Game profile
Beyond Good & Evil
As investigative photojournalist Jade, players uncover a conspiracy by the ruling military organization on a planet threatened by alien invasion. Its mix of action, puzzles and photography mechanics earned the game cult status despite modest sales.
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What kind of game this is
At its core this is Adventure / Action, set in a science fiction world. Visually it is deliberately stylised rather than photorealistic, and the overall tone stays somewhere between light and heavy. The structure is guided rather than open, so you are moved along instead of dropped into a map. Sessions of an hour or two sit at the sweet spot here.
Difficulty stays forgiving, so progress rarely depends on your reflexes. The narrative carries the whole thing, and the mechanics serve it. It is a single player experience from start to finish. It is available broadly, on 4 platforms. It sits in the budget bracket.
What stands out
- unique photography mechanic
- strong female heroine
- cult classic despite low sales
This fits you if
- you want to live through a story, not just play a system
- exploring for its own sake is the point for you
- the writing matters more to you than the mechanics
- you want zero frustration and no difficulty wall
- you play alone and want a complete experience without other people
- you are watching your budget
Look elsewhere if
- you need real difficulty to stay interested
- you skip cutscenes and want to get to the gameplay
- you specifically want an open world to roam
- you want to play it side by side with someone
How long is Beyond Good & Evil?
About 11 hours in total. At two hours per evening that is around 6 evenings, so about a week of casual play.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 86 out of 100, which puts it above 66 percent of the 1276 games here and at rank 378 overall. That is mid-table for this database. Not a standout at the top, but solidly rated.
For comparison, Adventure averages 83 points across the database, so this one sits 3 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 403 collected ratings.
Released in 2003, which makes it 23 years old. A genuine classic, and worth checking how the version you buy holds up today.
The facts
- Release year
- 2003
- Genres
- Adventure, Action, Stealth
- Playtime
- approx. 11 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Relaxed, forgiving
- Story weight
- Carries the whole game
- Play with
- Solo
- Setting
- Sci-fi
- Visual style
- Stylised
- Price bracket
- Budget
- Platforms
- PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
- Critic rating
- 86 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beyond Good & Evil | 2003 | approx. 11 hrs. | 86 | Budget |
| Dishonored 2 | 2016 | approx. 16 hrs. | 86 | Budget |
| Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy | 2026 | approx. 25 hrs. | 82 | Full price |
| Ghost of Tsushima | 2020 | approx. 45 hrs. | 92 | Mid price |
If you liked this, try these
- 86/100 Dishonored 2 Shared: Adventure, Action, longer
- 82/100 Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy Shared: Adventure, Action, longer
- 92/100 Ghost of Tsushima Shared: Adventure, Action, longer, rated higher
- 91/100 Batman: Arkham City Shared: Adventure, Action, longer, rated higher
- 89/100 Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Shared: Adventure, Action, longer, rated higher
- n/a End of Abyss Shared: Adventure, Action, Sci-fi