Bayonetta 2 reviews dropped today, with our very own Griffin Vacheron awarding it a rare 9.5/10, calling it “one of the best action games of the decade.” The critics love it, and presumably it’s going to astound the gaming community when it launches in just over a week.
It’s scored so well that quite a few gamers have vocalized how surprised they have been with its reception, presumably because they expected less from it. Frankly, I’m surprised that they’re surprised.
If there’s one thing we’ve learned about Platinum Games, it’s that when it approaches game design it crafts an exciting gameplay concept, refines it, and then builds a game around it. In the case of Bayonetta 2, that focus on gameplay has resulted in it being the highest-rated original game of 2014 so far.
When looking back on the progress of all three current-gen consoles, I can’t help but notice how much difficulty developers are having in their quest to build one of the generation’s first memorable games. I’ve played through countless games this year that have pleased my eyes, but left me with a negative lasting impression. Destiny, for example, was a game that was took itself way too seriously. It had cohesive gunplay, but didn’t back it up with features and mechanics that could have kept it interesting. Consequently, boss battles were a chore, and my interest waned after just a few hours.
I got the same feeling from Driveclub. Evolution Studios spent more than a year boasting about its technical aspects. While it accomplished things that no other racer has in gaming history with its audio and visual work, its attempt to imbue the genre with satisfying “simcade” racing was unsatisfactory.
Related: Bayonetta 2 Review – Start Creating Miracles
One thing I notice that’s in common with many of these games is on the surface they are beautiful. If you see game footage or screenshots, you might just think that they’re as good as the publishers want you to think they are. This is the result of a developer focusing an extraordinary amount of attention on ensuring that the graphical expectations of today’s gamers are met. After all, it’s hard to market something that doesn’t look good.
Bayonetta 2 has taught us that these efforts may be in vain. Bayonetta 2 isn’t a particularly great looking game. It’s flashy and directed in a way that hides its blemishes well, but underneath is a game that has visuals well below the standards set by the Xbox One and PS4. The game’s struggle to maintain a smooth frame rate doesn’t help things, either.
However, it’s easy to overlook this presentational shortcoming when you’re having a blast. Bayonetta 2‘s combat is so frantic and exhilarating that there’s no time to sit back and question how good the game would have looked if it were on other hardware. This has particularly paid off with its demo, which may be only 20 minutes in length, but has won over countless consumers willing to give it a go. My hopes are that it will sell well despite being exclusive to a struggling platform.
Now, not every game has to emphasize fun in the same way Bayonetta 2 does. I would consider Heavy Rain one of my favorite games of last-gen, and that game definitely wasn’t looking to put a smile on anyone’s face. There are plenty of situations where a game can play to its strengths, which may not even consider enjoyability part of the equation. That said, these circumstances shouldn’t be the norm that they have become.
As I await the arrival of the many visually beautiful games that I have seen trailers of, I wonder if they will learn something from Bayonetta 2. Its message that fun shouldn’t just be an afterthought is one they should take seriously.
