The award for the game most talked about by non-gamers this year easily goes to Rockstar's newest (and possibly last) PS2 title, Bully. Before anyone had laid hands on the game, videogame critics along with activist and parent advocacy groups were protesting to keep it off shelves. Notorious anti-violent videogame lawyer Jack Thompson went as far as calling Bully "the violent Columbine simulator video game" in his year long and recently defeated attempt at having a Florida Court block the game's release in that state. Across the Atlantic Ocean, UK gamers saw Bully receive a name change, in my opinion for the better, to Canis Canem Edit (latin for "dog eat dog"), but then went on to see it banned by the DSG retailer group (which includes the stores PC World and Currys). The group felt that the game's focus on "violence in the playground" went against their "family store" values.

That's just but one boiled down paragraph of all the hype, lies, mud slinging and overreaction that just about all Rockstar Games productions will meet for the known future - I could go on for hours. What I am here to tell you is, after experiencing what Bully has to offer, that it's time to disperse the angry mob and go home. You wouldn't find murder, drug use, sex or any of the other staples of Rockstar's debauchery-filled Grand Theft Auto series. What you will find is yet another over-the-top look at the troubled American school system that treads no ground that a PG-13 movie or teen primetime drama hasn't tramped across before. I've seen more offensive material in the commercials for Fox's The OC and ABC's Desperate Housewives than I found in this entire game! The only real difference between Bully and what has come before is that this time the experience is attached to a enjoyable, though hardly original, sandbox-style adventure. Older gamers may end up being bored by the rehashed storylines and archaic character archetypes lifted directly from teen flicks of the past, such as The Karate Kid and The Outsiders, but those already, or about to start, experiencing the high school way of life - the game's intended demographic - will eat this right up.

Bully tells the story of fifteen-year-old private school troublemaker Jimmy Hopkins. In what a children's psychologist would most likely claim is lashing out for parental attention, Jimmy has found himself expelled from every private school his mother has enrolled him in. She has recently remarried to a man Jimmy strongly dislikes and seemingly having lost all interest in trying to steer her delinquent son in the right direction, the two dump him off at the hard knocks Bullworth Academy before heading off on their honeymoon. Upon arrival, the 'high and mighty' principal puts Jimmy on notice, essentially telling him that none of his previous antics will be tolerated and that it will only be a matter of time before he is broken into a docile beast that society can live with.

Your first few days at Bullworth leave you feeling like Jimmy is a fish out of water, thrown from his comfortable bowl into a boisterous riot. Since you're starting your reputation from the ground up as the new kid, you are the perfect target for the overly aggressive bullies - one of the game's six cliques - who haze you into submission on sight. Nearly all interaction is based around the respect meter, which gauges your reputation with each of the school's main cliques: the aforementioned bullies, plus the preps, greasers, nerds, jocks and eventually townies. As you complete missions, be they story-progressing or optional, you subsequently increase or decrease your respect meter for the different cliques. For example, help the nerds protect one of their own from the greasers and you'll gain respect from the nerds while losing it from the greasers. It's a constant balancing act keeping all the factions respecting you enough to let you move around campus without fear of having your face pounded in at every corner.

At the close of the first chapter, your rival, and main antagonist for the remainder of the game, makes his intentions known and the power of his alliances felt. In a karmatic return, you will have the bullies answering to Jimmy with words instead of their fists to his face. This allows you in-between the main story to test the social waters and begin to establish Jimmy's presence around campus. While the main story has the biggest effect on the respect meter, helping out students who approach you, taking on optional missions as well as just how you treat the other students when you see them around, can change allies to enemies or damage a loose truce. At this point it's still pretty easy to appease everyone, but slanting towards one clique will lead to benefits such as hideouts, items, stats increases and more.

As a whole, the story can be classified as a comedy, because rampant sophomoric and immature humor keeps tension low. If the story ever steers towards serious subject matter the script usually cues up a sarcastic quip, prank or other distraction, showing that the game never truly takes itself seriously. While the script is merely decent, excellent voice actors bring it to life, continuing to carry the high standards of storytelling that Rockstar has become known for. Every mission is introduced by a professional quality cut scene that takes full advantage of the gritty art design and muted colors of the graphics engine, as well as the dark humor of the story. These range from hunting down the English teacher's alcohol stash to save him from being fired for teaching while under the influence, to playing pranks on kids during Halloween to obtaining evidence of cheating girlfriends. The objectives will begin to bleed together - especially to Grand Theft Auto vets - but there is always a new context to keep up interest levels.

