Bayonetta 3 Update Live, Patch Notes Released

A new update has been released for Bayonetta 3 on Nintendo Switch, bringing the game up to version 1.2.0. This update is fairly substantial, and actually makes some parts of the game easier than they were before. Most notably, several Nifelheim stages have had their difficulty level lessened; in some cases, that translates to an increased time limit, while in other cases players have more lives to complete each stage. There are also a handful of bug fixes, which should make things run a bit smoother! Full patch notes from Nintendo’s official website can be found below:

Ver. 1.2.0 (Released January 10, 2023)

Combat Adjustments

• Adjusted Viola’s activation window for “Block” and activation conditions for Witch Time.
  • Block activation window added after releasing Block (during the release animation).
  • Added an additional animation when Witch Time takes effect, making its activation easier to realize.
  • The allotted duration of Witch Time, and its activation window have been lengthened.
  • Now, when block is activated when player is attacked, playerwill receive damage effect, but block will succeed and activate WitchTime.
  • Now, combo can continue (with Dodge Offset) when player uses Block to activate Witch Time.
  • If the Block input is used repeatedly, the granted Witch Time duration will decrease.
• Adjustments made to prevent Viola’s evasive input and Cheshire’ssummoning input from activating Assault Slave while maintaininginvincibility if they are used in rapid succession.
• Weapons “Simoon”, “Tartarus” and Viola’s Charge Attacks can now continue to hold charge, even if dodged or blocked.
• Wink Slave can now be activated from the combos “PKP*” and “PKK*”for the weapons “G-Pillar”, “Dead End Express” and “Cassiopeia”.

  *P is Punch, and K is Kick

• When equipping the accessories “Infernal Communicator” and”Pulley’s Butterfly” to summon Devils and Butterflies, it is nowpossible to cancel the summoning motion by dodging or blocking.

Niflheim

• The following Niflheim stage conditions were changed to lower the difficulty:
• Chapter 2 Verse 5 (Casual to Expert): 120 second time limit changed to 150 second time limit
• Chapter 3 Verse 4 (Casual to Expert): Two lives increased to three lives
• Chapter 5 Verse 2 (Casual to Expert): 150 second time limit changed to 180 second time limit
• Chapter 6 Verse 8 (Casual to Expert): Two lives increased to three lives
• Chapter 9 Verse 8 (Casual to Expert): 60 second time limit changed to 80 second time limit
• Chapter 10 Verse 1 (Casual to Expert): 140 second time limit changed to 160 second time limit
• Chapter 12 Verse 5 (Casual to Expert): One life increased to two lives

Game Modes

• Conditions for obtaining the “Tricolored Keys” needed to unseal the “Old Picture Book” have been made easier.
  • “Tricolored Keys” will be automatically available on the chapterselect screen once it becomes possible to access the “Gates of Hell”.
• Even if the player already has access to the Gates of Hell, or hasalready obtained one or two keys, they will automatically obtain theremaining keys when going to the chapter select screen after applyingthe update.

Other Changes

• Adjustments have been made to the Golem Treasure Chests found in stages.
  • Time limits have been increased, and difficulty has been lowered.
  • Golem Chest fragmenting animation can now be fast-forwarded with the B-button.
• Adjustments have been made to reduce situations with poor camera visibility.
• Adjusted game balance.

Bug Fixes

• Fixed a bug in Verse 5 of Chapter 7 that prevented progress when certain actions were performed while controlling Cheshire.
• Fixed a problem with the accessory “Hymn of Durga” in which its effect was not being applied to some attacks.
• Fixed an issue where using Alruna’s “Bondage Whip (P or K* longpress)” skill in certain situations would cause the enemies to to dieinstantly.
• Fixed an issue where the weapons using “Crow Within” (J* longpress)” with “Scarborough Fair” and “Love is Blue” would cause player tomove forward significantly under certain conditions.
• Fixed an issue where Bayonetta’s animations would not playcorrectly when switching weapons immediately after using the “CrowWithin (J* long press)” with the weapons “Scarborough Fair” and “Love isBlue”.
• Fixed a bug that caused “Black Pearl Rain (Rotate L stick + S*)”for Infernal Demon “Kraken” to trigger “Wink Slave” with abnormally highattack power.
• Fixed a bug that caused “Devil Rodin” to be stuck for a time whenusing “After Burner Kick (↑K* in midair)” continuously, immediatelyafter rising up with a prior “After Burner Kick (J・K*)”.
• Fixed a bug in which Viola’s Assault Slave was able to summon Infernal Demons in “Infernal Demon-prohibited areas”.
• Fixed an error in the hand symbol seen in Cutie J’s transformation sequence viewable in Side Chapter.
• Fixed other issues to make the game more enjoyable to play.

*P is Punch, K is Kick, S is Shoot, and J is Jump.

While Bayonetta 3 only released a few months ago, Nintendo and PlatinumGames have big plans for the future of the series! A spin-off game is set to release soon, titled Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon. Bayonetta Origins looks like a significant departure from past games in the series, but supervising director Hideki Kamiya is hoping that fans will give it a chance. It remains to be seen whether the spin-off will manage to live-up to the critical success of previous series entries, but fans won’t have to wait too long to find out, as Bayonetta Origins will release on March 17th.

Are you happy about these changes for Bayonetta 3? Do you plan on checking out the spin-off in March? Let us know in the comments or share directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!