Trivia / Bayonetta

• Acclaimed Flop: Even if it was widely considered to be the better version of the game, the Xbox 360 version didn't sell very well. The PlayStation 3 version did better despite being criticized for being the weaker version. The even better Wii U port sold even less, because it was on an unpopular console.
• Adored by the Network: An interesting example, as the franchise isn't so much adored by its actual owner (Sega) as it is by Nintendo, who effectively adopted the series from Bayonetta 2 onwards by way of becoming the publisher. Not only did they fund a second game when no other publisher wanted to, but they would also greenlight both a third entry and a spin-off game, despite its predecessor's middling sales on the Wii U. Throw in Nintendo letting Sega port the original game to PC with the Nintendo-funded Japanese dub (which they'd receive no profit from), the character's introduction into the Super Smash Bros. series, and their treatment of Bayonetta 3 as a tentpole release for the Nintendo Switch, and some fans have taken to calling Bayonetta "Nintendo's Witch".
• Children Voicing Children: 4-year-old Cereza is voiced by a 7-year-old child actress whose name is unknown, even to the developers.
• Colbert Bump:
  • Some went out to get Bayonetta when the rather critical TotalBiscuit gushed over the game, dubbing it his Game of the Year.
  • The titular character's inclusion in Super Smash Bros. as DLC prompted such renewed interest in Bayonetta 2 that it sold out in many stores and made Nintendo issue a discounted re-release of the game.
• Creator Backlash: Hideki Kamiya has mentioned the only failure he has ever had in his career was the handling of the PS3 port. Kamiya revealed that the reason why the PS3 version was so shoddy was primarily due to the development team working on the Xbox 360 version.
• Creator-Driven Successor:
  • To God Hand in terms of general insanity, humor or camp. That was the last game Platinum's predecessor (Clover Studios) worked on before Capcom shut them down.
  • To the Devil May Cry series in terms of gameplay (which is expected because Hideki Kamiya directed both Bayonetta and the first Devil May Cry game). In contrast to that series where you fight demons, this game makes you fight angels instead. Bayonetta also has similar control inputs to the DMC games (such as holding a lock-on button + directional input + attack button for the dash attacks and launcher moves). In interviews, Hideki Kamiya also confirmed that Devil May Cry 4 served as a research material when this game was still in development.
• Dummied Out: The 修羅刃 -Shuraba- katana was actually supposed to have a special animation where the hilt would open and show the beating heart of an Ashura, just like in its description. But somewhere down the line, the animation was never programmed into the katana, although the file still remains buried in the game data.
• DVD Commentary: Kamiya's Let's Play, which is posted bi-weekly on the PlatinumGames site.
• Executive Meddling: When the Link costume for the Wii U version of Bayonetta was being designed, Platinum tried not to make it too revealing out of fear that Nintendo would object to it. When it was shown, Nintendo actually wanted the outfit to show more of her chest, since having the outfits not be revealing was out of character for Bayonetta.
• Fan Community Nickname: Attempted; Hellena Taylor tried to coin the term "Bayonutters" as a nickname for fans of the series. It didn't exactly fly off and is at best used sarcastically.
• Flip-Flop of God: Kamiya originally hinted that Umbran Witches and Lumen Sages were not gender exclusive, though he later went back on this.
• Genius Bonus: All of Bayonetta's summons and torture attacks are evoked in Enochian, the language of angels. There's also a ton of references to real medieval beliefs about witches (like the hair thing) and angels. Really, you have to admire the amount of research put into an ostensibly campy game.
• He Also Did: Atsuko Tanaka, the Japanese voice actor of Bayonetta, voices another Hot Witch named Atelia in Tweeny Witches.
• Inspiration for the Work: Hideki Kamiya once mentioned that he used Devil May Cry 4 as research material for Bayonetta.
• No Export for You: Not the game itself, at least for most territories, but the incredible strategy guide by Future Games. Due to a North American exclusivity deal with BradyGames, it is illegal for the company to sell to Americans or Canadians. BradyGames was unable to make a physical guide, but it did later release a digital version online for free. Despite this, the exclusivity deal still holds, meaning that the only way North Americans can get their hands on it is either by importing it^note Expensive, and at the moment, not an option due to it being sold out through most retailers, the one retailer that still carries it won't ship to North America or buying it on Amazon or eBay.
• Production Nickname: Very Easy Automatic has been referred to by Kamiya as "Mommy Mode", although even players associate this term with the difficulty.
• Real Song Theme Tune: A remixed version of "Fly Me to the Moon", originally sung by Kaye Ballard.
• Rule 34 – Creator Reactions: Hideki Kamiya has complained about this, not because of the erotic send-ups being made in general, but because of Bayonetta being depicted as a submissive woman in them for no reason whatsoever, which is completely Out of Character. The fans naturally responded by portraying her as the dominant one.
• Screwed by the Lawyers: Hideki Kamiya noted that, since Nintendo paid for the recording of the game's Japanese voice track as part of its Wii U port, they could have blocked its inclusion in the subsequent PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One ports. However, they allowed Platinum to include the dub.
• Similarly Named Works: There's "Red & Black", the battle theme when fighting Jeanne, then there's "Red and Black", the "horrible stuff happening in a cutscene" music from Etrian Odyssey. Incidentally, both this game and EO are technically Sega properties, since Atlus is owned by Sega.
• Throw It In!: The "Let's Dance, Boys!" dance video was a last minute addition, since the Motion Capture department was so impressed by the dancer's moves that one of them started "skittering around, abducting various team members and sweeping them off to who knows where" after the rest of the game was already finished and awaiting release.
• Trolling Creator: A retroactive example. On This Very Wiki and elsewhere, you'll see lots of people complaining about how long the Space Harrier section drags on. Once he learned this, Kamiya replied that he only scripted the level with his personal tastes in mind, but now that he knows the fans don't like it, he'd still do it again, and he did!
• What Could Have Been:
  • Along with the many Sega and Capcom references already in the game, the development team considered adding in Ulala from Space Channel 5 for a dance-off between her and Bayonetta. Unfortunately, legal rights came up and so they couldn't do it. Word of God even confirms Bayonetta was meant to have an outfit based on Ulala, but Sega refused.◊
  • Virtua Fighter costumes based on the first game's blocky models were planned but were cut for time. They put the assets they had into a wallpaper for the Xbox 360.
  • The airplane stage was originally going to be a cruise ship. This idea was used in the third game's prologue however.
  • Along with the many Capcom references, the game itself was originally going to be a Capcom published game back at Clover Studio, but it was rejected and it was a partial reason for the dissolution of Clover Studio.
  • The original opening cinematic was intended to have Bayonetta leading a legion of demonic Affinities in battle against the angelic Affinities seen at the beginning of the game. But due to technical limitations, this idea had to be scrapped and the demonic Affinities were only ever seen briefly in the anime adaptation Bayonetta: Bloody Fate, and their designs were later used for the Infernal Demons named Hideous in Bayonetta 2.
• Word of God: Kamiya has said in her free time, Jeanne is a high school history teacher. This was hinted at in-game with the Bloody Moon Laser Blade weapon, although much of that Flavor Text did seem pretty tongue-in-cheek, also claiming Jeanne is a Magical Girl warrior named Cutie J. He's even said if he ever gets to create a Bayonetta Spin-Off for the Nintendo 3DS, he would like for it to focus on Jeanne as a history teacher.