The first Bayonetta game was released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles originally (and later PC) until the sequel became a Wii U exclusive in 2014. Now the third game is staying exclusive to Nintendo again with it being a Switch exclusive.
Bayonetta 3’s director, Hideki Kamiya, has now admitted on his Twitter account the reasons why the game is a Nintendo Switch exclusive. The main reason is due to Nintendo helping to fund the game.
To cut a long story short, Sega helped fund the first game and it was supposed to be an Xbox 360 exclusive. Sega them demanded a PS3 port be made and they eventually managed to port the first game on Steam later in the future too.
When it came to make Bayonetta 2, Sega was again going to be the main investor. However, development halted thanks to some problems happening at Sega. Bayonetta 2 was originally going to be released on more than one platform.
Bayonetta 2 could have been canceled, until Nintendo stepped in to help fund the game. Due to Nintendo’s involvement, the game had to be a Wii U exclusive since Nintendo wouldn’t want to a fund game on its competitor’s consoles.
When it came time for Bayonetta 3, Kamiya gave a valid explanation to that. He posted: As for Bayonetta 3, it was decided from the start that the game was going to be developed using Nintendo’s funding. Without their help, we would not have been able to kick off this project. All of the rights still belong to Sega and Nintendo. The rights owners decided that the game should be made for Switch.
Game development is a business. Each company has its own circumstances and strategies. Sometimes this means games get made, sometimes it means they get cancelled. But I believe that every single person involved is dedicated to delivering the best possible experience. I know that, to me at least, that’s one of the biggest goals when I set to work.”
He then went on to say that he hopes to make Bayonetta 3 a wonderful experience for fans. The game could be a huge success thanks to the Switch being a way more popular system compared to the Wii U. Switch owners will be able to play the first two games as they are being ported to the system too.
