Fast Links
Title: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game – Complete Edition
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal, Ubisoft Chengdu
Publisher: Ubisoft
Genre: Beat ’em up
Available On: PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Stadia
Version Tested: Nintendo Switch
Official Site: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game – Complete Edition
Release Date: January 14, 2021
Where To Buy It: Switch E-Shop, Stadia Store, PlayStation Store, Microsoft Store, Epic Games Store, Ubisoft Store
I, like many, cheered when I found out Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game was being re-released as a Complete Edition. As someone who missed the game the first time around, yet adores the movie and comics it’s based on, I couldn’t wait to pick it up. And while its music, art style, and presentation are more than worthy of its inspiration, the gameplay feels dated. And playing it on Switch was frustrating because of it, even on the easiest difficulty.
Scott Pilgrim Has a New Girlfriend
The story of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game – Complete Edition follows the same basic premise of its predecessors. Scott is dating his dream girl, Ramona Flowers. But to continue, he must defeat her seven evil exes. If there was any game genre best suited for this plot, it’s the beat ’em up. Each stage is lovingly themed for each ex, who acts as the final boss for each level. For example, Ramona’s second evil ex is a movie star. So Hollywood sets comprise his stage. His goons are stuntmen in flame-breathing dino costumes, aliens with laser guns, and paparazzi that stun you with a flash of the camera.
The overall presentation of Scott Pilgrim is where it shines the most. The comic’s original art style fits the 16-bit era incredibly well, so much so that this looks like such an excellent companion piece. And this makes a lot of sense considering how influenced by video games the movie and comics are. The game’s soundtrack is designed to instantly drill into your head, staying there for hours on end. It blends 16-bit chiptunes with the frenetic energy of an indie/punk band. It fits nicely with the film’s soundtrack, which is propelled by Scott’s band Sex Bob-Omb.
Punch and Kick to Your Heart’s Content
The controls for Scott Pilgrim are relatively straightforward and simplistic. Each character, of which there are 4 to choose from, has a light attack and a heavy attack. You’ll unlock different attacks as you level up, although none of them are anything to write home about. These include a dash attack, which is just hitting the attack button while you’re running, and a back attack that hits enemies behind you. You also unlock a counter, which requires pushing the block button (A on Switch) as you’re being attacked. No new moves really change how you play the game that noticeably.
There are exceptions of course. Each character has Health and Guts Points. Guts Points allow you to do special attacks. Pressing the right shoulder button will do a spin attack, hitting enemies on either side of you. And pressing the left shoulder button calls in an assist from Knives Chau which will either damage enemies or give you a stat boost depending on who you’re playing as. But in my own playthrough, these attacks rarely made a difference.
Granted, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game originally released in 2010. So it’s a bit unfair to expect it to have evolved with the likes of the recent revivals of Battletoads and Streets of Rage. And maintaining a combo while pummeling mobs of goons is still satisfying. There are also a plethora of weapons to pick up and defend yourself with. But these can sometimes be more trouble than they’re worth. Because of the game’s design, it can be difficult to tell when you’re next to a weapon and able to pick it up or if you’ll start punching the air in your attempt.
The same goes for enemies. While they looked close to me on-screen, my attacks would often be outside of their hitbox and I’d miss my attacks. Constantly moving and button-mashing would usually land attacks as a lot of enemies can appear at once. But even still, the enemies deal far more damage than the player does. My heavy attacks were dealing 5, maybe 6 points of damage while enemies were well into the double digits. And most of them would stun me or knock me down, which became frustrating very quickly.
Better Do Your Homework
Scott Pilgrim seems a bit designed against single-player given its simplistic moveset and tough enemies, even on the easier difficulty. Fortunately, there’s couch co-op and the new addition of online play. Beat ’em ups are usually better with another player and this game is no different.
But there are difficulties that come with even this. I found that couch co-op on Switch was a bit frustrating to set up. For whatever reason, the first player spot had to be Joy-Cons while the second player spot could be the Pro Controller. The game would not allow Player 2 to use Joy-Cons and only by backing out and switching the controller order was I able to bring another player in. And I’m still not sure why.
Other difficulties come from the game not including a tutorial. Sure, there’s a “How To Play” section under Options on the main menu. But the game offers you no information if you don’t know to read through that first. It would have been fantastic to know, for example, that you can only restore health by going into shops and buying food. But while playing through, it’s hard to tell which parts of the environment you can interact with. Or which characters will jump out and fight you versus which ones are just citizens you’re passing by. It doesn’t seem too unreasonable to expect a game to tell you useful information within the game itself
Verdict: Despite the title of Complete Edition, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game shows that it really only means including past DLC and online play. The game is still fun to play with other players thanks to frantic combat situations. And its art style, music, and loving recreation of the comics and movie are impressive. But the lack of an in-game tutorial, overpowered enemies, and unclear planes of when you can hit an enemy or pick up an item makes it far more annoying than it needs to be.
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