JOSE ROMERO
campus editor

Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game”is back, ten year after its initial release, seven after being delisted from digital storefronts, and it has aged surprisingly well.

The game had quite a bit to live up to. High quality beat ‘em ups have been prominent in the past few years. Last year alone gave players “Streets of Rage 4” and “River City Girls,” two games that got a lot of praise. It wasn’t the magnum opus of beat ‘em ups, but it was a short and sweet experience that oozed personality.

Scott Pilgrim, the main protagonist, is on a mission to defeat his girlfriend’s seven evil exes. Each of the seven stages has a distinct theme to differentiate them from one another, and players can bring along up to three friends to join them in local or online co-op. At the time of writing, the online portion of this game is busted.

The game is presented in a retro 16 bit style, and it’s gorgeous.

The attention to detail in the environments and character animation is great. A vibrant palette stimulates your corneas by throwing primary colors at you every step of the way. The almost rubber hosesque animation brings the six, functionally similar, main playable characters to life with distinctive features and personalities. Even enemy characters all had a certain pep in their step.

The combat is easy to get a hang of but hard to master. At the start, there are only about four moves that can be used but, as you level, more skills are unlocked. About an hour in, players can start chaining together swanky combos that are gratifying to pull off. There’s also an assortment of items and weapons that can be grabbed from the environment to bonk unrelenting enemies.

The soundtrack is filled with some amazing chiptune done by the band Anamanaguchi. Players will get into the groove as they batter enemies down with a trash can.

But not everything is dandy. The balancing could use some tweaks. There were too many instances in which I was trapped in a corner because objects were being tossed everywhere and enemies just kept coming. It was frustrating to deal with because there wasn’t anything that could be done to combat it.

Some abilities are locked away that shouldn’t be, like a ground kick and an evasive roll. The boss battles were pretty hit-or-miss as well. The majority were fun to go through, but near the end of the game, they got tedious. This goes on for most of the final hour of the game. It’s almost as if the developers ran out of time.

For a licensed game, it’s surprising that it’s as good as it is. The flaws can be -in your
face- at times, but they don’t hinder the experience too much. “You know what sucks?” Not much. Balancing could’ve been better but overall, it’s a fun time with some satisfying combat to boot.