Scott Pilgrim [video game]

[ThunderPeel2001]

Wow. If people are only judging this from what's written in this thread, then I'm amazed it's garnered such a strong reaction. I'm also completely ignorant to Scott Pilgrim... I think I might pick the comic up though, just to see why it's so popular.

I think SIN's description is enough to convince me that there's something of merit to be found in its pages. (And, for me at least, From Hell taught me you can't judge a comic by your first impressions of its artwork.) :

SIN: "I dunno, the synopsis might sound awful, but it really is quite good. It's funny, well-written, and, I dunno, honest. It references video games, but not in a forced or obscure manner. It's definitely not about stupid Family-Guy-esque obscure references. And it isn't about the negative stereotype of nerds and gamers, it's about celebrating it. It's basically a coming-of-age story wrapped around a cultural context we've lived through and can relate to. You may be passed that stage of your life, I know I am, but that's beside the point."

I'm not really interested in the movie, though.

[Moelman]

I am kind of surprised there is so little interest in here, I thought Thumbs would love it. For me it is the funniest thing I have read in a long time. For anyone who is on the fence, I really would just recommend checking out the first volume, it's only like $10. For me right after I read that, I went out and bought all the other volumes.

Really hope the game is only like a few months exclusive on PS3, though I really should get a PS3 sometime regardless of this game.

[Chris]

Wow. If people are only judging this from what's written in this thread, then I'm amazed it's garnered such a strong reaction. I'm also completely ignorant to Scott Pilgrim... I think I might pick the comic up though, just to see why it's so popular.

Well, I can't read everything, so I need some way to determine what I should expend effort on, and everything said about it makes it sound extremely unappealing to me. It's true that I can't make a final judgment on something I haven't read, but based on my own experience reading stuff in the past, I can make a reasonable guess as to whether it's something I will like.

Anyway the thread was created about the game, which I think looks pretty cool.

[Defenestrated]

Seriously, how awesome and weird is Paul Robertson's pixel work, right?

Edit: also, I dunno if people noticed, but

is doing the original soundtrack for the game, and I think it's an excellent choice. They've been doing the chiptune thing for a while, but with your standard rock 3 piece layered over that, which pretty much makes them perfect for this game. Edited June 20, 2010 by Defenestrated

[Nachimir]

Maybe the people who don't like the sound of Scott Pilgrim are right about their own tastes and instincts, and won't enjoy it, so maybe we don't have to try convincing them they might

[Chris]

Seriously, how awesome and weird is Paul Robertson's pixel work, right?

Edit: also, I dunno if people noticed, but

is doing the original soundtrack for the game, and I think it's an excellent choice. They've been doing the chiptune thing for a while, but with your standard rock 3 piece layered over that, which pretty much makes them perfect for this game.

Yeah, Paul Robertson is great. I recognized his work immediately when I first loaded up the trailer.

And while Anamanaguchi isn't the kind of thing I listen to on my own time, they're definitely a great choice for this game.

Whoever is handling this game seems to be handling it right.

[Forbin]

Anamanaguchi is part of the PAX soundtrack right?

[Defenestrated]

I'm pretty sure they have performed at PAX multiple times, and are in some promo bumpers for things.

[Defenestrated]

pseudo-necroposting maybe, but Scott Pilgrim dude has posted a track from the upcoming soundtrack to the upcoming game based on the movie based on his comic book.

http://radiomaru.com/2010/07/13/brand-new-anamanaguchi-track/

I am digging it.

[Xeneth]

I'm a big Anamanaguchi fan, (The live set they were a part of here in SF earlier this year was great) so naturally this game just keeps sounding sweeter and sweeter... hope they port it to XBLA soon after release, as I still lack a darn PS3.

There's something about the concept of an otherwise pretty normal rock band with an NES on "vocals" that tugs inexorably on my gamer center of mass I suppose.

[Tanukitsune]

I've gotten the PSN version and I'l already beaten it...

It's.... AMAZING! Imagine playing River City Ransom with Amanaguchi doing the music and Paul Robertson doing the graphics!

The game gets more insane as you progress and more too! You fight zombies, robots, ninjas... It might seem hard but you can raise your stats like in RCR and that makes the game MUCH easier! Not to mention that there is a place where you can buy extra lives! :3

[CaptainFish]

It does look like a great homage to the River City Ransom style game, which hasn't really been iterated on at all.

You fight zombies, robots, ninjas...

