It’s time for another Retro Ad Replay! This is the series where we head back in time to reminisce and celebrate the anniversary of the biggest moments in gaming. If you find yourself wanting more content like this, be sure to visit Mandatory.com.
In our October 17 edition of Retro Ad Replay, we’re going back 13 years to when Bully first released on October 17, 2006. The Rockstar Vancouver developed and Rockstar Games published game launched first as a timed-exclusive on PlayStation 2 in North America. It later came to Xbox 360, Wii, PC, Android, and iOS via remasters and ports.
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Bully took what made other Rockstar Games’ titles so good and incorporated it into a school setting. Players took on the role of Jimmy Hopkins, a teenage troublemaker who had been expelled time and time again. At the beginning of the story, Jimmy is dumped at Bullworth Academy, where he must stay out of the way of teachers and bullies, in an attempt to survive the year.
The game’s name was actually changed for the PAL version, with “Canis Canem Edit” used instead. This helped avoid the assumption that the game encouraged and promoted bullying.
You can see an official Bully trailer embedded below:
In the Bully GameRevolution review, written by Duke Ferris and published on October 26, 2006, we commended the game for being “bold and original,” having “good graphics” and “awesome sound,” and being a “fun reflection crappy of high school.” However, the “lame ‘dating'” and the linear mission structure led to a point being docked. It achieved a score of 4/5.
Rumors about a potential sequel have been swirling throughout 2019, with Bully 2 hinted at by new Rockstar merchandise, and there were also some “leaked” screenshots that may or may not be fake. Perhaps we’ll see Jimmy Hopkins return in a sequel sometime soon?
