Scott Pilgrim VS. the World Review

Scott Pilgrim VS the World hit PSN this week, bringing gamers back to the past with its 8-bit and 16-bit style. Is it worth your time to take out the 7 evil exes and win Ramona’s heart forever? Keep reading and we’ll let you know.

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Scott Pilgrim is a pure beat ’em up game which has adopted at the style of the NES hit, “River City Ransom”. You can choose from 4 characters initially and there are two hidden characters to unlock. It  features a EXP-based leveling system which upgrades your health, strength, and more. Plus, with each increased level, you can use a new move. At certain points in levels, you can purchase food and other items which increase various stats, but you never know what it increases until after you purchase it – though everything holds some sort of upgrade, and the more it costs the better the upgrade will be.

The levels play in a side-scrolling fashion where you progress through slowly while battling hordes of enemies including bouncers, paparazzi, and other random characters. The enemy designs are rather limited but the game has a natural charm to it so the lack of variety doesn’t really take away from the experience.  You get 3 lives and if you die you can take some life from a nearby enemy giving you 50 hearts which is about half of the standard life bar.

Levels are littered with items such as brooms, boxes, bottles and more – all of which can be used to beat on enemies or you can throw them as well. Most enemies aside from the bigger ones can be picked up and used in the same fashion and it’s very satisfying to beat down one enemy with another enemy. Each level is split into 2 parts, but if you lose all your lives you’ll have to start over from the beginning of the level. If you’ve cleared a level, you can replay from the midway point just for fun.  if you make it to the end of the level then you’ll have to beat Ramona’s evil ex-boyfriend, and each one is relatively difficult so be prepared!

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Scott Pilgrim is a brutally difficult game and even on the easiest difficulty, Average Joe, you’ll find yourself having grind experience points and cash by replaying the levels over and over. This isn’t such a bad thing because it’s extremely fun, but it brings a major downfall into the light. While the game supports local co-op with up to 4 players, it does not support online co-operative mode. With controllers running at an average $50 a piece, many households don’t have more than one. The game can be completed as a single player experience, but you can expect it to take much more hard work.

Presentation is the shining point in this game. With its retro style visuals and fancy pants 8-bit soundtrack, Scott Pilgrim is a true winner. The game looks simply fantastic and there’s never slowdown even when pummeling twenty enemies simultaneously with a super attack. Levels have an immense amount of detail to them, and you’ll love just watching everything while trying to focus on your enemies.  The accompanying soundtrack is absolutely fantastic and features complex 8-bit music. Every piece of music in the game sounds great, and the tunes are quite memorable.

Besides winning the heart of Ramona Flowers, Scott Pilgrim VS. the World has really won my heart too. Fantastic retro graphics and sound, six playable characters, and local co-op are more than enough to give you your value in this game. The game will only set you back $9.99 on PSN or 800 :MSPoints: – and for the 10+ hours of enjoyment you’ll receive, that’s a very small price to pay.  Head onto PSN immediately, or grab the XBLA version when it releases later this month – you won’t be disappointed!