t’s impossible to talk about Bully without at least touching on the controversy that’s surrounded this game since it’s been announced. So, let’s get this out of the way right off: Bully is not a “Columbine simulator.” In fact, you’d have to be a delicate sort to even term this game “mildly offensive.” Everyone can relax – Bully is just a game. Actually, it’s more than that; it’s an engaging and unique title that I think will be among the most memorable of the year.

Ironically, the very thing that made Bully the subject of so much criticism – the school setting – is also its greatest strength. In Bullworth and the surrounding town, Rockstar Vancouver has created an extremely detailed universe, full of secrets, humorous characters, and hidden activities. Each and every pedestrian in school has a unique personality, affiliation with a social group, and often an agenda. In this way, I think Bully succeeds in creating an immersive world even more than the Grand Theft Auto series does. It’s a testament to how much time and effort Rockstar puts into developing characters and environments.

The way the writers expertly skewer high school society is at the core of Bully’s appeal. Harking back to great teen movies like Sixteen Candles and American Pie, no group escapes the game’s clever satire; jocks, teachers, nerds, and more are mocked with an eye for detail that’s as loving as it is biting. What’s more, as you play through the game, you’ll often find that the characters are much more than obvious stereotypes; nerds often reveal themselves to be every bit as petty as the preps, and the cheerleader you thought was just a superficial bitch is actually a human being after all.

The gameplay itself is exactly what we’ve come to expect from Rockstar, incorporating elements of its previous titles. The brawling mechanics are essentially a less violent version of those from The Warriors, and you’ll recognize a number of “pizza delivery” type objectives from the GTA series. Combat is not spectacular, but very functional and surprisingly deep given how simple the control scheme is, and enhanced by a variety of schoolyard weapons like slingshots and potato guns. At times, the main missions can get a bit repetitive, especially the inordinate number of objectives that revolve around retrieving a series of items for a certain character. Thankfully, these are broken up by more unique tasks like races or brief track or potato gun turret shooting sequences, which add a much needed sense of urgency to a game that can be a bit too lackadaisical for its own good. Another bright point is – surprisingly – the classroom activities. Whether doing PaRappa-style button pressing in Chemistry, word jumbles in English, or playing dodgeball in Gym, you’ll find yourself actually excited about improving your marks and abilities.

However, the real draw of Bully comes in the simple joys of exploring and interacting with the world and advancing the story. By choosing such a timeless setting, Bully manages to tap into something that resonates a bit more deeply than another game about a space marine or fantasy warrior. By playing Jimmy, we all get a chance to do high school over again – except this time we get to do it the way we wish we would have the first time. For this reason, Bully is a game that everyone can relate to, because it speaks to something that everyone has gone through. I certainly hope more developers begin to look beyond the usual stew of sci-fi and action flick clichés for their source material, because we need more games like this.