It’s easy to forget that it’s worked on several different IPs through the decades, spread across its multiple studios, and one of those is Bully. Released in 2006 for the PS2 before launching on the Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360 and PC about two years later, its most notable update was a mobile release in December 2016. With regards to IPs kept on ice, it might as well be in cryo sleep alongside Midnight Club, Manhunt and L.A. Noire.

So it’s all the stranger when reports emerged back in 2018 about a potential sequel in development. One report from a Rockstar New England employee, who claimed that the project was cancelled, and a few details about the premise later, nothing emerged. Which, again, makes sense that no one would really notice because Red Dead Redemption 2 fever was at an all-time high. Those rumors never stopped, however, and as the years passed before GTA 6’s announcement, many of us were simply left pondering: Will they or won’t they?

However, it seems, at long last, that Rockstar Games co-founder and former head writer/president Dan Houser has provided some clarity. Speaking to IGN at LA Comic Con, he was asked why a sequel to Bully never happened. He answered in perhaps the most succinct and yet ambiguous way possible:

“I think there were just bandwidth issues. You know, if you’ve got a small lead creative team and a small senior leadership crew, you just can’t do all the projects you want. And, you know, with certainly how we’re structuring it, we’re trying to do two projects with a very small team, and just really trying to think through that. How can we do that and keep them both moving?”

The “bandwidth issues” and “small lead creative team” likely refer to Rockstar in 2008 when the first Bully launched, right? Instead of Rockstar North, which handled the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption series (with no small amount of help from other worldwide studios), it was Rockstar Vancouver at the helm. The developer was also known for working on Max Payne 3 and then merging with Rockstar Toronto in 2012. The latter last worked on Red Dead Redemption 2, so it’s safe to assume that it’s also assisting on Grand Theft Auto 6.

Regardless, the gist of Houser’s statement indicates that Rockstar could only focus on two projects at once. Considering it began working on Grand Theft Auto 5 in 2008 and then Red Dead Redemption 2 in 2010 (though internal pitches began when the first title was still in the works), it makes sense. The sheer scope of both titles means all hands on deck, and a potential Bully 2 would fall by the wayside, or just never start development at all. Right?

This is where things get complicated. In October 2019, VGC reported that a sequel was in development for 18 months before its cancellation. Houser allegedly penned a rough script around 2008, with Jimmy staying at his stepfather’s house for the Summer. While rumours before this indicated a step-sibling as the antagonist, alleged casting calls for “college professors” indicated possibly going beyond Bullworth Academy, but it seems Rockstar was undecided on that aspect.

The team allegedly worked on a “small slice” for about 18 months from 2010 to 2013 on the RAGE Engine, but production apparently “fizzled out.” As one source said, “It existed, it was playable, it was just a shame it never got off the ground.”

You would think that’d be the end of it, but Rockstar apparently dabbled in the sequel once more. Insider Tez2 said that it was working on Bully 2 until 2017, but stopped development to finish up Red Dead Redemption 2. Pre-production for Grand Theft Auto 6 was also allegedly ongoing, and it wanted to ramp things up. As much as you would think that this was the end, it apparently wasn’t.

In December 2021, it was Tom Henderson, another fairly reliable insider, who revealed that Bully 2 was “expected as a potential surprise reveal at The Game Awards” after “some people have been shown some material alluding to a reveal soon.” While information was a “bit blurry,” he noted that “some people” reportedly saw a playable version of the title before the event, and it wasn’t the “canned version.”

“It was worth reporting on as there’s something definitely ‘going on’ to do with the series,” said Henderson. He would “still stand by” the belief that something was happening in February 2022, but aside from the original being rated in Taiwan last year for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, that hasn’t been the case. Not even the announcement of a remaster or upgrade of the original for current-gen platforms.

The obvious theory – and this is only really a theory at this point, given how updates have effectively dried up – is that this supposed version of Bully 2, which is different from what Houser may have overseen, has been started and stopped because of Grand Theft Auto 6. There have been rumors of development troubles in the past, including development allegedly being rebooted in 2020 after Houser left. Perhaps Bully 2 was still in the pre-production phase, and while Rockstar wasn’t keen on cancelling it outright, it realized that more resources would be required by the end of 2021.

Cue the project being kept on ice and no internal updates ever since, as the focus is entirely on Grand Theft Auto 6. With all the hype and expectations – analysts like DFC Intelligence expecting $3.2 billion revenue in the first year, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick calling it “one of the biggest entertainment launches in history, not just in games but for all of media” – it makes sense that everything else would fall by the wayside.

