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Out of the ashes of now-defunct Clover Studios (Viewtiful Joe, Okami) came Platinum Games, an independent game studio with a four-game deal with Sega.  Of those four, we were lucky enough to see two of them in action; MadWorld and Bayonetta. 


MadWorld

Described as an “ultra ultra violent” action game, MadWorld uses a Sin-City-inspired black and white (and blood-red) visual style that is quite literally unlike any game we’ve ever seen.  The game places you in the shoes of Jack, a contestant on the game show “Death Watch.”  The game show, complete with play-by-play announcers (who tend to get a bit repetitive), tasks you with brutally slaughtering everyone in your path using environmental weapons like street signs, tires and even spiked walls.  Each weapon has several killing animations, which are achieved by using the motion controls.  The more creative the kills, the more points you’ll score, and the more mini-games you’ll be able to unlock.  The action is so over-the-top violent that it’s hard to believe that this game is exclusive to the Wii, but that is, in fact, the case.  Just how violent is the game?  When you can’t find a good weapon, you can always fall back on your default method of dispatching foes: a chainsaw!  When your default is a chainsaw, you know this game ain’t for kids.

Bayonetta

Coming to the Xbox 360 and PS3 (and, inevitably, the Playboy Girls of Gaming special) is Bayonetta, an action game starring the titillating, titular heroine.  Evoking shades of Devil May Cry and God of War, Bayonetta puts you in the stiletto heels of an ass-kicking witch who uses four guns (one in each hand, one attached to each foot…don’t laugh) and her magical hair (stop laughing) to wipe out hordes of angelic enemies.  In addition to shooting many holes in the baddies, Bayonetta can also send her hair through a mystic portal, only to have it return immediately in the form of a powerful foot, fist, or, at one point, a gigantic dragon that crushed a boss between his teeth.  If it sounds a bit silly, you aren’t far off.  That’s not to say that the game isn’t impressive, just that it doesn’t take itself too seriously.  The game’s visuals are on par with DMC 4, except instead of having a beautifully rendered guy in a red coat, you get a beautifully rendered knockout of a woman in a skintight black bodysuit.  Oh, and she wears glasses.  I don’t know why, but that makes her much, much hotter.  For a game with such silly elements, Bayonetta is really shaping up to be a top quality action game, and I can’t wait to see how this game develops. 

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