Bayonetta: The Queen of War May Cry

but she'll be more likely to titter while administering fatal spankings to angels.

I have to say, Bayonetta is probably the most Japanese game I've ever played. There was a handful of times that I thought to myself, "Only in Japan." And you know what? We, the game--playing populace are all the better for it.

Bayonetta is one of the most imaginative and fresh games I've ever played. This game is Hideki Kamiya's creativity unleashed. Thankfully it isn't a case of big ideas and spotty execution. Thanks to the development experience of Kamiya and his team at Platinum Games this is also one of the best 3rd person action games ever created.

Everything about the game is pitch-perfect. The action stays near 60 frames per second at all times (something even Team Ninja couldn't do with Ninja Gaiden 2). The flow of combat was clearly crafted by a team that understands how to keep players challenged with a variety of combat scenarios while leaving the player in total control.

In my opinion, one of the key's to Bayonetta's triumph of design over its competitors is the game's intelligent use of the dodge button. There are two mechanical reasons as to why this game's dodge functionality surpasses its peers: 1) There is a button dedicated to dodging and only dodging. 2) This button is placed right under the player's index finger, which makes it its primary task. The player is able to dodge instantaneously as needed as a result of this logical design.

Platinum Games wisely explicitly highlights the importance of dodging by rewarding the player for doing so. If you dodge at the last second before being attacked, Bayonetta will activate Witch Time, which slows down all enemies on the screen for a period of time. Thankfully, the timing for this is strict enough to reward you for having good timing, but not so strict that the mere mortals among us are able to utilize it. Think God of War parry timing for Street Fighter III: Third Strike parry timing and you'll know the difference. Witch Time not only slows enemies down, but some enemies have a shield of some kind that can only be efficiently dispatched if you are using Witch Time. This is what elevates dodging to being the core mechanic of the game, moreso than combos.

In the next updates I will talk about more combat system specifics and why Bayonetta may be craziest AAA games you will ever play.