Scott Pilgrim is back!
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game — Complete Edition Review (PS4)
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game — Complete Edition has been released to the masses after being gone from digital stores since 2014. Based on the graphic novel titled Scott Pilgrim, the game was released in the Summer of 2010 as a tie-in release with the movie, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010). All versions of Scott Pilgrim follow the similar plot line of defeating the seven evil exes of Ramona Flowers, so Scott and her can date. During the game’s release, it was enjoyed by fans of retro style beat’em ups and Scott Pilgrim fans. The original game sadly got delisted which prevented anyone new from playing the game. Many people deemed this the perfect example as to why digital gaming shouldn’t become the norm. Great games like Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game disappearing from digital storefronts isn’t good in the long run for gaming. Eventually, there will be games people can’t play anymore because they were released digital only and aren’t on the platforms anymore. Thankfully, the game saw a re-release in the form of a Complete Edition for PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, and Stadia.
So why does everyone love Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game? It’s because of its amazing beat’em up gameplay with fantastic sprite work and bobbin’ soundtrack. If you’ve played other beat’em up games, you’ll be familiar with Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game’s gameplay. You’ll be punching, kicking, blocking, jumping; all of the normal beat’em up action with the Scott Pilgrim flair.
It’s relatively fun mowing down through groups of enemies the later you get into the game but you will be getting your butt kicked within your first couple of hours. Yes, even on the easiest difficulty the game is kind of tough. The reason for the game being difficult in the beginning is because you need to level to up to unlock more moves and combos. Also, you need to pay off your video store debt to purchase items like extra lives and stat bonuses. The only negative aspect of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game — Complete Edition is its grinding nature in the beginning.
You’ll be playing through the first couple of levels over and over again until you get $504.25 to pay off your debt and purchase those items. This could take an hour or two, depending on how many times you revisit the subspace highway to hit these money pigs. After you pay off the debt though, you’ll be plowing through enemies and the game becomes a lot of fun. Not to say grinding before was boring, I just didn’t want my first couple hours of gameplay be dedicated to grinding. At the end of each level, you’ll be faced with an evil ex as a boss fight. Boss fight patterns and phases are sort of standard-fare for beat’em up bosses. Outside of story mode, there are a couple of extra modes to mess around with. Boss Rush is like how it sounds; face off every boss in the game with only one life. Survival Horror is a horde mode; defeat as many zombies as possible before you die. Battle Royal is what I’m going to assume is a Smash Bros. like mode? I couldn’t play this mode because I only play Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game by myself. DodgeBall is a dodgeball game mode using the in-game mechanics to play. These extra modes are fine, I’m pretty sure the Battle Royal and DodgeBall modes are meant for multiplayer to get the full enjoyment but the Boss Rush and Survival Horror modes are fine as single player content. It doesn’t detract from the story mode whatsoever, just extra modes to play around with after the main quest is done.
Like I said earlier, the sprite work for this game is just way too good. For a game released in 2010, now re-released in 2021, the sprite work is still terrific. From the characters to the environments, the game looks straight out of the retro era it’s trying to emulate. Don’t even get me started with the music as well oh MY GOD! I don’t normally praise music in my video game reviews because it’s not something I truly pay attention to but this soundtrack is BUMPIN’! I would be listening to podcasts while playing this game but would find myself not putting on another one because the music was so good. Seriously, if you love chip tune music, the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game soundtrack is phenomenal.
Pretty much everything this game has to offer, from the fun as hell gameplay to the superb presentation, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game — Complete Edition is a must have purchase for $14.99. Even though the first couple of hours of gameplay is dedicated to grinding and paying off the $500 debt, beating up enemies and pulling off combos was still fun nevertheless. Anyone who enjoys beat’em games should definitely give this game a shot, even if you’re not familiar with the Scott Pilgrim series. By the way, I recommend anyone who doesn’t know anything about Scott Pilgrim to watch Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010) or just read the original graphic novel, Scott Pilgrim. The Scott Pilgrim series has a ton of video game references sprinkled throughout the book and the movie, so it should be a fun time to all my fellow gamers out there.
Travis “tvsonic” Vuong
Business e-mail: travisvuong56@gmail.com
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