PLAY – Bully: Playstation 2

Bully: Playstation 2 [Rockstar Games – $39.99]

Those who prefer to do their gaming alone couldn’t possibly do much better than Bully, Rockstar Games’ tale of teen angst that turned out to be quite the well-rounded game even past the ill-informed controversy that surrounded it — there’s barely a shadow of Columbine to be found here, just the sort of mischief and intimidation that anyone who’s been in high school can probably relate to. Sure, it’s dark, but no more dark than the mind of your average hormonal teenager. Get past the darkness and you find humor, engaging play, a sandbox mentality, and a really, seriously well-designed world to explore. It’s beautiful to look at and listen to in its skewed way, and it’s also good for keeping the hormonal teenager in your own life busy for a good 30 hours. [Amazon]