Bayonetta (PS3/360)

[Damocles]

With Jeanne the Rosary is your friend. I like to keep pressure on with the guns while advancing on her. She'll attack, at which point I dodge and the rosary pegs her. Also, B-F+punch(or L-R, or R-L, or whatever) summons a huge fist and takes up three magic points.

I'm sure there are much quicker alternatives, but I prefer to just counter everything she does.

[Zaarock]

Yeah, dodge a lot with jeanne, learn to time dodging the wicked weave and it should be pretty easy. If you get hit like two times you should still get a gold damage medal, so you should end up getting a platinum medal for the fight seeing as the jeanne fights have pretty easy combo and time limits.

[Taylor]

The time and combo requirements on that fight are really easy, you just need to avoid getting hit - so evade and counter in witch time and spam back-forward wicked weaves from a distance when you have meter. You can use the dodge offset if you're fancy, a mechanic that should really be automatic but then wouldn't be deep.

I used the Rosary for the challenge room where you have to fight two of them and they pretty much blew themselves up.

[Skykid]

Cool, thanks to you all for the tips. Will go back over the chapter again - I'd like to learn to be better at the game in general before progressing.

[spadgy]

I don't see why anyone here would be so distressed by "professional" review scores.

People certainly shouldn't pay too much mind. I'm a professional reviewer, and as objective as I try to be, all I really can be is subjective. My opinion in one of my published reviews is only as worthy as any of your points here, so nobody should get distressed at what gets said in these 'proper' reviews. Also, as much as I respect many of my colleagues/rivals greatly, there is a global trend in professional reviewing that sees publications jumping on the bandwagon once a general consensus decides a game is very good or very bad. I admit that early in my career sometimes I struggled with it on a couple of occasions (at local paper level).

The 'professional' part of reviewing comes not from the substance of your opinions, but from knowing tight use of language and grammar, journalistic law, subbing and proofing practice, your contact book, how to tweak sentences to fit on the page, your ability to articulate your views, writing to wordcount etc. etc.

What they say about a game is just their thoughts, and again, only as worthy as yours.

Especially as a forum for shooting games, we should be well aware that most major reviewers are idiots and that their scores tend to be worthless.

Me = case in point!

Oh - and I absolutely adore Bayonetta.


More on topic. So - Skykid; you're putting some effort into Bayonetta. Are you enjoying more now?

[Lordstar]

im getting a little more out of it now. Cant comment how many hours ive clocked up now but i am getting a bit good with my dodge and stuff. bosses are quickly becoming the quickest way to achieve halos and spend them on gubbins defiltnley more fun than playing the train trick over and over again.

[Skykid]

Oh - and I absolutely adore Bayonetta.


More on topic. So - Skykid; you're putting some effort into Bayonetta. Are you enjoying more now?

I've got a guilty secret. I put Sin & Punishment 2 on the other day and now I can't turn it off.

(But I promise I'll give Netta the chance I promised it soon enough.)

[Schrodinger's cat]

I got this game a little over a week ago and I already spent around 40 hours on it. DMC 3 was definitely one of my favorite games of all time but Bayonetta totally makes its combat feel antiquated.

My favorite weapon combination in this game right now is having a dual Durga set and a dual Lt. Col. Kilgore set for the other. I'm trying to do a speed run to get the bangle of time and the broken combo (YYYYK with durga legs then switch to kilgore legs right when you start to kick) is making it hilariously easy. With the gaze of despair equipped, spamming that combo on the stage 2 boss gives you a ridiculous amount of combo points and more than 1 million halos just on that one boss fight alone if properly executed:mrgreen: I don't use the broken combo for anything other than grinding for items (the worst part about the game imo), but the dual durgas and kilgores still rock hard without it.

To those who have them, how are the nunchucks? The 100 mission clear requirement is extremely tedious so I don't want to put too much effort into unlocking them if the weapon sucks.

[Taylor]

I strongly prefer DMC's command moves and custom combos over the combat in Bayonetta. Obviously it is still great, though the broken combo that lets you nuke the entire room dead in one witchtime is not a plus point.

[Schrodinger's cat]

Yeah, that's why I really don't like using that broken combo when I'm not grinding for halos.

I think I know where you're coming from in regards to preferring DMC's move set. The weapons/moves are simpler in those games but feel a little more distinct than some of the ones in Bayonetta, where many of the weapons have overlapping movesets. As of now though, I think I like the combat a bit better in Bayonetta because of how much easier it is to link moves together and get creative with your combos. I already beat the game on hard and it still feels like I haven't scratched the surface of the game at all.

[CMoon]

Man, slowly going through all the Alfheims--I can only do about one level a night. Stupid as it sounds I just finished all the Alfheims in level 3, but I haven't been playing Bayonetta ever night (or even every other night.)

