Tag Climax is a brand new multiplayer game mode featured in Bayonetta 2. A strictly online-only mode, players team up with each other to fight against angelic and demonic hordes which feature levels from the single-player game. Players can choose to play with friends, random matches with strangers, or with a computer-controlled partner.
In Tag Climax, players play through 6 Verses in a sequence and the battles that are chosen are done through the use of Verse Cards. These cards are unlocked through the progression of Story mode. After choosing the stage, players have the ability to wager halos against one another. They can receive a large sum back on their wager if they obtain a better rank than their counterpart and these newly won halos can then be traded in the single-player shop to unlock new techniques, buy accessories and pick up alternate weapons variations.
If the stage difficulty is higher, then players receive a larger amount of halos for completing it than they would on lower difficulties. Players can win individual rounds and the overall winner is declared at the end of the 6 battles.
Players share a HUD and are able to see their partner's current health, magic, and halo score based on their current combo rank. Particular abilities such as Witch Time and Umbran Climax also appear to be shared, with a successful use from one player triggering the effect for both. A display in the center of the screen is a shared magic gauge and allows these special abilities to be triggered for both players when they attack the same enemy as one another.
If one of the players is damaged and loses all of their health, they will be unable to continue fighting and are rendered unmovable. The other player then has a short amount of time to revive their partner to get them back into the fray. If one or both players die, the match is over and they must start again from the beginning of the 6 Verses.
Bayonetta is controlled in the same way as in the Story Mode of the game and has access to all the possible unlockable weapons and techniques such as Umbran Climax and Witch Time to use against opponents. Players can also choose different costumes for Bayonetta based on the ones they have purchased in the main game.
Unlock Condition: Complete Story Mode on any difficulty.
Much like the first game, Jeanne is playable in Tag Climax with some unique traits of her own. Witch Time is only achievable with the Moth Within ability. She can also dodge infinitely compared to the limited 5 times Bayonetta has and her Wicked Weaves do more damage, Jeanne also takes more damage. Jeanne uses the same combat animations as she used in the first game to differentiate herself from Bayonetta using All 4 One. She has access to numerous weapons that act as alternate sets to Bayonetta's arsenal and can equip the same costumes as well.
Balder is able to use all of his major abilities from the fights encountered in the Story mode, including energy projectiles and columns of fire in place of Wicked Weaves. He can use Light Speed which is activated in the same way as Witch Time to slow down his opponents through dodging, and can throw feather shurikens by pressing Y Button. Balder's version of Umbran Climax gives him his feathered wings and allows him to use his Holy Glaive in giant sweeping attacks, similar to the Wicked Weaves of the Rakshasa blades. He is also able to summon the Cardinal Virtues as combo finishers, like Bayonetta's Infernal Weaves. Balder is unable to use any accessories and any other weapons besides his glaive. Balder can be played either with or without his mask. In aerial battles, he flies via levitation.
Rodin is a playable character in Tag Climax with some specific abilities of his own. His attacks are more powerful than either Bayonetta or Jeanne and inflict more damage, but he is not as agile or fast in delivering them, and he can shoot laser beams from his eyes too, by pressing the Y button. However, he is unable to initiate Witch Time or dodge but can conjure a demonic shield around himself to block enemy attacks if timed correctly. Also, Rodin cannot equip any accessories for witches. Rodin also has his own version of Umbran Climax, which he attacks with his demonic form asRodin, The Infinite One. He also has access to his other costume from the first game to play with. Similar to Balder, he flies with his telekinesis.
Unlike the Platinum Ticket battle in the main campaign, the enemy Rodin in Tag Climax does not become The Infinite One.
Unlock Condition: Complete Story Mode on 3rd Climax difficulty.
Rosa controls similarly to Bayonetta, having a 5 dodge limit and dodging to activate Witch Time. Though slower in her delivery, her attacks are extremely damaging and she boasts some of the most powerful Wicked Weaves in the game. However, she takes very large amounts of damage when compared to the other characters. In Umbran Climax, Rosa summons the Umbran Armor and is able to use it for the duration of her magic gauge. The only weapons Rosa is able to use are Unforgiven, a set of revolver pistols, Rosa is able to use accessories and she cannot change costumes. Rosa also uses Bayonetta's animations from the first game.
Verse Cards
The Verse Cards in Tag Climax are unlocked primarily through the completion of stages in the Story mode of the game. There are a total of 52 Verse Cards to unlock, some of which feature battles that are unique to this mode. While playing Tag Climax, players may encounter secret Verse Cards, in order to unlock those cards, players must successfully win the battles corresponding to those cards and complete their six verses.
