Game:

Bayonetta 2 (2014)

Duration: 15:41

336 views

4

OK, hopefully no more audio bugs (at least for now!).... Time for an immersion break! How is Rodin in Inferno and ALSO at his bar at this point and time? Who care?! Time for a new weapon!

Salamandra, named for the genus of salamanders (I assume, anyway) is quite possibly the "best" weapon in the game. Dual chainsaw blades (guess Rodin broke his promise about not putting a chainsaw on her arm!), Salamandra is a quick, highly-damaging weapon that doesn't have the most diverse moveset...but doesn't really need it! If you time your button presses right, the blades will briefly glow red and Bayo will do a special follow-up slash for even more damage, but yeah...this thing deals out damage like no one's business even without that. Worn on the hands or feet (in which case you grind on the ground....which honestly has no true benefit, unlike Odette's skating), they're a great weapon...but NOT the final weapon in the game, as we'll soon see.

Inferno and it's Ruler is a real misnomer here. We meet the demoness Alraune, who certainly fancies herself to be Inferno's ruler, but she's got some clear delusions of grandeur about it. And she's got some history with Madama Butterfly? Or maybe she's just picking a fight with someone far beyond her.

Alraune is a common myth that's been seen in a variety of novels and pieces of media. There are even cute monster girl versions! Taken from myth, they are closely tied to the Mandragora officinarum or Mandrake plant. These plants are hallucinogenic and their vaguely human shapes probably fueled the myths from long ago. Allegedly Mandrake plants were grown from the bodily fluids of hanged men that soaked into the earth, and in some myths witches were said to make love to these plants and produce inhuman offspring. Not the most...wholesome of creatures, are they?

Alraune can in some ways be considered our "Joy" fight of the game, being a sexy female with a whip that is known to dance. Too bad we get no sexy dance fight with Bayo here, but then she's all business. Phase 1, dealing with Alraune, Whisperer of Dementia, is surprisingly hectic. I don't remember having such trouble my first time through! She'll slash at you with long nails and use a whip to attempt to suck out Bayo's soul, when she's not summoning demonic plants to fight alongside her. She loves to dodge about too.

Onto Phase 2, Alraune, Whisperer of Insanity, she's....at once both more dangerous and a bit easier to deal with since she doesn't dodge so much. Now drawing energy straight from Jeanne' soul, she grows a monstrous new form AND gains access to Umbran powers. All those projectiles she shoots? Look close and you can see the same sigils that appear whenever Bayo or Jeanne do their things. That said though....yeah, she's largely a bigger target now. Even though I used a health item on her.... Bit by bit we'll tear away at her to get Jeanne back, and Salamandra makes that quite easy! So yes, it has no Wicked Weaves, BUT gains a increase in damage and range with Umbran Climax.

But before we can deal a final blow...RODIN?! Damn, he stopped Madama Butterfly like it was nothing! But what are you....oh wait, Jeanne!

Its so rare to see Bayo get vulnerable, it's a nice moment. Even though the whole game's been about getting to Jeanne, we've gone so long without seeing her! It'd be just one huge shaggy dog story if we were too late, right? So of course she survives!

And now we see what Rodin does whenever we get a new weapon! So you're telling me he has a boss battle each and every time? I want to play THAT game! Make it happen, Platinum! But with that, we're granted ANOTHER new weapon, Alruna. More on that next time though...especially since Loki and Mask...oh, fuck it....BALDER are right over there!

Ride like the wind, Diomendes!

Other Statistics