Like its predecessor, Bayonetta 2 didn't take me more than weekend to get through the main story. While the single-player story only holds about 9 hours gameplay it is time well spent. This time around we were given a co-op mode, which is it not bad, and greatly extends the life of this game. Bayonetta 2 by Platinum Games is a well-packaged product that expanded on the first title and gave us even more.
The Game:
Bayonetta 2 kept true to it roots and plays just like Bayonetta did. This game is a hack-and-slash stylized fighter where you will be battling your way through hordes of enemies using combos specific to each weapon. You will start out with Bayonetta's signature pistols but will be able to find new weapons throughout the game.
You work your way through different chapters, which offer a diverse set of scenarios. Some are just simple event levels where you watch more than you play them and others are full on exploration where you will fight your way from one area to the next. There are chests and challenge levels in the game that contain pieces of hearts and magic orbs. Once you collect the right amount it more to your life or magic.
The Gate to Hell is still where you will buy alternatives for your weapons, moves, items, and this time there are a lot more cosmetic skins that you can buy for Bayonetta. The amount of weapons alternatives and items are about the same. You can also find drops in the level that will let you craft her favorite lollipops so you don't have to buy them. These lollipops do things like replenish health and magic as well as add a damage bonus.
Multiplayer is new to this game and comes in the form of co-op. You can play online with strangers, a CPU, or couch co-op it. The character you take in will be the one you have in the save slot, so if you unlocked all of the hearts, you will have a lot of health. Your weapons and accessories are also carried in. Through the game, you will unlock cards, which are different scenarios of enemies you can fight. You and another player will try to do the most damage while taking as little as possible. If you survive one of you will be picked as a winner and will be able to choose the card for the next round.
You work your way through different chapters, which offer a diverse set of scenarios. Some are just simple event levels where you watch more than you play them and others are full on exploration where you will fight your way from one area to the next. There are chests and challenge levels in the game that contain pieces of hearts and magic orbs. Once you collect the right amount it more to your life or magic.
The Gate to Hell is still where you will buy alternatives for your weapons, moves, items, and this time there are a lot more cosmetic skins that you can buy for Bayonetta. The amount of weapons alternatives and items are about the same. You can also find drops in the level that will let you craft her favorite lollipops so you don't have to buy them. These lollipops do things like replenish health and magic as well as add a damage bonus.
Multiplayer is new to this game and comes in the form of co-op. You can play online with strangers, a CPU, or couch co-op it. The character you take in will be the one you have in the save slot, so if you unlocked all of the hearts, you will have a lot of health. Your weapons and accessories are also carried in. Through the game, you will unlock cards, which are different scenarios of enemies you can fight. You and another player will try to do the most damage while taking as little as possible. If you survive one of you will be picked as a winner and will be able to choose the card for the next round.
My Thoughts:
When it comes to a good fighting hack-and-slash Bayonetta 2 is the pinnacle. It is a full-on action experience with smooth controls, a large variation in moves and weapons, and a story that is well worth following. While Bayonetta 2 added some more features and cleaned up some of the more useless features of Bayonetta, at times I feel it borrowed a little too much. Even though I felt there were some parts that were not as fresh it didn't hurt the game at all and I found myself really enjoying it. The multi-player co-op is the cherry on top of this amazing treat.From the opening movie and opening fights, you know that the fast pace, world bending, sexy attitude has gone nowhere. It is a visual treat even on the limited hardware. Tight fighting combos mixed with twitch dodging and enemies with a large variety of moves creates a unique experience for something you would think would be repetitive. All of this is driven by the protagonists sharp and confident attitude as she moves through her story combating the forces of heaven and hell. This is broken up into some great boss fights and levels that change up the gameplay completely.
The controls were fine save for a few complaints I have about the joycons. I want to get a pro-control just for games like this. Bayonetta has the ability to perform an execution move which requires a button mashing quick time event. Sometimes the QTE is to spin the joystick and that felt super awkward on the joycon's joystick. Another controller issue is how the controller dock for the joycon's positions your hand. Bayonetta is able to dodge with the right trigger button and change weapons with the top weapon button. Due to the position your hand is in and how wide that top button is I found myself swapping weapon sets a lot, which would destroy the combo I had in mind after the dodge.
I found a lot of recycled stuff in the game as well. The cutscene in and out of The Gate to Hell looks the same. In fact, much of that shop was just pulled from the first one. It felt a little bland but then again if it isn't broke. The big difference was that there are many more costumes you could buy. There was a lot of the same type of collecting with books and the birds with the bloodstones as well. The rehashing of enemies is to be expected in a series so that didn't bother me too much.
Don't get me wrong though, this game was great. I am just nitpicking because I can without fear of it being brought down. It's not perfect but its pretty damn close. The pacing of Bayonetta 2 is like an epic song that starts out rocking and finishes with something so immense and heavy you know you are fighting for all the stakes. A fair fight but a hard one.
One final piece I have to talk about is the co-op. This is by far one of the best new features of the game. This is one of the most addicting parts as you are building up the halo currency to play a game of glamour PvE. The fact you have to judge what you and your new ally can do really makes each fight interesting. The best part is that people who are not far enough in the story will never have to worry about spoilers. On the other side of the equation are the people who beat the game and get to fight bosses with a little help. These quick levels of combat can be pretty addictive.
It's beyond question that I would recommend this game. It's plays well, it looks good, and it's compelling. It lets you play at a level you are comfortable with and invites you to play even harder. The co-op is a great addition and it leaves you with the feeling of money well spent. It's all I can really ask for in a game.
TL;DR:
Bayonetta 2 hack-and-slash game fueled by hot action that I could not recommend more. It well made, plays well, and gives you plenty to do after the relatively short (9 hours) story that ported very well to the Switch. I highly recommend it.
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