Since I honestly don’t have anything interesting to write about today (mostly due to a lack of consuming any kind of media other than things I’ve already covered), I thought I’d throw some random thoughts about things I’ve noticed regarding the Bayonetta Wii U version (as you might have seen in my new video series!)
Surprisingly, I don’t think that this is the definitive port of the game! I had heard good things about the port job, since Kamiya himself oversaw the whole process, but there’s some strange stuff that irks me a little. Specifically, the Wii U version adds slowdown where there isn’t any slowdown in the Xbox 360 version. I don’t mean dips below 60 FPS, since Bayonetta’s initial release did that plenty (to not mention the awful PS3 version any), but I do mean game crippling slowdown for no apparent reason. The first fight against Fortitudo in the flashback sequence somehow contains this; if it does the two heads fire attack, the game suddenly slows to a crawl for no discernible reason. This introduces input delay too, which isn’t helpful for scoring. The same goes for nearly any area with a paucity of fire effect – but only in specific places! I’m sorta baffled why this happens, and while I’m sure there’s a perfectly good technical explanation, it’s a little bit of a bummer when a more powerful system falls flat on a five year old game.
On the other hand, the Wii U port shines in presenting a constant framerate throughout the entire game, cutscenes and combat included. In fact, it runs significantly better than Bayonetta 2 most times, and it never really dips below maximum (other than the aformentioned rare scenarios). This version also removes the ever-present “screen tear” of the Xbox 360 version, which leads me to believe Platinum Games know how vertical sync works! Of course, they did lose the slight bloom effect on most everything on the Xbox 360 version to make it happen, but you gotta make tradeoffs somewhere, right? A slight loss in graphical fidelity comes at a more consistent framerate, which is exactly what you’d want in a game like this.
As for exclusive content, nothing much really changed thanks to Sega co-publishing the game with Nintendo; this means the copious Sega references remain, which was something I was very much worried could get cut. Four extra costumes (also found in Bayonetta 2) were added, and they make a fine addition to the originals. The Hero of Time (Link) costume gets special mention for including the parry function of the Moon of Mahaa-Kalaa, which opens up an accessory slot for other useful functions. I’m not sure whether that changes the balance of the game, but I imagine it doesn’t confer any advantage you couldn’t already equip (and none of the other accessories really strike me as necessary for Non-stop Infinite Climax mode), so it works out in the end.
On the other hand, it seems they’ve left the game itself untouched in its core mechanics, which is a total relief. The same punishing difficulty and learning curve, along with a much tighter Witch Time window, remain as a huge contrast to Bayonetta 2’s faster and looser style. That also means that the Kilgore glitch, for whatever reason, hasn’t been fixed at all, making many challenges a complete cakewalk if you want to use it.
To explain: if you equip Shuraba (the sword) in your hand and Durga (claws, lightning ones) in your A set, and then equip Kilgore on your legs on your B set, you can actually confuse the game and allow yourself to shoot a billion rocket out of your feet. You do this via the PPPPK combo. When Bayonetta starts kicking a whole lot at the end, switch to your B set and watch the dozen rockets fly out of her feet, netting a huge combo bonus and huge damage at the same time. This glitch trivalizes some of the content in Bayonetta, and yet it remains. I imagine that’s because there’s no online leaderboards for this version of the game, so there was little reason to fix it. On the other hand, Platinum never bothered to patch the original version’s glitches either, so it really doesn’t matter either way. In any case, I would not recommend using at all for the full experience.
Other than that, though, I find it hard to complain about a free game included with an already wonderfully stellar product (i.e., Bayonetta 2). Just know that, at least so far, I still think the Xbox 360 version trumps it in some areas. It’s a toss up between both versions, mostly dependent on what console you happen to own/planning to buy.
