October 29th, 2009

Seven years ago, game developer PlatinumGames introduced the world to Bayonetta‘s realm of sexy witchcraft. The game’s stylish protagonist and rich gameplay are what made it an instant classic among fans.

Fresh after founding the game studio PlatinumGames (formerly Seeds Inc.), director Hideki Kamiya wanted to begin work on a brand new game. That wish would be granted when PlatinumGames began a four-game partnership with Sega, a decision thought to be extremely risky as the new company had yet to make a single game.

As a change of pace, Kamiya chose to have a female star in the new project, as many of the previous games he had headed development on, such as Devil May Cry and Viewtiful Joe,  featured a male protagonist. Bayonetta is portrayed as wearing a black, skin-tight body suit, glasses, and sporting a large beehive hairstyle. The basis for her distinct look was described as being “very original” and drew from themes of femininity and sexuality.

“I stuck to my guns with Bayonetta’s sexiness, and we try to express the sexiness with the design of her character. But I always told my designers to not show her skin too much; we don’t want to give everything away.”

– Hideki Kamiya, when asked about Bayonetta’s design origins

In the game’s story, Bayonetta is a witch that is revived from a five hundred year sleep with very little memories of her past. She possesses one of two powerful time-manipulating relics called the “Eyes of the World”. The player spends the game trying to retrieve the other Eye and use them to recall her lost memories.

Bayonetta has an arsenal of weapons at her disposal, both magical and physical. Her main weapons are her four large-caliber handguns named “Parsley”, “Sage”, “Rosemary” and “Thyme”, or collectively known as “Scarborough Fair”. Her largest and arguably her most effective tool is her magic hair. It not only covers her entire body, but it can be used to summon a large demon to help aid her in battle.

So what do you think? Do you enjoy the demon spawning, magic casting, hair-raising antics of Bayonetta?

Let us know in the comments below!