Bully: Scholarship Edition

Bully: Scholarship Edition tells the story of Jimmy Hopkins, who was expelled from his old school for hooliganism and now finds himself in a new academy with its own rules. You will have to deal with the local hierarchy yourself. The game combines open world and adventure: there are lessons, tasks, meetings with groups of schoolchildren, and freedom in what to do. The mechanics are based on movement, fights and small tricks that can get you in trouble. Discipline and time of day affect the environment. The design looked neat for its time, and the presentation was humorous and without unnecessary seriousness. The expanded edition added lessons and activities. The academy has a schedule: classes, breaks and time after classes, and this determines what you can do. Side quests can be found right on the streets, and you can walk around the city without a goal. The means of transportation are different: from a bicycle to transport found on occasion. Discipline and relationships with groups affect how they are greeted next time. Weather and time of day change the mood of a city, so the same area looks and feels different. You have to miss some lessons for other things, and this affects the attitude of others. The city is small but busy: alleys, shops and areas are quickly located, and transport makes it easy to get around. You can play slowly: the plot progresses even without constant tasks. For anyone who enjoys open-world school stories, Bully is perfect.