Sega cancels Bayonetta 2

[Neo Matrix]

Originally Posted by Eurogamer

Sega has cancelled development on Bayonetta 2, according to a new report.

A source told Spong that Sega halted development on the Platinum-created sequel following an internal restructure.

Apparently the game included a new character, someone who was a member of the US military.

Last month Sega announced a number of games had been cancelled, but didn't specify which ones. Was Bayonetta 2, which has never been announced, one of them? Sega declined to comment on the story.

Sega has published each of Platinum's games: MadWorld, Infinite Space, Bayonetta and Vanquish, and retains the IP for each. It will publish Platinum's Anarchy Reigns this year, a game in which Bayonetta makes a guest appearance.

In October 2010, ahead of the release of Vanquish, Platinum chief Atsushi Inaba told Eurogamer in an interview the Japanese developer "would love" to make Bayonetta 2 and would do so "when the time is right".

Speculation was first sparked by a tweet from designer Hideki Kamiya. "Will there be a Bayonetta 2?" a fan asked the Devil May Cry director on Twitter. "I believe so," he replied.

"She'll be back if you believe so," he said to another follower.

"There is no concrete plan or schedule that we can talk about," Inaba told Eurogamer. "It's not like Kamiya said, 'Okay, we're going to make this.

"But Bayonetta is definitely a special IP for us. We loved creating that game. We think it was a really good game. We would love to make a sequel to it when the time is right. That's all we can say."

Source...

BUT!!!

Originally Posted by MCV

Bayonetta dev reignites sequel hopes

Consumers who were left disappointed by the apparent news of the cancellation of Bayonetta 2 have been thrown a lifeline by the first game’s creator.

Spong yesterday reported that “progress on the apparent Platinum Games sequel was halted” as a result of Sega’s ongoing restructuring, which has to date lead to the cancellation of several titles.

However, responding to these claims on Twitter, Bayonetta and Devil may Cry creator Hideki Kamiya told fans worried by the news to keep an eye on “next week’s game magazines”, according to Spong’s translation.

Indeed, there were elements of Spong’s initial claims that raised a few questions themselves – chiefly the fact that Sega is only the publisher of the game.

Sega is understood to own the Bayonetta IP, but if strategic changes are forcing Sega away from core console gaming then there’s surely a chance that they’d grant developer Platinum license to move forward with the IP independently.

It’s worth mentioning, too, that journalists from sister site Develop had at one stage been lead to believe that Bayonetta 2 was very much in development.

Source...

[Warp]

Interesting. I caught wind of the Spong cancellation rumor, but didn't see Kamiya's comment until now.

Given that Bayonetta 2 was rumored to have a new playable character, perhaps... both are true? "Bayonetta 2" is cancelled, and the game now has a new name? It'd hardly be the first spiritual successor; Demon's Souls -> Dark Souls is a great example.

[Rabid]

Eh, depending on how far into development the title was, releasing it under a different name wouldn't necessarily be a terrible idea.

[Mr. DNA]

The first game was utterly ****ing bananas, and just the right side of "challenging but not so hard that you wanted to pound your controller into the carpet". I'd be all over a sequel/spiritual successor if it were to happen.

[Crazy Jamie]

The first game was definitely one that stood out from the crowd. Considering some of the sequels that have been made for average games, you would hope that someone could find a sequel or spiritual successor here.

[bakedpony]

Bayonetta was indeed a good crazy game. I especially love the incorporation of Fly Me to the Moon haha