Outside of the main mission tapestry there are plenty of other story threads to pull on, including many character-specific missions that flesh out Jimmy's fellow students. Rockstar went out of their way to make sure each student has their own back story and personality, as well as visual distinction and voice actor, making these missions more than worth your while to seek out. Finish the character-specific missions for any of the female students (and at least one specific male student) a couple of times and they will develop a crush on you. Not only can you hold hands with someone who has a crush on you, but you can also kiss them, which gives Jimmy a health boost.

The teenage demographic should have little problem relating to and enjoying Jimmy's experience at Bullworth Academy. The game never speaks over their heads, nor does it introduce elements they would normally be unfamiliar with. It also helps that they weren't alive when many of the movies Bully has borrowed from were released, keeping the story fresh. Gamers who are closer to a high school reunion than they are to the year they graduated may not connect as well; not because they are too old to remember their high school years, but because they are most likely have indulged in the same movies and TV shows Rockstar obviously enjoyed and used as reference points.

As I've already mentioned, many of the story threads and stereotypes at play in Bully are ripped right out of the Eighties movie scene and accordingly feel stale and predictable. The single sexy female teacher, the self-destructive male teacher the students rally around to help him keep his job, the D & D nerds, the snobby preps looking for a poor kid to use… the list is never ending. Sure, imitation is one of the greater signs of flattery, but is that a proper excuse for unoriginality? Not so much. Another complaint is the lack of inner monologue we receive from Jimmy - I found myself confused as to just what his motives were and what actually is a task he would or would not find acceptable to pursue. All the missions have context in the story but there is a severe lack of context within Jimmy's character, undercutting his character development in a way that had me questioning elements it should never have occurred to me to think about. Why do the kids act as if the school is a public institution when it is obviously not? I've never heard of a public school that demands students live on campus all year long - have you? Which leads to my second question - why should I not think of Jimmy as just another over-privileged youth trying to emulate the situations of the under-privileged? I was forced to make broad and sometimes negative assumptions for these and many other questions when they should have been provided for me.

While none of these complaints ended up becoming a deal breaker that had me giving up on the game, they do soil the story to the point that it was never able to fully dry out from. I am sure many gamers will not find the story as problematic as I found it, but if at the end of the game the user controlled actions of Jimmy speak louder than most of the scripted actions and words then you'll know I was at least partially correct.

Okay, less talk, more rock…I mean gameplay! There is really no way around making this comment, so I will not hold back - this is a kiddie version of Grand Theft Auto. If you have played any of the games from that series there will be close to no learning curve, as the control scheme is essentially unchanged. While you can still punch, kick and learn new moves as you progress, you can now use wrestling moves such as grapples and takedowns - executed with the triangle button - that help Jimmy get the upper hand in fights. This ends up causing problems though, as triangle also continues to serve as the button that handles getting on things such as bikes and entering buildings. Fighting in front of any other triangle action command can, and will, result in the non-fighting command being executed, as the button's range is far too large. Make sure there are no bikes near you when fighting or trying to enter a door, because you will hop on them every time.

You can still smack sense into jerks with baseball bats and other sporting sticks - along with one boss who clubs Jimmy with an oversized mallet - any weapon, or action, that can cause an injury above what a school nurse can handle (obviously including death) has been removed or tamed down. For example, guns have been replaced with tamer projectile-launching weapons such as a slingshot and bottle rocket launcher, while grenades have been changed to eggs and stink bombs. Using the lock-on command no longer just places a red target on your enemies - it now shows their life bar in the form of a ring at their feet, a wondrous, non-obstructing addition that I hope Rockstar introduces into all future sandbox-style games. Though it's smarter than was seen in previous efforts, it's still not as dynamic as it could be, as selection is supposed to be based on Jimmy eyesight but instead is based on the game's programming, leading to the wrong person or thing being locked on. And as you are punished for every bad thing you do in Bully, this problem is magnified - you'd be surprised how fast a mission can end when you accidentally target and attack an innocent when being attacked by an enemy.

