Game Review: Bully

Grand Theft Auto: Teen Edition!

I can see Bully being pitched at rockstar as Grand Theft Auto: Teen Edition, and as I played it more and more, I realized that it is a good thing.

In Bully you play a Jimmy Hopkins, a troubled boy who has been expelled from many schools, and he is about to be dropped into a new school while his mom goes on a year long vacation. The principal labels you as a bad seed from the beginning and the bullies of the school try to injury Jimmy before he can even get a chance to go to his dorm.

The name Bully is a misnomer, though you can act as a bully during non story play, the brunt of the story missions involve you stopping other kids from being bullying and curtailing bullying at Bulworth Academy in general.

Now that I have given you the background, let’s dive in the game play. Being a Rockstar game, the first comparison you will make it feels like a GTA game, without any of the violence. You can’t kill anyone, there aren’t any guns, and the most you can do to pedestrians is knock them over. That may not sound appealing, but it is done well and it is enough of a difference from the other series that it works. Most of the combat in the game is Melee based, and while simple on the surface does have some surprising complexities that can make it interesting. The non melee weapons are familiar to anybody who went to high school. There are slingshots, itching powder, water balloons, even a rubber band ball.

One of the best new features is a trouble meter. Next to the mini-map is a 3 part meter that denotes how much trouble you are in. Not wearing your school uniform will next you a small piece of the first bar, and prefects will yell at you, but they won’t chase you. Being truant will net you a full yellow bar, and prefects will chase you to take you to class. Attacking an authority figure or a child (or a female) will net you a full trouble meter, which means every authority figure is out to get you and they will take you out if they grab you.

The worst thing that can be said about the game is that it isn’t that difficult. There are parts of it that will require you trying more than once, and some of the missions require a little luck, but overall there aren’t any missions that will make you want to break a controller. Nor is the game anywhere near as lengthy as San Andreas, and I consider that a good thing. There just wasn’t enough time for me to finish all the side missions in San Andreas and the main story. But don’t think there isn’t a lot to do. There are tons of hidden costumes to unlock, games to play, stuff to do.

Score: 9/10