Beyond Good & Evil

"Read me. Now."

Beyond Good and Evil is another epic adventure from game designer Michel Ancel. If you don't know who Michel Ancel is, stop reading this review now and go play your Halo. Michel Ancel is the creator of Rayman, one of the greatest heroes EVER. But if you like Rayman, you will PROBABLY like this game. It's just as good, maybe even better than Rayman, but it's nothing like it at all. Beyond Good and Evil is an excellent adventure game with an awesome story, good graphics, and sweet game-play.

Story:10/10
This game has the best story ever written for any game in the history of history. You play as Jade, a young woman with a pig for an uncle. Yes, you have a pig for an uncle. Your home planet, Hillys, is under attack by a mysterious and hostile race called the Domz. The defenders of your planet, the Alpha Sections, are fighting to protect Hillys and to destroy an organization called the Iris Network who claim that the Alpha Sections are in allegiance with the Domz. One day at your home, the Domz attack and a Domz meteorite crashes in front of your house. Your house is sort of like of an orphanage, with a bunch of human and goat kids in it. The kids fall into the hole that the meteorite makes and are possessed by the Domz. You beat the crap out of the Domz and free the kids. Then a huge tentacle thing comes out of the crater and grabs you. A giant Domz starts to possess you. All hope is lost. Until...your uncle Pey'j (the pig) bursts in and frees you. You then proceed to kill the Domz with extreme prejudice. The Alpha Sections arrive (just in time!) and pull you out of the crater. You appear on the five o'clock news. A strange guy with a moustache gives you an m-disk (kinda like an e-mail) saying his boss was impressed with the way you handled the Domz thing and asks you to take a photograph of a male and female Petromax Domz which are a new deadly species of Domz to get proof of the Domz invasion. Begin the hunt! There is a lot more story, but I'd be spoiling it if I told you.

Sound:9/10
This game not only has the best story in the history of history, it also has the best voice acting in the history of history. Jade and Pey'j have great voices which makes them come to life in a way few video game characters ever have. The music is ok too.

Graphics:10/10
The graphics are astounding. While the characters and creatures are good and well designed, it's the free roaming outdoor environments of Hillys that are amazing. This game has water effects that rival those of Ico (that means they're really good) and it is so beautiful that I literally fell to the ground and cried when I say it (well not really, but you get the idea).

Game-play:10/10
This game not only has the best story in the history of history and the best voice acting in the history of history, it also has the best game-play in the history of history. It's kinda hard to describe. I'd call it a stealth-platformer. You have to infiltrate enemy bases and avoid detection while taking pictures to expose an evil conspiracy. This is fun, but the best part by far is flying around in your ship (although you start out with a hovercraft) and shooting the civilian ships, although the Alpha Sections fine you two-hundred and fifty bucks. It's like Grand Theft Auto without the grand theft.

Overall:To sum it up: this game rocks. It's fifteen bucks. Go buy it.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/26/05