The Story: 
Carl "C.J." Johnson is a small-time crook and former gang member who returns home to Los Santos after his mother is murdered - only to be immediately harassed by his old nemesis, an outrageously corrupt cop named Officer Tenpenny. Over the course of this epic, which spans an entire state and three major cities, Carl takes his gang back to supremacy in Los Santos, only to be knocked back down by Tenpenny and a few of his own backstabbing "friends." Carl then falls in with wannabe rappers, his old gang, a blind Triad boss and a crazed CIA spook played by James Woods. Over the course of his adventure, he'll learn to sneak like a thief, fly planes, romance women and get really buff. And then, one by one, he'll get revenge on the people who betrayed him, ultimately taking down Tenpenny himself.

Why it’s the Best: 
GTA's rags-to-riches stories are always compelling, and San Andreas did it better than any of them - over the course of this epic, Carl will have gone from a penniless thug to one of San Andreas' most respected citizens, ultimately becoming a wealthy mogul with a house in the game's equivalent of the Hollywood hills. And the scope of the missions he'll take on will become similarly ridiculous; you might start out beating up thugs in a neglected Los Santos neighborhood, but by game's end you'll be hijacking VTOL jets off of aircraft carriers, knocking over casinos in daring heists and infiltrating an Area 51 analogue to steal a jetpack. Somewhere along the way, it's got something for everyone, with a gangsta fantasy that's far more epic, accessible and far-reaching than most of what the hip-hop industry has come up with.

But what really drives the game's story is its characters, and while it's easy to dismiss them as ethnic stereotypes, they're really much more than that. Carl, for all his gang-banging thuggery, is the most moral character the series has produced so far. He comes off like a decent person in his interactions with others, he's a pushover when it comes to doing favors for friends and he's dedicated to the idea of keeping drugs out of his neighborhood. Carl's buddies, gang leaders Wu Zi Mu and Cesar, are genuinely likable and fun to watch, and James Woods' acerbic Mike Toreno steals every scene he's in. Meanwhile, Tenpenny - voiced by Samuel L. Jackson - is so cartoonishly and irredeemably evil, it's impossible not to want to see him get his comeuppance - which happens in a wildly satisfying high-speed firefight at the very end.

The Story: 
You play Jade, a young news reporter who just happens to also live with a house full of orphans - but she grew up there or something, so it's not quite as hokey as it sounds. When aliens show up and kidnap a bunch of her orphans, Jade sets out to rescue them. Soon Jade and her sidekicks learn more and more about the aliens, the government, and how both are preying upon the little people.

Why it's the Best: 
Because it's a darker-than-you-think, galactic-scale story with characters you actually give a damn about. They're noble and funny and they love each other - and, by extension, you.

Jade may be the perfect heroine; she's strong, smart, sexy and compassionate. She's basically the kind of woman whom girls want to be and guys want to be with. Usually at Jade's side is Uncle Pey'j: a walking, talking, pants-wearing pig who talks like a cartoon Texan and invents things like fart-powered jet boots. He's clearly not her blood uncle (that's obvious, right?) but the familial bond between the two of them is tangible and touching.

Next comes Double H. This lovable lunkhead enthusiastically cannonballs into even the most hopeless battle as long it's the noble thing to do - good thing he's fully armored. Even Secundo, a sassy virtual intelligence that handles Jade's email and hacking in between affectionate wisecracks, is endearing and possessed of more personality than typical game characters.

More importantly, these folks aren't just likeable; they're inspiringly committed to one another, which comes in handy when things get hairy. Despite the lighthearted art style and children's book cuteness of some of the characters, this is dark, sinister stuff. Over time, the situations grow ever more dangerous, and the plot gets deeper and bigger and more unsettling. This isn't mindless, save the cardboard princess from the one-dimensional dragon crap. It's about kidnapping and corruption and trust and family and genocide and death and all sorts of sacrifice and risk and loss. It means something.

Well, at least it should mean something. The only real flaw in BG&E's story is the ending, which jumps the shark with an unneeded revelation that just doesn't make much sense and signs off with a definite lack of closure. Seriously: we know Jade's a battery or something, but is she still in that cave? The only picture we see her in during the epilogue could have been taken before the game even started. A sequel could have straightened all this out, but thus far there hasn't been one. Dammit.

Still, this is one fantastic story, built on a time-tested theme: loyalty. You're always in danger, but your friends are always right there by your side (unless they're in even bigger trouble). And their devotion to one another even in the face of nigh-insurmountable peril makes this special. Beyond Good & Evil is not just about a girl rescuing the only family she knows; it's about a girl and a few friends sticking together and rescuing her entire planet, creating some of the most memorable, heartfelt moments in gaming along the way.

Here's the inspirational opening:

And the confusing as all get out ending, complete with credits and cliffhanger. This is the bit after the main bad guy told Jade she was a manufactured life form and the source of his power: