Bayonetta (SSBU): Difference between revisions
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'''Bayonetta''' ({{ja|ベヨネッタ|Beyonetta}}, ''Bayonetta'') is a playable character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'', making her return from the [[Super Smash Bros. 4|previous game]]. She is the second fighter from [[Sega]] after {{SSBU|Sonic}}. She was confirmed alongside the rest of the returning roster on June 12th, 2018 during E3 2018. Bayonetta is classified as [[Fighter number|Fighter #63]], the last fighter number of the ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]'' [[veteran]]s and returning veterans overall. | '''Bayonetta''' ({{ja|ベヨネッタ|Beyonetta}}, ''Bayonetta'') is a playable character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'', making her return from the [[Super Smash Bros. 4|previous game]]. She is the second fighter from [[Sega]] after {{SSBU|Sonic}}. She was confirmed alongside the rest of the returning roster on June 12th, 2018 during E3 2018. Bayonetta is classified as [[Fighter number|Fighter #63]], the last fighter number of the ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]'' [[veteran]]s and returning veterans overall. | ||
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[https://bayonetta.fandom.com/wiki/Hellena_Taylor Hellena Taylor] and {{iw|wikipedia|Atsuko Tanaka|voice actress}}'s portrayals of Bayonetta from ''Smash 4'' were repurposed for the English and Japanese versions of ''Ultimate'' respectively. ''Ultimate'' is the last game where Hellena Taylor voices Bayonetta in English, as Jennifer Hale is her current English voice actress in ''Bayonetta 3''. | [https://bayonetta.fandom.com/wiki/Hellena_Taylor Hellena Taylor] and {{iw|wikipedia|Atsuko Tanaka|voice actress}}'s portrayals of Bayonetta from ''Smash 4'' were repurposed for the English and Japanese versions of ''Ultimate'' respectively. ''Ultimate'' is the last game where Hellena Taylor voices Bayonetta in English, as Jennifer Hale is her current English voice actress in ''Bayonetta 3''. | ||
Bayonetta is currently ranked | Bayonetta is currently ranked 26th out of 82 characters on the current tier list, placing her in A- tier. This is a big drop from her placement in ''Smash 4'' where she was considered to be the best character in the game. Bayonetta's main strength is her unique, powerful combo game. Her special attacks, [[Witch Twist]] and [[After Burner Kick]], allow her to reliably combo and inflict heavy damage on opponents, sometimes dragging them into the top or side blast zones and leading to an early KO. Bayonetta can also rack up damage rather quickly, as all of her tilt attacks confirm into multiple follow-ups at early percentages. Furthermore, Bayonetta possesses a plethora of defensive options, the most effective being [[Witch Time]] and [[Bat Within]]. A successful activation of Witch Time at low percents can open an opportunity for a combo, while an activation at high percents can often confirm into a KO. Bat Within, a frame 1 airdodge, allows her to move away in the direction that her player chooses, allowing her to escape semi-true combos, juggles, and even kill confirms, while in turn allowing her to reverse disadvantage and punish her opponent. Finally, Bayonetta has an oppressive offstage game thanks to her flexible aerial game, while Witch Twist and After Burner Kick give her a long, flexible, and mostly safe recovery. | ||
However, Bayonetta has | However, Bayonetta has several weaknesses that hold her back, the most notable being her raw kill power. She tends to have a harder time KOing at higher percents, as her best KO options, particularly sweetspot back-air, down-air, jab, and her smash attacks, are difficult to land or combo into at high percents. This is compounded by her light weight and tall frame, which means opponents could KO her first if she is unable to take their stock. In addition, Bayonetta's frame data is below-average, with almost all of her attacks coming out on frame 9 or later, and most of them also have high ending lag and deal minimal shield damage, making them unsafe on shield. As such, her ground game is rather poor, which in turn affects her combo game, as she often relies on [[Heel Slide]], up tilt, or down tilt in order to start combos. Finally, her combos have their own drawbacks: not only are they susceptible to [[SDI]], but the more special moves she uses during an aerial combo, the more landing lag she receives, up to 50 frames, making them punishable if whiffed. | ||
Overall, Bayonetta is a combo-oriented character that can rack up damage quickly and KO at early percents, however she tends to struggle at higher percents due to her poor approach and limited KO options outside of her combos. Early results from Bayonetta were lackluster, leading to a negative initial perception, however numerous buffs from balance patches helped improve her viability over time, particularly in the post-online metagame, and she has since garnered a large playerbase and a plethora of strong results from players such as {{Sm|Bloom4Eva}}, {{Sm|Lima}}, and {{Sm|TamaPDaifuku}}. | |||
==How to unlock== | ==How to unlock== | ||
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She has a number of unique attributes, such as her [[Bullet Arts]], which allows her to shoot from the guns on her hands and heels by keeping the attack button pressed down after most of her attacks. Because they are programmed as disjointed hitboxes, they are not classified as [[projectile]]s and thus cannot be reflected, making them a solid pressuring and peppering tool. She also possesses a special [[Fighter ability]] in [[Bat Within]], which activates if struck during the earliest frames of her dodges or in the latest frames of her down special; this causes her to morph into a flock of bats, receive half damage without taking any knockback, and move in the direction inputted to initiate the dodge (for spot dodges she remains in place, and for neutral air dodges she moves downward). Because the ability can activate on frame 1 of a dodge input, Bayonetta effectively posesses the fastest combo-breaking defensive option out of the entire roster, allowing her to evade combos that would otherwise be unavoidable for nearly all others in the cast. Her up special has a large hitbox above and around her, is one of few in the game that don't cause helplessness upon use, can be used a second time following a double jump, and can be used to cancel her double jump and preserve it, allowing her a vertical recovery that surpasses many other fighters; combined with her side special, Bayonetta is nearly impossible to contest when returning to stage. Additionally, she can also [[wall cling]] and [[wall jump]], giving her further movement options on certain stages. | She has a number of unique attributes, such as her [[Bullet Arts]], which allows her to shoot from the guns on her hands and heels by keeping the attack button pressed down after most of her attacks. Because they are programmed as disjointed hitboxes, they are not classified as [[projectile]]s and thus cannot be reflected, making them a solid pressuring and peppering tool. She also possesses a special [[Fighter ability]] in [[Bat Within]], which activates if struck during the earliest frames of her dodges or in the latest frames of her down special; this causes her to morph into a flock of bats, receive half damage without taking any knockback, and move in the direction inputted to initiate the dodge (for spot dodges she remains in place, and for neutral air dodges she moves downward). Because the ability can activate on frame 1 of a dodge input, Bayonetta effectively posesses the fastest combo-breaking defensive option out of the entire roster, allowing her to evade combos that would otherwise be unavoidable for nearly all others in the cast. Her up special has a large hitbox above and around her, is one of few in the game that don't cause helplessness upon use, can be used a second time following a double jump, and can be used to cancel her double jump and preserve it, allowing her a vertical recovery that surpasses many other fighters; combined with her side special, Bayonetta is nearly impossible to contest when returning to stage. Additionally, she can also [[wall cling]] and [[wall jump]], giving her further movement options on certain stages. | ||
Bayonetta's ground game is lackluster and reliant on her tilt attacks to help set up intricate combos. Her [[jab]] is slow, but the final hit of the rapid jab can KO at high percentages. Her dash attack has considerable startup for an attack of its kind (15 frames), but moves very quickly once initiated and can also serve as a situational KO move. Both her up tilt and her down tilt have small hitboxes, but they are very good combo tools: up tilt is useful for getting her opponents into the air and also combos from her [[Heel Slide]] or into her [[Witch Twist]], up aerial, or back aerial depending on the percentage, with up tilt into back air being a semi-reliable kill confirm while her down tilt is a good out-of-shield option and has similar combo potential. Her forward tilt is her least useful tilt as it lacks follow-up options beyond very low percents, but it can provide mix-up options on shield depending on whether | Bayonetta's ground game is lackluster and reliant on her tilt attacks to help set up intricate combos. Her [[jab]] is slow, but the final hit of the rapid jab can KO at high percentages. Her dash attack has considerable startup for an attack of its kind (15 frames), but moves very quickly once initiated and can also serve as a situational KO move. Both her up tilt and her down tilt have small hitboxes, but they are very good combo tools: up tilt is useful for getting her opponents into the air and also combos from her [[Heel Slide]] or into her [[Witch Twist]], up aerial, or back aerial depending on the percentage, with up tilt into back air being a semi-reliable kill confirm while her down tilt is a good out-of-shield option and has similar combo potential. Her forward tilt is her least useful tilt as it lacks follow-up options beyond very low percents, but it can provide mix-up options on shield depending on whether one, two or all three hits of the move and optional Bullets Arts timing stalls are used. | ||
Bayonetta's [[smash attack]]s allow her to summon Madama Butterfly's limbs. They each have good knockback and range, but they also have low priority and noticeable lag, meaning that attempting to use one (even in Witch Time) can cause them to clank with other grounded moves and lead her to get punished, although Madama Butterfly's limbs have transcendent priority against aerial attacks. Her forward smash is her earliest KO option and one of her only attacks that can reliably kill before 100%, though it has a blind spot directly in front of Bayonetta. Her up smash covers the area directly in front of her and can KO from the upper blast line. Her down smash covers the same range as her up smash and is mainly useful for meteor smashing her opponents from the ledge, though it can also kill from the upper blast line at higher percentages. | Bayonetta's [[smash attack]]s allow her to summon Madama Butterfly's limbs. They each have good knockback and range, but they also have low priority and noticeable lag, meaning that attempting to use one (even in Witch Time) can cause them to clank with other grounded moves and lead her to get punished, although Madama Butterfly's limbs have transcendent priority against aerial attacks. Her forward smash is her earliest KO option and one of her only attacks that can reliably kill before 100%, though it has a blind spot directly in front of Bayonetta. Her up smash covers the area directly in front of her and can KO from the upper blast line. Her down smash covers the same range as her up smash and is mainly useful for meteor smashing her opponents from the ledge, though it can also kill from the upper blast line at higher percentages. | ||
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Her grab and throw game has some utility, though to a lesser extent than the rest of her moveset. While up throw and down throw lack true follow-up potential outside of reads and mix-ups, the latter serves as a KO option at very high percentages. Additionally, while forward throw and back throw are purely positional throws, the former is her strongest kill throw, though its kill potential can easily be mitigated with proper DI. | Her grab and throw game has some utility, though to a lesser extent than the rest of her moveset. While up throw and down throw lack true follow-up potential outside of reads and mix-ups, the latter serves as a KO option at very high percentages. Additionally, while forward throw and back throw are purely positional throws, the former is her strongest kill throw, though its kill potential can easily be mitigated with proper DI. | ||
