God Hand was pretty under-the-radar, IIRC: it came out in 2006 and was overshadowed by the next-gen consoles (at least in the U.S.). Bayonetta, OTOH, seems a lot more high-profile (not to mention high-budget). I bet Sega hopes it’s the next DMC or God of War.
Probably. Sega hasn’t exactly had that kind of success with games like this, though. It will do better than God Hand, but still probably only be a successful among the otaku hardcore.
Considering the guy behind this is the same guy that did DMC I’m willing to bet they’re intending this to be just as successful and I’m sure they expect it to be a significant franchise for them in the future. We’ll see how it works out, I find the blatant over sexualization rather off putting. Does she really need to have her clothes come off as part of her attack and special move animations?
God Hand’s cult status is mostly down to the insane technical difficulty, which this game doesn’t seem to have…they are both totally unhinged, though, so I see what you mean there.
Bayonetta’s combat reminds me of Viewtiful Joe more than anything.
I have a similar reaction to the game. There’s a certain point where the “sexy” gets dialed up so high that it becomes “stupid.” Worse, desperate, e.g. Guitar Hero 5’s entire ad campaign.
EGM’s interview of Hideki Kamiya that came out in August 2008 was a pretty clear indicator that he’s a pubescent 13-year-old at heart. I challenge you to read the part where he starts talking about “the power that only women have, the beautiful power, the beauty in women,” and keep a straight face.
To complete the sweaty palmed pubescent boy image:
And yes, juvenile, objectifying, sexist, it is all of these things. But it looks like it has consistent vision. You may find that viewpoint disgusting, but that viewpoint is a fundamental part of the game’s philosophy, and can’t be removed without significantly altering the final product.
Worse, desperate, e.g. Guitar Hero 5’s entire ad campaign.
Boo, hiss! As any other well adjusted forum going adult male, I really do enjoy the elitism of looking down sneeringly on advertisements pegged at the prepubescent male ego dumb enough to get excited about them, but for whatever reason I can’t get excited about hating on Bayonetta. Too much style! If there is no substance when the game comes out, then so be it, but I really like their overall presentation so far.
It wasn’t so bad in the demo once you get fighting except for the fact that Bayonetta’s clothes momentarily disappear when she does certain combos. Oh, and try not to hit the taunt button, they’re pretty embarrassing.
The cutscenes were just confusing. All recorded voice was in English and I still had no idea what was going on.
