Like in the original game, you'll also need to attend two classes per in-game day, although these are actually short, entertaining minigames that offer valuable power-ups (or at least silly wardrobe items) when successfully completed. Scholarship Edition adds four new ones to the mix: Geography, Music, Math and Biology, all obviously designed with the Wii controls in mind (which makes them a little less interesting on the 360). These classes - as well as the old ones, some of which have been retooled to use the Wii controls to great effect - also form the basis of the game's two-player mode, which pits Jimmy and his maladjusted, sadistic "friend" Gary against each other to see who can do a better job.

Out of the four new activities, the best is Biology, which features Trauma Center-style dissection of five disgustingly realistic dead animals. The worst, meanwhile, is Music, which asks players to clonk away at some percussion instrument using the Wii remote and Nunchuk (or the L and R triggers on the 360) as drumsticks, while the rest of the class cranks out some awful dirge that used to be a lively march. At least it's usually short.

The Wii's controls are used for more than just classroom minigames, of course, and Rockstar really went the extra mile to incorporate motion-sensitivity into the game. And although that's admirable, there were still plenty of times we would rather have just had old-fashioned buttons to mash on - like during almost every fight. Bully uses a Wii Sports boxing-style setup - flicking the Nunchuk throws a left-handed punch, while flicking the Wii remote throws a right - so most fistfights quickly devolve into wild, maraca-like stick-waggling. Admittedly, that's more fun than button-mashing, but it looks twice as silly and doesn't really feel any more immersive.

Meanwhile, aiming your slingshot, bottle-rocket launcher or camera in over-the-shoulder or first-person mode takes getting used to, controlled as it is by pointing the Wii remote at the screen and moving it around to look. Probably the worst thing is what happens when you're trying to get away from an angry authority figure: as you're jamming on the A button to sprint away, there's an excellent chance that you'll get overenthusiastic and accidentally twitch the Wii remote slightly, at which point you'll stop dead and throw a punch. Unless you can get it together in the next few milliseconds, detention will almost inevitably follow.

In spite of the frustrations, though, the novelty and fun of using the Wii controls makes it worthwhile to try and get the hang of them. They're great during the minigames, and it's cool to have an extra, Manhunt-style layer of interactivity added to pull off "humiliation" moves like swirlies, Indian burns and handfuls of phlegm to the face. That doesn't quite outweigh the irritations the rest of the time, but using the controls isn't unpleasant so much as it's just unwieldy.

Controls aside, there's only one other real difference between the 360 and Wii versions: the graphics. Both versions feature visuals that have been noticeably beefed up since the PS2 version, with dynamic lighting and shadows, but the Wii version looks decidedly last-gen. To be fair, the 360 version does, too - don't expect anything on the level of Grand Theft Auto IV, here - but it packs some slick, hi-def new textures and re-modeled faces that make it easier to ignore how everyone's fingers look strangely like rectangular sausages.

Even without all the improvements, though, the underlying game has held up surprisingly well since its 2006 release. Bully's still a captivating, cartoonish adventure that packs a ton of activity into its deceptively small world, and it's still a lot of fun to run around dodging prefects and thwacking preppies with a slingshot. There's enough new stuff here to make it worth a look for fans who've already played it on PS2, but if you didn't catch it the first time, Bully: Scholarship Edition is an excellent way to find out what you've been missing.

Mar 4, 2008