To counter her many unique strengths | To counter her many unique strengths, Bayonetta has very noticeable flaws. Most notably, while she can quickly rack up damage with her combos, she has very few reliable KO options until around 150%, with her only real kill options before this being her smash attacks, back air, and down air. Even then, these options are relatively mediocre; Bayonetta's smash attacks are slow, often get cancelled out by other moves and have spots with no hitbox; her back air has slow start-up and a relatively small sweetspot hitbox; and her down air is a laggy move that only KOs if it hits the opponent with certain hitboxes or while they're grounded. Even at percentages higher than 150%, her KO options are unreliable, extremely punishable if whiffed or only KO at very high percentages, for example her forward throw and dash attack. Thus to mitigate her raw kill potential, many players aim to earn stocks through successful edgeguards using her fearsome aerial prowess, or more situationally through the use of hard reads using Witch Time. | ||
Furthermore, Bayonetta has very poor frame data on the ground, with all of her standard grounded moves coming out at frame 7 or slower while also being unsafe on shield. This makes Bayonetta's approach among the worst in the entire cast, effectively forcing her to play a very defensive, bait-and-punish style which the opponent can counter by simply shielding or not approaching her. In addition, the fact that Bayonetta is a tall character with a fast fall speed and light weight means she is more easily comboed and more susceptible to being KO'd – especially when stuffed out by sufficiently strong anti-airs. Though Bat Within can somewhat alleviate the former problem, the issues compound to give her poor survivability. | Furthermore, Bayonetta has very poor frame data on the ground, with all of her standard grounded moves coming out at frame 7 or slower while also being unsafe on shield. This makes Bayonetta's approach among the worst in the entire cast, effectively forcing her to play a very defensive, bait-and-punish style which the opponent can counter by simply shielding or not approaching her. In addition, the fact that Bayonetta is a tall character with a fast fall speed and light weight means she is more easily comboed and more susceptible to being KO'd – especially when stuffed out by sufficiently strong anti-airs. Though Bat Within can somewhat alleviate the former problem, the issues compound to give her poor survivability. | ||
Her passive abilities also have issues. While Bat Within has utility in the context of on-stage disadvantage, it is essentially a worse spot dodge on the ground, as Bayonetta will still take half of the dodged attack's damage if it is triggered. In the air, Bat Within has other | Her passive abilities also have issues. While Bat Within has utility in the context of on-stage disadvantage, it is essentially a worse spot dodge on the ground, as Bayonetta will still take half of the dodged attack's damage if it is triggered. In the air, Bat Within has other problems: the fact that it only sends her downward when triggered in the air means that it can cause SDs while she is offstage, and to balance the fact that Bat Within is so fast, the distance Bayonetta covers when using a directional air dodge is minimal. | ||
Bayonetta is subject to several other weaknesses: unlike most other fighters, her Smash attacks can only be held for 60 frames instead of 120 ([[Mega Man (SSBU)|Mega Man]], [[Ness (SSBU)|Ness]], [[Olimar (SSBU)|Olimar]], and [[Villager (SSBU)|Villager]] also share this weakness); her Witch Time becomes less effective with every use, even when it isn't triggered by an attack; and Bayonetta's combos themselves, while arguably her strongest asset, are still ineffective against good [[Smash directional influence|SDI]]. Additionally, Bayonetta suffers from having potentially some of the highest landing lag in the game, as her landing lag increases based on how many specials she has used in the air. As a result, she can be immobile upon landing for up to 50 frames. Though she has ways to get around this - for example, using Witch Time to cancel her landing lag, landing with an aerial to force the opponent away, or retreating to a ledge – these are ultimately situational, and a whiffed combo can lead to a big punish. | Bayonetta is subject to several other weaknesses: unlike most other fighters, her Smash attacks can only be held for 60 frames instead of 120 ([[Mega Man (SSBU)|Mega Man]], [[Ness (SSBU)|Ness]], [[Olimar (SSBU)|Olimar]], and [[Villager (SSBU)|Villager]] also share this weakness); her Witch Time becomes less effective with every use, even when it isn't triggered by an attack; and Bayonetta's combos themselves, while arguably her strongest asset, are still ineffective against good [[Smash directional influence|SDI]]. Additionally, Bayonetta suffers from having potentially some of the highest landing lag in the game, as her landing lag increases based on how many specials she has used in the air. As a result, she can be immobile upon landing for up to 50 frames. Though she has ways to get around this - for example, using Witch Time to cancel her landing lag, landing with an aerial to force the opponent away, or retreating to a ledge – these are ultimately situational, and a whiffed combo can lead to a big punish. | ||
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==Changes from ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''== | ==Changes from ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''== | ||
Bayonetta was unanimously considered to be the best character in '' | Bayonetta was unanimously considered to be the best character in ''SSB4'' due to her many extreme advantages, including her ability to KO opponents at virtually any percentage with successful [[ladder combo]]s, the best disadvantage-breaking move in the game with [[Witch Time]], great KO potential outside of her ladder combos thanks to Witch Time and her smash attacks, and an excellent recovery. Even after having received significant [[nerf]]s in game updates, her advantages remained intact, causing players to label her as "[[broken]]", and many matches involving her became controversial. This included the ''Ultimate'' tournament [[Super Smash Bros. Invitational 2018]], where top professional player {{Sm|MkLeo}} pulled off 2 ladder KOs in front of [[Masahiro Sakurai]] using Bayonetta. Due to these factors, Bayonetta was initially nerfed drastically in her transition to ''Ultimate'', though game updates have provided her with substantial buffs to compensate, and the shifts to the metagame have proven benefitial for her to some degree. Despite this, Bayonetta has still been noticeably nerfed overall from her ''SSB4'' iteration. | ||
