“Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World: The Game” Review

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game is a rare beast. Originally released in 2010 before being unceremoniously removed from digital storefronts in 2014, many assumed that we’d seen the last of the game and only those who managed to enjoy it in that relatively brief window would ever get the opportunity to play it. There were rumors and rumblings about the game coming back for a good while, but those could mostly be chalked up to people unwilling to let the dream die and embrace reality.

Well, it turns out reality is overrated because Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game was not dead after all, and it was re-released in a new “Complete Edition” for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC on January 14, 2021. Now, the game that many “X Best Video Games You’ll NEVER, EVER Get To Play AGAIN. EVAR!!!1!” lists used to bait our collective clicks is available to play once again, but with its re-release comes the question: is it worth all the fuss?

To fans of the 2010 Edgar Wright film or the mid-2000s graphic novels by Bryan Lee O’Malley, that question has a laughably obvious answer. Ditto for hardcore fans of old-school beat-’em-ups. For those of us who may not exactly fall into either camp, though, there’s a bit more consideration required to determine how recommendable the game is. (Certainly if you hate the film, the comics, beat-’em-ups, or just enjoyment in general, the answer is probably a resounding no, but there are more significant questions that need to be answered first. Maybe talk to someone about that whole “I hate joy” thing, seriously.)

There is a lot to recommend about the game. First and foremost, the art style is a delightful blend of the comic and the 8-and-16-bit style of classic games like Streets of Rage that it obviously draws inspiration from. The soundtrack by chiptune rockers Anamanaguchi is about as flawless as video game music gets, perfectly suiting the tone of the story as well as the style of the game. Each playable character, from reliable starter character Scott to ultra-cute Ramona to…also there Kim and Stills, has their own unique quirks, though the unlockable abilities for each character still follow the same progression. (Also, Knives is undoubtedly the best, flying around the level with her massive scarf and utterly wrecking fools with her daggers, but you need a Ubisoft account to unlock her.) Each stage is imaginatively designed to reflect the Evil Ex you’ll face at the end, and there are plenty of secrets tucked away to make exploration rewarding…even if it’s just to chuckle at Scott’s ridiculous late fees at No-Account Video. Yes, there’s an in-universe explanation behind that little joke, and of course there’s a benefit to actually paying it off, but it’s still funny even if you don’t know about either of those things the first time through.

There are also some quibbles, both small and…not so small that might hinder your enjoyment if you aren’t the biggest SPvTW superfan. On the fairly minor side, there are a few graphical glitches here and there – for instance, you’ll fight the occasional invisible enemy (though this mostly seems to happen when backtracking so…try not to do that) and enemies holding items will sometimes shudder in place momentarily before attacking. Nothing game-breaking, per se, but noticeable anyway. Also, like many old-school beat-’em-ups, there’s an arbitrary precision required for picking up and throwing items (or enemies) – if you aren’t lined up just so, you can easily stand there punching air for a few seconds before adjusting slightly to grab the baseball bat or barstool you were intending to pick up, and you’ll miss enemies entirely if you aren’t exactly level with them when you throw. More significantly, but still not a deal-breaker for plenty of players, the game is just downright hard – it gives you three difficulty options at startup, but be prepared to struggle at times even on the lowest difficulty if you aren’t a super savant at games like Battletoads and Comix Zone. For us mere mortals, repeating levels to grind more cash and experience is pretty much a necessity, especially if you’re going it alone.

And therein lies the game’s biggest single flaw: it’s really designed to be a 4-player co-op game, re-released at a time when 4-player co-op really isn’t happening. Because in this case, 4-player co-op is only possible if you’re all in the same place at the same time playing on the same system. No online co-op, no option to play with friends or strangers unless you’re seated on one couch like it’s 1999 all over again. And you really shouldn’t have invited strangers into your home back then, much less now. It’s a real shame because the game seems like it would be an absolute blast to play the way it was intended: four players bouncing around the screen, mashing frenetically away at the waves of onscreen enemies, cursing whoever threw that cardboard box from the other side of the screen, loaning money to whoever desperately needs that health item, and overall just reliving your youthful days in the arcade with the 4-player X-Men, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, or Simpsons games that you remember being just a little more fun than this. The pandemic is certainly not Ubisoft’s fault (as far as we know anyway…) but the lack of online play was a criticism of the original game back in 2010. In 2021, it’s pretty much unforgivable.

All that said, if you’re willing to look past some of these flaws, many of which are attributable to its intentionally old-school design, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game is a very enjoyable game. Hopefully you have at least one other person to play this game with until it’s safe to form a four-person party again, because it can definitely be a bit of a slog if you’re going solo. It’s a fun slog at least, and your skill level will determine how far you get before it starts to really feel like a grind, but if you skipped the game the first time around and wouldn’t feel terribly sad if the game went away again before you get a chance to play it, you might not feel like it’s a must-play. For those who were bummed that you never got around to playing it the first time, it’s definitely worth a look now that it’s back from the dead. (For the record, it’s probably not going anywhere this time around, but you can always pick up a physical copy if you want to be sure you’ll never lose access to it. You know, just in case.)

Rating: 4/5

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