That doesn't make me want to play this game more. In fact I think it makes me want it less.

[Tanukitsune]

It does look like a great homage to the River City Ransom style game, which hasn't really been iterated on at all.

That doesn't make me want to play this game more. In fact I think it makes me want it less.

Umm... So you want a retro brawler without ninjas, zombies or robots? You have played a brawler before, right?

Besides, there are ninjas and robots in the comic if memory serves me well?

[Psych]

I got the demo, and in spite of my opinion of the comic I really wanted to like it, I really did. But it was just so slow and boring. Every enemy takes a zillion hits to kill, and that's when they're not blocking everything or on the ground where you can't touch them. I was bored before I had even finished the first level.

[Tanukitsune]

I got the demo, and in spite of my opinion of the comic I really wanted to like it, I really did. But it was just so slow and boring. Every enemy takes a zillion hits to kill, and that's when they're not blocking everything or on the ground where you can't touch them. I was bored before I had even finished the first level.

Were you playing on the hardest difficulty or what? That doesn't sound like the game I played... I could break their blocking, hit them while they were down and it didn't take long at all to beat any enemy! Did you bother to look up the move list?

[Psych]

I was playing on the easiest difficulty. I didn't look up a moves list, but it's 2010 I'm not going to read a manual just to play a game.

[Tanukitsune]

You were playing on easy mode?

....Have you ever played a brawler before? The move list is not street fighter complex, you can only do one or two moves at level one and the game tells you about the new moves as you gain levels...

You clearly have never played a brawler if this game bored you so easily... I've played every brawler on PSN AND XBLA and this one is better than most of the classics! Oh, and none of them had tutorials either...

I guess this game is for retro fans only? Because the people who don't seem to like it don't seem to have played retro brawlers before?

[syntheticgerbil]

I was playing on the easiest difficulty. I didn't look up a moves list, but it's 2010 I'm not going to read a manual just to play a game.

Crazy, I didn't know the world outgrew the concept of user manuals.

Anyway, Tankitsune, I have a friend really into to beat 'em ups who is loving this game, he's not into Scott Pilgrim though. He gives it a thumbs up. He says...

...he beat "it with 5 characters too. Nobody knows how to unlock the 6th one."

"Game's a really solid beat'm up. There's a small level system that unlocks your moves, the thing is the unlocking system feels like you're making an incomplete character complete rather than adding new moves to a character."

"Small glitches here and there makes the game feels like it's been rushed to coincide with the movie release. Kind of like enemies not appearing when they should, and since you progress by beating up these enemies when they show up it's pretty inconvenient to have them unknowingly camp off-screen or just not appear at all. The latter part happens rarely though."

"Games got a lot of neat references in there, some subtle, some not really subtle. Game makes so many River City Ransom references it could be considered: 'We REALLY Want to be River City Ransom!: the movie based on the comic book: The Game.'"

"Kind of neat throwback to the old days is the use of cheat codes at the title screen to change aspects of the game, like a code used for Mortal Kombat makes "blood" and another used for Streets of Rage is used to be able to select the same character."

"A lot of people on /v/ say the controls are clunky, since you need to double-tap on the D-Pad or smash the control stick to run, sometimes you sidestep and run when you don't mean to, and don't run when you want to, depending on what you use. It's not that bad but I can see where they're coming from."

Really I myself, would rather just watch all of the sprites move or gameplay videos of this, since the whole Scott Pilgrim aspect of the game puts me off, but the animation is great.

Edited August 13, 2010 by syntheticgerbil

[Tanukitsune]

I don't really use manuals myself, but you really have to be lazy when you won't even bother checking the help/controls section in the menu...

Oddly enough, Paul Robertson posted a sprite dump of the game on his Livejournal this morning!

[syntheticgerbil]

Jeez, those are some awesome animations. Thanks for the link!

[Hermie]

The videos I've seen so far, like the quick look, has me really excited. Can't wait for the XBLA release. (maybe they time the release with the Scandinavian movie release date of FRIGGIN OCTOBER?!)

Oddly enough, Paul Robertson posted a sprite dump of the game on his Livejournal this morning!

Holy avatar get! Thanks for that. ^^

[Psych]

You were playing on easy mode?

....Have you ever played a brawler before? The move list is not street fighter complex, you can only do one or two moves at level one and the game tells you about the new moves as you gain levels...

