Bully, Persona, ObsCure and others

September 1, 2023 goes hand in hand with an early launch star field. While the deluxe editions begin their space travels, and most of them are still waiting for the general release on September 6, we recommend talking about something mundane: games about the school.

For many, school seems like a hated place, but sometimes you want to return to that carefree time when the biggest problem in life was the “swan” in the diary. The theme of everyday school life has also not passed video games, but this is not a role-playing game with boring maths and chemistry, but adventures with hooligans or students of magical schools. Let’s remember together the best projects where the heroes visit educational institutions.

Rockstar was able to move beyond crime action movies GTA and Manhunt, a satire on the education system. Hooligan Jimmy Hopkins ends up in one of America’s worst schools, and only fists and natural ingenuity will help survive in this place’s “food chain.” The plot is tied to the seasons so you can see school life in all its glory along with various holidays.

It is worth highlighting the presence of classes, because Jimmy can be caught and punished by perfection if he skips them. The open world, although small compared to GTA, is very cozy and with a large number of NPCs, each of which has a name and character. Overall, Bullying is already a classic that allows you to return to the carefree days of school life.

The pioneer of games about the school was School Daze. In it, we play as a bully who has to steal his testimony from the school. To do this, you need to knock down several shields with the institution’s weapon and extract the letters of the password from the safe. Protagonist Eric will be disturbed by both teachers and hooligans.

Once the game offered a good simulation of school life: lessons, breaks, students not only wandered around the school, but performed certain actions. Replay value was added by a number of random events. What was special was that each character can be given a name. There is a re-release with subtitles Reskooled and lots of new content as well as overhauled graphics.

Sometimes developers turn an ordinary high school into a survival arena against bloodthirsty monsters. That’s what the developers did ObsCure, which is in many ways reminiscent of the classic parts Resident evil. Here you have to solve puzzles, look for clues and sometimes fight with mutants.

A feature can be called a local game for two. There are five students to choose from who want to reveal all the secrets of their school. It turned out that under the building of the educational institution there are tunnels and laboratories in which experiments are conducted on humans. There is a sequel to the story, but within the walls of the university. Dilogy is considered a cult in survival horror fan circles.

Continuing the theme of survival horror within the walls of schools, you can’t ignore the indie game Detention. It was created by Taiwanese developers as an art project. The gameplay is primitive and reminiscent of classic point-and-click missions, but with modern mechanics. You take turns leading two characters who have ended up in an abandoned school.

One of its features is the inability to battle local spirits. The hero can only run or hide – and pray that the monster does not notice him. Music and a distinctive visual style create the right atmosphere.

Many people know James Gunn as a screenwriter for movies like Guardians of the Galaxy and Suicide Squad, but he also had a hand in creating Lollipop chainsaw. This is a great console game about a cheerleader turned zombie hunter. She must save her classmates, find the sensei and stop the zombie apocalypse. Not bad for a schoolgirl, right?

The world savior’s friend’s talking head is a great accessory for a short skirt, but she also has a chainsaw and a variety of different combat techniques at her disposal. Slasher fans will love the challenges that unlock new content, including heroine costumes. The light tone of the narration adds to the replayability and allows you to just relax. A remake is expected in 2023.

If you suddenly want to be “on the other side of the barricades”, you have to try School tycoon. The player takes on the role of a school principal and must increase his authority and the quality of education. It is not possible to immediately start students in classes: first you need to fulfill all the conditions and hire teaching staff.

The starting budget, the requirements for the quality of education and the conditions created for pupils depend on the choice in which area a school is built. Yes, this is an average tycoon with no unique ideas, but among other similar games it is distinguished by an unusual setting that should appeal to those who are already tired of the classic Tropical or Anno.

But what are we talking about real schools? Recently released a great one Hogwarts Legacy, dedicated to the eponymous school of wizardry and magic (our review). But you also know without us. We remember another project in the universe of Joanne Rowling (Joanne Rowling) – Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Here, the action is once again set within the walls of Hogwarts and its surroundings, allowing us to see life at school and the lives of the students, as well as independently attending magic lessons, which include simple tests.

You can play as Harry, Ron and Hermione. Each has its own unique spells, and at certain points it will even be necessary to combine the magical abilities of the entire trinity. If you’ve already completed Hogwarts Legacy, but still don’t want to leave the magical world of Hogwarts, it’s worth a try. The image in Prisoner of Azkaban is of course outdated, but the cozy atmosphere has not disappeared.

Key feature Fire Emblem: Three Houses is your house choice. A fantastic world with a fantasy bias opens before the player, with the choice at the beginning of the path affecting further events. Some people may not like the game because of the anime style and the genre is specific, but if you just try, it will be impossible to break free: Fire Emblem will drag you on for many hours.

The first half of this turn-based RPG is all about the school and interacting with other students, so the skirmishes aren’t that big. But after a certain moment, the game begins to gain momentum and engage the heroes in a bloody war, where the balance of power depends on the player and, as mentioned earlier, the chosen ability.

Initially, the fifth part of the Persona series appeared on the seventh generation of game systems, but a re-release appeared in 2019 Persona 5 Royal with a lot of new content. This is a Japanese role-playing game about schoolchildren who live an ordinary life during the day and go to another world at night that personifies human souls.

The developers managed to competently combine the two sides of the characters’ lives. School attendance and interaction with others are interspersed with dungeon trips, turn-based combat, platforming and puzzles. Events that take place during the day can influence adventures in the other world.

Those who want to be alone with themselves and think about deep topics should pay attention to this Life is strange. This is a rather personal story that can remind you of the time of youth. The main character discovers the ability to rewind time: superpowers and mystical events can be called a metaphor for the character’s internal conflicts.

Unfortunately, in this interactive movie, the developers only created the appearance of a non-linear plot. In fact, few actions have serious consequences. Despite this oversight by the developers, the adventures of Max and her friend in the reality of an American school and a small town can cause a pleasant feeling of light melancholy.

School years are one of the most important stages in a person’s life. It’s impossible to relive it in real life, but video games provide such an opportunity. It’s great that such projects come out and can please gamers with unique mechanics and stories. Which school games do you remember? Write in the comments!