Cereza and the Lost Demon Review – A Captivating Companion Piece

Since first sashaying onto the stage over a decade ago, Bayonetta has been a hit with critics (including myself) and a certain niche audience, but the series certainly isn’t for everybody. Maybe it’s their provocative tone or relentless action (or both) but the games are a bit much for some. Perhaps PlatinumGames realizes that, as they seem to be reaching for a new audience with Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon, a downright wholesome storybook tale that focuses more on unique mechanics, exploration, and puzzle solving than the usual finger-spraining action.

Has Bayonetta successfully defied conventions yet again? Or does Bayonetta Origins cast a disappointingly weak spell? Time to see if this witch’s brew has the right ingredients.

Bayonetta Origins casts players as a young witch named Cereza who hasn’t yet come to grasp her powers, never mind a pair of gun heels. Cereza is the product of a Lumen Sage father and Umbra Witch mother, a pairing that’s frowned upon by the powers that be. As a result, Cereza’s father is exiled, and her mother is imprisoned. Cereza attempts to rescue her mother but fails, and thus takes up training with an outcast Umbra Witch named Morgana in order to increase her power.

Everything changes when an ethereal boy comes to Cereza in a dream and says that if she follows a mysterious white wolf deep into the heart of the Avalon Forest, she’ll gain the power to save her mother. Ah, but the Avalon Forest is full of tricksy faeries and Cereza soon finds herself lost and in mortal peril. Thankfully, she encounters a demon that possesses her stuffed cat, Cheshire. Together the two set off to track down the white wolf and escape Avalon Forest.

As you might have gathered from my description, Bayonetta Origins’ story is a fairly stark departure from previous entries in the series. This tale is strictly PG, which is the right choice considering the game stars a child, but there’s also a lot less of the general cheekiness and fourth-wall-breaking Bayonetta games are also known for. That isn’t necessarily a criticism, though, particularly in light of how Bayonetta 3’s story was received by fans (I thought that game wove a decent multiverse yarn, but there’s definitely a strong contingent that disagrees).

Bayonetta Origins takes its story surprisingly seriously and does a great job of developing the relationship between Cereza and Cheshire as she grows in confidence and he learns to rely on others. Those hoping for tons of super-specific ties between Bayonetta Origins and the games that come later in the timeline may be a bit disappointed, but the game does weave in a number of traditional elements from the series in satisfying and sometimes-surprising ways. This all builds up to a near-perfect climax that I didn’t quite see coming (but probably should have). Also, without spoiling anything, I’ll say this game has some rather interesting post-game content that almost feels like a take back, or at least clarification, of some of Bayonetta 3’s more controversial story choices. I went into Bayonetta Origins expecting a lightweight side story and instead got the best-written entry in the series.

Bayonetta Origins’ charming storybook tale is enhanced by its striking visuals. This is one of the most stylish Nintendo-published games on the Switch, featuring visuals reminiscent of early-20th-century Art-Nouveau-inspired children’s books. Cutscenes, presented as a series of static illustrations, do feel a bit low-budget, but overall, this is a rather lovely game aesthetically. The game’s fantasy-tinged score and voice acting, mostly delivered by a different cast than the core Bayonetta games, are also delightful.

Much like its story and world, Bayonetta Origins forges its own unexpected path. The quirky concept around which everything here is built is that you control Cereza with the left Joy-Con and Cheshire with the right Joy-Con (or the left and right sides of a Switch Pro Controller, as I did). Technically, there’s nothing stopping you from splitting the Joy-Cons with a friend and playing co-op, but the game is primarily presented as a single-player game where you control two characters simultaneously.

While in combat, Cheshire does most of the heavy lifting, dispatching enemies with his claws and a variety of special moves, depending on what elemental form he takes (you’ll eventually unlock Wood, Stone, Water, and Fire variants you can switch between on the fly). Cereza mostly plays support, as she can bind enemies and refill Cheshire’s magic meter while carrying him in toy form. Aside from that, Cereza’s main objective is just to stay alive – while enemies can temporarily knock out Cheshire, it’s only Game Over if Cereza’s life bar is depleted.

Outside of combat, Cereza and Cheshire both have specialties that help them explore the environment. Cereza’s abilities include awakening certain objects with her magic, slipping under gates, tossing Cheshire (in toy form) to higher ledges, and a couple of other things I’ll leave you to discover. Cheshire can break through barriers and make use of his elemental powers – the Wood Cheshire can latch onto anchor points using vines, Fire Cheshire can get past frozen barriers, and so on.

You’ll have to bring all of Cereza and Cheshire’s abilities to bear in Bayonetta Origins’ “Tír na Nóg” sections. Fairly regularly, you’ll happen on parts of the map that have been consumed by darkness and in order to dispel it, you’ll have to complete a Tír na Nóg stage, which are free-standing challenges somewhat reminiscent of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’s shrines. These cover a fairly wide gamut – some are straightforward combat challenges, some are puzzle-focused, while others are tests of your ability to control Cereza and Cheshire at the same time.

There’s no way around it; controlling two characters at once takes some getting used to. Even several hours into the game, I would forget which character I was controlling. Thankfully, it seems Platinum realizes they’re asking a lot of players with Bayonetta Origins’ quirky mechanics and introduce new concepts slowly with plenty of accessibility options to take the edge off. Combat difficulty takes quite a while to ramp up and early puzzles definitely won’t break your brain.

That said, Bayonetta Origins’ gameplay should click for most players eventually, and once it does, the game starts to ramp up in complexity at a satisfying rate. Level design becomes more intricate and puzzle-focused, secrets are more deviously hidden, and Tír na Nóg stages challenge you to control Cereza and Cheshire in tandem for extended periods of time. While standard battles never become that challenging, the game starts rolling out big multi-stage boss fights in its final chapters. While it almost feels like the product of a different company at first, Bayonetta Origins’ final hours have that proper Platinum feel and the fact that it takes a while to get there isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Bayonetta Origins is paced so well that those big, bombastic Platinum moments hit extra hard when they arrive.

Ideally, games should become more compelling the longer you play them as you master their mechanics, become more immersed in the world, and face greater challenges, but in reality, it’s pretty unusual. Bayonetta Origins is the rare game that starts simple but continually adds new layers, becoming better with every hour you play. And you’ll be playing for quite a few hours! Bayonetta Origins’ main story should take you a solid 12 to 15 hours to complete, with leftover secrets, multiple difficulties, and post-game content providing good reasons to come back for more. Some have questioned this being a full-price $60 title, but in terms of content, the price tag felt justified. Youth may be fleeting, but Bayonetta’s early years will stick with you for a while.

This review was based on a copy of Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon provided by publisher Nintendo.

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon’s restrained tone and quirky dual-character mechanics won’t immediately connect with everyone, but you owe it to yourself to give the game a chance. Bayonetta Origins eventually comes into its own in a big way, delivering escalating action, compelling character development, and expertly-executed fan-pleasing moments en route to a satisfying finale. This tale of friendship is the perfect companion for Bayonetta 3 and may even win over those who haven’t been bewitched by the franchise in the past.

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