Bully: Scholarship Edition Review by: zanderlex - 9.2/10
How To Be A BullyFor years, Bully has been one of my top 10 favorite games of all time, when it first came out for the PS2, I saw that it was by the same people who made Grand Theft Auto, so I knew that I had to play it, even though I was quite young. Before I played it, I knew that it was basically the same as GTA, but with a younger adult, school focus, so I figured that this would be a new take for Rockstar Games and I figured that I would like it, and I was right. I played the original game for so many hours roaming around the school, performing missions, getting into trouble, and taking classes, and that was even before I learned that there was a giant city to explore outside of the school.
During the first few months of 2014, I bought Scholarship Edition for someone I knew but for some reason, they couldn't download it, so I ended up keeping it for myself on Steam and I played it here and there and it was just as good as the original with a few upgrades.
Graphics 8/10
The graphics are pretty good as the game isn't exactly too old, and aside for maybe one or two small errors, the game is actually quite beautiful to look at. Everything has a lot of detail, and again, it's by the people who made GTA, who seem to grow exponentially in terms of graphics and details. It's all full of color and detail, though a few glitches here and there. In my time playing the game, some colors randomly change and a few pieces of buildings or other objects completely disappear for a few seconds, but those are only minor and don't cause any sort of damage and didn't even annoy me. In terms of the positive aspects of the graphics, everything was well thought out and designed well. The characters aren't great but are pretty good, all of the buildings are crafted nicely, and the entire giant map has a very good feel in terms of what everything looks like. My grade for graphics is going to be an 8 out of 10.
Sound 9/10
I am going to break the sound category into 3 aspects, the voice acting, the effects, and the music. I would say that the voice acting would be the worst aspect of sound because sometimes it just does not fit in with the game all too well. Some of the voices do work well and flow throughout the game while some others just don't work well with the character or setting, and sometimes the speed of the voices does not fit with a cut scene or an event. Sometimes the voice would end too early or be extended well after it should have. Next are the effects which are pretty good, you have the firecrackers, the sounds of the city, and various small sounds that work together to give the game a better mood and make it seem real. Lastly, there is the music of the game which is my favorite part. I have played the game so many times that I have grown to love the music because it's actually very catchy and fun to listen to. The game has about 20 or so songs in the soundtrack and most of them are very good and set the tone of the game the same way that you would see in a movie. For me, the music gives a huge boost to the Sound category which is going to get a 9 out of 10.
Story 9/10
Bully has a giant story that begins as your character Jimmy Hopkins begins his first day at a boarding school. He befriends another student named Gary Smith who turns out to be the games main antagonist who kind of wants to run the school. The game pretty follows Jimmy as he goes through the year taking classes, performing all sorts of various missions, and in the end, trying to take down Gary. In terms of the story, the game has a lot to offer, and probably even has a ton of stuff that I missed out on so I am going to give it a 9 out of 10.
Addictiveness 10/10
Why wouldn't the game be addicting? it's by the guys who brought GTA and has pretty much the exact same feel. Aside for the time where you have to be in class or at night where you must be in your dorm, you are pretty much free to do whatever you want. When you first start off the game and are limited to the school, you can sneak into buildings, fight, play with firecrackers, do all sorts of different classes and activities, and so much more. Once you are able to leave the school and enter the town, there's pretty much 20 times more stuff to do on your skateboard or bike or whatnot. Go to the fair, go and get a job, there are so many different places for you to go and do that there really is no way for you to get bored of the game because it's just so much fun. Even once you finish the game, you might not want to start over, but this is the kind of game where you could find yourself free roaming and doing whatever you want for many more hours. Because of this, I have to give the addictiveness aspect of the game a perfect score.
Depth 10/10
Here, the depth runs in the same boat as the addictiveness because I pretty much already mentioned everything that the depth of the game has to offer. There is a GIANT map for you to explore, you think the school itself is big but then once you get out into the town, you have about 20 times more space to explore and that might even be an understatement. Once you get passed just the sheer size of the game, there's still so much that's available for you to do. whether it's a job, main missions and side quests, or even just random relationships with other students and NPC's, there's always a ton of stuff to be done. The game offers a lot and this aspect is going to get another perfect score.
Difficulty 5
The game is not really difficult at all, though you may run into a few small problems when completing either missions or classes, and the only way to get through these is to keep trying. The game isn't hard, but you just need to try again if you falter and learn the controls, which to some can be a pain. My overall grade for the difficulty is going to be a 5.
Overall 9.2/10
Overall, this is a great game that can waste away hour upon hours if you like games like this. It's another masterpiece by Rockstar Games and is just as good as any of the other games that they have made. It's easily one of the 10 best games that I have ever played, I suggest that you play it if you have not and my overall grade for this game is going to be a 9.2 out of 10.
Graphics
8 Sound
9 Addictive
10 Depth
10 Story
9 Difficulty
5
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