When it comes to Rockstar games that people want to see remade, Bully more often than not gets brought up. This game was a pretty big deal back in the day, so much so that I am pretty surprised that we have not gotten a new game in the series. If you have always wondered what it would be like to go back to school, this game lets you live out that fantasy!
- Bully offers a wide and open world in which you can roam freely. Ad some freaky characters and a one of a kind feel and you'll get bully. Too bad the game lost some of its powers over the last two years and that the overal look and gameplay of Bully feels a little outdated.
- Game and Legal Info. Bully® takes the Rockstar tradition of groundbreaking and original gameplay and humorous tongue-in-cheek storytelling to an entirely new setting the schoolyard. As a mischievous schoolboy, you’ll stand up to the bullies, get picked on by teachers, play pranks, win or lose the girl, and ultimately learn to navigate the.
Oct 21, 2008 About This Game. Bully: Scholarship Edition takes place at the fictional New England boarding school, Bullworth Academy, and tells the story of mischievous 15-year-old Jimmy Hopkins as he goes through the hilarity and awkwardness of adolescence. Beat the jocks at dodge ball, play pranks on the preppies, save the nerds, kiss the girl.
Off You Go Jimmy!
One of the more surprising things about the game is the story. I was not sure what to expect the first time that I played this game, but it turned out to be far more story-driven than I thought it would be. So much so that I do not want to spoil the story of Bully for you here, but I will give you the basics of what is going on.
The character you play as is a loveable rogue called Jimmy. Jimmy is 15 years old and he has been dumped by his mother at this preppy boarding school. Jimmy is not exactly thrilled about this, but he decides he will become the big wolf on campus. The story has way more twists and turns than I thought it would.
High School Never Ends
High school never ends is a song by Bowling For Soup and much of what is in that song rings true for this game. There are different cliques in the game such as the jocks and the nerds and you need to try and fit in with them. If you do this, they will help you, if you do not, they can be an enemy. It is a delicate balancing act and I am sure there are some groups that you will want to help more than others. The dialogue in true Rockstar fashion is fantastic here, but it is so damn quiet! Bully is starting to show its age in terms of the visuals. You have to keep in mind this is a game that was originally made with the PlayStation 2 in mind so even the enhanced version has a look that is a tad rough around the edges.
Jimmy, Come Out To Play!
The gameplay on offer here is way more varied than you would think. You can go to class where you will be graded and the classes work like mini-games and they are a lot of fun. You can also explore the campus where you can talk to other students and teachers here you can get more story and side missions to move the game forward. You can also get into scuffles and this is one area that Bully does shine.
Instead of using the combat system from Grand Theft Auto, Rockstar instead has used one that is very similar to what was on offer in the excellent Warriors video game. Jimmy is a teenager after all so his way of fighting is getting into fistfights and the combat is very, very satisfying. Jimmy can dish out some awesome moves and killer combos that are a lot of fun to do.
I still think that Bully is one of the unsung heroes of the Rockstar back catalog. This game is just a ton of fun and one that is well worth playing. While I do have a soft spot for the PlayStation 2 original. I must admit that the enhanced version Rockstar released a year or so back is easily the best way to play the game as they have improved the visuals best, they could, increased the volume of the audio and even added in a thing or two as well.
Pros:
- The story is way better than you would think
- Some of the dialogue is hilarious
- The classes are a lot of fun
- There is a nice variety to the missions
- Jimmy is a likable character
Cons:
- It certainly shows its age in the visual department
- Some of the dialogue is strangely very quiet
Jimmy Hopkins
Image credit: Image credit http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/06/the-coolest-lgbt-video-game-characters-ever
In the game Bully, the player-character Jimmy Hopkins can romance non-player characters. Some of these optional romances are part of specific in-game plot lines, all of which are with female characters in specific cliques. In these cases, Jimmy has to do specific things to earn the girls’ affection (a list can be found here).
In addition to these pairings, after passing his first art class, Jimmy can kiss any female students if he gives them the right gift (though this page says he can only kiss non-clique girls, and this page says he can kiss any girls in his age group). There are eight girls he can kiss. Kissing results in a health bonus for Jimmy, and the more art classes he passes, the more of a kissing bonus he gets. Billy cannot kiss any of the younger girls in the game, and the only adult he can potentially kiss is Mrs. Lisburn after he runs an errand for her.
