Finally! After four long years, Bayonetta fans across the globe rejoiced with the release of a new trailer during yesterday’s Nintendo Direct. The four-minute trailer, brought by developer Platinum Games and publisher Sega, showcased the intimidating witchy heroine taking down a kaiju-esque enemy.

It seems I’m unfashionably late.

-Bayonetta

Fans of the franchise received a glimpse of the game during the 2017 Game Awards. The teaser trailer was little more than an announcement of the game, featuring a few shots of cinematic combat and a logo. Ever since, fans have been waiting with bated breath for another update on the game. They were rewarded during the Direct with not only a new trailer, but a release date for the switch exclusive game.

The long silence was seemingly purposeful, perhaps even to build up the hype for the game even more. If that was the cause then it worked, leading to rampant fan speculation around the game online. Many fans began to doubt the game would ever be released, claiming that they had just dropped little information only to disappear and never mention the game again.

Happy 7th Anniversary to Bayonetta 2!

This is the first new Bayo game to have a Japanese voice cast, which is referenced in the Japanese version of Smash where her first look has her English voice, but the 2nd has her Japanese voice.

Will Bayonetta 3 ever see the light of day? https://t.co/CCXaNzuEoa

— Carls493 (@Carls493) September 20, 2021

However, Bayonetta 3 director Hideki Kamiya encouraged fans to be patient and expressed that he was sure some news of the game would be shared before the end of 2021. Boy, was he right! In terms of gameplay, the trailer features it in part with cinematics.

Following a cinematic encounter with the kaiju-creature, the trailer switches to show gameplay of the battle, showcasing several of Bayonetta’s abilities. At some point, when Bayonetta has seemingly defeated the creature, it rises again, leading to Bayonetta summoning a kaiju-creature of her own to fight the monster.  From there, the trailer switches between different fight locations and enemies. It additionally showcases all the different types of creatures Bayonetta can summon to control and fight against larger enemies. The creatures ranged from dragon-like to spider-like, each with unique abilities used to kill enemies. The gameplay showcased ranges from up-close combat, to ranged, to even just plain flying through the world, dodging debris.

Bayonetta 3 will be released as a Nintendo Switch exclusive in 2022.