Beyond Good and Evil HD Review (PSN)

One of the best unplayed titles gets better with HD

I’ve been somewhat suspicious of HD remakes in recent years; too often, they sharpen up some areas of the game whilst leaving others suspiciously flat, causing an overall dischord between the new and the old. Sound can remain stilted and muddy; shiny new character models look weird against flat low-res backgrounds; cut scenes look mushy and out of kilter with the main gameplay.

Luckily, thanks to its cartoony design and use of excellent voice work, Beyond Good and Evil is actually awesome. The occasional flat textures fit in with the look, the gameplay has remained fresh and innovative (thanks in part to it’s low sales first time round avoiding copycats) and even removing the nostalgia goggles for just a minute, the well paced missions and truly excellent storyline would slot in perfectly into todays gaming shelves. The low reissue price just seals the deal.

BG&E is a classic tale of subterfuge, resistance, manipulation and evil alien menaces – despite featuring talking pigs, cute farmyard children and some serious spiritual storytelling, this tale is surprisingly dark, twisty and adult. You play Jade, a young girl working with her uncle Pey’j (the talking pig) to look after orphans on their lighthouse in the world of Hillys, and defend them against an invading alien threat.

Now put down the sickbag – the game very quickly leaves the lighthouse to explore a weird and wonderful world, populated by some truly awesome characters. Whether it is Rasta rhinos who run a nautical garage, a blind gambler who is more than he seems, or a rogue soldier with a shady history, every single last character you meet, however big or small, is truly memorable. Heck, even your personal storage system is an arrogant metrosexual Italian who delights as he infuriates.

The story is truly brilliant; although it is, at times, predictable, between the characterisation, the excellent additional material (newspapers, emails, videos and more) really fleshes out the land and it’s denizens, and without ruining anything, twists, turns and really shocks at times. It’s really that good.

So, you, as Jade, are slowly drawn into the reactive world of IRIS, the underground press that are uncovering one of the biggest conspiracies on Hillys. Jade and her new friends work to uncover why everyday citizens are going missing, and utilising a selection of toys, some good sneaking about skills, a bit of stick combat, and a camera, Jade has some great moves and abilities. The camera is one of the best utilisations in recent memory, as it is also used to catalogue critters for money. The game flits regularly between simple buddy platforming, puzzle solving, stealthy movement, hovercraft driving and even some straight out shoot-em-up fun. The best bit is, all elements, whilst not exactly ground-breaking nowadays, work really well, and have a good balance to keep the game moving along nicely.

It’s also stacked with little extras, such as hovercraft races, gambling games, hidden rooms and puzzles, side quests and missions, and even the Pokemon-inspired creature capture photography game. It should keep most gamers running for about 8 to 15 hours, depending on how much you want to do with it. But it’s such a wonderfully moving tale, intertwined with thoughtful character interaction and overall graphical charm, I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t find it brilliant.

I’m aware that if I talk too much about it, I’ll give away the best bits, and this would slightly diminish the impact for first time players, so I’m going to keep this short and sweet: play the demo, get to the end of it, then see if there is even a spark of interest. If so, splash the cash and pick it up – I promise you it only gets better and better. If you know someone who has it, see it to the end of the factory, and I guarantee you’ll be hooked, and will see it through to the (quite mental) ending. Yes, I have some nostalgia fever, and yes, so does everyone else who picked it up, but all 12 of us want you to be a part of the world of Jade, IRIS, the Hillys resistance and all its twists and turns….