For all intents and purposes, it’s safe to assume that the Bully 2 that was worked on in the early 2010s is no more. I would like to think that maybe, just maybe, present-day Rockstar considered a possible remaster or upgrade for the original to gauge interest (hence last year’s rating). There have also been rumors lately of a current-gen upgrade for Red Dead Redemption 2, which would mark the franchise’s debut on Nintendo Switch 2, but those also never came to fruition. And once again, I can’t help but wonder if it’s because Rockstar really can’t spare the manpower as it works to release Grand Theft Auto 6.

Whether that’s the right call or not will depend on who you ask. We probably won’t know the true scale of it until after launch, or even all the problems it faced. But regardless, it is a shame that fans who enjoyed Bully and dabbling in this universe where Rockstar’s open-world prowess was on display in a uniquely endearing fashion will have to wait for who knows how long for a follow-up. Never say never, but at this point, you have to wonder if it doesn’t make more sense to outsource the sequel to a different studio.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

Tomb Raider Legend

The original Tomb Raider trilogy is one that has remained relevant through generations, and a lot of that praise could be credited to the constant innovation that the developers had done to each game back then. However, Tomb Raider Legend proudly stands above the trilogy thanks to an excellent amalgamation of brain-tickling puzzles, thrilling chases, and challenging platforming segments that never fail to keep you entertained throughout its run. If you had to experience just a globe-trotting adventure on the PS2, it definitely has to be this one.

]]> 620873 https://gamingbolt.com/15-games-everyone-wants-sequels-for Tue, 10 Dec 2024 19:19:19 +0000 https://gamingbolt.com/?p=606230 For whatever reason, there are numerous games with unresolved narratives. Others harboured neat ideas but executed them poorly. Perhaps, in this era of remakes and remasters – as welcome as it is – game developers should look to some of their existing IPs for inspiration. This feature aims to highlight 15 such games that deserve follow-ups.

The Order: 1886

Despite its frustrating overreliance on then-outdated QTEs, The Order: 1886 oozed style and atmosphere. It’s steampunk story set within a vampire-enriched Victorian London expressed deep imagination too. Perhaps its sky-high expectation was ultimately it’s undoing but there’s enough here to warrant a sequel. Interestingly, developer Ready at Dawn have since been acquired by Meta, and Sony themselves renewed the IP as recently as December 2021 – a VR sequel, then, surely isn’t out of the question.

]]> 606230 https://gamingbolt.com/bully-rated-in-taiwan-for-ps5-xbox-series-x-s-and-more Mon, 19 Aug 2024 05:16:04 +0000 https://gamingbolt.com/?p=596422 Rockstar Games has a wealth of titles in its back catalog that dedicated fanbases keep hoping to see more of years on from their releases, and Bully is surely at the top of that list. Interestingly enough, recent developments seem to hint at some signs of life for the long dormant IP- though perhaps not in the way that many may be hoping for.

Spotted by Gematsu, Bully was recently rated for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, Xbox One, PS4, and PC in Taiwan. The assumption to many would immediately jump to would be that a remaster, remake, or re-release of some sort may be in the works, though it might be best not to get your hopes up too high.

And why exactly is that the case? Earlier this month, Rockstar Games announced that Bully was set to join the library of games that’s offered to subscribers of the GTA+ subscription service on August 20. It’s likely that these fresh age ratings are related to the same. It’s not exactly the revival that Bully fans will have hoped for, but hey- it’s something.

Tomb Raider Legend

The original Tomb Raider trilogy is one that has remained relevant through generations, and a lot of that praise could be credited to the constant innovation that the developers had done to each game back then. However, Tomb Raider Legend proudly stands above the trilogy thanks to an excellent amalgamation of brain-tickling puzzles, thrilling chases, and challenging platforming segments that never fail to keep you entertained throughout its run time. If you had to experience just a globe-trotting adventure on the PS2, it definitely has to be this one.

Max Payne 2

Remedy Entertainment delivered a great first game with Max Payne, but the full potential of the franchise was realized with the sequel. Max Payne 2 spins an appropriately complex tale with twisted characters and never-ending conspiracies, and that paired with the metaphor-heavy writing makes for a consistently engaging time. On top of that, you have some amazing third-person gameplay characterized by slow-motion mechanics which makes for some really cool moments as you swoop through dozens of enemies before they have an opportunity to properly blink.