Bayonetta's already poor frame data, her major weakness in '' | Bayonetta's already poor frame data, her major weakness in ''SSB4'', has been worsened further from the previous game. Her most reliable combo starters have been weakened, with her up tilt, down tilt, and forward aerial all having more ending lag; the latter was affected the most significantly, with the first hit no longer allowing for any follow-ups other than the second and third hits of the move. [[Witch Twist]] has more startup and grants less distance, reducing its effectiveness as a combo starter, [[out of shield]] option, follow-up from other moves, and recovery option. Adding to this, all of Bayonetta's special moves have received nerfs that make them more risky and punishable: [[Bullet Climax]]'s charge takes longer to cancel and can no longer be held indefinitely, [[Heel Slide]] and [[After Burner Kick]]'s followup hits can no longer be used if they hit a shield, Witch Twist is slower and can no longer grab ledges, and Witch Time slows down opponents for much shorter amounts of time except at very high percentages, alongside having noticeably more startup and ending lag; the lattermost move's changes, in particular, have made Witch Time go from the uncontested best counter in ''SSB4'' to being much more in-line with the rest of the cast in ''Ultimate''. | ||
Her KO ability has been weakened as well. Neutral, up and down aerials deal lower knockback (most significantly the former two, which no longer KO under 200% onstage), her back aerial has less range and a smaller hitbox (most notably the sweetspot), and her smash attacks only get half as much of an increase in power when charged. This is exacerbated by Witch Time's decreased slowdown duration, hindering its ability to lead into safe KOs, and due to the severe nerfs to her up aerial, she can no longer KO with ladder combos unless they are initiated very close to the top [[blast line]], and even then very high percents are often needed to reliably earn a KO. As a result, Bayonetta now has a significantly more defined main weakness, which is her poor KO ability | Her KO ability has been weakened as well. Neutral, up and down aerials deal lower knockback (most significantly the former two, which no longer KO under 200% onstage), her back aerial has less range and a smaller hitbox (most notably the sweetspot), and her smash attacks only get half as much of an increase in power when charged. This is exacerbated by Witch Time's decreased slowdown duration and lower knockback multiplier on smash attacks, hindering its ability to lead into safe KOs, and due to the severe nerfs to her up aerial, she can no longer KO with ladder combos unless they are initiated very close to the top [[blast line]], and even then very high percents are often needed to reliably earn a KO. As a result, Bayonetta now has a significantly more defined main weakness, which is her poor KO ability and reliance on her combos due to her lack of reliable KO options outside of back air, down air, and her smash attacks. Her moveset's lower power is also pronounced further by the reduced damage some of her moves deal, which slightly hinders her combo game further. Conversely, her own survivability has been worsened, as her already low [[weight]] has reduced further, and her recovery is less effective due to Witch Twist's shorter distance, slower ledge grab, and smaller hitboxes. | ||
[[Bayonetta recovery frames|Bayonetta's special recovery frames]] have also been significantly extended. While previously varied configurations of her special moves gave Bayonetta determinate amounts of landing lag regardless of how they were performed, the landing lag suffered by each combination is more varied and, in most cases, increased. Furthermore, Bayonetta's infamous ability to cancel higher amounts of landing lag with her [[down aerial]] was also removed, and landing with the move can instead cause, on most combinations, to further increase the landing lag she receives from performing certain combinations (interestingly enough, her ability to bypass landing lag with Witch Time remains, though this is largely irrelevant due to the move's increased duration). As a result of these changes, Bayonetta now suffers the highest amount of landing lag among the cast, and this also increases her vulnerability if opponents are able to fall out of her combos, allowing them to land a harder [[punish]] option on her more easily. | |||
In spite of this, Bayonetta has also received a few noteworthy buffs. All of her dodges have been sped up relative to the rest of the cast, no longer being among the slowest in the game, while still having the ability to trigger Bat Within during their startup. Downwards After Burner Kick is a reliable combo starter due to launching grounded opponents at a higher, more suitable angle for followups, and Witch Twist is harder to [[SDI]] out of due to the lower [[hitlag]] on each hit. Witch Time can slow down opponents from much farther distances upon a successful counterattack, | In spite of this, Bayonetta has also received a few noteworthy buffs. All of her dodges have been sped up relative to the rest of the cast, no longer being among the slowest in the game, while still having the ability to trigger Bat Within during their startup. Downwards After Burner Kick is now a reliable combo starter once again due to it launching grounded opponents at a higher, more suitable angle for followups, and Witch Twist is harder to [[SDI]] out of due to the lower [[hitlag]] on each hit. Witch Time can slow down opponents from much farther distances upon a successful counterattack, has a longer counter window, and changes a projectile's ownership to her. Although [[grab]]s have been overall nerfed across the cast, all of Bayonetta's grabs have slightly increased range, which combined with her throws not losing their utility, improves her grab game despite their higher ending lag. Her [[neutral attack]] combo's finisher and dash attack both have increased knockback, the former now being one of the strongest neutral attacks in the game, and the strongest among lightweights, and the latter has more range and reduced ending lag, improving the move as a burst or KO option. Bayonetta's most inconsistent moves have also been notably improved; both hits of her up tilt will always connect reliably due to the first hit using set knockback, her smash attacks now have transcendent priority on aerial opponents, most notably addressing the low priority of the moves, Witch Twist has a lower SDI multiplier, and her Witch Time has higher slowdown scaling, noticeably increasing its slowdown duration at high percentages when the move is stale. | ||
