‘Scott Pilgrim vs. The World’ game review: A tribute to 16-bit beat-em-ups

The success of Streets of Rage 4 proves that the world is hungry for more retro beat-em-ups plus the nostalgia from the world of 8-bit and 16-bit consoles and arcades. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game was one of those games, embodying everything that was great about that era.

First released in 2010, the game was de-listed in a few years and disappeared off the face of the earth. Until now, on its 10th anniversary and the 2010 Michael Cera-starrer, Ubisoft brings the game back in the form of The Complete Edition which includes all the DLC and rectifies one of the biggest issues with the original: the lack of online co-op.

All about Scott

Scott Pilgrim is an average 22-year-old from Toronto, who falls madly in love with the enigmatic Ramona Flowers. Which is all good, except in order to win her heart, he has to defeat her seven deadly evil exes — all with special powers and abilities. While the story is well-told in 16-bit, I felt myself mentally pop into the movie, and returning to the game to beat up those exes — as that is the way I seem to remember it. However, it could be different for you, as the game does retelling well, stretched across a number of levels. The game stretches the story framework to fit its levels, and sort of gets lost in translation. What is not lost, however, is its spirit.

The game-play of Scott Pilgrim vs The World is inspired by a popular 8-bit game known as River City Ransom, that faded over the years. Featuring a somewhat similar art style, Scott Pilgrim and his friends Ramona Flowers, Knives Chau and Stephen Stills are all rendered in that similar round chibi style of River City Ransom: cute, angry characters with their large fists bared.

How it plays

The game’s aim is get to the next screen after beating up all the baddies, side-scrolling arcade style. The combo system is easy to master…you will be juggling enemies, calling in your friends for power attacks or unleashing super moves to level up, in no time. Things get frantic almost all of the time in Scott Pilgrim, as there is always a lot of sprites on screen. Yet, the core of the game takes its fighting mechanics seriously and lives up to its inspirations, especially with the humongous bosses, who turn the evil exes into something akin to Contra bosses.

Screenshot of ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. The World – The Complete Edition’
 
| Photo Credit:
Ubisoft

While a big screen television or monitor is great, this game is perfect for the peppy Nintendo Switch. The game is flat-out fun, thanks to rectifying the original’s biggest flaw. Sure, it is a decent experience playing single-player, but like arcade, this game is all-out fun with your friends on board.

While the graphics are 16-bit style, the animations of the sprites feel a lot more sophisticated. With an excellent art style to complement the game-play, Scott Pilgrim does stand out. However, the real star of the game is the music from Anamanaguchi. Its chip-tune arcade sound will make you pop them into your daily playlists.

Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game – The Complete Edition with its DLCs as well as online co-op is a welcome addition to the list of games that are great to play during lockdown — especially if you are a big fan of 16-bit beat-em-ups such as River City Rampage.

The writer is a tech and gaming enthusiast who hopes to one day finish his sci-fi novel