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 PLATFORM: GAMECUBE
BEYOND THE NORM

here’s far more to this game than I have room to discuss, and that’s initially confusing. With no real introduction, this title thrust me into the unfamiliar world of Hyllis, a planet in the midst of a war with an alien species. I was completely in the dark about the planet and the characters, including my own. But the more I played, the more I learned about the story and was drawn into the strange world.

This complex plot unfolds almost entirely through character interaction; traditional cutscenes are all but nonexistent. Dialogue and story elements are integrated completely into gameplay, creating a smooth experience unlike any other game I have ever seen. Imagine playing an epic RPG that never pauses to load a cinema scene and you’ll get the idea.

Every moment of Beyond Good and Evil looks as good as a traditional RPG cutscene. Thanks to its flexible graphics engine, environmental effects are staggering and character animations are amazing. So why didn’t it score higher? Well, gameplay might be a tad simplistic for some people – combat exclusively involves the A button. More importantly, this game is just plain weird. That’s never a bad thing, but it took me a long time to figure out my feelings about this title. I’m sure many people will feel the same way, so I can’t say it’s the right game for everyone. But it is, without a doubt, one of the most unique.  



LISA MASON   8

This title lies somewhere between the action and adventure genres. It has a huge emphasis on story and taking in the game at your own pace; but it also requires you to find somewhat random items, fight bad guys, drive a hovercraft, explore with stealth, and solve some elementary puzzles. There is also a Pokémon Snap-like element, which is a lot more fun than it sounds. The GameCube edition has markedly better control in nearly every play type, but suffers from more jaggies than its Xbox sibling. That being said, the graphics are stunning on any system and the environments of Hyllis are interesting and unique. Many will look elsewhere for deeper gameplay, as most aspects are pretty simplistic, but the story and characters are compelling enough to ensure more than a few will be rabid fans.

8
CONCEPT:
A Zelda-esque adventure with evil aliens, conspiracies, photography, and a pig man
GRAPHICS:
Although stylized, these are some of the most amazing graphics on any system
SOUND:
The song in the Akuda bar might be my favorite video game score ever
PLAYABILITY:
With its simple interface, anyone with at least one thumb can play like a master
ENTERTAINMENT:
The involving story will keep you coming back, despite the initial weirdness
REPLAY:
Moderate
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