Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game Complete Edition is a faithful port of a 10-year-old game that remains mostly unchanged, mainly because it didn't need to. Thankfully, online and drop-in play give it new life and soften the edge.
Ten years ago Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim comics were at the top of the nerdy game. Though Scott’s run on the page had come to a close, the Edgar Wright-directed movie was out and a Ubisoft-helmed game adapting the fight for love and against Ramona Flowers’ seven evil exes proved to be a bite-sized hit. After only a few years, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game was delisted because of licensing issues and unavailable to purchase.
Having a digital PlayStation 3 game as a relic feels strange. My love for the title prevented me from ever deleting it off my console, despite only playing the game a handful of times after its first year of release. Ubisoft brought in an amazing group of talent that cemented the Scott Pilgrim world in the best way imaginable but the game was incredibly difficult. Unless, of course, you were playing co-op. But hey, at the time I didn’t have any friends that would sit down for a good couch session of punching our way through zombies, robots, and sneering boyfriends.
To say that Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game Complete Edition‘s addition of online multiplayer is a game changer is putting it lightly. It was truly bizarre for a game in 2010 to not have online or drop-in co-op but those were strange, dark days and developers made equally strange, dark choices. Complete Edition also adds the Knives Chau and Wallace Wells character packs, ensuring that we finally have a version of this incredible gem of a game that will hopefully not disappear from the digital space in a matter of years.
But maybe you have no nostalgia for Scott Pilgrim. Maybe you need a bit of convincing.
Scott Pilgrim is a young guy living in Canada, playing in a band called Sex Bob-omb with his friends. He’s an aimless bachelor that is dating a high school girl named Knives until he locks eyes with a mysterious woman named Ramona Flowers. Scott and Ramona both have their past demons and frequently hurt those around them with their selfishness or clueless actions. In Scott’s attempts to woo Ramona, he discovers that he must defeat her pantheon of seven “evil” past relationships before he can truly be with her. Along the way there’s growing up, heartbreak, battling bands, and a bevy of cultural references.
Complete Edition pays reverence to O’Malley’s story but does not focus on it. It follows the path and pace of the movie because, technically, it’s a movie-based game. Wright’s vision for the film maintained the essence of the comic but did leave out the finer details to reduce running time. And because the script was written before the final chapters of the comic were released, there are a few core differences.
Still, the world of Scott Pilgrim is one that heavily borrows from comics and games with references to Nintendo, leveling up, and earning experience through getting a job. As a video game, Complete Edition is self-referential and feels like it’s paying homage to itself. There are cutscenes and set dressing showing the major points of the narrative but it’s expressive in a multitude of other ways without spending much time on the subtler elements of the story. Animator Paul Robertson who is responsible for several short films and game art in the 2010s digitizes O’Malley’s characters perfectly for a 16-bit canvas.
Scott, Ramona, Kim, Stephen, Wallace, and Knives all animate beautifully, with Robertson capturing expressions and stills right from the comic. Filling the digitized world of Canada are a number of locations that are evocative of scenes from both the comic and movie. We have the snowy streets of Scott’s home, a transit bus that speeds along the city, a number of concert stages, and even more tropey, gamified places like haunted forests and Asian shops. No location looks the same or wears out its welcome as the constant screen scroll unveils depth and Easter eggs aplenty, even when some art is repurposed throughout. This is a world where players are expected to constantly interact with things by punching them or moving around. A garage door will lead into a trippy subspace with flying pigs or a bus stop can be broken just for the hell of it.
Though the tone of Complete Edition is grounded in realism, a few boss fights and other sections of the game delve into the surreal or near-horror, which is kind of a trademark for Robertson’s short films that I obsessively watched. This is a game where the visuals breathe in such a distinct way, treating observant players to a feast that constantly surprises and gives an excuse to repeat levels that focus on beating up bad guys from left to right. Fans of the comic will delight in seeing a wink or glaringly obvious reference to the source material. However, video game lovers have plenty more to soak up. The world selection screen is an 8-bit rendition of Scott’s Canada plucked right out of Super Mario Bros. 3. There is something here for everyone.
