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So you want to play the Bayonetta demo early, do you?

by Xav de Matos { Nov 6th 2009 at 11:00PM }

Sega just announced that 40,000 lucky Xbox 360 owners will get extremely early access to a demo for the upcoming action game Bayonetta. To be considered for the prize, gamers must register for a free Sega Pass -- essentially the publisher's newsletter -- and enter for a chance to be selected on the official Bayonetta demo site.

Registration for the "contest" will be open from Monday, November 9 to Friday, November 13. Winners will be notified on Monday, November 16. Those not selected will then be referred to as "the group least likely to win a 'boot-gun thing' firing contest" ... or PlayStation 3 players. Should you not get selected, you might want to take advantage of making a Japanese account.

Bayonetta launch continues Platinum's winning streak

by JC Fletcher { Nov 6th 2009 at 3:00PM }

Bayonetta had a strong debut in Japan this week -- on PS3. The PS3 version of Platinum Games' action title sold 135,242 copies in its first week, topping the Media Create sales chart. The Xbox version had a good launch for an Xbox 360 game in Japan, at 64,325 copies. It wasn't a Resident Evil 5-size launch on either console, though the Xbox 360 version came close, and it wasn't a Wii Sports Resort-level sensation, but it should be enough to be considered a successful launch.

This is Platinum Games's second launch in Japan, and it's the second to debut at the top of the charts. Infinite Space on DS took the winning position back in June, with a comparatively modest 38,394 copies. MadWorld, Platinum's other game, has yet to be released in Japan.

The number two and three spots on Media Create's chart are also occupied by new games: Four Warriors of Light: Final Fantasy Gaiden, the new Final Fantasy for DS made by Matrix Software, and Tekken 6.

Bayonetta might need a backpack for all those guns

by Ben Gilbert { Nov 4th 2009 at 2:15PM }

Knowing now that we won't be able to get our hands on a retail copy of Bayonetta on this side of the Pacific until January 5, it's hard not to be frustrated when the game's publisher releases more footage reminding us how much fun the combat is. It might be incredibly silly that she has guns on her feet, sure, but they're guns on her feet. It makes the thought of kicking an enemy all the more enticing!

It's also just plain nice to see a trailer for this game that focuses on how the gameplay works, rather than on its hyper-sexualized main character. Also: she fires a bazooka at a demon wearing a tuba. If that's your kind of thing.

Gallery: Bayonetta

Bayonetta's nonstop-climax action starts January 5

by JC Fletcher { Oct 29th 2009 at 12:59PM }

If you were just about to place an order for the Japanese PS3 version of Bayonetta, having just learned that it's in English, hold on! Sega has announced Western release dates for Platinum Games' foot-gunnin-action game, and they aren't terribly far off. Bayonetta will arrive in North America on January 5 and in Europe on January 8. Sorry, Darksiders!

In the meantime, you can check out some of the humiliating (and potentially NSFW) extra costumes that are available in the game. Amazingly, the default costume, which is composed entirely of magical human hair, is the most practical and restrained outfit of the lot.

Gallery: Bayonetta

Bayonetta's first dev diary explains protagonist's origins

by Ben Gilbert { Oct 28th 2009 at 4:41PM }

Platinum Games' Hideki Kamiya and Yusuke Hashimoto may not be taking the story super seriously in upcoming third-person action game Bayonetta, but that doesn't mean no effort was exerted in creating the title character's backstory.

As it turns out, she came from the future to kill someone's mother so that ... okay, yeah, we're just making that up. Everyone knows that you couldn't bring back all those fancy guns through time! Duh! It's really that her family was attacked when she was a baby and even though the attacker came after her, she lived and ... alright, it's not that either. Rather than trust ourselves to relay it, we'll just let the developers explain Bayonetta themselves in the video after the break.

Gallery: Bayonetta

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Japanese Bayonetta knows English, is region-free

by Andrew Yoon { Oct 28th 2009 at 11:30AM }

Chances are, you want "non stop climax action" as soon as possible. Thanks to the PS3's region-free gaming, you'll be able to do just that. The game's menus and dialog, as Siliconera discovered, are all in English -- no need to learn Japanese, folks. Considering the game isn't due to arrive in North America until early next year, this import is an easy choice for those who want Hideki Kamiya's latest now.

