Review of Bully (360)

Late in the PS2's life came Rockstar Vancouver's view of high school society in the form of 'Bully.' It would take nearly two years for imperfect ports of the game to hit the Wii, Xbox 360 (March 2008) and the PC (Oct. 2008). Like the GTA games that Rockstar is better known for, Bully is an openworld sandbox game with a cynical view of Americana. However, with a smaller game world and shorter missions, Bully is actually a much tighter game than its big brothers.

Jimmy, the main character, finds himself dropped off at Bullworth academy by uncaring parents. He quickly discovers that the school is rigidly divided in to cliques, such as the Nerds, Jocks, and Preps. Sort of like a real high school. The game involves him negotiating his way through classes, and taking the cliques on one by one. Classes are done as mini-games, and are generally entertaining. The Scholarship Editions on the Wii, 360, and PC contain a few classes not found in the original PS2 version, and these seem to be tailor made for the Wii controller, and therefore end up being a bit awkward on the other systems.

One of the most notable aspects of the game is the passage of the seasons as you progress in the game. Holidays like Halloween and Christmas come and go, each with their own special events. Winter buries the school campus and the entire town under a blanket of white. If you receive detention during this time you'll be shovelling snow instead of mowing the lawn!

Little touches in the game world and dialog show off the high production value of this game. Several different collectibles are scattered throughout the entire gameworld, and more than 300 articles of clothing can be found or bought, thus giving completionist gamers something to obsess over.

Controls on the console editions of the game are tight, with vehicles such as bikes and go carts being as easy to control as Jimmy himself. The PC controls are a little harder to adapt to and seem a shoehorned on after thought.

Overall the game is extremely fun to play. It's everything you like about a GTA game, but with all the annoying stuff removed. The atmosphere is light hearted and the subject material not as dark. I can't recommend this game highly enough.