Beyond Good & Evil

Packed with atmosphere, accessible gameplay and sweet visuals, Beyond Good & Evil has most definitely reached beyond our expectations. Don't miss it.

An all round superb game; with solid, excellent sound, a polished and easy to use graphical interface and a story worth telling - but in a way which provides minimum frustration and maximum enjoyment.

Everything about it is magic - and even if it is a bit on the short side, it's an amazing game that no one who experiences will soon forget.

Nothing you see and nothing you read can prepare you for this game. Beyond Good & Evil is a masterpiece through and through.

I’m of the belief that you should always leave your audiences wanting more instead of wishing for the experience to end. While some might consider that a sign that a game is too short, I was satisfied and indeed wanted more.

Between its fluid gameplay that balances elements of action, stealth, puzzle solving, and adventure, and its beautiful visual and audio presentation, Beyond Good and Evil is a good game; however, it’s the examination of pertinent moral questions that raises Beyond Good and Evil to the level of a great game.

Gameplay is part and parcel of an elegantly imagined gameworld. The animation is so smooth as to be almost flawless, with the same engine handling everything from simple dialogue to a headlong rooftop escape from enemy aircraft...I think you should all go play Beyond Good & Evil right damn now.

We're in this dream of a game right now and we don't want to wake up and start again- it has to continue and any interruption is akin to a fire alarm going off in a cinema during your favourite fantasy movie. Lovely stuff.

Takes so many facets of game play, and does them all so well, that this game is one of the must-own games of the year. I’d be satisfied with half a game this good.

A wonderful experience that tells a fine story. While the game can be completed in anywhere from 10 to 12 hours, the pacing feels just right. If you were ever remotely interested in an adventure title without the words "Legend and Zelda" in it, Beyond Good and Evil is the first title you should check out.

Every now and then, however, you strike solid gold, and if "Super Mario 64" is videogaming's "A Hard Day's Night," then Beyond Good & Evil is surely its "Let it Be." [Dec 2003, p.98]

A tour-de-force of imagination, an electronic window into a fantastic world that exists in only our consoles and a creative French guy's mind. I greatly enjoyed my time in that world, and my only real regret is that it was over so soon.

A visual treat because of its beautifully rendered indoor and outdoor environments, smoothly animated characters and subtle lighting techniques that contribute to the game's atmosphere.

An excellent mix of atmosphere, visual design and accessible gameplay. Beyond Good & Evil is an experience that is not to be missed. [Holiday 2003, p.20]

While not quite as epic as something like "The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker," it’s a true charmer. Minor gripes aside (as a recap these are repetitive combat, short length and small scope), this is one of those can’t miss titles that I’m sure most will overlook.

One of those rare games that shines from all points with an unmistakable quality of intelligence and personality...It is pierced throughout with humor, intelligence, and humanity.

The colorful mix of characters and exciting plot combined with great gameplay make this one a must play.

It is, apart from a few choice technical hiccups, a marvellous game...[It] leaves you feeling warm and happy every time you finish playing it, and in this medium there can be no greater triumph than that.

The cartoonish environment, though small, abounds with hidden desirables and fine detail - blaring propaganda, rich reflections and shadows, site-specific music, assorted visual gags - and even minor characters, unlike Paris and Ashton, possess crisp, individual personalities.

Seldom has a third-party multi-platform title integrated such a high level of story-telling and character-interaction sophistication with so many gameplay styles (stealth, action, platform, etc.) to create such a coherent and thoroughly satisfying interactive experience.

A gaming masterpiece, blending together light combat, stealth, platform action, puzzle solving and racing to form a compelling gameplay mix, tied together with a terrific story and wrapped up in gorgeous visuals and audio.

Beyond Good and Evil is a game like no other, and while many aspects of its design are unoriginal snippets of genre, they all blend into each other to create something truly original.

The story is intriguing, yet full of humorous interludes.

Hillys is an intriguing and beautiful world - part Venice, part Naboo, and entirely fascinating.

With its outstanding gameplay along with a combination of excellent graphics, quality storyline and the variety offered in the gameplay throughout the game, it’s the complete package.

Had the game broken the 20-hour mark and cut down a bit on the stealth sequences it could have been an amazing game. As it sits, BG&E manages to remain highly entertaining throughout but ends far too soon.

Sometimes it’s just too darn hard to figure out what you need to do, or where you need to go.

It is a wonderful title that exudes both charming beauty in its lush aesthetics and sophisticated brilliance in its streamlined, accessible gameplay.

Like my love life, needs a little more action and a little less messing about to be truly excellent.

Mixing Walt Disney's colorful whimsy, the industrial distopias of French cinematographers Jeunet and Carot ("City of Lost Children"), and "Zelda" mastermind Shigeru Miyamoto's genius for flexible gameplay, BG&E is mesmerizing, ominous, and, most of all, memorable. [Dec 2003, p.200]

While Beyond Good & Evil feels pretty short, its interesting premise and impressive presentation pick up the slack and make it a game well worth playing.

The storyline, as well as tasks in hand, all work in perfect synergy, which gives this game its uniqueness. The puzzles in themselves may not be overly taxing, nor some of the stealthy actions, but as far as pure unabated storytelling and immersive interaction goes this works a treat!

The wide variety of gameplay elements creates an intoxicating mix that will leave players yearning for more. And this is the game's primary issue. Just when you become fully immersed in all the game has to offer, it ends.

Rather than force you from one style of gameplay to another depending on which level you're on, BG&E blends the transitions together almost seamlessly. The additional styles never really encroach on the main crux of the adventure; they're always peripheral and therefore serve to enrich the experience, rather than dilute it. [Dec 2003, p.114]

It never really lives up to its title - a vision that could have benefited from a little more focus. It's a tired cliché but one that Beyond Good & Evil exemplifies: jack-of-all-trades, master of none.

It's definitely a compelling place to explore, and the visual look is breathtaking, but too often I felt a pang of boredom creeping into the eerie dreamworld that Ubisoft had created. [Dec 2003, p.142]

Despite the whimsical nature of the varied critters that inhabit Hyllis, everyone (and everything) feels so real that you might just forget you're playing a game. [Dec 2003, p.180]

The main failing of the game. It's short. Veterans can get through the game in about eight hours, beginners about fifteen. Even so, I enjoyed every single minute I spent with the game, something I can't say for other quest games that are longer.

Not quite "Jak II" but still an engaging platformer. [Jan 2007, p.106]

The bulk of the game is really a pretty standard adventure game steeped in average but not too puzzling puzzles.

My only real complaints are technical: The framerate is often unacceptably choppy and load screens pop up too frequently... Still one of PS2's best adventure games. [Dec 2003, p.64]

For the most part, this game plays like a kid's TV show with buttons: albeit one that is finely crafted and colorfully animated. [21 Nov 2003, p.L2T 46]

There's still a little bit of a tired feeling, even when you're having fun. What seems to be at the root of this problem is the game's story. The further in you get, the more plot holes open, until by the end of the game you have the nagging suspicion that none of this makes very much sense.