Seriously, Stop Comparing God of War III to Bayonetta

A theme has persisted since the review release of God of War III, and now that the retail release date is upon us these flames are sure to get stoked again.  Bayonetta vs. God of War III is a common argument with fans of the action genre.  Sure there are some comparisons to be made, like, their in the same genre for example.  Though that’s about as far as you are gonna be able to take that argument, as outside of being in the same genre, Bayonetta and God of War are as different as night and day.

The critics agree God of War III is a masterpeice, a 93 on meta critic currently, no small feat.  Personally after playing Bayonetta through a few times I had declared it my favorite game of the genre, of all time, for it’s sheer fun,originality, and overall presentation.  Though it’s funny how things change, opinions on what’s good and what’s the best in your minds eye.  Developers chasing new technical heights can do that sort of thing.

Bayonetta may spawn from the creator of the genre, and be the offshoot of gaming royalty, Dante, of Devil May Cry fame.  But the argument of tight combat holds little weight when examining the total package of God of War III, and it simply must be experienced to fully understand it.  Bayonetta’s combat system  is as smooth as silk, one of the best I have had the pleasure of playing.

Both games get this right respectively, they both give the gamer the feeling of rightness, in fluidity of controls, responsiveness, and overall fun.  Though when it comes down to it, the added visual eye candy that God of War adds into the equation, sweetens the deal.  And while Bayonetta was no slouch in the graphics department, a playthrough after playing God of War III made the graphics seem dated, and it’s only been two months.

Many proclaimers of Bayonetta’s greatness profess that the game used ingenuity, and it did.  Bayonetta was full of surprises, it was a roller coaster ride of both confusion and excitement that ended in great fashion. I for one welcomed Bayonetta with open arms and can’t wait for the sequel if in fact she was received well enough to warrant one.  But this major flaw that people poke holes into God of War III with, that it did not innovate, is wrong.

Since when is innovation confined to gameplay style? God of War innovated in the sense of the sheer size and look of the game, and since we’ve all but been drowned in the sea of adjectives to try and describe Kratos’ lastest journey, lets just keep it at Epic.  Never before have you had the experiences you will have with God of War III. You may think you’ve played this in God of War I or II but you haven’t.  There have been a ton of games that have tried to create  this grand size and scope, and Bayonetta came close,  but noone has harnessed the technologies available to them quite like Sony Santa Monica.  Bayonetta might have come close, but as they say close but no cigar.