Black

Criterion Games is most known for its work on Need For Speed: Most Wanted, but it’s first-person shooter Black remains underappreciated. And that’s a shame since Black is an adrenaline-pumping ride through macabre factories and large open arenas complete with realistic shooting mechanics, destruction physics and graphics that were quite ahead of their time. It wasn’t a flawless experience by any means, but Black definitely had its own distinct charm that made it memorable all these years later.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Grand Theft Auto 3 is what put the series on the map, and 2002’s Vice City is what catapulted the franchise to greater heights. Set against the backdrop of a beautiful rendition of sun-soaked Miami, Vice City provides a playground of possibilities that will keep you engaged for dozens upon dozens of hours. Between an engaging story and flexible gameplay mechanics, Vice City is a really special game that will stay with you long after the credits roll.

God of War

2005’s God of War was the first stepping stone for a franchise that would morph into a massive behemoth, a game that would go on to represent the crown jewel in Sony’s roster of first-party releases. And that prestigious status can be attributed to a simple yet satisfying gameplay loop of toppling down one enemy after another, solving the occasional puzzle, and partaking in an engaging story of vengeance. Sony Santa Monica stitches all these elements in a splendid fashion, which makes this a rollercoaster of an action experience that’s characterized by brutal levels of violence.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty was one of the earliest games to be released for the PS2, and it’s safe to say that it set a high benchmark at the start of the generation. Kojima spins an intricate tale about the rapid spread of misinformation with its story, and the gameplay massively improves upon the concepts of the original in new and interesting ways. Add to that memorable boss fights and a clean visual style that surprisingly holds up well to this date, and Metal Gear Solid 2 becomes an unmissable game for fans of this ilk.

Hitman Blood Money

Hitman Blood Money took what worked in prior entries, and crafted a game that’s bigger and better in almost every regard. A suite of highly replayable levels, plenty of new gameplay mechanics, and improved graphics are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the improvements that Blood Money provided over prior entries. It’s safe to say that the pre-reboot series peaked with this game, and it remains a beloved entry in this long-running series even after these years.

Kingdom Hearts 2

The original Kingdom Hearts was an interesting mix of combat and several other gameplay mechanics, but Kingdom Hearts 2 was the true realization of that potential. The sequel makes great use of the expanded horsepower of the PS2 and renders beautiful worlds brimming with imagination, and combined with its unique combat makes for an unforgettable trek that’s punctuated with memorable sequences and unforgettable boss battles.

Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal

Before Insomniac Games would become synonymous with story-driven action adventure experiences, it made a name for itself on the back of amazing action platformers – including but not limited to Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal. Released in 2004, Ratchet and Clank takes you on an entertaining quest to defeat Dr. Nefarious and put an end to his evil schemes. In addition to a simple yet satisfying combat loop of defeating waves of enemies, the game also offers a set of diverse levels and wacky weapons that will keep you glued to the edge of the screen at all times.

Onimusha 3

The third and second last chapter in the Onimusha saga, Onimusha 3: Demon Siege does everything to take the monster slaying experience to the next level. It tells a wonderfully eccentric story about Jacques and Samanosuke traveling through time to reach alternate dimensions to slay demons. The gameplay of slashing through waves of enemies is just as refined as one would expect. With plenty of memorable levels and solid combat loop, Onimusha 3 is a game that will stay with you long after the credits roll.

Silent Hill 4

When it comes to the Silent Hill series, the majority of praise is bestowed upon the second game. And while there are plenty of reasons why that is the case, Silent Hill 4 is also deserving of love. Konami’s Silent Hill 4 was the last game in the franchise to be developed by Team Silent, and it pays homage to what came before while also being its own thing. Set against the eerie backdrop of Ashfield, players have to find a way out of this nightmare before they get caught in a demonic cult. The music and voice acting shine brightly as they elevate the tension and create a sense of loss and anguish. It’s not a perfect game by any means, but it definitely does more things right than wrong – making for a great time for horror fans.

Gran Turismo 4

Developed by Polyphony Digital, Gran Turismo 4 provided a significant bump over A-Spec in almost every conceivable way. Right from the dozens of carefully curated car models and tracks to a strong simulation core and much more, Gran Turismo 4 impresses with its attention to detail. It’s a game that’s meant to be played for a long time, and the intrinsic motivation to get better at drifting across tracks in an effortless fashion will keep you grinding for days without getting bored.