The universal changes to | The universal changes to gameplay mechanics are a mixed bag for Bayonetta overall. The ability to [[dash cancel]] into any move improves her grounded game, though this is somewhat counterbalanced by their rather slow startup and her notable grounded moves losing some of their combo utility. The streamlined [[jump#jump timing|jumpsquats]] and reductions to landing lag are mostly detrimental to her; they slightly benefit Bayonetta's combo game as long as her aerials are not extended with Bullet Arts, but unlike most other characters, Bayonetta suffers higher landing lag when she lands with aerials that are extended with Bullet Arts. This, combined with other characters gaining either safer aerials, improved combo routes from them, or lower landing lag, has allowed them to more easily keep up with Bayonetta. On the other hand, the changes to [[air dodge]] mechanics have benefitted her overall; although Bayonetta has the third shortest distance of any directional air dodge (tied with {{SSBU|Steve}}) she still benefits from their reintroduction regardless since her special moves don't cause helplessness when used in the air, and it allows her to slightly extend her recovery provided she is not able to reach the edge on time, plus the increased lag on all kinds of air dodges and their limit to once per airtime (unless hitstun is sustained) has further improved her edgeguarding ability, despite her worse aerial game. | ||
Overall, Bayonetta's biggest strengths from '' | Overall, Bayonetta's biggest strengths from ''SSB4'' that were deemed "overpowered" have all been severely toned down or even removed altogether, as her combos require slightly more precision to pull off, have less KO potential and leave her more vulnerable, and Witch Time is a less powerful option to place the opponent at a disadvantage. She is also plagued with further defined weaknesses, possessing much more significant KOing issues, a worse disadvantage state and overall survivability (both from her weaker recovery and endurance) and a slightly slower moveset. Although some of her moves have received various improvements and/or quality of life changes, none of her buffs are able to properly compensate for the comparatively much larger impact her abundance of nerfs have brought up. The universal changes pronounce both the good and bad aspects of her attributes, but much like her direct buffs, they fail to address her severe direct nerfs. However, she still retains several of her main strengths from the previous game, most notably her strong combo game and edgeguarding ability. Many of Bayonetta's improvements were given to her through game updates, improving on her most underwhelming aspects or alleviating the severity of her nerfs. These changes now give Bayonetta a higher learning curve, and render her far less powerful than she was in ''SSB4''; however, optimizations to her metagame and the retention of her strengths have allowed Bayonetta to remain an effective character. | ||
{{SSB4 to SSBU changelist|char=Bayonetta}} | {{SSB4 to SSBU changelist|char=Bayonetta}} | ||
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Bayonetta received a mix of buffs and nerfs in game updates, but was significantly buffed overall. Before update 3.1.0, she received few and relatively minor changes to her moveset, making Bullet Climax less effective on shield much like most other projectiles, but allowing Bayonetta to grab ledges easier after using neutral aerial, while also removing [[Stun Jacket]], which used to affect her Bullet Arts more notably than most other characters. | Bayonetta received a mix of buffs and nerfs in game updates, but was significantly buffed overall. Before update 3.1.0, she received few and relatively minor changes to her moveset, making Bullet Climax less effective on shield much like most other projectiles, but allowing Bayonetta to grab ledges easier after using neutral aerial, while also removing [[Stun Jacket]], which used to affect her Bullet Arts more notably than most other characters. | ||
Update 3.1.0 gave | Update 3.1.0 gave her a much larger amount of buffs, particularly Witch Time having more counter frames and intangibility frames alongside faster regeneration, which makes it more reliable even through multiple uses. This greatly improved Witch Time's usability as a counter, with its incarnation in the base game having arguably the worst frame data for a counter and no guarantee for a reward when landing it. Witch Twist and After Burner Kick both have less landing lag, making Bayonetta less punishable after performing combos and opening new opportunities for applying pressure. Her dash attack's clean hit deals more knockback, making it a semi-reliable kill option on lighter characters. Neutral attack gained a slightly longer lasting hitbox on the first hit and also received greater knockback for the final hit of the rapid jab. Her down smash also received a longer lasting hitbox on the second hit. Her up tilt was also improved by allowing it to connect more reliably even at very high percents, which was previously notorious for being inconsistent. Most notably, Witch Time was buffed even further by making Bat Within activate later during the counter without changing the move's total duration, reducing its ending lag. | ||
After a year of receiving very few and rather negligible changes in balance patches, | After a year of receiving very few and rather negligible changes in balance patches, update 8.0.0 granted Bayonetta her most substantial buffs; forward smash has more base knockback and received a longer lasting hitbox, making the move a more reliable KO option. Her forward tilt's third hit had its endlag reduced, which allows the move to start true combos at very low percents, and up tilt's hitboxes were further improved, now using set knockback on the first hit to make sure it always connects reliably on grounded opponents at higher percentages. Witch Twist now has a lower SDI multiplier, making her combos harder to fall out of, and Heel Slide has less endlag, which improves its combo potential. | ||