I really hate how you score for the level COUNTS the alfheims. Man, they need to be separate. The idea I can't get a platinum in level 3 unless I also do ALL the alfheims is brutal. To quote the game, they seriously want to work you to the bone. Still enjoying the hell out of the patch. Makes restarting a section a small thing instead of being a minute wait or some bullshit. Once again, I find my game is becoming a lot more about dodging, countering (moon), taunting and shooting than necessarily exploiting the combo engine. Maybe I am a C player at this point, not even a B or an A.

I get why so many folks aren't going apeshit over this game, but it really is a love it or lump it sort of thing. You either want to dig in and exploit the shit out of the game engine, or there isn't much for you here. But man, getting crazy high combos while doing split second dodge/blocks between huge enemies is about as close to the kindred spirit of shmups as I can think of.

[Schrodinger's cat]

I really hate how you score for the level COUNTS the alfheims. Man, they need to be separate.

I completely agree with this. It's way harder to try to get platinum medals when you have to do stuff like using only torture attacks to kill enemies and every enemy is protected by fire and immune to witch time.

So I unlocked the bracelet of time today and I went back to stage 2 to farm halos. Spamming the broken combo + gaze of despair + bracelet of time + stage 2 boss = too many halos. I got 14 million halos over two stage 2 runs hahhahah .....this is infinitely better than riding the train on stage 1 for a measly 10k.

But man oh man is that secret Father Rodin boss fight tough as hell. I forgot to unequip my gaze of despair and he took out one entire life bar with a single attack. What a bastard! I just dodge away with the rosary equipped and counterattack with a (down up punch/kick) wicked weave for the most part. He's still kicking my ass hard though and I think the most damage I've dealt to him so far was 2/5 of his full life bars.

[Daigoro]

man, i love this game. it is so fun and rewarding.

Bayonetta rules.

[Skykid]

I really hate how you score for the level COUNTS the alfheims. Man, they need to be separate.

I completely agree with this. It's way harder to try to get platinum medals when you have to do stuff like using only torture attacks to kill enemies and every enemy is protected by fire and immune to witch time.

So I unlocked the bracelet of time today and I went back to stage 2 to farm halos. Spamming the broken combo + gaze of despair + bracelet of time + stage 2 boss = too many halos. I got 14 million halos over two stage 2 runs hahhahah .....this is infinitely better than riding the train on stage 1 for a measly 10k.

But man oh man is that secret Father Rodin boss fight tough as hell. I forgot to unequip my gaze of despair and he took out one entire life bar with a single attack. What a bastard! I just dodge away with the rosary equipped and counterattack with a (down up punch/kick) wicked weave for the most part. He's still kicking my ass hard though and I think the most damage I've dealt to him so far was 2/5 of his full life bars.

All of this sounds like Final Fantasy. Grinding, spamming, equipping. Maybe that's why it doesn't immediately appeal to me.

[CMoon]

All of this sounds like Final Fantasy. Grinding, spamming, equipping. Maybe that's why it doesn't immediately appeal to me.

Man, you're stretching hard here.

Edit: The whole train thing is a joke anyway. You can get 100K rings on most levels just by playing competently and understanding how combos are scored. More if you are good. The only reason you need millions of halos is when you are trying to unlock some of the game-breaking mega-items for things like the 'post game' lost chapter.

[Skykid]

All of this sounds like Final Fantasy. Grinding, spamming, equipping. Maybe that's why it doesn't immediately appeal to me.

Man, you're stretching hard here.

Don't take it too seriously.
It's just the gaming terminologies that jumped out at me.

[Damocles]

It's been a few weeks, but I just remembered how awesome the Bazillions are. Not because they're particularly effective, but because you're wearing Vic Vipers on your hands and feet.

[Schrodinger's cat]

All of this sounds like Final Fantasy. Grinding, spamming, equipping. Maybe that's why it doesn't immediately appeal to me.

Like I mentioned a few posts before, the grinding aspect is the worst part of the game, but really it's not even close to being half as bad as grinding in an RPG. Also, you will never really need to spam anything at all in the game (unless you're the button mashing type) besides using the combo exploit to get the most amount of halos fast. I believe there are also cheat codes to unlock weapons if you really don't want to go through the hassle of unlocking weapons/items manually.

There are only about 10 accessories to equip in the entire game (most of which are quite useful yet fair and balanced), so I really don't think the Final Fantasy analogy works here.

To me, going through all this effort to unlock the the last 3 weapons is totally worth it because I love the combat. I wouldn't be surprised if I spent well over 100 hours on the game before getting tired of it, but YMMV.

It's been a few weeks, but I just remembered how awesome the Bazillions are. Not because they're particularly effective, but because you're wearing Vic Vipers on your hands and feet.

Haha I never thought of it like that before, but I love the crazy amount of reach those guns have.

[Zaarock]

All of this sounds like Final Fantasy. Grinding, spamming, equipping. Maybe that's why it doesn't immediately appeal to me.

Man, you're stretching hard here.

Edit: The whole train thing is a joke anyway. You can get 100K rings on most levels just by playing competently and understanding how combos are scored. More if you are good. The only reason you need millions of halos is when you are trying to unlock some of the game-breaking mega-items for things like the 'post game' lost chapter.

