Then the demo came out, as well as a few articles that I read in Game Informer and on various review sites. Reviews looked promising and in game screen shots looked really nice.
The first demo that I got to see was actually on a friends XBox 360, which I don't know if it is different than the PS3 version, but it included a fighting sequence that I did not see on the PS3. The scene was of Bayonetta jumping from crumbling block to crumbling block of a very large building as it was falling from a cliff that never seemed to end. All meanwhile fighting a hoard of angel like monsters that never seemed to stop coming. That demo was a bit challenging to follow and left me with a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. I had heard that the game was going to be designed to be extremely difficult, and that demo definitely gave me that impression, not so much from the difficulty of the fights, but just the shear amount of stuff that was going on in the scene.
It was quite cinematic however and transitions from jumping from one block to the next was well executed in my opinion. It felt fluid and the camera never seemed to get in the way, which is a primary complaint that I tend to have with cinematic transitions like that. The cinematic feel alone would not have given me enough reason to pick up this title, but when I saw the demo was available for the PS3 on the Playstation Network, I decided to give it another chance.
So this is where I think the demos are different, the PS3 version never gives you a scene where you fight while falling down a cliff. Also, on the XBox 360 version, although I didn't play it, I didn't see the tutorial portion that was provided at the beginning of the PS3 version. The levels that were provided beyond the tutorial on the PS3, included a train sequence, followed by fighting some enemies within a futuristic train station. These lead to a boss fight with a large angel like beast with the head of a statue. This fight was entertaining and had some interesting button pressing sequences to avoid being obliterated. Once you survive this, another video sequence plays that shows a bit of Bayonetta's past. Once again, cinematography is good, and Bayonetta talks a bit more during this sequence leading me to hope that her character isn't as shallow as you are first led to believe. Post cut scene leaves you to fight another witch in a head to head fight that shows off the ability to perform "witch walk" which basically lets you walk on walls.
What I saw from the demo, the game was not as challenging as I had originally believed. I was able to beat the demo without dying once, something I was not expecting to be able to accomplish. Controls in standard fights felt comfortable if not a bit repetitive. There are some things about the controls I do like quite a bit. Rotating the analog stick and performing an attack makes Bayonetta pull her guns and fire in an aimed barrage that looks nice and the transformations of her limbs look very clean when this is going on. It feels very organic and realistic (other than the fact she is shooting guns with her feet). I am not a fan of the witch walk ability as this felt cumbersome to cancel when you have to press R3 to release the walk, but only while you are in mid jump. Transitioning from one wall to the next is as simple as running, but trying to transition to the floor is not allowed unless you perform this jump + press R3 action. This was very confusing at first, even provided with the popup instructions on performing the move.
Overall, I am a bit on the fence as to whether or not this game will be worth a purchase. I may have to rent this one for a night to give it a go. Given how short the original Devil May Cry was (I have not played the others so I can say anything for them), if this is anything like it, it may be too short to warrant anything more than a rental (maybe two rentals?)
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