Update 12.0.0 buffed Bayonetta one last time with a few small but helpful changes. The final hit of rapid jab was buffed once more to deal more knockback and launch opponents at a more horizontal angle, becoming one of the strongest jabs in the game in terms of knockback and giving Bayonetta a new KO option at higher percentages, down smash was made 3 frames faster and is now slightly easier to spike offstage opponents with the move, and Witch Time received less slowdown duration penalty when used against projectiles, making her less susceptible to being zoned by them. | Update 12.0.0 buffed Bayonetta one last time with a few small but helpful changes. The final hit of rapid jab was buffed once more to deal more knockback and launch opponents at a more horizontal angle, becoming one of the strongest jabs in the game in terms of knockback and giving Bayonetta a new KO option at higher percentages, down smash was made 3 frames faster and is now slightly easier to spike offstage opponents with the move, and Witch Time received less slowdown duration penalty when used against projectiles, making her less susceptible to being zoned by them. | ||
Overall, Bayonetta fares much better than she did when ''Ultimate'' launched and is now | Overall, Bayonetta fares much better than she did when ''Ultimate'' launched and is now widely considered to be a solid high-tier character. However, she is still significantly weaker than her ''Smash 4'' iteration. | ||
'''{{GameIcon|ssbu}} {{SSBU|1.1.0}}''' | '''{{GameIcon|ssbu}} {{SSBU|1.1.0}}''' | ||
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|neutral3dmg=2.2% | |neutral3dmg=2.2% | ||
|neutralinfdmg=0.2% (loop), 0.5% (penultimate hit), 5% (last) | |neutralinfdmg=0.2% (loop), 0.5% (penultimate hit), 5% (last) | ||
|neutraldesc=Bayonetta performs 3 pistol whips (a lunge with her left gun, a back-handed strike with her right, and an uppercut with the left), then performs a barrage of pistol whips, concluded by a thrusting pistol whip. Based on Bayonetta's Punch + Punch + Punch • Punch (PPP • P) combo while wielding [http://bayonetta.wikia.com/wiki/Love_Is_Blue Love is Blue]. Bayonetta will only enter the rapid strike if the button is mashed. The Bullet Arts version of all hits of the combo has her shoot her guns forward, with the exception of the third hit, which shoots forward and upward in a diagonal direction behind herself. If the button is held while Bayonetta performs the barrage, it will do additional damage due to her firing her guns at the same time, though this does not actually extend the attack's range like her other Bullet Arts. Its utility as a get-off-me option is very poor, as its first hit comes out at frame 9, making it the second slowest neutral attack in the game after {{SSBU|King Dedede}}'s. However, it deals high damage to compensate, with the full combo being capable of dealing ~18%. After [[List of updates (SSBU)/12.0.0 changelog|12.0.0]], its angle was modified so that it became a viable kill option at around 105% on middleweights at the ledge of Final Destination, making it one of the strongest jabs in the game and repurposing it into Bayonetta's fastest grounded KO option. The first three hits can [[lock]]. | |neutraldesc=Bayonetta performs 3 pistol whips (a lunge with her left gun, a back-handed strike with her right, and an uppercut with the left), then performs a barrage of pistol whips, concluded by a thrusting pistol whip. Based on Bayonetta's Punch + Punch + Punch • Punch (PPP • P) combo while wielding [http://bayonetta.wikia.com/wiki/Love_Is_Blue Love is Blue]. Bayonetta will only enter the rapid strike if the button is mashed. The Bullet Arts version of all hits of the combo has her shoot her guns forward, with the exception of the third hit, which shoots forward and upward in a diagonal direction behind herself. If the button is held while Bayonetta performs the barrage, it will do additional damage due to her firing her guns at the same time, though this does not actually extend the attack's range like her other Bullet Arts. Its utility as a get-off-me option is very poor, as its first hit comes out at frame 9, making it the second slowest neutral attack in the game after {{SSBU|King Dedede}}'s. However, it deals high damage to compensate, with the full combo being capable of dealing ~18%. After update [[List of updates (SSBU)/12.0.0 changelog|12.0.0]], its launch angle was modified so that it became a viable kill option at around 105% on middleweights at the ledge of Final Destination, making it one of the strongest jabs in the game and repurposing it into Bayonetta's fastest grounded KO option. The first three hits can also [[lock]]. | ||
|ftiltname=Bullet Heel ({{ja|バレットヒール|Baretto Hīru}}) / Combo Twist ({{ja|コンボツイスト|Konbo Tsuisuto}}) / Rising Kick ({{ja|ライジングキック|Raijingu Kikku}}) | |ftiltname=Bullet Heel ({{ja|バレットヒール|Baretto Hīru}}) / Combo Twist ({{ja|コンボツイスト|Konbo Tsuisuto}}) / Rising Kick ({{ja|ライジングキック|Raijingu Kikku}}) | ||
|ftiltcount=3 | |ftiltcount=3 | ||
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|dairname=Heel Guillotine ({{ja|ヒールギロチン|Hīru Girochin}}) | |dairname=Heel Guillotine ({{ja|ヒールギロチン|Hīru Girochin}}) | ||
|dairdmg={{ShortHopDmgSSBU|7}} (body), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|8}} (leg), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|9}} (heel), 5% (landing) | |dairdmg={{ShortHopDmgSSBU|7}} (body), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|8}} (leg), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|9}} (heel), 5% (landing) | ||
|dairdesc=A split-legged axe kick. It is based on Bayonetta's standard aerial kick in ''Bayonetta''. A [[stall-then-fall]] with low duration and ending lag, which allows her to safely recover afterward if used off-stage. It is a meteor smash when hitting with her heel, while its landing hit has | |dairdesc=A split-legged axe kick. It is based on Bayonetta's standard aerial kick in ''Bayonetta''. A [[stall-then-fall]] with low duration and ending lag, which allows her to safely recover afterward if used off-stage. It is a meteor smash when hitting with her heel, while its landing hit has very high knockback, both of which make it a viable, but punishable KO option overall. It can be used after her special move combos to catch opponents who attempt to punish her increased landing lag. The Bullet Arts version fires one gun from her heel forward, but only upon landing. | ||