Timesplitters

It’s safe to say that Timesplitters was one of the most creative shooters to be released for the PS2, and that’s largely due to its unique story of taking down time-traveling bandits in a bunch of diverse levels. The shooting mechanics were extremely enjoyable, and the writing also exudes a sense of personality which is something that not many games of the time can boast. While it has definitely aged in certain aspects, there is still quite fun to be had in revisiting this classic all these years later.

Bully

Rockstar Games’ Bully differs from its contemporaries thanks to its unique open-world setting, making it stand out all these years later. Jimmy Hopkins’ journey through the classes and dorms of Bullworth Academy is punctuated with plenty of memorable missions and fun activities – and you could easily spend hours upon hours wreaking havoc and causing mischief without getting bored. While the game has definitely aged in some aspects like the visuals, the gameplay remarkably holds up well to this date.

Freedom Fighters

IO Interactive delivered a great game with Freedom Fighters, an action-adventure game with plenty of interesting mechanics and an engaging story about leading a revolution. There’s great fun to be had in commanding your army of rebels; strategically placing them around corners and Manning a machine gun to clear out a massive herd of enemies. Between excellent level variety and unique gameplay, Freedom Fighters was a game that many more players needed to experience from start to finish.

However, several other titles, some underrated and others outright ignored, deserve to be remembered. It could be the port of a PC title or that one legendary movie tie-in that no one else remembers. Let’s dive into them.

The Thing

Trying to make an impact in the survival horror genre, especially with juggernauts like Silent Hill and Resident Evil around, is no easy task. Nevertheless, The Thing had interesting hooks, like the Fear/Trust system. If an NPC believes you were The Thing, they could attack, but even if unsure, they’d remain distrustful and ignore orders. They can also become scared, lash out, commit suicide or die from heart attacks. It wasn’t perfect, but The Thing presented a tense atmosphere with strong environmental variety.

Psycho Mantis (Metal Gear Solid)

Metal Gear Solid has a reputation for featuring boss fights that defy player expectations – and Psycho Mantis is definitely one such fight that really shocked gamers back in the day. You see, Psycho Mantis will always evade your moves since he’s reading them directly from the controller – which makes it impossible to damage the boss at first. Psycho Mantis can also read your memory card, and his dialogues will reflect what saves are present on your card.

The solution to beating him is to switch the controller from port 1 to port 2, which makes him open to attacks. Once that’s done, this boss fight becomes ridiculously easy and you can easily gun him down and get on with the story. On repeat playthroughs when you know what needs to be done, Psycho Mantis becomes a very silly albeit creative boss fight that poses little to no threat to the player.

PORTAL 2

We could basically put the entire Valve catalog in here. The joke goes that Valve doesn’t know how to count beyond 2, and that can be applied to so many of the company’s properties. Portal, for instance, absolutely smashed it with its second instalment, delivering an instant masterpiece that was widely beloved by pretty much everyone who played it- and a lot of people have played it in the years since its launch. It’s widely regarded as one of the best games of its time, lauded for its clever gameplay and incredible writing (among other things), while commercially, it’s been quite a success too. And yet, with Valve focused on Steam and now the Steam Deck, it’s unlikely that Portal will continue. At least we recently got Aperture Desk Job though, so that’s something… right?

THE ORDER: 1886

There’s no denying that The Order: 1886 didn’t exactly do justice to its premise, but at the same time, this is the sort of premise that could really have come into its own if it had been given the chance to build on its foundation and learn from its mistakes. The 2015 title looked gorgeous and transported players to a vividly imaginative setting, and we would have loved to see that idea being expanded and built upon in a sequel that worked to address its predecessor’s issues.

Because of its ability to fill its niche so thoroughly and completely- and a whole host of other things – Bully would take off and do pretty well in terms of reviews and sales. The only problem was it didn’t hold onto that spotlight for very long with the next generation of consoles starting to gain a foothold, a game like Bully just didn’t really stand a chance of maintaining that mainstream sense of attention for much longer and a handful of months after its release. That of course has nothing to do with how good of a game it was though and the people who loved it really loved it and still love it as the game is still selling relatively well on modern consoles as a digital download well over a decade after its launch. Why is that though? Why would a game like Bully that doesn’t really push any boundaries of graphical fidelity or storytelling acumen end up with such a long life of celebration in underground relevance?

