Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon Review: Gameplay Impressions and Videos | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

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Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon is one of the most unique and unexpected games in years.

The announcement for this game was a surprise to many considering Bayonetta 3 just released in October, eight years after the release of Bayonetta 2. Serving as a prequel, Bayonetta Origins is not just an expansion of Bayonetta 3 but a full-fledged spin-off game essential for fans who want to learn more about one of the most beloved characters in gaming. It’s awesome to finally see more backstory for one of the coolest characters in gaming, especially after three games in the mainline series.

Bayonetta Origins is significantly different from the mainline games and one of the most unpredictable titles in recent years to release on the Nintendo Switch.

Gameplay and Accessibility

Bayonetta Origins is an ideal game for existing fans of Bayonetta and those who want to finally dip their toes into the franchise. Despite being a prequel, this game will likely resonate more with returning players than newcomers without any knowledge of Bayonetta because of the inherent connection.

Since this is a younger version of Bayonetta, who is learning about her witch powers and becoming confident, she and her abilities are more subdued. Gamers having a true understanding of Bayonetta from her previous games will likely be more intrigued by her origins than somebody with only a general understanding of Bayonetta from word of mouth. That’s not to say a newcomer won’t be intrigued by the character or the gameplay, just that existing fans will have significantly more context into the character and notice the major changes.

However, it shouldn’t take long for gamers to connect with Cereza regardless of their familiarity with the previous games. For younger gamers or those who may feel the action gameplay of the original games is too intense, the gameplay of Bayonetta Origins is much different than the action-focused gameplay of the three mainline games and is an excellent starting point.

The gameplay is rather simple compared to the mainline series, as it features less combo inputs. This extends to some great accessibility features to assist with timing for select commands, which could also assist with specific styles of speedruns.

Throughout the game, Cereza will unlock different abilities and forms for her demon, Cheshire, as the story progresses. As with most action-oriented games, this opens up combat and exploration. A great accessibility feature to help ease the experience allows for gamers to toggle Cheshire’s abilities to stay full instead of draining magic. There’s also more accessibility options with button commands, such as the option to tap ZR for certain abilities instead of holding and releasing the button, which assist with timing.

Like the mainline series, boss battles and challenge arenas are the highlights. Tír na nÓg stages are the focus of combat encounters and often include a mini-puzzle in order to complete. They feature fun, unique gameplay sequences that play well with the different abilities that Cereza and Cheshire unlock along the story. To provide a tease without spoiling, there’s a sequence that pays homage to Nier: Automata that fans will absolutely adore.

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There are plenty of checkpoints and lamps during exploration, which serve as resting points to save and replenish Cereza’s health. There’s also multiple options in the settings menu for tuning up or down enemy damage, or Cereza’s damage output, to assist gamers. For combat encounters, the checkpoint system is forgiving as gamers don’t have to repeat entire sequences if they lose a section. This will surely help ease the game along and preserve the experience for gamers who may get frustrated quickly, especially for sequences where the player has to control both Cereza and Cheshire at the same time.

That dual-control scheme may be one of the major sticking points for gamers. It’s a bit awkward controlling Cereza with the left joystick and Cheshire, with the right joystick at the same time in exploration or combat modes.

It was a smart idea to allow Cereza to carry Cheshire at times during exploration sequences and combat encounters, but the mandatory sequences controlling both characters at once require a good amount of attention and dexterity from the player. These mechanics might still be a bit advanced for new or younger gamers even though it is a much slower-paced game compared to the main series. Otherwise, the ability to fine-tune the difficulty should greatly appeal to all gamers and should be included in most games.

For navigation, there’s a solid map in the menu to track progress but also cues in the level itself to direct players where to go next. It’s helpful because much of the levels tend to blend together. Levels have some Metroidvania-esque tendencies, where paths are blocked because an ability hasn’t been unlocked yet, which has become a staple for so many games to encourage backtracking.

The levels featured a fixed camera, which allows for a lot of secrets to be hidden. It will likely take a player a long time to try to 100 percent this game to find every item because so many paths may appear like it’s where the level should end, only to lead to a hidden area. It is absolutely worth exploring every part of the map because the game features quality economy and skill trees. Unlocking new skills for Cereza and Cheshire requires a respectable amount of currency, so gamers will want to dedicate time to exploration instead of trying to rush to the next story beat.

The story itself is much more delicate and toned down than the typical over-the-top, and at times risqué, nature of the mainline series. The story is still engaging, heartfelt and worth experiencing, especially for the high-quality voice acting featured throughout. The narrator is certainly the highlight, especially when speaking for multiple characters. It’s a style that will surely bring people back to their childhood and is a welcomed, unique experience compared to other releases.

Overall, the game is extremely well polished and didn’t feature any glitches, crashes or other hiccups. It’s a smooth experience from start to finish, which gamers can test out for themselves because a free demo released on March 8.

Conclusion

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It’s unlikely that anybody would’ve been able to predict this type of game for the Bayonetta series. Origins is a drastically different style choice to branch off the series into a new direction. The game features storybook presentation and softer colors compared to the over-the-top presentation and vibrant colors of the mainline games. In addition to the storybook approach, the level design, music, narration and overall classical presentation helps push the prequel nature of the game.

It is not often to see a franchise branch off to such a different direction, especially so soon after the release of its previous mainline game that people waited so long to play. Bayonetta Origins is a great addition to the franchise in order to gain another perspective on such a powerful character. Perhaps most importantly, Origins is an excellent entry point for younger games to have an opportunity to connect with Bayonetta because of its more subdued nature, relatable story and simpler gameplay.

Bayonetta Origins is a successful entry to the franchise and hopefully one that leads to more games exploring Cereza’s journey to becoming one of the most endearing characters in gaming.