|grabname=Grab ({{ja|つかみ|Tsukami}}) | |grabname=Grab ({{ja|つかみ|Tsukami}}) | ||
|grabdesc=Reaches out, with her hand emanating purple Umbran Magic. | |grabdesc=Reaches out, with her hand emanating purple Umbran Magic. | ||
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*{{Sm|Geist|USA}} - The second-best Bayonetta player in the United States. His best placement to date is 7th at the major {{Trn|Rise 'N Grind 2023}}, and he has also regularly placed top 64 at majors including 33rd at {{Trn|Port Priority 8}} and 49th at {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2023}}, the latter in which he upset {{Sm|Kurama}}. | *{{Sm|Geist|USA}} - The second-best Bayonetta player in the United States. His best placement to date is 7th at the major {{Trn|Rise 'N Grind 2023}}, and he has also regularly placed top 64 at majors including 33rd at {{Trn|Port Priority 8}} and 49th at {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2023}}, the latter in which he upset {{Sm|Kurama}}. | ||
*{{Sm|Lima|USA}} - The second-best Bayonetta player in the world. Although he has been playing Bayonetta since the early metagame, his best results came about in the post-online metagame, notably placing 3rd at the major {{Trn|Rise 'N Grind 2023}} and 5th at the supermajor {{Trn|Collision 2023}}. | *{{Sm|Lima|USA}} - The second-best Bayonetta player in the world. Although he has been playing Bayonetta since the early metagame, his best results came about in the post-online metagame, notably placing 3rd at the major {{Trn|Rise 'N Grind 2023}} and 5th at the supermajor {{Trn|Collision 2023}}. | ||
*{{Sm|TamaPDaifuku|Japan}} - The best Bayonetta player in Japan. He has wins over several of Japan's best players, including {{Sm|acola}}, {{Sm|Miya|p=Honshu}}, and {{Sm|Tea}}. He has also placed highly at several events, including 2nd at {{Trn|DELTA 7}} and 17th at both the major {{Trn|UltCore}} and the supermajor {{Trn|DELTA 5}}. | *{{Sm|TamaPDaifuku|Japan}} - The best Bayonetta player in Japan. He has wins over several of Japan's best players, including {{Sm|acola}}, {{Sm|Miya|p=Honshu}}, and {{Sm|Tea}}. He has also placed highly at several events, including 2nd at {{Trn|DELTA 7}}, 4th at {{Trn|DELTA 8}} and 17th at both the major {{Trn|UltCore}} and the supermajor {{Trn|DELTA 5}}. | ||
===Tier placement and history=== | ===Tier placement and history=== | ||
Due to the drastic nerfs she received in her transition to ''Ultimate'', Bayonetta saw minimal tournament results during the early metagame; she was considered to be a "high-effort, low-reward" character as she had to work significantly harder to win neutral, rack up damage, and close out stocks than a vast majority of the cast. Bayonetta performing drastically worse than her ''Smash 4'' iteration led many to think of her as by far the most nerfed | Due to the drastic nerfs she received in her transition to ''Ultimate'', Bayonetta saw minimal tournament results during the early metagame; she was considered to be a "high-effort, low-reward" character as she had to work significantly harder to win neutral, rack up damage, and close out stocks than a vast majority of the cast. Bayonetta performing drastically worse than her ''Smash 4'' iteration led many to think of her as by far the most nerfed veteran in the transition to ''Ultimate''. Although {{Sm|CaptainZack}} was able to see some good results while using Bayonetta as a co-main, they were mostly eclipsed by his results with {{SSBU|Peach}} and {{SSBU|Daisy}}, and most top players considered her to be a lower mid-tier or low-tier character at best, some players even considered her to be one of the worst characters in the game. Her results continued to struggle, especially following CaptainZack's ban. | ||
However, Bayonetta would go on to receive many buffs that made her strongest options more consistent in updates {{SSBU|3.1.0}} and {{SSBU|8.0.0}} which would eventually lead to a positive shift in players' perceptions of Bayonetta. With Bayonetta players adapting remarkably to the changing meta and with balance patches having lended Bayonetta significant buffs, a slow but notable increase in her representation would emerge: during the [[COVID-19|COVID-19 pandemic]], {{Sm|Bloom4Eva}} used her to place highly at major online tournaments. | However, Bayonetta would go on to receive many buffs that made her strongest options more consistent in updates {{SSBU|3.1.0}} and {{SSBU|8.0.0}} which would eventually lead to a positive shift in players' perceptions of Bayonetta. With Bayonetta players adapting remarkably to the changing meta and with balance patches having lended Bayonetta significant buffs, a slow but notable increase in her representation would emerge: during the [[COVID-19|COVID-19 pandemic]], {{Sm|Bloom4Eva}} used her to place highly at major online tournaments. Following the return of offline tournaments, Bayonetta continued to see impressive results thanks to players such as Bloom4Eva, {{Sm|Lima}} and {{Sm|TamaPDaifuku}}. This led to an exceptional shift in her perception, and most players reevaluated the character and ranked her as a mid-tier at least, and as such she was ranked 45th on the first tier list as an upper-mid tier. Following the first tier list, Bayonetta's popularity and success grew even more and her players continue to see consistently strong results in tournaments. Thanks to her improved representation and results, she is now widely ranked as a high-tier, with some players even ranking her as a top-tier. Bayonetta would see a massive boost on the second and current tier list where she rose 19 spots and is now ranked 26th as a high-tier, the largest rise of any character from the first to second tier list. Overall, while Bayonetta is still widely agreed to be a shell of her ''Smash 4'' self, she is also considered to be substantially stronger than she was in the early metagame. | ||
=={{SSBU|Classic Mode}}: The Requiem of Fallen Wings== | =={{SSBU|Classic Mode}}: The Requiem of Fallen Wings== | ||
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==[[Alternate costume (SSBU)#Bayonetta|Alternate costumes]]== | ==[[Alternate costume (SSBU)#Bayonetta|Alternate costumes]]== | ||
