Whether it’s another instance of Hideki Kamiya trolling PlatinumGames fans or it’s actual news that’s to be taken seriously is another matter entirely. What matters at the moment is we’re going to look at this with good faith, and subsequently with a big grain of salt.
What I’m talking about, of course, is Hideki Kamiya answering one of his fans bluntly with regards to Bayonetta 3 in a tweet; he responded, quite seriously, that we may get to see footage as early as next week. Here’s the original tweet in Japanese.
来週の…ゲームサイトに… RT @SkippyBaxter: 私は気にするつもりはありません、私は本当にそうではありません しかし、いつあなたがBayonetta 3のゲームプレイショーケースを準備すると思いますか?
— 神谷英樹 Hideki Kamiya (@PG_kamiya) May 13, 2019
すべての変更を本当に見たいのですが。 https://t.co/wY70w1RJS3
Disregarding for the moment that this could be an elaborate ruse to laugh at everyone’s expense, this news is certainly big due to several reasons. The recent investors call for Nintendo, Bayonetta 3’s publisher, revealed that the game has been pushed back to the much-dreaded ‘TBA’ status, or ‘to be announced.’ It was previously slated to arrive within this year, and of course many fans were disappointed when the news broke.
Bayonetta 3 is currently one of PlatinumGames’ biggest upcoming titles, with the third iteration a hotly-anticipated game for fans of the series. The license is split between both Sega and Nintendo; Sega published Bayonetta's first outing on multiple platforms including the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows PC, Nintendo Wii U and just recently, the Nintendo Switch. Bayonetta 2, on the other hand, was published by Nintendo, which means that it is exclusive to all Nintendo consoles moving forward. Bayonetta 2 was released on the Wii U and the Nintendo Switch.
Bayonetta 3 is being helmed once again by Hideki Kamiya, who directed the original Bayonetta. Its release on the Switch signifies the strong partnership between PlatinumGames and Nintendo, which has also brought about the upcoming Astral Chain. This title is also being supervised by Hideki Kamiya, which is proof of the man’s talents when it comes to video game development. I expect nothing less from someone who came from Clover Studio, who brought about God Hand. If you’ve played that game, you’d see how close it is in terms of the game design to a lot of PlatinumGames’ titles.
In any case, PlatinumGames’ Astral Chain is set for release exclusively on the Nintendo Switch on August 30, 2019. We still don't know when Bayonetta 3 will release, but may find out next week if this update proves to be real.