To match the visuals is an equally exceptional soundtrack by chiptune band Anamanaguchi. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game‘s soundtrack is (or should be) universally celebrated not just as a gaming soundtrack but as an album. Anamanaguchi’s bread and butter are tunes that could fit into virtually any game from our Sega and Nintendo childhoods but on a grander scale. Using actual consoles as instruments, the band is one of the best at what they do. For Complete Edition, that magic remains pristine.
From the chill menu music to pumping boss themes, Anamanaguchi manages to create a cohesive mood throughout the game that eloquently matches both the current level or situation and the tech behind nostalgic games of the past. I liken it to David Wise’s work on the Donkey Kong Country games, who was able to craft music that was intrinsic to the mood of a wintry level or rambunctious barrel bonus stage. The soundtrack is a crucial piece of this game and one that new and old players will get to celebrate again.
Complete Edition revels in being a classic beat ’em up. Players progress through the stage by bashing enemies to a pulp and then moving towards the next screen transition. Eventually, there is a boss fight and players move on, rinse and repeat through seven worlds. The genre was a mainstay for licensed games throughout the 90s and any Marvel or DC or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fan will tell you that it was about the best way to show off those distinct characters expelling evil from the Earth.
With that in mind, Complete Edition pays tribute not only to a movie and a comic but a way of life for gamers of the time. It was difficult to do justice to licensed characters that were also in comics, action figures, and cartoons. The gaming craze was just another avenue to generate cash off eager kids and beat ’em ups were often incredibly simple in execution. Ubisoft took a smart route years ago by adding a few twists to a simple formula. Over the course of the game, players will level up their character and unlock different moves that increase their combat viability. Not only do these moves dole out more damage, they create new opportunities. Early on players get a dash attack and a back attack that can hurt an enemy behind them. Over the course of the game, the battlefield becomes less intimidating when the entire move set is available.
Another element that has remained identical here is the game’s difficulty. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game had a notorious difficulty spike for those who played solo. Enemies are ruthless from the beginning and take a lot of hits before they blink out of existence. Players will die and die frequently as worlds can be quite long before the boss fight. Even on the easiest difficulty, players will likely need to grind out experience to stand any chance against the many hazards the game throws around. It’s important to collect coins scattered by enemies and destructible objects to be used at stores for temporary use items and permanent upgrades to stats.
This very light RPG element to the game won’t let players really create a build, just a character that grows stronger over time and can eventually tear through previously difficult challenges. Before fighting final boss Gideon Graves, I made sure to empty out as many stores as I could and play through a couple worlds again just to feel more confident.
Thankfully, online play will make Complete Edition a more enjoyable experience for most players who just want to dive into the game and beat the hell out of some boyfriends. With just one extra player there is another soul to revive you when downed and another person to distract the flood of enemies that often come. Plus, it’s just more entertaining to experience the game with others, even if you don’t know them. The fangs of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game are a lot less sharp now that the most crucial element missing from the original is inserted into the action. Despite the enjoyment I had with the gameplay, players may encounter some annoyances when punches and item collection don’t completely connect based on what sliver of the playable space they are on. And if this isn’t the genre for you, only nostalgia or an admiration of the source material is going to keep you from growing tired of punching and kicking your way through the game.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game Complete Edition is exactly the game you remember from ten years ago. It’s a complete nostalgic joy that honestly didn’t really need to be touched up or fine-tuned. Ubisoft chose to preserve the experience where it mattered rather than alter it in any significant way. Instead, the crucial missing component of online play was worked into the game, drastically increasing its appeal for just about any player. Though not without the same faults that were in its DNA from the beginning, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game Complete Edition will have you grinning from ear to ear with its irresistible charm that gushes from every pixelated pore. Finally, Scott’s journey is complete.