Just | Just like ''Smash 4'', Bayonetta's voice is dependent on her costume when the language is set to Japanese, Chinese, or Korean: her ''Bayonetta 2'' costume has her speaking Japanese, while her ''Bayonetta'' costume has her speaking English. This is a reference to how the first ''Bayonetta'' game originally only had English audio, not receiving a Japanese dub until the [[Wii U]] port. Many of Bayonetta's visual effects will be one of two colors depending on the costume used, blue for ''Bayonetta 2'' and red for ''Bayonetta''. Both costumes have unique firing sound effects for each set of guns. Her Bat Within ability also uses two separate bat models for both costumes. Her alternate red color scheme for the ''Bayonetta 2'' costume is based on Jeanne and the hair surrounding Madama Butterfly's limbs and Gomorrah will be colored white instead of black when using this color scheme. | ||
{|style="margin:1em auto 1em auto;text-align:center" | {|style="margin:1em auto 1em auto;text-align:center" | ||
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**Both Palutena and Bayonetta are on the Final Battle map, appearing as the last of all fighters. This implies that Galeem (and eventually Dharkon) knew how big of a threat Palutena and Bayonetta were (Palutena being a Goddess and Bayonetta's slaughter of two gods) to his plans, so he kept them as a last resort. | **Both Palutena and Bayonetta are on the Final Battle map, appearing as the last of all fighters. This implies that Galeem (and eventually Dharkon) knew how big of a threat Palutena and Bayonetta were (Palutena being a Goddess and Bayonetta's slaughter of two gods) to his plans, so he kept them as a last resort. | ||
**While Palutena is designed to always be one of the final characters unlocked, outside of World of Light, Bayonetta can be unlocked very early, potentially as the second character to be unlocked (by clearing Classic Mode with Mario, Sonic, and/or any DLC character twice). | **While Palutena is designed to always be one of the final characters unlocked, outside of World of Light, Bayonetta can be unlocked very early, potentially as the second character to be unlocked (by clearing Classic Mode with Mario, Sonic, and/or any DLC character twice). | ||
*Bayonetta is the only third-party character and the only sole fighter from a | *Bayonetta is the only third-party character and the only sole fighter from a universe to be unlocked in the Final Battle realm in World of Light. | ||
*Unlike in ''Smash 4'', Bayonetta has two separate menus for her [[Sound Test]] voice clips in all versions of the game, one for her ''Bayonetta 2'' design and one for her ''Bayonetta'' design, despite both versions of Bayonetta using the same voice clips in western versions. This is because the Japanese version has separate voice clips for her in Japanese and English. | *Unlike in ''Smash 4'', Bayonetta has two separate menus for her [[Sound Test]] voice clips in all versions of the game, one for her ''Bayonetta 2'' design and one for her ''Bayonetta'' design, despite both versions of Bayonetta using the same voice clips in western versions. This is because the Japanese version has separate voice clips for her in Japanese and English. | ||
**The ''Bayonetta 2'' design is missing four voice clips in total when the language is not set to Japanese, three being Japanese (when the language is set to Chinese or Korean), and one being English. All of the missing voice clips are those without a corresponding voice clip in the other language. | **The ''Bayonetta 2'' design is missing four voice clips in total when the language is not set to Japanese, three being Japanese (when the language is set to Chinese or Korean), and one being English. All of the missing voice clips are those without a corresponding voice clip in the other language. | ||
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*The patch notes for version {{SSBU|9.0.0}} indicates Bayonetta's [[rapid jab]] finisher gained [[transcendent priority]]; however, this is false, as the script as early as version {{SSBU|3.0.0}} was coded as such<ref>https://rubendal.github.io/ssbu/#/Patch/3.0.0/Character/Bayonetta ("Attack100End" section; the parameter "ATTACK_SETOFF_KIND_OFF" indicating transcendent priority; pre-3.0.0 scripts unavailable on the site)</ref>. | *The patch notes for version {{SSBU|9.0.0}} indicates Bayonetta's [[rapid jab]] finisher gained [[transcendent priority]]; however, this is false, as the script as early as version {{SSBU|3.0.0}} was coded as such<ref>https://rubendal.github.io/ssbu/#/Patch/3.0.0/Character/Bayonetta ("Attack100End" section; the parameter "ATTACK_SETOFF_KIND_OFF" indicating transcendent priority; pre-3.0.0 scripts unavailable on the site)</ref>. | ||
*Prior to version {{SSBU|10.1.0}}, the animation for Bayonetta's left-inputted victory pose was a bit different in the Japanese version of the game as she did not turn her head at the end of the animation. This seems to have been a glitch and was fixed in the 10.1.0 update. | *Prior to version {{SSBU|10.1.0}}, the animation for Bayonetta's left-inputted victory pose was a bit different in the Japanese version of the game as she did not turn her head at the end of the animation. This seems to have been a glitch and was fixed in the 10.1.0 update. | ||
*There is an inconsistency in Bayonetta's smash attack animations where the | *There is an inconsistency in Bayonetta's smash attack animations where the Wicked Weaves retain the blue and silver pendants even if she is wearing her ''Bayonetta'' costume where the Wicked Weaves should have red and gold pendants. | ||
**Despite this, her Bat Within ability actually uses two different models, with its corresponding colors and pendants depending on the costume used. | **Despite this, her Bat Within ability actually uses two different models, with its corresponding colors and pendants depending on the costume used. | ||
*The red and white alternate color scheme for the ''Bayonetta 2'' costume features a strange visual glitch where the hair tendrils hanging from the suit do not disappear when Bayonetta uses her Wicked Weaves or Infernal Climax. | |||
*In English, Bayonetta is the only character in the game that can speak 3 languages in a match. That being English, Japanese when using forward throw, and Enochian when performing her final smash. | *In English, Bayonetta is the only character in the game that can speak 3 languages in a match. That being English, Japanese when using forward throw, and Enochian when performing her final smash. | ||