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It opens with a surprisingly dark prologue chapter that introduces a mysterious and powerful new villain and a scene that we’re not used to seeing in Bayonetta: The title character on her heels in a losing fight.īut that mystery surrounding the villain never pays off – his motives largely go unexplored and the stakes that were set at the beginning feel largely meaningless in the grand scheme of things.
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That said, Bayonetta 3’s story is the weakest of the trilogy, which is especially disappointing because it starts out so promisingly. So if you were worried about jumping right into Bayonetta 3 without having played the originals, don’t be: you’ll pick up everything you need pretty quickly. While the first two Bayonetta games are directly linked as far as their stories went, Bayonetta 3’s tale is largely standalone, with the only required knowledge being surface level details of who the major characters are. Bayonetta 3 is an invigorated sequel with fresh new ideas that embolden its 13-year-old combat system, an impressive amount of variety throughout its 10 to 12-hour campaign, and more of that trademark sexy Bayonetta style that makes the series one of a kind.
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Bayonetta 3 just further cements its legacy, strutting out with a surprising sequel in that it actually takes a lot of risks with changing up its established formula in an effort to revitalize a combat system that only slightly evolved between the first two games. It’s just incredible to look at, feels equally amazing to play, and is jam packed with opportunities for style and creativity thanks to the wide assortment of wild weapons at your disposal. I hold the Bayonetta series’ combat in such high esteem that I’d consider it in the top five or so combat systems of all time, right next to the Devil May Cry, God of War, Ninja Gaiden, and Batman Arkham games.
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