Scott Pilgrim EX

From the moment I first saw Edgar Wright’s brilliant film adaptation of the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels, I knew that it would work well as a video game. And I was right. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game was a fun throwback brawler from 2010 with gorgeous pixel graphics and a killer chiptunes soundtrack. Best of all, it set up the possibility of continuing Scott’s adventures through a series of beat ‘em up video games. Unfortunately, UbiSoft chose to focus their attention on endless Assassin’s Creed games, ultimately leading to the Scott Pilgrim game being delisted. But some ideas are just too good to ignore forever, and sixteen years after the first game, the developers are back with Scott Pilgrim EX, a brand-new sequel with an original story and an even better soundtrack. It’s time to get the band back together, because we’re here to make you think about death and get sad and stuff. This is my review of Scott Pilgrim EX.

Not so long ago in the mysterious land of Toronto, Canada, the Sex Bob-ombs were practicing for their big show. But just when the band was starting to get into their groove, the evil Metal Scott flies in and steals all of the musicians and their instruments. Rattled from the attack, Scott enlists Romona and her (formerly evil) exes to rescue the band members and save the city from vegans, robots and demons. This sets up a fun and engaging beat ‘em up that sees our heroes battle their way through space and time, jumping through rifts, and getting to the heart of the sabotage plot.

Much like the 2010 game from UbiSoft, Scott Pilgrim EX is a classic beat ‘em up with more than a passing resemblance to River City Ransom and the rest of the Kunio-ken series. It’s the kind of brawler where the city is more than just a background, it’s a whole interconnected world full of colorful characters to interact with, secrets to uncover and missions to complete. From the sunny beaches to the spooky graveyards and everything in between, our heroes will need to run back and forth, exploring every inch of the city.

One of the reasons this works so well is because the game is able to pull from the rich lore found in the graphic novels. There’s a lot more story here than your typical brawler, especially compared to games like Final Fight and Streets of Rage. So much of the game revolves around Scott and his friends helping the locals with their problems, sending us all around Toronto in search for missing items and magical notes that will open up rifts to other worlds. This allow the game to throw our heroes into all kinds of new and unique situations, including set pieces that at times are completely disconnected from the city. For example, there’s a fun battle on a coal-powered train, as well as a whole section where we get to play through Scott’s memories of high school.

There’s a real sense of unpredictability in Scott Pilgrim EX, which is refreshing after all of the previous adaptations being centered around Scott battling a bunch of evil exes. Between the rifts and both the supernatural and technological elements, I was never really sure where the game would take us next. There’s always a new character or story beat or boss fight around every corner, and it was fun to interact with Scott’s friends in a whole new way.

Tribute knows how to make this style of old school brawler. This was the company formed by the people who worked on the 2010 Scott Pilgrim game, as well as other recent favorites like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge and Marvel Cosmic Invasion. This is a developer who is especially gifted at taking a genre that is known for its simplicity and expanding on it to create something deeper and more involving. Scott Pilgrim EX isn’t just a simple button masher; it has moves to learn, special techniques to master and a fun leveling up system that incentivizes eating at restaurants and buying clothing.

If this were a lesser game, it would have simply coasted on its classic video game references, hoping that would be enough to win over gamers of a certain age. That’s the approach that was taken with The Angry Video Game Nerd 8-Bit, a painfully disappointing throwback that hoped the recognizable references would be enough to make people overlook the shallowness of the gameplay and level designs. That’s not the case in Scot Pilgrim EX. Sure, there are some pretty obvious references you can point to, like the castle and flagpole from Super Mario Bros., the suit of armor from Ghouls ‘N Ghosts and that underground drilling transport module from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. But where this approach failed for the Angry Video Game Nerd, it works here. That’s because the developers actually prioritized the non-stop action and fun gameplay over a bunch of pop culture jokes.

This is the kind of parody game you can still enjoy, even if you don’t understand what it’s parodying. Never played River City Ransom and have no clue who Kunio-kun is? That’s okay, because it’s not important. The game is funny and engaging on its own. You won’t feel left out if you don’t catch a Zelda or Mega Man reference. What you’re going to get is another great Scott Pilgrim adventure that is full of zany characters and funny one-liners. I would easily take another ten of these games, just so that I can hang out with this group of friends (and exes).

Where the game falls down a bit is in the mission objectives. While Scott Pilgrim EX has a lot of amazing moments, too many of the missions start to rely too much on the set pieces. You’ll talk to a local, go to where they instructed and then fight a boss. This will be followed by another conversation, another run across town and then another boss fight. This happens over and over, especially in the back half of the game. I wish there were more steps between getting the mission and fighting the boss. Maybe more fetching or puzzle solving. So often you’ll just be told to go to the warehouse or the beach or the movie studio backlot and fight a boss.

The good news is that the boss battles are both challenging and fun. Each one will test you in completely different ways. For example, Big Band Matty will use Scott’s love of music against him in an epic black and white battle, while another will have you going up against an insane train conductor. Thankfully, you have a lot of support to help you out. At the push of a button, we’re able to summon one of Scott’s friends, giving us a temporary effect, like invincibility, increased strength or faster attacks. The game will challenge you, but it’s always fair.

Visually, Scott Pilgrim EX looks and sounds fantastic. It’s a throwback game that evokes the spirit of those old school brawlers, while still looking modern enough to really shine on your fancy TV and computer monitor. This is one of those games where you’ll want to scan every background for details and video game references. And the soundtrack absolutely rocks. It is once again provided by chiptune heroes Anamanaguchi, who turns in one of the catchiest soundtracks of not just this year, but any year. This really is the follow-up longtime fans have been waiting for.

Of course, this is still a throwback beat ‘em up. No matter how funny the story is or how much depth they give the gameplay, there’s no denying that the action is sometimes mindless and repetitive. If you’re not a fan of brawlers, this one probably won’t win you over. However, if you’ve ever even remotely enjoyed a beat ‘em up game, then you owe it to yourself to help Scott and Romona save the band. Even if you’ve never read the graphic novels, played the original game or watched the movie, there’s still a lot to like in this loving tribute to the good old days of brawlers. I hope we don’t have to wait another sixteen years to see what Scott’s up to next.