Faisal Ghaffar 
Anyone who is familiar with Bayonetta would immediately recognize her as an ass-kicking, confident witch, but it turns out that this was not always the case. Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon explores her history and shows a time when a young Bayonettahad had to face her inner demons. The wild stylish action is replaced in this spin-off with a harrowing and whimsical adventure that gives you some truly heartwarming moments and a sense of adventure.
The journey
Bayonetta Origins has a beautiful storybook presentation that brings the action-adventure thrills to life in the most charming way possible. The game takes you through an imaginative world and the journey, which is steeped rather deeply in Irish mythology, is downright joyous. Cereza has been trapped in the Avalon Forest by faeries and they lurk about with ambushes and tricks.
The spinoff also explores some elements that had only been hinted at in the mainline games and they have taken a very earnest and grounded approach to do so. Even though it is a prequel, the game has its own merits and even newcomers will be able to have fun. The campaign will take you at least 15 hours to complete and watching it come to an end can be very sad.
Different view
As opposed to the usual third-person camera, Bayonetta Origins has opted to take a top-down view, which means you are not only in control of Cereza, but also Cheshire, her cat plushie that has been infused by a demon. You control the former with the left side and the latter from the right side of the controller.
Once you get the hang of it, juggling two characters proves to be quite intuitive and you are able to adjust to the pattern. Considering the coordination you need to handle them, you will see some challenging scenarios that only add to the fun. In some areas, you have to analyze your surroundings to determine how the duo’s abilities can be used for getting through them.
Proper action
You will find that Bayonetta Origins is truly an action game as the duo has to work together in combat. Cereza uses the Thorn Bind for trapping enemies and this gives Cheshire the freedom to use powerful smashes and furious swipes to take out the faeries. There are numerous enemy types that you will come across and this is where you use the elemental modes that Cheshire comes with.
The animations are quite lively and the art style is also dazzling. Managing two characters may seem a bit tricky, but Bayonetta Origins is not a very difficult game overall. There are some intriguing puzzles that you will come across and your skills will truly be tested in some combat sequences. You are rewarded in the form of collectibles and items and there are some awesome surprises as well.
The Verdict
Once the credits start rolling, you will experience a bittersweet feeling, which shows that Bayonetta Origins is truly something special and a joy to play for everyone.