What crimes you can commit have also changed; as Jimmy is only 15, he can't drive, let alone steal any motorized vehicles (outside of a go-kart), drink alcohol, smoke, use drugs, have sex, solicit prostitutes or any of the other naughty acts found in the Grand Theft Auto games; there are no major laws broken by the protagonist here. Jimmy still can commit crimes punishable by the local police, as he can steal bicycles, destroy property lying around (such as tables, chairs, vases and holiday decorations), tag walls and of course beat people up. You can get in trouble by the school's rule enforcers, known as prefects, for play pranks on other students, such as throwing itching powder on them or dropping marbles for them to slip on, handing out wedgies to the guys and pinching the butts of the girls.

Unlike in the Grand Theft Auto games where you could murder multiple people before even drawing a squad car to look into the situation, every single offense can lead to your immediate downfall. To the right of your map you will find the trouble meter, which meter fills up with each crime you commit and rule you break, each of which have a set trouble rating. Damaging school property, truancy and breaking curfew are some of the lesser offenses that will annoy but not necessarily draw a swift reaction from the authorities. The same cannot be said for gross misdemeanours such as physical violence against little kids, females and authority figures, which will send the trouble meter towards the top.

As the trouble meter fills, authority figures begin to take notice of you, eventually hunting you down if you manage to completely fill the meter. No longer can you commit a few crimes here and there with no repercussions; every action has a consequence. Not only does this add to the realism of Bully's world, but it also injects a sense of danger for every negative action that's sorely missing from Rockstar's other games. You always have to watch your back and - if you want to be truly evil - you'd better be prepared to pay for it, because the authorities have no problem with taking you down.

That doesn't mean Jimmy is left for the dogs every time he fills the trouble meter though; all authority figures are on your radar as red dots and when they are actively looking for troublemakers, a cone extends from their dot to show their range of vision, much like in the Metal Gear Solid series. If you manage to cross their line of sight you can seek out hidden sanctuaries that take the form of empty lockers and garbage cans, giving you a place to hide until the heat cools off. If you are unable to escape, depending on how full your meter is, you may have a chance to break loose from your captor and make another run for it.

Even after every mission is hunted down and completed, don't think you have uncovered all that Bullworth City has to offer. Yet again flexing their lifespan muscles, Rockstar has stuffed Bully to the gills with missions, collectibles, unlockables and plenty of other things to keep you busy well after the 20 to 25 hour main story ends. Waste time trying to nab the high score in the painfully simple though completely additive arcade games such as the side-scrolling shooter Nut Shots, the action-racer Future Street Race 2165 and the Froggerish food-catching Con Sumo. Get that competitive itch scratched by taking part in the Punch-out! style boxing tournaments, bike and go-kart races and carnival games. Learn new attacks from the homeless Korean War vet that lives hidden on campus. Earn some extra cash for that hot date or new clothes by starting a paper route or mowing lawns. Collectors can sniff out hidden items such as rubber bands and G & G (the game's version of D & D) trading cards, as well collecting photographs of all the students for the yearbook. Achieving a 100% completion rating will no doubt add another 15 to 20 hours to the game, easily netting a high lifespan score.

There is definitely no downgrade in what can be done in the world of Bully. The world itself though has been scaled down when compared to the large Vice City and the humongous three city limits of San Andreas. By setting strict physical boundaries for Bullworth City, which consists of far less buildings than any of the PS2 Grand Theft Auto games so far, Rockstar was able to bring to life a living city in deeper, vibrantly more realistic way than they have before. As such, this is easily Rockstar's finest interactive and visual work to date.

Instead of being filled with random buildings that fill space but serve no tangible purpose, nearly every Bullworth City building has a reason to exist. Every building on the Bullworth Academy campus, as well as all their entryways, can be entered at one point or another, as can many of the doors inside of these buildings. They might not all be interactive, but the majority of buildings in the city can be entered or interacted with in a way that gives them a unique purpose. Another trend that is noticeable is the formation of a shopping district, where multiple shops and attractions that can be interacted with exist together. Each building, which varies in size depending on its location and purpose, has its own storefront, open sign and advertisements. On the whole, a smaller city allowed for increased details and more thoughtful, astute placement of buildings, landmarks, stairs and streets. This keeps your mind focused on what's at hand, much like a high school freshman does, not off wondering what else there is to find.