You clearly have never played a brawler if this game bored you so easily... I've played every brawler on PSN AND XBLA and this one is better than most of the classics! Oh, and none of them had tutorials either...

I guess this game is for retro fans only? Because the people who don't seem to like it don't seem to have played retro brawlers before?

Please do not assume that just because I disagree with you that I am an illiterate moron. I have played brawlers before*, and in all my experience I cannot think of one that was as plodding as this demo of Scott Pilgrim.

Perhaps Scott Pilgrim is better than the majority of PSN and XBLA games, but if that is the case then it is for only one of two reasons. Either; 1. The complete game is better than its demo would indicate. or 2. The majority of PSN and XBLA set a very low bar for quality.

*and since I know you'll ask here's the short list; Final Fight, Double Dragon (nintendo version), Castle Crashers, TMNT: Turtles in Time, Sunset Riders, Alien Vs. Predator, Ninja Warriors Again, Bad Dudes, Bayonetta, God of War, Devil May Cry,

[Tanukitsune]

Please do not assume that just because I disagree with you that I am an illiterate moron. I have played brawlers before*, and in all my experience I cannot think of one that was as plodding as this demo of Scott Pilgrim.

Perhaps Scott Pilgrim is better than the majority of PSN and XBLA games, but if that is the case then it is for only one of two reasons. Either; 1. The complete game is better than its demo would indicate. or 2. The majority of PSN and XBLA set a very low bar for quality.

*and since I know you'll ask here's the short list; Final Fight, Double Dragon (nintendo version), Castle Crashers, TMNT: Turtles in Time, Sunset Riders, Alien Vs. Predator, Ninja Warriors Again, Bad Dudes, Bayonetta, God of War, Devil May Cry,

Bayonetta, God of War and Devil May Cry are "Hack n' Slash" games...

Cases of bad demos are rare, so far I've only heard of Dead Space having a demo that's made people not want the game. But if you know your brawlers then either:

-You never bothered to "figure the game out" and gave up too quickly.

-You forgot everything you learned from the other brawlers.

I can't play the demo since I have the full game, but I saw a gameplay of the demo on YouTube and.... It had none of the complaints you mentioned...

Enemies died quickly enough and they didn't stay down long (Did you know you CAN hit them while the are down? That you could pick them up?). They didn't block that much either.

Frankly, now I'm baffled. You seem to know a bit about brawlers but you got bored of this? You do know brawlers are about nothing but hitting thugs until you get to hit the boss, right? The worst part is that this game actually has shorter stages that many of the games you've played, yet you had patience for them? (OK, the final stage is very long, but they always are anyway)

[Denial]

I found the early going a little slow - but I wasn't hugely disappointed by that. It's a nice difficulty curve: unlocking the dash attack changes your gameplay style, and upgrading your strength (buying objects in shops boosts your stats, RPG-style) helps to put enemies down a lot quicker. My level 16 character can sail through the earlier levels on replay.

I think the game is probably a lot more enjoyable if you already saw and enjoyed the graphic novels or the film - there are a lot of references and in-jokes shared between the three - but the core mechanic's pretty robust. Jonathan (pixeltao) Lavigne, the designer, also did TMNT for the GBA a few years back, so has some retro beat-em-up form.

re: the film - if you like any two or three of Spaced, Edgar Wright films, Michael Cera, indie rock, alt ladies/chaps and video games, it's worth seeing, I think. It's certainly not the Mazes and Monsters of video games, which you might get from miffy's pre-review - in fact, the characters don't spend much time playing video games, but rather played a lot of Nintendo when they were younger and filter the world through that set of cultural references. Again, you might get more out of it if you read/liked the comic book, but pretty much by definition it has to appeal to more than the readers of the comic book.

Edited August 16, 2010 by Denial

[BigJKO]

re: the film - if you like any two or three of Spaced, Edgar Wright films, Michael Cera, indie rock, alt ladies/chaps and video games, it's worth seeing, I think. It's certainly not the Mazes and Monsters of video games, which you might get from miffy's pre-review - in fact, the characters don't spend much time playing video games, but rather played a lot of Nintendo when they were younger and filter the world through that set of cultural references. Again, you might get more out of it if you read/liked the comic book, but pretty much by definition it has to appeal to more than the readers of the comic book.

I can confirm that it is understandable, to a certain degree, without having read the comics. And my girlfriend didn't get the video game references, but understood that they were Video game bleeps/bloops/references. That's a start, right?

And I enjoyed the film immensely!