Eh, afaik you can easily get enough money to buy everything (apart from secret boss req.) just by beating the game on normal, hard and infinite climax.. dont need to even play well, just survive. I dont see the point in grinding because of this, though the secret boss part is sort of understandable. I'll probably just play normally until I get it.

Bazillions are the best projectile weapon for damage pretty much. I prefer using scarborough fair for high combos at least on normal. The hand lasers can also stun pretty much everything making for easy combos. Just learn to use dodge offset to keep up the combo if enemies are pretty close. Lasers are handy vs some bosses due to the lockons, eg. beloved and kinships. Also, foot bullet climax seems pretty useful against bosses, at least balder.

[CMoon]

Yeah, I don't have Bazillions yet because I'm still messing around on normal trying to finish all the Alfheims. I felt like I kinda rushed through to the end on my first play through so I want to make sure I really 'get' the gameplay before I jump on over to hard.

[StoofooEsq]

Bazillions

I'm guessing these weapons are laser pistols that resemble the old Sega Light Phaser. They are, aren't they?

[Schrodinger's cat]

I got a little further with the Rodin boss fight and was doing pretty well for a while until he pulled off that akuma move and completely drained the one and a half life bars of health I had left. If you have some distance away from him it's easy to avoid that move by changing into panther form and running, but you have almost no time to react when he pulls that shit off right next to you.

It's like I've left the realm of Bayonetta and started playing Ninja Gaiden 2 again . I still like the challenge though because it really tests your dodging skills more than any other fight in the game.

[Icarus]

[CMoon]

AWESOME!

[agustusx]

yeah that is pretty sweet

[Skykid]

One of them looked like Katana swords but they've now gone missing from the shop inventory...?

Gone missing? What happen to the katana sword? I really like that sword, the design was unique.

That's an incredible first post.

[Skykid]

Gill style thread resurrection!

So, after promising to buy and try God Hand to compare to Netta, I ended up forgetting about it for all the months it took me to find and move to a new flat.
Today I put it on.

I like it instantly more than Bayonetta. Not for reasons I can go in-depth on at the moment because I haven't given it any kind of justifiable time. However, the instant differences:

No frills, no bullshit cutscenes. Straight into the action without any attempt to justify it apart from some extremely amusing (and fairly camp) dialogue that sets the tone immediately. The same brand of wackyness is within the gameplay and fighting itself, with some funny quotes, characters and animations.

The entire affair is simple, straightforward and fun. Bash people up, progress through to different sections of the stage and utilise whatever is at your disposal (none of which is overwhelming in the slightest, just the odd box, wooden plank and metal pipe). There's enough variety in the moves to keep it interesting and I like the way you get new moves one step at a time. It doesn't feel overloaded or overwhelming (yet.)

Like I said though, it's early - I've really hardly scratched the surface. It could turn into a muddled, bloated romp full of emphasis on collecting, combining weapons and racking up combo points (and godawful ten minute bouts of cutscene filler) but I kind of hope it'll just stay as raw as it has been for the first forty minutes, cos this game is actually instantly fun.

And FUCK, is it hard.

[CMoon]

It could turn into a muddled, bloated romp full of emphasis on collecting, combining weapons and racking up combo points (and godawful ten minute bouts of cutscene filler)

No it won't, and that's why God Hand is the port EVER!

Obviously there is no wrong way to play the game, but please watch some of the the high level gameplay videos on youtube. There's a whole lot to the game that isn't really documented, most importantly some of your basic repertoire. Fortunately, God Hand makes you want to practice.

Oh, and don't be a bad ass; start on normal. Hard is really, really hard.

[Skykid]

It could turn into a muddled, bloated romp full of emphasis on collecting, combining weapons and racking up combo points (and godawful ten minute bouts of cutscene filler)

No it won't, and that's why God Hand is the port EVER!

Obviously there is no wrong way to play the game, but please watch some of the the high level gameplay videos on youtube. There's a whole lot to the game that isn't really documented, most importantly some of your basic repertoire. Fortunately, God Hand makes you want to practice.

Oh, and don't be a bad ass; start on normal. Hard is really, really hard.

Man, I am on normal (I always play games on defaults) and it's rock hard. But in a way it's quite a good thing as it lets you wade in a few times and die a few times, and then think about tactics. I really want to see what's around the corner in this, whereas in Bayonetta I couldn't give a toss half the time.

It's a weird thing, difficult to explain. God Hand doesn't have the graphics, the speed, the excess or the earth shattering bosses of its much lauded spiritual sequel - but it's far more comfortable to play. Most importantly (and completely the opposite to my experience with Bayonetta) I 'get it' straight away.

[CMoon]

I'm not sure Bayonetta is God Hand's spiritual sequel. I was hoping for it, but I don't think that's the case. Honestly, I don't think we've seen anything resembling a sequel ('spiritual' or otherwise) yet.

I'm hoping for Vanquish. I know it doesn't look anything like God Hand, but it is the first action title Mikami has directed since God Hand (actually I don't think he's done anything else since God Hand.)