Beyond Good and Evil for GameCube Reviews by Gamers

This game is simply one of the best games ever made. Ubi constantly out does themselves once more.

The mechanics/gameplay are quite good. Storyline is great. I love the twist at the end.

The only problem is that it gets on the simple side at times.

Beyond Good and Evil is a true adventure game in the style of Legend of Zelda or Metroid, in which you must explore dungeons to collect various stuff and complete various objectives, all the while also collecting extra hearts for your health meter and extra gadgets which allow you to access new areas. Overall, I enjoyed playing it, but it is far from perfect, and I was frankly expecting more based on its high Gamefly rating and reputation as a hidden gem.

Pros:
1. The game just plays well and is made with care. The controls are intuitive, the maps are useful, the objectives (while sometimes set up as puzzles) are all doable without consulting a strategy guide or other resource. Playing this game made me appreciate how bad things like camera control, menu setup, item usage, and all the other minor features are in many 3D 3rd person games.
2. I also enjoyed the setting and the setup for the plot. The game is set in a futuristic world in which aliens are invading the planet, and you get tied up in the whole political situation that causes. This story gave me a lot more motivation to play than Zelda's typical "the princess has been captured" motif straight out of the 80s.

Cons:
1. I found the game to be too short and too easy. There's nothing wrong with this per se, but it's not challenging enough to be considered a gem, in my opinion, and it's a defininite "rent."
2. The story has a good setup, but poor execution. Don't expect to be enthralled by a story with lots of interesting twists and turns. Once you get the basic gist of it, that's pretty much it. The ending was also disappointing.

Other notes:
1. I was surprised that, unlike Zelda or Metroid, the game emphasizes stealth and sneaking past enemies (almost like Hitman) more than fighting. Don't expect too much beat 'em up action.
2. Also, I feel compelled to say that the world of the game is very small. This is nice for getting to your objectives quickly, but the game is not very epic.