Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game
Developer(s)	Ubisoft Montreal (PSN and XBLA) Ubisoft Chengdu Ubisoft Pune Production Studio (Wallace and Online Multiplayer DLC)
Publisher(s)	Ubisoft
Distributor(s)	Universal Studios
Artist(s)	Paul Robertson Stéphane Boutin Jonathan Lavigne Justin Cyr Jonathan Kim Mariel Cartwright
Composer(s)	Anamanaguchi
Release date(s)	PSN NA August 10, 2010[1] EU August 11, 2010[2] JP October 20, 2010 XBLA NA August 25, 2010 EU August 25, 2010[3] JP October 20, 2010

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game is a side-scrolling beat 'em up game based on the Scott Pilgrim series of Oni Press graphic novels by Bryan Lee O'Malley, tying in with the release of the film of the same name. It is published by Ubisoft and developed by Ubisoft Montreal with Ubisoft Chengdu. The game was first announced at Comic Con 2009 in July 2009.^[4] It was released on PlayStation Network on August 10, 2010, and on Xbox Live Arcade on August 25, 2010.^[5]

Gameplay

Loosely following the story of the graphic novels, up to four players can play as Scott Pilgrim, Ramona Flowers, Kim Pine or Stephen Stills (along with the unlockable character NegaScott and the downloadable characters Knives Chau and Wallace Wells), who must battle through seven levels in order to defeat Ramona's seven evil exes. Characters have their own individual movesets, which can be expanded upon by gaining enough experience, and are also able to use weapons. Each player has Heart Points and Guts Points, the latter of which can revive players if they are knocked out, or be used to perform special moves such as summoning Knives Chau or the unlockable assist character Mr. Chau. Defeating enemies earns coins which can be spent in shops to purchase items that can replenish health or boost stats. Certain items can be taken 'to go' to be automatically used when the player runs out of health.^[6] Players can also enter Subspace areas which act as bonus areas where extra coins can be earned. During co-operative play, players can revive fallen comrades at the cost of some money, give each other health or money and simultaneously taunt for a combined attack. Various cheat codes unlock extra features, such as a Boss Rush and a Survival Horror mode.^[7]

Development

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game was co-developed by Ubisoft Montreal and Ubisoft Chengdu. The game's art direction and animation was headed by Paul Robertson, whom the company contacted by e-mail.^[8][9] Robertson had previous experience working on the 5th Cell series Drawn to Life and created Pirate Baby's Cabana Battle Street Fight 2006, an animated side-scroller game film.^[9] Robertson was responsible for designing and animating the game's sprites, effects, and other aspects. He felt he had "the most creative control" on any game he has worked on, but that he was still restricted by the source material, pleasing the publishers and producers, and programming limitations.^[9] Chiptune punk band Anamanaguchi performed the soundtrack for the game. Bryan Lee O'Malley, Scott Pilgrim series creator, and Edgar Wright, director of the film adaptation, have also been involved in development.^[10] O'Malley came to Ubisoft and discussed with the development team how the game's narrative and flow should be handled. He also drew several sketches on which the in-game cutscenes are based.^[9] According to O'Malley, he was initially approached by Telltale Games to make a Scott Pilgrim adventure game, but he declined as he could not see it as part of that genre.^[11] O'Malley designed the concept moves and specials of the playable characters and bosses. He began this in the northern hemisphere summer of 2009.^[12]

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game was first announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2009 on July 28, 2009.^[13] On June 8, 2010, Game Informer presented their first hands on, where it was revealed the game would be a timed exclusive for PlayStation Network, with an Xbox Live Arcade release at a later date. The first trailer for the game was released on June 11, 2010, which showed some of the stages in the game such as inside a club, on a street and noticeably inside a Toronto Transit Commission streetcar.^[14] The game makes various references to video games, such as River City Ransom, Mario, Kirby, Mega Man, and Guitar Hero. An early pitch video was revealed on August 11, 2010, which showcased even more retro graphics and direct parodies of classic games.^[15]

Scott Pilgrim-themed Avatar clothes and props were released on Xbox Live's Avatar Marketplace on August 12, 2010.^[16] The game's original soundtrack by Anamanaguchi was released on Amazon and iTunes by ABKCO Records in North America on August 24, 2010, and was released internationally on August 30, 2010.^[17][18] Downloadable content was released for the PSN version on November 9, 2010, to coincide with the film's DVD and Blu-ray Disc release, including Knives Chau as a playable character and two additional game modes: Battle Royal and Dodge Ball.^[19] The XBLA version was later released on December 28, 2010.^[20] A second DLC pack, which implements online multiplayer and adds Wallace Wells as a playable character, was scheduled for release on February 5, 2013,^[21] but the pack was delayed and eventually released on March 12, 2013 on PlayStation Network and on March 13, 2013 on Xbox Live Arcade.

On December 30, 2014, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game and its DLC were delisted from the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network, possibly due to the license expiring. This follows the earlier delistings of the video games Uno and Marvel vs. Capcom Origins.^[22]

Reception

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game with a Metacritic score of 75% on average of both versions of the game based on reviews from 74 critics.^[23] IGN gave the game an 8.0 score and an Editor's Choice award, praising its style and soundtrack but criticizing its lack of online multiplayer or drop-in play.^[24][25] They later named it the 25th best game on Xbox Live Arcade.^[26] Similarly, 1UP.com criticized the game's difficulty and need for grinding, giving the game a B+ rank.^[27] Joystiq gave the game 5 stars, saying that "they couldn't recommend it any higher, especially at 10 bucks."^[28] Game Informer gave the game a 9.0 score, calling it "the best modern brawler since Castle Crashers."^[29] GameTrailers gave the game a score of 8.3, calling it "an excellent pastiche that will reaffirm your love for classic beat-em-ups."^[30] GamesRadar gave the game 8/10, calling it "a breezy blast from the past."^[31] Kotaku called it "an entertaining little old-school beat-em up that becomes exponentially more entertaining the more friends you play with."^[32] GameSpot gave the game a score of 6.5, saying the game is a bit too chaotic with four players on screen.^[33]

Prior to release Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game received nominations for Best Downloadable Game of E3 2010 by both GameSpot and GameTrailers.^[34][35] It was nominated for Best Downloadable Game and won Best Adapted Video Game at the 2010 Spike Video Game Awards.

References