Hello everyone.
It has been quite a while since I’ve blogged… Don’t think I’ve been resting on my laurels though. I’ve been quite busy with a number of projects here at PlatinumGames, and I haven’t had time to update my blog. For this, I apologize.

Thanks to all your support, our projects have begun to bear fruit. We released MADWORLD overseas earlier this year, a year which has also seen the Japanese release of Infinite Space. PlatinumGames has had its ups and downs getting to this point; however, I am extremely grateful to all those who have supported us along the way. As President of the company, I am also incredibly grateful to the hard-working staff inside the PlatinumGames offices.

And now the release of Bayonetta is fast approaching, isn’t it?  But before it is in everyone’s hands, we have Tokyo Game Show on our plate. Bayonetta is a title that everyone at PlatinumGames has put their heart and soul into. We want everyone to give the game a try, and as such, we will be bringing it with us to the Tokyo Game Show.

Both the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of Bayonetta will be in the SEGA booth. I hope you take the chance to check both of them out!
With Bayonetta, we created the Xbox 360 version of the game first, and then handed off all the data and other assets to SEGA so they could begin the process of porting Bayonetta to the PS3, giving them advice regarding the porting process along the way and overseeing the progress to ensure that the PS3 version would be the best it could be. The goal was to release the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions to gamers day and date, and even though there have been trials and tribulations along the way, we are incredibly pleased to be able to present two playable versions of the game on the Tokyo Game Show floor.

Recently, we’ve received questions whether there are any differences between the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions. It seems many of you are quite interested in this.
As the developers of Bayonetta, we have overseen both versions, and I would like to make one thing clear. The Xbox 360 and PS3, as hardware platforms, both have their own distinct differences and peculiarities, and these characteristics will naturally give birth to differences in the final product. However, all involved endeavored to exploit the specific traits of each console to create an enjoyable experience. We feel the best way to evaluate this is by actually playing the game for yourself and coming to your own conclusions.

Bringing Bayonetta to users of both the PS3 and the Xbox 360 is something we feel to be very important, and I feel passionately that we have fulfilled our responsibility in that regard. I hope you all purchase Bayonetta and enjoy playing through our creation.

It seems the seasons have changed and Fall is upon us. For us, Bayonetta will be a sort of “Fall harvest.”

But no time to be sentimental, as various other projects are underway.
Keep your eye on us!

Warm regards,

Tatsuya Minami
President & CEO, PlatinumGames Inc.

Hi everyone! Miss me? Composer Hiroshi Yamaguchi here.

I’m back to tell you all about the composers and artists who collaborated with us in creating the soundtrack for Bayonetta.

First of all, you may already have heard that the famed Norihiko Hibino, composer from the Metal Gear Solid series, worked with us on Bayonetta. He composed most of the music used in the cutscenes of the game. From the serious scenes to the ones that make you laugh, he matched our wonderful scenario with a great variety of tracks.

Another one of our collaborators is Rei Kondo, who worked with me on Okami. He worked primarily on stage and boss tracks within the game. If you are familiar with Okami, then you will recognize his work from the track entitled “The Rising Sun.” For Bayonetta, he has created a plentitude of melodies that will linger with you long after the song is over.

We also had help from the sound team at SEGA, specifically from Hiro. Even though he was incredibly busy, he took a special request from director Hideki Kamiya to work with us on the Bayonetta soundtrack. With his full-on band style, he really added a new element to the sounds of Bayonetta. What did he record for us? …That’s a secret for now, but you have something to look forward to!

Finally, we were privileged to work with Belgian born French chanteuse Helena Noguerra. She sang on two of Bayonetta’s signature tracks, one of which you have probably already heard in various trailers and gameplay videos. Her mature, feminine sense of glamour and a cute playfulness both coming through in her voice, she truly matched the vision we have of Bayonetta. I was able to meet her for recording, and Helena is as beautiful in person as her voice.

As you can see, we worked with a variety of talented creators. Of course, the PlatinumGames sound team is working hard on tracks as well! “Hiroshi”(That’s me.) and Masami “Uepon” Ueda are hard at work with the rest of the sound team are pouring all our energy into Bayonetta. We are taking the lead on the up-tempo battle tracks and the orchestral compositions.

There really aren’t very many productions where so many talented people work together. We all focused on Bayonetta, creating tracks brimming with personality brought about by our individual styles, all the while becoming inspired by each other’s work and thus pushing harder each and every day. I really hope you are all looking forward to the final result.

There is only a little bit of work left to do, but we hope to match all the expectations our fans have placed on us, and make sure that we give it our all to the very end. Thanks so much for all the support!