PixlBit

A few years ago I made a blog specifically pointing out Bayonetta and Bulletstorm for issues I had with the stories. Mostly that they had detailed plots, which a lot of people misinterpreted for having cutscenes and stories. I was never happy with it and have always wanted to correct it, and while playing Bayonetta 2, I thought about a parallel to one of the greatest comedies ever, The Big Lebowski. 

                    

Let's look at The Dude and Bayonetta. At first glance, they have absolutely nothing in common. But when you really look at it, you see a unique similarity. That being that they have their shit together not because of their situation, but because of their outlook on it. The Dude lives a pretty pathetic life, unemployed while doing very little other than smoking weed, bowling, and drinking White Russians. Bayonetta, meanwhile, is being hunted down by Angels all the time, where if she loses, she will face eternal damnation. 

And both wouldn't have it any other way. The Dude doesn't want anymore than what he has really, he enjoys his pathetic existence. Bayonetta loves to beat whoever she fights, meanwhile, as she tortures them all while dancing and looking sexy while doing it. Most other characters would be looking at a way out of either of these situations, but they enjoy this just the way it is. There is no room for character development in either, adding it would defeat the purpose of each of them.

Yet The Big Lebowski gave a perfect script for this kind of character while Bayonetta did not. Stuff happens in that movie, but almost all of it never goes anywhere. Characters are introduced and forgotten about, twists are revealed that don't have consequences, and all you get at the end is "The Dude abides." There is something to connect all these events together, but it is still mostly a sequence of events because the Dude does not care about most of it.

Bayonetta has a similar apathy which does not mesh as well with her plot. In regards to the first game, she is at her best when she does not care about a situation, only looking for fun ways to cause chaos. When things come in to advance the plot, they noticeably drag on and are pretty convoluted.

If, however, the plot was nothing more than "Angels want to kill her, watch as she travels around the world doing crazy things," however, I feel it would suit not only her character, but Platinum as well. After all, while the plot to Bayonetta was confusing and boring, the cutscenes that just let her be herself were awesome.

But this is not just for Bayonetta. There are many other games which focus on gameplay over story while offering a weak story that sometimes gets in the way of or even contradicts the core gameplay. But a sequence of events that just let characters have fun and do crazy things?  Well that would actually feel like a reward after the long gameplay segments. 

This is not a template for all games, merely an idea that I think could suit many games. Let Kojima and company still do their thing, but if Kamiya just wants a crazy action game, maybe he should just stick a bunch of crazy action cutscenes instead of a fully developed plot. Because gamers are always looking for the Citizen Kane of gaming, but why not look for its Big Lebowski as well?