Scott Pilgrim (XBLA)

Here is a nice blast from the past, pixel graphics combined with side-scrolling fighting and multiplayer capabilities. I originally wanted to try this game out because of the retro feel, not because I am a Scott Pilgrim (what is Scott Pilgrim?) fan or avid follower.

The fact that this game looks like something that was designed back in the 90's, for the SNES or MegaDrive made me wonder whether it would really play like a classic 90's game or if it was just another poser. I was delighted when I began playing it because not only did it play like a 90's game, it was quite difficult like a 90's game and like a 90's game, there were no flashy effects or 3D gimmicks preventing the game from shining like a classic 90's game. It reminds me of streets of rage, only more cute and more colourful.

Scott Pilgrim is a game that is based around the graphic novel series by Bryan Lee O'Malley and published by Portland-based independent comic book publisher Oni Press. The series revolves around a 23 year old slacker who plays the bass guitar in a band, who becomes smitten with a delivery girl named Ramona Flowers. The problem is, Ramona has a lot of baggage in the form of 7 evil ex-boyfriends, which means that Scott cannot possibly date her until they are out of the picture once and for all. To be honest, it sounds a little cheesy to me.

It's nice to see some old style, pixel graphics like this!


If you can put your mind back to the 90's and make a comparison, then the graphics on this game are brilliant. Some graphics are clearly re-sampled from a good quality version, while others are just really low resolution or designed in a simpler fashion. This is great because it mimics the way most games were developed on now obsolete hardware, mixing low and high resolution images to utilise hardware capabilities without having to sacrifice any key content.

I think the developers were inspired by Mario Bros. 3


This game really seems to be based around Nintendo games because not only does the world map scream Nintendo, but the character select screen and also the chunky but stumpy characters themselves seem to be inspired (in my opinion) by various Nintendo games. The strange thing is that the game actually plays more like a Sega game, I'm talking about the general movements and Artificial Intelligence of the enemies. It is a tough game unless you have another player helping you out, so it helps to play co-op mode with upto 3 other people.

Seems they were inspired by Mario Bros. 2 as well?


The music on this game is reminiscent of the chip-tune demo scene era, a time when various coding groups created visual sequences which also had music. Most of these "intro" demo releases were used on pirated games, this was a problem on early consoles but it is not as common these days because people have moved onto different things, however the chip-tune genre is still alive and kicking and you'll most likely have heard a chip-tune or two in your life.

It won't blow your mind or put a tear in your eye, but the music is very appropriate for the style that this game is emulating. The only thing that is letting this concept down is the fact that this game seems like it would appeal more to younger gamers, but most gamers nowadays have been brought up on 3D games, which means there is no retrospective to be gained from it.

This is as strange, as it is cute! Never a dull moment!


Overall this game is quite fun to play, though it has some annoying moments when you first start playing it. You need to level up the characters before you can fully appreciate it because when you first start, you have no real moves apart from punch and kick, plus you are really weak so it will take some time to dispose of the enemies. It sometimes feels like the level is never going to end, but once you have powered up your character it is much more fun to play.

There is nothing revolutionary about this game, but then why would we want to re-invent the wheel when this genre is still selling (Streets of Rage on XBLA) in a polished form today? If you can pull it off, then it makes sense to follow this well established trend. I'm all for games like this and when they play exactly as you expect them to, it's all the better. There is much more to this game than what I have written, so watch this YouTube video to see the gameplay!



To buy this game, please click on the XBLA image below and purchase it online right now!