With Grand Theft Auto 6 finally on the horizon, now’s a good time to look back at Rockstar Games’ catalog. While series like Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto are bound to get the most attention from players looking to revisit some of the studio/publisher’s past work, there’s another open world game starring a remorseless delinquent terrorizing a swath of the United States worth checking out. That game’s Bully: Scholarship Edition and it’s 65% off on Steam right now.
A mash-up of Rockstar crime thrillers and a more mundane sort of life game, Bully: Scholarship Edition launched in 2006 (2008 on PC) and applies a novel premise to the design foundation established in Grand Theft Auto 3 and its Vice City and San Andreas follow-ups. Instead of grand criminal capers, there are elaborate campus pranks. Instead of violent robberies, protagonist Jimmy Hopkins has to attend class. Rather than navigate a city filled with competing gangs, there are rival high school cliques to contend with.
While the game’s plot isn’t especially exciting, Bully’s moment-to-moment writing and overall tone more than make up for it. Nowhere is its excellent sense of place better displayed than in the atmosphere created during in-game holidays like Halloween and Christmas, which are rolled out over the course of Jimmy’s year at the school.
Unfortunately, because Bully’s PC version is pretty old now, it might require a bit of work to get into proper shape on modern operating systems. Fortunately, a patch we highlighted back in 2020 should help.
If you’re interested in picking up Bully, its Scholarship Edition is 65% off ($5.24 / £3.49) from now until April 8 on Steam. Grab a copy right here.
Otherwise, take a look at some of our favorite open-world games and action-adventure games for more like Bully.
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