In addition, Billy can also kiss one boy from each clique in the game, 6 in total. Players can do this by talking to the boys until the “thumbs up” button turns into a bouquet (allowing Jimmy to give the boy flowers), and then lips. The character pages for all of these NPCs on this wiki indicate that they are all bisexual but the reason for that assertion are not always given.
Kissable boys (clique):
Cornelius
Image credit http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Cornelius_Johnson?file=Cornelius.png
Vance
Image credit: http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Vance_Medici?file=Vance.png
Trent
Image credit: http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Trent_Northwick?file=Trent.png
Bully Gamestop
Gord
Image credit: http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Gord_Vendome?file=Gord.png
Kirby
Image credit: http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Kirby_Olsen?file=Kirby.png
Duncan
Image credit: http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Duncan?file=Duncan.png
Comic store owner Zack Owens (He is available only if added to free roam via hex editing, though the kissing animation is reportedly the same as that for the female NPC Eunice Pound and the ability to kiss him might be a bug from the fact that he is “rigged to the same skeleton” as Eunice).
Zack
Image credit: http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Zack_Owens?file=Comic_store_owner.jpg
A video showing all of these same-sex romance options (except for Zack) appears below:
In the XBox 360 version of the game, players can get the “Over the Rainbow” achievement if they kiss the 6 main male NPCs 20 times.
Bully Game Ps4
Citations:
Press Release By Take Two Interactive
- AFDragon. (2012, August 18). Bully Scholarship Edition – Kissing Boys. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovtw1kyKcRE
- Cornelius Johnson. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Cornelius_Johnson
- Couples and relations in Bully. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Couples_and_relations_in_Bully
- Doop. (n.d.). Top 10 LGBT Video Game Characters: #3 – Jimmy Hopkins. Gay-Nerds.com. http://gay-nerds.com/site/videogames/top-10-lgbt-video-game-characters-3-jimmy-hopkins
- Duncan. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Duncan
- Frute Brute. (2006, October 26). How to Kiss Boys in Bully 101. GayGamer.net. Retrieved from http://gaygamer.net/2006/10/how_to_kiss_boys_in_bully_101.html
- Gay Option. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GayOption
- Gord Vendome. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Gord_Vendome
- Hester, L. (June 8, 2013). The Coolest LGBT Video Game Characters Ever. Complex. Retrieved from http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/06/the-coolest-lgbt-video-game-characters-ever
- Kissing. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Kissing
- Kirby Olsen. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Kirby_Olsen
- LGBT characters in video games. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_characters_in_video_games
- Lumpkin, B. (2007, April 12). Gay Gamers Push For More Player Choice, Like Same-Sex Smooching in ‘Bully.’ MTV.com. http://www.mtv.com/news/1557022/gay-gamers-push-for-more-player-choice-like-same-sex-smooching-in-bully/
- Ochalla, B. (2006, December 8). Boy on Boy Action- Is Gay Content On the Rise? Gamasutra. http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/130180/boy_on_boy_action__is_gay_content_.php
- Over The Rainbow. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.xboxachievements.com/game/bully-scholarship-edition/achievement/13570-OVER-THE-RAINBOW.html
- Reuters. (October 31, 2006). ‘Bully’ Video Game Features Boys Fighting — and Kissing. FoxNews. http://www.foxnews.com/story/2006/10/31/bully-video-game-features-boys-fighting-151-and-kissing
- Sinclair, B. (October 23, 2006). Bully’s boy-on-boy scenes causing a stir. Gamespot. Retrieved from http://www.gamespot.com/articles/bullys-boy-on-boy-scenes-causing-a-stir/1100-6160340
- Towle, A. (October 24, 2006). Rockstar’s Bully Displays Homosexual Tendencies. Retrieved from http://www.towleroad.com/2006/10/bully.html
- Trent Northwick. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Trent_Northwick
- Vance Medici. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Vance_Medici
- Zack Owens. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://bully.wikia.com/wiki/Zack_Owens