In keeping with my lack of theme or standard purpose for this blog, I wanted to review to games that serve as sequels to their respective franchises. I was going to review a pseudoscience film- well more critique its methodology- but instead this post will be happening first. This time the games in question are Bayonetta 2 and Portal 2. While both feature portals to places that would normally break any semblance of known physical rules they are quite far of from each other for everything else. The major twist is I have never played the first games in either series so there was an added layer of initial confusion about what I’m trying to do in these games. There are spoilers ahead but I won’t go out of my way to describe the entire plot.

Bayonetta 2

TL;DR: It’s a fun, wacky game that switches things up before you get too board of the button mashing.

I wanted to start with this game as it is the lesser known out of the 2 and generally is more niche in appeal. The essential premise is that you play as a witch that battles both demonic and angelic entities on your way to the Gates of Hell to save your best friend, Jeanne. Along the way the plot thickens and you also encounter a boy named Loki that uses cards to control time and space and also damages things (???). He basically is one giant McGuffin as he is trying to reach Fimbulventr and Cereza (Bayonetta’s real name) takes pity on him. Within all of this is I want to say 2 plots: there is the rescue of Jeanne and the subsequent, almost standard, deity that is trying to take over the world. It is a fun, wacky game with time travel hijinks that never leaves too much time to think about the specific details before the next fight starts and you are forced to combat the next threat.

The one immediate aspect of this game is how polished it is. Several times there are npcs that briefly join you for a chapter and not only are they reasonably competent but they will interact with you abilities for cosmetic changes for an otherwise standard button mashing affair. In the bellow picture, Bayonetta is joined by her mom, Rosa, for when Bayonetta travels back in time to experience the death of her clan first hand. Rosa only joins for a chapter or 2 but she has some actual interactions with Bayonettas moves which is such a nice touch.

One of the most interesting aspects of Bayonetta’s character, and probably the most talked about is whether she is considered feminist. Often time Bayonetta will frequently, if very briefly acknowledge the camera and thus the audience. This usually happens when she is striking a pose but she seems vaguely aware that there are people watching her as she gallivants around the levels. Instead of positing if Bayonetta is feminist, I think a better question is that we are in direct control of Cereza for much of the game and not really given any interaction with the world outside of the characters that we control. I think the real question is: does Bayonetta understand that there are people that are watching what she does and she doesn’t care one way or the other, or does she do this stuff for fun? There is really the diegesis of the universe that Bayonetta lives in and our world and expectations of how Bayonetta “should” behave.

Also Rodin dresses as Santa clause for one scene and their is no reason for it at all and I love it.

Portal 2

TL;DR: Great game with amazing environment and fleshed out characters. You can’t wait for the next witty line.

I really liked this game. Taking place in the far distant future where humanity has see better days, the game is one of puzzle solving and wit. The main character is tasked with escaping a bizarre and at times mind bendingly large facility. The environment is somber: there is overgrowth and decay everywhere, structures a few more years from complete collapse, and no sign of life in years. You spend time mostly in testing chamber’s designed to challenge kill you while you attempt to escape. You do not willingly enter almost any of these rooms. Instead the controller of the facility, an AI named GLADOS, places you in theses rooms expecting you to die. Most likely in a gruesome and horrible fashion. The puzzles were just challenging enough for some time to be taken and in the process you see a lot of the world building. The main character processes little agency in the story. Having never played the original I found the plot and overall world setting to be very approachable and understandable removed from it’s predecessor and the half-life universe.

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Overall I liked the feel and play of Partal2 over the beat’em up of Bayonetta but they both were quirky in their own ways.