To celebrate the 16th anniversary of the release of the first game in the series, Kamiya shared memories of the difficulties in developing PlatinumGames' flagship game.
During a discussion on X, a fan asked Kamiya to confirm a statement from an old interview about the heroine's signature glasses. The quote "Bayonetta's glasses are like her underwear" is often attributed to Kamiya, but this is incorrect. In fact, it was said by animation director Yuji Shimomura, who was responsible for the cutscenes. Kamiya noted that he fully supported his position and insisted on keeping the glasses in the design, despite pressure from publishers.
«When we were working on Bayonetta, our clients asked us to take off her glasses, and I constantly rejected their offers. But it's also true that Mr. Shimomura, who produced the videos, once said: "Bayonetta's glasses are like her underwear - don't take them off under any circumstances"», Kamiya said.
The main character designer, Mari Shimazaki, added that Kamiya always demanded that each version of Bayonetta's sketch have an option with glasses. «When I was sketching, he would appear and whisper: "Why don't you give her glasses?", so I made it a habit to always keep a layer with glasses ready in my sketches. Although the design finalization process was sometimes thorny, I always kept the layer with glasses ready», she shared.
The glasses were not a decorative element: according to Kamiya, they serve as a mask that protects the heroine from the outside world, haunted by her past. Kamiya planned to reveal more reasons why Bayonetta never takes them off.
