11 | June | 2013 | Through the Shattered Lens

The first Bayonetta game from Plaitnum Games was and continues to be one of my favorite games for the Xbox 360. Released for both the Xbox 360 and PS3, Bayonetta was a uniquely imaginative hack and slash title that took what was best of the early Devil May Cry series and a game that was so over-the-top that it charmed the pants out of anyone who remotely even tried playing it.

So, it was with heavy heart that when the sequel was announced as being funded by Nintendo thus making it exclusive only to the Wii U console system. There was much ranting, raving and railing at Platinum Games selling out and that the game will not be the same in the House of Family-Friendly Nintendo.

Well, the first trailer for the game was shown at this week’s E3 in Los Angeles and it looks like Bayonetta fans have more to cry about because it looks like Nintendo didn’t screw it up by putting a leash on Platinum Games. Bayonetta 2 looks just as crazy as the first title and even the title character’s new look has won her old fans over.

Now the question is whether the game will sell to warrant a third game, but one for all systems. With the lackluster sales numbers of the Wii U since it’s release here’s to hoping that every Wii U owner buys this game.

Bayonetta 2 is set for a 2014 release.

One of the best surprises for me during yesterday’s E3 show was the announcement that another Mirror’s Edge is on the way, though no date’s been set for release. It’ll be out “when it’s ready”, which leads me to believe that they still need to form a story around the visuals. Hey, At least Dice is giving it a try. That’s more than I can ask for.

Mirror’s Edge was a quiet release in 2008, a first person platformer that implemented some the same Parkour elements as the Assassin’s Creed series, though with more concentration on the techniques. While the graphics were simple and polished, that sense of vertigo from staring over the edge of a drop was always there (for me, anyway). The only drawback to the game were the loadtimes in the elevators. Hopefully, on the next gen systems, they’ll find a way around this. This trailer seems to focus more on the fighting than anything else, and it’s nice to see that, but I’m hoping that in the future, we’ll get to see some of the level designs and perhaps some added features. If they can get Rhianna Prachett back on board for the story (who had a lot of success with the recent Tomb Raider game), they should be fine.

Looking good so far.