Buildings are also visually stimulating, along with just about every other non-living object in this game, as they all start from the gritty art design before being faithfully recreated with distinct textures that take full advantage of the muted color palette; less textures to create and store, along with less emphasis on filling the screen with cars, people and buildings, allows for a greater dedication to be put into creating every object - and it pays off in spades. Even in the case when a texture isn't completely crisp, it never blurs to a point of being unrecognizable or disgusting, giving the feeling that textures were fined tuned depending on use and location. Weather effects - especially when a light snowfall has covered up everything - are excellent, and prove to be more than just tacked on effects.

The graphics used on the characters aren't slouches either! Facial textures are defined and genuine, with everyone appearing as an individual when face-to-face. Get up close and personal with your classmates and you'll clearly see details such as freckles, different nose types and injuries sustained from fights. Instead of trying to animate clothing and hair, Rockstar decided to skip that and just focus on the textures. I believe they made the right decision, as all the body textures show fine details such as wrinkles and seams in clothing, as well as distinct hairdos. The character animations are Rockstar's best so far, but there are still some robots lurking around. Still, the cut scenes might as well feature real people, as the animation execution is perfect. In-game most of the characters, especially Jimmy, move around with natural, fluid movements, but there are still moments of stiff, robotic action, especially during in-mission cut scenes. Don't let the dull, dreary colors full you into thinking this game lacks graphical horsepower - Bully is a testament to the capabilities of the PlayStation 2 and is one of its best looking games to date. Since we already know what Rockstar can do when given more powerful hardware - the Xbox 360 exclusive Table Tennis - I can hardly wait to see what they can do with titles such as Grand Theft Auto 4.

Graphical prowess and individuality come at a cost though, as Bully also contains the most noticeable loading problems in Rockstar's PS2 library. After a lengthy initial load of a full minute or so, you would think that the game should have little problem streaming the rest of the information from here on out, but this is not that case - every time you enter a building the game has to load the interior up, usually taking around ten to fifteen seconds. This is satisfactory when in the city, where you rarely enter buildings or rooms at a frequent rate, but on campus this builds up quickly, as you can be entering and leaving rooms at a frequent rate, not unlike going in and out of a town in Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Was there a solution that could have been put in place to avoid this problem or at least cut down the waiting times? I would like to believe the answer is no. Does it make me glad to know that Rockstar will be moving onto the bigger and more powerful consoles for their next titles? The answer is definitely yes!

The bar continues to be raised in the video game sound department, as Rockstar again shows why they reside near the top of an exclusive list. As I mentioned before, each character in this game has their own voice actor who, while being relatively if not completely unknown, delivers a prime, professional performance with nearly every one of the over 39,000 lines recorded for the game. Nope, I did not add an extra digit to that number - 39,000 different spoken lines! Though you will still hear a decent amount of line repetition, as characters are constantly talking even when you are just running past them, it happens far less than in other games, with characters randomly saying something at any given time.

There is no licensed music of any kind in Bully, a bit of a departure for Rockstar. Don't think for a second that it's a bad kind of departure though, because every one of the original tunes is fantastic. Each of these short, sweet songs fades into the background just enough to allow the sounds effects to have a real impact. Enjoy the laid back tones while you roam around campus minding your own business, feed off the tempo of the fighting song and feel the anxiety and tension of fleeing from punishment when the beat picks up. The sound effects see no drop in greatness, as the noise of eggs splattering, punches landing, dodge balls bouncing off faces, school bells ringing and all the other countless sounds you're bound to hear in a school are seemingly produced with little error or effort. Simply brilliant.

Now that Bully has reached the masses and news of its inability to fulfill any of the child corrupting prophesies many wrote out for it, there is only one question left - is the game worth a purchase or was all the hype and hysteria for a mediocre game? At the end of the day, when I put Bully back into its case for the foreseeable future, I knew I could have waited for the inevitable Greatest Hits price drop. A wonderful presentation and spurts of youthful fun could not curb the boredom a Swiss cheese, overly nostalgic storyline and "I've done this before but with more violence" gameplay handed to me. If you are madly in love with sandbox-style action adventure games then I can see no reason that you will dislike what Rockstar has created here. If you are waiting for the next step in the genre's evolution however, you'll have to wait a bit longer.

Reviewed by Tony Peters for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).