Bayonetta boss says Nintendo didn’t make them add naive mode to Bayonetta 3

Kamiya reminds us that Nintendo even wanted the Link outfit to be more revealing

The new Bayonetta 3 naive mode is an optional toggle that makes the game less revealing — and apparently, it was Platinum’s idea. The Bayonetta 3 naive mode move was done so that everyone could enjoy the game.

Speaking on Twitter in response to a fan (and all of the speculation that Nintendo “made Platinum Games do it”), outspoken Platinum producer Hideki Kamiya notes that Nintendo has “never complained about exposure” before in the series, including this new entry. In fact, he says that in Bayonetta 2, when adding the extra Link (Zelda) costume to the game for the Nintendo edition, the company asked if it was “okay to expose Link’s chest more.” That last bit is actually public info revealed on a Platinum Games post in 2014.

Kamiya goes on to say that he thought Nintendo would be a more “square” company, but he’s had a good relationship with them, and they’re able to talk directly about issues and strategy together. It behooves Platinum to play ball with Nintendo, but at this point they’ve been in business for so long (and see the relationship as mutually beneficial), so they have a rapport.

I figured this was always the case. Nintendo allowed the first two games to hit Nintendo consoles after all, and has sanctioned games that overstep even more boundaries on the platform as well. For a long, long while now (Devil’s Third helped solidify it) Nintendo has been open to more mature games, so Bayonetta 3 isn’t special in this regard.