Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World: The Game – The Ultimate Form of Video Game Homage Within a Game

When a video game adaptation of a popular series or movie is announced fans either rejoice or cringe in horror. A majority of video game adaptations and tie-ins usually miss the mark or are simply terrible to play. After all, most movie or comic book-based games are usually poorly assembled piles of crap designed to simply pull in quick money. With Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World: The Game Ubisoft and Universal studios took a decidedly different approach. Instead of developing the Scott Pilgrim game as a direct tie-in to the movie, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, developers Ubisoft Montreal and Ubisoft Chengdu based their work partially on Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel series. O’Malley and movie director Edgar Wright also provided input during the game’s development. If having direct input from the series creator wasn’t auspicious enough Ubisoft even took the liberty of hiring pixel artist Paul Robertson to manage the game’s art direction. Ubisoft’s efforts ultimately result in a great retro-styled game with tons of modern sensibility.

Fans of Bryan lee O’Malley’s work will appreciate this game’s pixel art, as Paul Robertson’s colorful art style fits Scott Pilgrim very well. Additionally, fans of Robertson’s animations such as “Pirate Baby’s Cabana Battle Street Fight 2006” and “Kings of Power 4Billion%” will instantly recognize his work. Although the pixel art and animation are reminiscent of an 8-bit game the anime style is extremely vivid and expressive. In-game cut scenes feature limited animation and almost no dialogue but they still manage to convey the story in an effective manner.

In terms of sound there isn’t a single word of spoken dialogue which keeps with the 8-bit style. The music is both written and composed by Anamanaguchi, a chiptune band based in New York City. The band creates much of their synthesized sound with a hacked NES in junction with traditional rock band instruments. The music that results for Scott Pilgrim is a fusion of chiptunes and rock. The combination of music fits the game’s overall theme quite well. If you’re a fan of chiptunes or older music from NES games you’ll undoubtedly love Anamanaguchi’s work on Scott Pilgrim.

Filled with parodies, shout-outs, and homage to older games Scott Pilgrim is basically a side-scrolling brawler with an 8-bit retro styling. If you’ve ever played the classic beat ’em ups such as Double Dragon, Streets of Rage, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, or even River City Ransom you’ll feel right at home with Scott Pilgrim. In fact, this game has a lot in common with River City Ransom as it’s part beat ’em up and part RPG with a similar stat growth system. If you’ve never played RCR, Castle Crashers may be a more apt comparison. Similar to Castle Crashers Scott Pilgrim has a leveling up system, new moves that are unlocked with every level gained, and ways to boost stat growth. In this game leveling up is achieved by simply fighting enemies for experience points or by buying items that will automatically boost a character’s level. Stat increases are gained by various items purchased at shops and by consuming food. Like any game with RPG elements increasing both your level and your stats are vital because this not an easy game.

In a true throw back to the 8-bit era Scott Pilgrim is difficult to play at first. The game offers three different levels of difficulty and even the easiest setting will be punishing for most players. For a single player the first few hours of the game will be spent grinding for levels and spending money on stat increases. I played through the “Average Joe” setting and found myself barely surviving the stages only to be beaten down by a mid-boss or an evil ex. After my defeat I had to grind for a while on the same levels or easier levels until I was strong enough to take out a boss.  In order to get through this game in a reasonable amount of time a player will need help at some point, or a lot of patience. Fortunately, the game is never unfair or break-your-controller frustrating, just extremely challenging. For people who prefer to play with others up to four people can play at one time via local co-op.

Players can choose from Scott Pilgrim, Kim Pine, Stephen Stills, and Ramona Flowers at the start of the game. Each character plays slightly differently and gains their own unique moves as they level up. For example, Kim can rain down angry destruction on an enemy’s head with her drumsticks, while Ramona can pull all kinds of useful weapons out of her bag. Having a second player helps with the challenge of the game as players can revive one another, steal life upon dying, and even lend out money. When I played Scott Pilgrim alone my progress was constantly hindered by the game’s difficulty. In September I was able to get help with the game during Joseph’s brief visit. We completed the game within a few hours despite having to grind for levels.

One constant complain about co-op is that having four players on screen makes everything busy and chaotic, as players can harm one another. Another complaint is the utter lack of online co-op. Ubisoft has no plans to include it but having the option to play with friends online would have been great. It’s not always easy for older gamers to assemble friends or family in order to play together locally. The exclusion of online co-op for a game that is better played with others is heart-breaking at times.

Along with being a surprisingly tough game to complete and the lack of online co-op, Scott Pilgrim has a few other minor issues. The game itself suffers from bugs and random freezing issues. None of the issues are game crippling but they can be annoying. In the first ten minutes of playing the game I encountered a bug that froze the entire game forcing me to manually restart my 360. At another point Joseph and I were unable to progress further in one stage as enemy hadn’t come out and we couldn’t move on until we found and defeated him. Freezing issues seem to affect both PS3 and 360 owners alike.

In November DLC was released for the PSN version of Scott Pilgrim. The DLC added Knives Chau as a playable character in addition to two new game modes. The difficulty of the game was also rebalanced in the update. As of this writing Ubisoft promised the DLC would be available for 360 owners by the end of November but the date has passed with no word on an update. At the moment it is uncertain if the 360 will even receive the DLC. For that reason alone I recommend the PS3 version of this game.

Scott Pilgrim Vs The World: The Game is a fantastic retro-styled throw back to 8-bit era games. It combines the best elements of old school arcade brawlers with modern advances in gaming from the last few generations. A lack of online co-op and freezing issues are disappointing but they certainly aren’t a deal breaker. If you’re a fan of the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels you owe it to yourself to buy this game. If you’ve only seen the live-action movie you should pick up this game. Hell, if you’re a fan of brawlers and retro-styled games this title is still a must buy. For a ten dollar digital download via PSN and Xbox Live Arcade Scott Pilgrim is easily one of the best downloadable games to come out this year.