Bayonetta is first Xbox 360 game awarded perfect score by Famitsu

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 20th 2009 at 6:00PM }

We bet you didn't know Bayonetta was a (numerically) flawless game. As it turns out, it is ... at least according to Famitsu, which just gave the game a perfect 40/40 review -- the first perfect score given to a game available on Xbox, incidentally. It's no secret that the Japanese mag has been handing out perfect scores at an accelerated rate these days. Of the twelve games to receive a perfect score -- Bayonetta included -- six were awarded in the last two years. There are only so many reasons we can imagine that Bayonetta would receive such high scores.

First, it could be that Bayonetta is just a really good game. Second, it's possible the editors of Famitsu really have a thing for hair witches. Given the involvement of Hideki Kamiya -- one of the principal minds behind Devil May Cry -- it's probably the former. At least, we certainly hope it's the former.

Interview: Bayonetta's Hideki Kamiya and Yusuke Hashimoto

by Andrew Yoon { Oct 19th 2009 at 6:20PM }

Like the US release of Bayonetta, this interview from Tokyo Game Show is fashionably late. Who's responsible for creating a world where a witch must fight evil angels with her hair and shoe-guns? We talked with Platinum Games' Hideki Kamiya and Yusuke Hashimoto about the seriousness of Bayonetta's plot, and the inspiration behind the game's one-handed mode. [Note: While two people were interviewed, only the responses from our single Sega-provided translator are transcribed. We apologize for the lack of proper attribution.]

Joystiq: Bayonetta has sex and violence, but do you consider it a "mature" game?
It's definitely not a game for kids. Being a parent, is this a kind of game I would want my grade schooler playing? Absolutely not. It's pretty straightforward: all the blood and violence and sexual overtones. My idea is even more than that. If you see a movie for adults, does that necessarily make it an adult movie that you wouldn't let your kids watch? Or, would kids really understand it and get any value out of participating in that?

Having made games like Viewtiful Joe and Okami, and Bayonetta as well -- it's never been a thought of "oh well, is this intended for adults or intended for children?" It's more like "we're making the best game we know how to make." And for a game like Bayonetta, because there's so much blood splattering on screen when you're in battle and stuff ... if it weren't for that, it probably would be alright for kids to be playing, on just the level that it's a game, an action game, and it doesn't really matter how old you are when you're playing it. You should be able to appreciate it and enjoy it. So the idea that we're targeting a specific demographic, or specific age rather, when making a game doesn't really enter in too much. Once the game comes in reaches this level of development, and reaches this stage of concept, it naturally gravitates in a certain direction.

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Bayonetta's PS3 and 360 iterations compared on video

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 12th 2009 at 3:30PM }

You've likely been hearing reports about Bayonetta's graphically inferior PS3 version for quite some time -- now, you can see the two versions of the title side-by-side in a GameTrailers comparison video in order to make an educated decision for yourself. It's posted after the jump, and is rated NSFW due to brief partial nudity, blood and terrifying hair monsters.

For a more in-depth look at the game's graphical non-parity, check out Digital Foundry's collection of comparison videos as well. After studying up, let us know what you think in the comments -- provided "what you think" doesn't include any inappropriate musings on these videos' lustier segments.

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Bayonetta's 'non-stop climax action' briefly goes live-action in new commercial

by JC Fletcher { Oct 12th 2009 at 9:30AM }

With Bayonetta out in Japan on October 29, Sega is beginning to market the game aggressively with (of course) the downloadable demo, but also a new Japanese TV commercial (after the break) featuring the debut of the theme, "Something Missing" by MiChi. Will the Japanese audience respond to a woman in an undulating hair suit fighting demons? Brief footage of a real model dressed as Bayonetta couldn't hurt, though the crowd at Tokyo Game Show suggested the game doesn't really need help drawing attention.

