Bayonetta Impressions: What Deadly Hair You Have!

It's a shame that Sega hasn't released any screen shots of Bayonetta in action to share with you. Platinum Games' work on the Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 action game really deserves to be seen by more people — this is the best looking game we've seen at Leipzig. It may sound like an odd proposition in print, a raven haired witch battles the forces of "good" with her mystical and impossibly groomed hair — hair that also acts as her clothing — along with a pair of pistol heels, but the style, sex appeal and mind blowing art direction of Bayonetta couldn't be more promising to fans of ass-kicking action. Only in a game with a female lead could Bayonetta's contributions to the action genre make so much sense. A giant, mystical stiletto heel attack made of Bayonetta's black locks sounds silly in concept, yes, but in practice it's an enjoyable kick in the pants. Same for that flesh-eating dragon made of hair we saw during one boss fight and the balletic split kicks that rain gunfire in 360 degrees — this shit looks cool. But we kind of knew much of that going in to see Bayonetta for the first time. Fortunately, we learned a hell of a lot more at Sega's behind-closed-doors demo today about the title.While we were initially led to believe that Bayonetta would rely on her handheld pistols and matching pistol boots to do her thing, Sega announced today that the heroine will also be able to switch, on the fly, to a different weapon set — a katana and a pair of shotgun boots. Honestly, we were just trying to keep up with all the frenetic action on screen, so we didn't really notice much of a difference in her attacks, but Bayonetta's dance moves of death looked good whatever she was wielding. Players will be able to purchase new weapons (along with new moves) throughout the course of the game, we presume with the halos one collects from fallen foes. That should keep the tedium away, something we don't actually expect much of. Remember that whole "best looking game we've seen at Leipzig" thing? That really wasn't so apparent until Bayonetta's producer showed us a brand new level, just revealed at GC. While the initial demo stage takes place in a forgettable setting — yes, I already forgot about it — the new area was jaw-dropping. It takes place on the head of a clock tower, one that happens to be falling from the sky at maximum velocity. Bayonetta casually walks with her signature slink across the face of the clock as she fought off demonic angels. She did so with a mysterious female ally, both of whom were being circled by a massive, ornately decorated sky serpent. On top of the dozens of angels attacking, with clock towere debris falling in tandem and golden halos spilling everywhere, a massive winged mini-boss also attacked. With a body comprised of a decapitated marble statue head and serpentine arms, it wowed us with its artistic and technical achievements. Seriously, this is a game so packed with visual flair and awesome creative direction that we might just snatch it up for its graphical achievements. It's fanboy spawning stuff. Sadly, we didn't get to go hands-on with Bayonetta, so we can't tell you how well it plays. We're definitely going to be calling dibs on Tokyo Game Show appointments for the game, though. Just in case Sega gives us the controller at that event. Dibs!