game prior to its launch. Bayonetta was the third project released by PlatinumGames, which was founded by former Clover Studio employees.
Upon release, the game received generally positive reviews. The game was praised for its combat, presentation and soundtrack, but drew criticism for its story and quick time events. Bayonetta was nominated for and won several end-of-the-year accolades, had sold over a million units worldwide by 2010, and is cited as one of the best video games ever made. An anime film adaptation of the game by Gonzo, titled Bayonetta: Bloody Fate, was released in Japan in November 2013. A third game, Bayonetta 3, is in development for the Switch and is scheduled to be released in 2022.
Bayonetta, a witch who was revived twenty years ago from the bottom of a lake, has no memories of her past. Owning one-half of the “Eyes of the World,” Bayonetta leaves for Vigrid when the informant Enzo informs her of rumors that the other half is there.
Afterward, Bayonetta confronts another Umbra Witch named Jeanne, who seemingly has ties to Bayonetta’s past, and a young man named Luka, who blames Bayonetta for his father’s death. Eventually, Bayonetta discovers that Jeanne is associated with the angels somehow, and fights her again. Afterwards, she meets a lost child named Cereza, who believes Bayonetta to be her mother and starts following her. Returning to the human world, Bayonetta continues her search for the Right Eye, journeying to an island named Isla del Sol with Luka and Cereza.
Bayonetta is confronted again by Jeanne, who explains Bayonetta was a child born from an Umbra Witch and a Lumen Sage, a forbidden union. Bayonetta defeats Jeanne, who reveals the reason Bayonetta possesses the Left Eye is because she has accepted her fate. Bayonetta hands Jeanne the gem she had been carrying, making her remember she is Cereza, and that Jeanne was once her friend; it was Jeanne who sealed her away, giving Bayonetta the gem to protect her and the Left Eye. After Jeanne then sacrifices herself to save Bayonetta, she continues through the tower with Luka and Cereza.
At the top, Bayonetta meets Balder, the last of the Lumen Sages. Balder reveals he is Bayonetta’s father, and plans to reunite the three universes by resurrecting Jubileus, the Creator. He also reveals that Bayonetta herself is the Left Eye, but for her to awaken it, she had to regain her memories. For that reason, he brought Cereza, who is Bayonetta as a child, from the past, to awaken her memories. Confronted by Luka, he throws him to his death, revealing he was the one behind the death of Luka’s father, and further reveals that he had mind-controlled Jeanne to do his bidding. Bayonetta fights and seemingly kills Balder, and saves Luka.
After returning Cereza to the past, Bayonetta returns to the present. However, her actions have caused her to awaken the Left Eye, and she collapses. Balder, who had survived the fight, transports himself and the unconscious Bayonetta towards the statue on top of the tower, beginning the resurrection of Jubileus. As the statue launches into space, Jeanne, who had survived, reappears, free from Balder’s control. She ascends the launching statue on her motorcycle; reaching Bayonetta, she saves her, but Jubileus comes alive, consuming Balder. Bayonetta defeats Jubileus by summoning Queen Sheba, who punches the deity’s soul into the sun. As Jubileus’ physical body plummets towards Earth, Jeanne and Bayonetta destroy it.
The epilogue, mirroring the start of the game, shows Jeanne and Bayonetta continuing to battle against the angels.
Source : Wikipedia