Well, for starters, Bully was of course developed by Rockstar who was at the peak of their game at the time. Multiple Grand Theft Auto projects under their belt and many more classics in development like Max Payne 3, they were doing everything they could to just keep up with themselves. It was a great time to be a fan of Rockstar as every year or so you would see something come out of the publishing giant and all of it would have above-average quality. With games ranging from open world action games to more story-driven RPGs all the way to extremely violence indulgent games like Manhunt. Rockstar had it all in a sense that you don’t really see today as development cycles have gotten so much longer and the company seems to be mostly focused on two of their most prominent IPs and basically nothing else.

That said Rockstar knew what they were doing at this time and it showed in the game Bully perhaps more than most other games that they had ever released up to that point. Bullworth Academy is a location that makes sense to wander around in. Hallways, offices, classrooms, courtyards, and everything else you would expect to see is there and generally laid out in a way that makes sense to anyone who has ever spent time in schools. This immediately helps with Bully’s sense of immersion and relatability which are two extremely good things for a game like this to have. But that relatability doesn’t stop with just the layout of the academy, it continues on through the story, the characters, and the situations that everybody finds themselves in.

There’s no massive shootouts with exploding helicopters that would never happen in real life and no insane psychopaths hellbent on world domination (although Gary is certainly on the path to becoming one). It’s all made up of things that probably happened to you at one point in your life, and if not there at least conceivable. Different mini-games representing classes and getting in trouble with the administration and serving detention are two of the bright spots of general gameplay, but that’s barely scratching the surface. Completing jobs for various characters inside and outside of the academy could easily take up the majority of your playtime if you let it, as that can grant you access to more locations and more stuff to do. This is a big part of why Bully ends up feeling so bottomless for so long despite being a much smaller scale adventure than the things that Rockstar Games is known for now. It does so much with what it is not by looking outward but by looking inward an experience of a young man in school who isn’t quite an adult but is not really a kid anymore either.

The characters of Bully follow suit in their relatability but perhaps this is a slightly weaker area of the game at least by today’s standards. They all pretty much follow the archetypes of the roles that they play at the Academy, including the main character Jimmy Hopkins, who’s just kind of the quintessential bad kid and has found himself in a situation where he’s getting thrown into the academy because his parents just don’t know what to do with him anymore. So yeah, basically nothing new here in terms of setup. I don’t personally find that there’s anything really wrong with that though because Bully is not the kind of game that is aiming to break the mold in terms of its world-building it’s just looking to execute everything really well and that, it does. While the characters in the story are all things ripped right out of a lot of other movies and TV shows that you’ve seen with similar settings oh, they all fit in the world of bullies so incredibly well and add up to such a satisfying experience that it’s hard to complain about any perceived lack of special spice. Getting admonished by the principal, tormented by other bullies are all as authentic and charming as could be, and that’s really all Bully needed to do.

That said, with how many things Bully does differently from what you would normally expect from the developers of Grand Theft Auto, it does hang on to the fundamental mechanics that make the open-world action-adventure game work so well. Large expansive, explorable environments, an informative minimap, and main story missions often deviate into myriad different directions in the form of side quests that constantly distract you are all things that you’ll recognize if you’ve played a game in the genre before. The magic of Bully is how it takes those elements and dresses them up in such a way that it’s kind of hard to quantify, but it does ultimately result in the feeling that all of these mechanics belong to Bully at the time you’re playing it.

Combat is another one of Bully’s strong suits. While hand-to-hand combat is the basis of it and there’s plenty to do with that, it really expands nicely into different projectiles like gym equipment and using the environments. It might sound ridiculous on paper but it’s actually not that far off from how a lot of real schoolyard fights can go. But as a video game it plays great, and it might remind one of the Yakuza games more than something you would typically find from Rockstar.

Bully is the type of game that goes all-in on its own ideas, only borrowing from the mainstream concepts when is absolutely necessary like its overall open-world structure. But it fills in the gaps with so many of its own ideas and its own excellent execution of the academy atmosphere and the types of characters in situations that only someone in this game would encounter, that it ends up feeling way more interesting than it could ever seem like it would on paper. The more you understand Bully the more of a head-scratcher it becomes to realize that they’ve never made a sequel. We do get rumors that a sequel is in development every year or so but nothing concrete has ever bubbled to the surface from Rockstar about a Bully 2 or any sort of follow-up which is a massive shame. Hopefully one day that changes because after all this time Bully is still one of Rockstar’s best games and easily one of the better games from yesteryear that still hold their own in so many ways.