When Bayonetta 3 was announced, fans of the series were excited and could not wait to see what our favourite witch would be up to next. After a wait of several years, the game has come and what we have is a fitting send finale to the trilogy. It soars to new heights but has a major problem in that it is being held back by the hardware it runs on.
Just like Bayonetta 2 was bigger and better than Bayonetta 1, Bayonetta 3 ups the ante even more with new mechanics and a new story that sends our heroine across the multiverse. Some of these new mechanics include summoning demons to fight in Kaiju-style battles while you control them, new characters with a different playstyle entirely and gameplay shifts that completely turn the experience on its head. It is not just the gameplay though as the story in Bayonetta 3 is sheer insanity in the best way possible and leaves you wanting more.
This time around you are not fighting Inferno or Paradiso, but the Homunculi who are a bit of an outside context problem for Bayonetta and co. What follows is a journey that is definitely not what you may expect, but also fully in line with what the series has shown us before. Bayonetta 3 takes the action of the first two games and makes the combat feel fully improved and perfected, including new weapons and takes on the Witch Time magic.
Just the summoning of the demons in the Kaiju battles makes the game feel special already, and you will gradually unlock more demons to summon this way. As you do, the demons will give Bayonetta new weapons and abilities, and there is a skill tree for each of the demons as well, giving Bayonetta 3 some light RPG elements as well. What you need to keep in mind though, is that summoning the demons can leave you vulnerable to attacks while controlling the demons, so you will need to know when to deploy them in ways where you won’t get hurt.
Bayonetta 3 doesn’t stop there, as the new weapons and abilities offer many new combat options for you and that is just the start. There are also the aforementioned multiple playable characters to control this time around, such as Jeanne and Viola, who both play a significant part story-wise. Jeanne has sections that are played out in the form of stealth-style side-missions in a side-scrolling format and this different take on the gameplay is done so well that a full game in this style would not be a bad idea.
The other major change is the sections where you control Viola, the sword-wielding witch who has a mysterious connection to Bayonetta. Viola activates Witch Time in a very different way, as she must block and parry with her sword, rather than dodge and this changes up the gameplay formula immensely. These sections have a very different action style and yet it does not feel bad at all once you get adjusted to it and Viola is a welcome character to the franchise.
One other aspect worth mentioning is how Bayonetta 3 changes up the level design here, such as by giving bigger spaces to play around in and explore. Yes, there are intense combat sections in single areas like the other games, but once those are done you will be able to explore the different sections of the levels and find many more secrets than before, along with collectibles, challenges and more. The level variety is amazing here and the developers at PlatinumGames truly went above and beyond to create something special here with many different takes on the franchise as you explore the Bayonetta multiverse
Bayonetta 3 is a game that constantly throws more and more at you, whether it is more summons and skills trees to unlock, new weapons and combat styles or just new challenges to take on. This is a game you will want to play and replay over and over again to try and get better and manage to enjoy the spectacle. The game also contains a number of difficulty modes, a casual mode and the Naïve Angels mode which brings in censorship in a hilarious way and yet feels not at odds with Bayonetta.
What needs to be addressed is that Bayonetta 3 feels like it is pushing the Switch to its limits and sometimes the limits are too much. It is not noticeable all the time, but there are sections where it is very much apparent that Bayonetta 3 does have some optimization issues on the Switch. It still is a great-looking game, and a fast-paced experience, but more powerful hardware could have made a world of difference here.
Still, even with these issues, Bayonetta 3 is the best game in the series. It takes the series to new heights, offers a neat look at where things may go next and gives us some of the best action we ever had. It is clear Bayonneta 3 took ideas from Astral Chain and the cancelled Scalebound in terms of how the demons are controlled and that was a great move for PlatinumGames to make. This is not just a celebration of Bayonetta, but a celebration of PlatinumGames as a whole and also manages to tell a compelling and touching story that keeps you engaged.
Bayonetta 3 is fully recommended for all fans of the series and is a title that is not to be missed. If you like action games, you will love this one.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided.