After many loyal fans of Bayonetta ended up rather disappointed with Bayonetta 3, which released late last year, it seems like many of them might have similar feelings regarding the series' latest addition to the Umbral Witch's story. Released on March 17, Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon is a new game that promises to enlighten fans as to some of the origin story regarding the titular character. However, the spin-off game is a huge departure from the main games in the series which may leave many fans feeling disappointed.

Bayonetta Origins is an action-adventure game where players can switch between playing as a younger version of Bayonetta, one of gaming's most iconic witches, and Cheshire, her demonic companion. The game is set in a gorgeous storybook-esque world filled with magic and puzzles. While the game seems like it would be engaging in itself, Bayonetta fans may feel like the game doesn't have a place in the familiar series that they know and love.

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Bayonetta Origins Tonally Shifts the Series

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon Cereza dancing

Bayonetta is a series that is known for being rather adult-oriented in terms of its general tone. While the most recent game features a setting that allows players to toggle a family-friendly mode, it is ultimately a series that is known for how it toes the line and offers an adult-focused gaming experience. This is not only related to graphic content, with the games being full of suggestively sexual visuals and the like, but also has to do with other elements of the game like its dialogue. This is an essential part of the legacy that Bayonetta has had in the gaming community, being largely related to what the series is known for and what fans love about it.

With that in mind, Bayonetta Origins completely shifts the tone of Bayonetta in a way that might be rather jarring for fans who are looking for a familiar gaming experience. While the visuals, which look like they've been inspired by magical girl anime series like Puella Magi Madoka Magica, are gorgeous, and the story is one that's engaging enough for fans, the more family-friendly, childlike aesthetic is simply not what fans love about the series. Rather, they prefer the complete opposite.

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The Gameplay Is a Huge Departure for a Bayonetta Title Too

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon combat

Apart from the tone and how the visuals and story come together, Bayonetta Origins is also hugely different from the original games when it comes to gameplay. Of course, new mechanics are welcome and would be great for fans to experience. However, the action in this spin-off game is massively different from the action in the original games. Gameplay in Bayonetta usually consists of combat sequences focused on combos, making it a frenetic and fast-paced game with a similar gameplay experience to Devil May Cry.

This combat style is essential to Bayonetta and is part of what players love about the game. In Bayonetta Origins, this iconic combat system is replaced, and the game is largely focused on exploring the forest world and solving environmental puzzles. There is still combat in the game, but it is rather simplistic compared to the main games. All in all, the gameplay in Bayonetta Origins is a lot slower paced, which is completely opposite to that of the original games and thus, ultimately not what fans are expecting or looking for when they play a Bayonetta game.

This is not to say that Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon isn't a good game. The game is reminiscent of other great and iconic games, like Okami, for example, and fans of those types of games are sure to enjoy this one. However, while it offers a fun gameplay experience, Bayonetta Origins is ultimately just not a game that Bayonetta fans will be looking for in the context of the series and what they love about it.