Earlier this year, Spanish community leader Greward announced to the world that Spain would be banning Bayonetta, however, Smash España (the Spanish community hub) has not given an official statement. Time has only made this debate grown even more intense.
Today we brought Greward to give his personal opinion on this matter. But first as always, a warning and disclaimer.
WARNING
Excessive use of salt can give a bad taste to your meals – and to your opinions too! So we recommend not using it and keeping a healthy diet and a likeable attitude in such a delicate discussion.
DISCLAIMER
The following article does not reflect the opinion of Smashboards, the Back Room, or the Spanish community as a whole. The special guest is here to give his PERSONAL opinion and he’s not here to speak on behalf of Spain.
The Issue
Ever since the release of the last batch of DLC, many tier lists have reflected the Bayo Effect, with the Umbra Witch dethroning the Sheikah. Many people say that she’s "even more broken than Brawl Meta Knight," while others say that she is not broken at all. A separation in opinions is tangible, and we are here to discuss it.
The Perspectives
Pro-Ban: Her Up-B comes out on frame 4 which is too fast, and her Dive Kick is unpunishable; she has many good options and she can do amazing, difficult-to-DI zero-to-death combos (02D), or just rack up a lot of damage.
Pro-Choice: Many of her other moves are punishable, and her specials can be DI’d away from with the correct input. With patience, knowledge, and the correct tools, any character in Smash 4 can be defeated, including Bayonetta.
Our Opinions
Greward
Greward
I know with all certainty that Bayonetta is by far, the best character in the game and that she is more troublesome than any other character in the Smash saga.
Most Anti-Ban arguments are based on her not having as many high-level results as other characters in America, but I think that the reason behind that is because top level players simply don’t want to play her; they know she is too broken to play, and that if they do everyone would have to; essentially killing the game. They are probably waiting for some patch that fixes things before drastic measures have to be taken.
Personally I’m Pro-Ban, even though it hurts me. I enjoy playing against superior characters, and winning against a Bayonetta is something that the public loves. Unfortunately, for the sake of our game, she has to disappear.
Hangman
Bayonetta had instantly become a polarizing entity in the Smash 4 community. Her plethora of combos, kill confirms, 02Ds, and individual tools make her a dynamic force never before seen among the cast. While many people feel she may be too powerful and deserves banning, the often-cited case of her similarity to Brawl Meta Knight is brought up too frequently. I feel that treating them as the same is simply absurd.
Without discussing too much of what made Meta Knight an unrelenting force in Brawl, it is worth noting that he had tools that abused most of the mechanics available within the game and was able to utilize them in a seamless way that caused the metagame to develop completely around his presence.
Bayonetta does not have the same impact on Smash 4’s current metagame and in my opinion never will live up to the precedent set by Meta Knight. Bayonetta has a unique style of play that holds a strong resemblance to more traditional fighting games. In a genre where 02Ds, mix-up heavy movesets, poorly balanced unique mechanics, and distinct differences in viability are nothing new, Bayonetta appears on par for the course rather than the exception to the rule for Smash Bros.
Now, what does this mean for Smash 4? In my opinion, players should be studying information on Bayonetta the same way that traditional fighting game players have to study up on characters that they will play against in order to know how to counter what’s going to be brought up to the arena.
As the information is steadily becoming available and being spread, it moves the duty of knowing exactly what makes Bayonetta a tour de force in the current metagame to the players and commentators.Those who can bring her to a top level of play should be respected for their play rather than lambasted for playing her the way she is designed to be played.
Diosdi
Bayonetta is not even close to the worst balance example of balancing in the saga. Meta Knight in Brawl could do three UpAirs in a row; he could do a whole lap through Temple without touching the ground. Fox in Melee could do four UpAirs in a row and had almost no negative match ups. Bayonetta’s 02D combos are circumstantial and can be DI’d with proper timing and knowledge.
If we never banned Meta Knight or Fox or Pikachu at their apex, why would we do it to Bayonetta? Banning a character is taking away from a player its main. We can't do it without alienating people that play the game.
People say that Bayonetta is toxic, but bans are toxic.
If we banned Fox in Melee, how many people would lose their main just because some people don’t want to learn a MU? It sounds illogical and unfair. Bayonetta has shown tremendous popularity in tournaments in the last month or two, and a lot of people would be left without a main character if she were banned.
Her combos are circumstantial and can be DI’d out of properly, her neutral game is simply bad and relies on her variations of Side-B to start combos, her jab is one of the slowest in the game, and finally, her kill moves are predictable.
Banning a character just because people know how to play is not a measure for the sake of the game. It is a john.
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So what do you think? Is Bayo THAT good? Should she be banned? Let us know!
Author's Note: So this marks the end of our Smashing Debate series. I would like to give a special thanks to all of our collaborators: Nova, One Hit Smash, Hangman, OneSmash, and this debate's special guest, Greward. Please be sure to follow all of them on Twitter.
