In 2010, to tie in with the movie Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Ubisoft released Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game, a throwback style beat ’em up inspired by classics like River City Ransom and other video games. The team that made the title would soon split from Ubisoft and form their own indie studio, Tribute Games, known for making great games such as TMNT Shredder’s Revenge and Marvel Cosmic Invasion. Now the studio is taking a second swing at Scott Pilgrim with Scott Pilgrim EX.
The first thing to note is that Scott Pilgrim EX is based on the recent Netflix Scott Pilgrim animated series, and so you may be slightly confused by the story and roster if you have not seen that series yet. I will admit that I myself was not a fan of said series, but I cannot dispute that Scott Pilgrim EX is a quality product. The roster is expanded to include characters like Roxy, Lucas Lee and even Gideon, while the gameplay has undergone a significant change.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game functioned as a stage by stage game, albeit with a world map that let you select which stage you wanted to play or replay. Scott Pilgrim EX on the other hand, goes all in on the River City Ransom / Kunio-kun inspiration and gives you a full open world to explore. Of course, some sections are unavailable right away and become available with story progression, but it is handled well, and the use of subspace as shortcuts is great.
As mentioned, the roster is expanded, and so is each character’s moveset. While Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game did manage to make sure its roster all felt unique, Scott Pilgrim EX makes each character much more fleshed out and diverse and a lot more varied in terms of moveset. It also helps that the different characters will have different interactions with NPCs and the small differences are fun to see. Personally if I had to pick a favourite character, it would be Roxy for how she played, with her having more of a reach and a very fun moveset, while Lucas Lee was a great grappler character.
The story in Scott Pilgrim EX sees Mecha Scott kidnap Sex Bob-Bombs band members and their instruments and Scott (or the other characters you choose) must rescue them. If Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game was inspired by classic beat em ups and video games, then Scott Pilgrim EX is a full on love letter to video games as a concept. Poking fun at the nature of tutorials and world layout, there is a self awareness in the game that never outstays its welcome.
There are many twists and turns in the story as Toronto is besieged by gangs of robots, vegans and demons, and it is at this point that I must point out that some of the jokes and references will fly over your head if you are not from Toronto, though since I do live in the Six, I did get a chuckle out of them. This includes everything from major landmarks that serve as stages to small local spots that make for window dressing. Scott Pilgrim EX is a game that celebrates its setting just as much as every other aspect of the game.
Speaking of the other aspects of the game, the visuals once more are based on the Scott Pilgrim comics and look amazing, while the music by Anamanaguchi is still great. I will admit that it is not as good as the music in Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game, but the soundtrack in Scott Pilgrim EX is still good in its own right.I do like though that care was taken to make each section feel different, but there is only so much I can explain there without giving spoilers.
Back to the story though, Scott Pilgrim EX is all over the place, but in a good way. Nothing is predictable and you are constantly thrown for a loop when a different section pops up. I have to admit I was a bit surprised by some of the directions taken but it all worked out for the most part.
Now I have mentioned the expanded roster and how each character feels amazing, but should mention the combat in general. It is well done for the most part, and I did enjoy my time in multiplayer which ran smoothly, although most of my time was spent in single player. Everything just felt satisfying and taking out large amounts of enemies did not get boring, even when playing again after beating the game the first time around.
There is of course a large cast to Scott Pilgrim but not everyone could be playable, so Tribute Games added in several character summons, which can affect the game in a variety of ways. This includes status effects, affecting the area or outright damaging the enemy. You will unlock more of these as the game progresses, and some are available as a result of side quests.
I do like that Scott Pilgrim EX included RPG mechanics like River City Ransom and lets you increase stats in a similar way, but if I have any criticism of the game, it is that the implementation feels a bit awkward. Leveling up stats never seems consistent and it comes off as a parody of the concept, which feels more frustrating than anything else. Still, this was my only real gripe as the overall Scott Pilgrim EX experience was pretty good.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game was a great time, but I would daresay that Scott Pilgrim EX has far surpassed it. Not just through changing to an open world design, but through refinements in story, gameplay and combat, it just feels like the better title. If you love brawlers, anime, music, video games or Canada, then Scott Pilgrim EX is a game that you need to seek out and play. You will not regret it,
Disclaimer: A review key was provided