Meanwhile, Platinum Games may be trying to divert some of that attention toward Sega. Not only does the (slightly less visually appealing) PS3 demo include a "Converted by Sega" screen in the introduction, Famitsu's infobox for the game was updated in the last issue to include "PS3 port developer: Sega." Either Platinum asked for those notices, or Sega's really proud of the work it's done.

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Bayonetta demo now on Japanese PSN & Xbox Marketplace

by David Hinkle { Oct 8th 2009 at 12:15PM }

If you have a Japanese PSN account or Japanese Xbox Live Gold account, there's a demo for Platinum Games' boot-shoot-em-up, Bayonetta, available for download right now. If you enjoy free stuff (or crazy things), we'd suggest you give the demo a whirl -- the final game will include some badass rocket tonfas and the ability to suplex dragons, after all.

[Via Siliconera; thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

TGS 2009: The Recap Post

by Xav de Matos { Oct 2nd 2009 at 10:10PM }

Last week, the Tokyo Game Show brought in over 100 posts worth of news, previews, interviews, galleries, and videos. Clearly, a lot happened. If you're looking for a comprehensive list of all the goings-on during TGS 2009, Joystiq has you covered -- and organized!

Click on a platform below to scan the highlights:

(On the far right: that's "News" and "Culture" on the top and bottom, respectively)

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TGS 2009: Hands-on: Bayonetta (PS3)

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Sep 27th 2009 at 8:00AM }

If you hope to impress the cultural sophistication and profound artistic merit inherent in the video game medium (ahem) upon a doubtful acquaintance, you probably shouldn't count on something like Bayonetta to help illustrate your point. Centered on the exploits of an improbably posh witch and her fashionable pair of gun boots, Bayonetta feels like the result of designer Hideki Kamiya answering every development question with, "Sure, why not?"

The game's hyper excess occasionally veers into the distasteful -- Bayonetta's clothing seems to come and go as it pleases -- but it mostly leads to situations that feel creative and surprising. Even a boss fight avoids routine by constantly changing pace: a battle on a bridge eventually becomes airborne after the whole structure is flung across the stage, and the ordeal isn't over until after a brief chase and a final showdown atop a winding set of stairs. Sure, why not?

Gallery: Bayonetta

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Platinum Games not developing PS3 version of Bayonetta

by Andrew Yoon { Sep 20th 2009 at 2:30PM }

With the exception of Valve, most developers have no qualms about developing for PlayStation 3. Sure, it's still far more "tempting" to work on the 360's accessible architecture, but most recent releases appear to have shaken PS3's earlier substandard multiplatform performance.

Most. Bayonetta developer, Platinum Games, recently admitted on its blog that it was not developing the PS3 version; instead, it handed off PS3 porting to Sega. Platinum Games' CEO Tatsuya Minami wrote on the company's official blog that Platinum would be "overseeing the progress to ensure that the PS3 version would be the best it could be." However, instead of saying both versions will run identically, he simply advises PS3 owners to "[play] the game for yourself and [come] to your own conclusions."

PlayStation commenters weren't too kind to Minami's admission, saying, "Platinum Games is trying to shift the blame to Sega" for what gamers fear will be a substandard port. History certainly gives their worries credence, but we'll find out for sure later this week at Tokyo Game Show.

[Thanks, sacra!]

A look at the weapons of Bayonetta

by Richard Mitchell { Sep 17th 2009 at 5:40PM }

Over at the Platinum Games blog, Bayonetta weapon designer Muneyuki "Johnny" Kotegawa has posted a short preview of some of the weapons that will appear in the game. Specifically, Kotegawa shows off four of the weapons in the game, all of which definitely have that Devil May Cry flair to them. First up are the guns of Bayonetta's rival, Jeanne. Named "All for One," the guns summon bullets magically and have angel feathers hanging from the grips. There's also Shuraba, a katana with an unnamed "special feature" in its handle. And let's not forget the snake whip -- which has an actual snake demon in it -- Kulshedra. Perhaps the best of the bunch are the rocket launching tonfas known as -- wait for it -- Lt. Col. Kilgore.

Our favorite feature of the rocket tonfas, as told by Kotegawa: "You can, of course, equip these on your legs for a Tonfa Kick, or two." Well, of course.