Scott Pilgrim EX Review - I Think We Should See Other People

Ole Gamer Joe
5 hours ago
7 min read

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82PO3ifQFqs

With origins as a graphic novel, Scott Pilgrim gained enough popularity throughout the years to become a live-action movie released in 2010. This cult classic film, initially a flop, starred Michael Cera in the titular role, with a supporting cast including the likes of Jason Schwartzman and Kieran Culkin. The film was accompanied by an indie game that initially dropped on XBOX Live Arcade and PlayStation Network, inspired by River City Ransom. The game was so beloved that when it was delisted in 2014, fans cried enough to see its eventual return in 2021 in a complete edition. In recent times, a successful anime on Netflix went on to win a Critics' Choice Award. So yes, the series has had its ups and downs, but mostly remains a well-loved franchise.

Fast forward to 2026, and Scott Pilgrim and company are back in a brand-new beat 'em up that tries to stick to the same winning formula of Vs. The World, The Game. But did this newer indie release strike a chord with me? Or is it like that nasty ex that’s better left in the past? Let’s find out in our full review!

Scott Pilgrim EX, or EX, like ex-girlfriend (I guess that makes sense), is once again an arcade-style beat 'em up that blends elements of River City Ransom. It has features such as the ability to shop, explore an open city at your own leisure with set goals to follow, and even hosts light role-playing game elements. Players can swap between characters who each level up individually and have unique attacks and skills, with 7 characters in total. Most of the gameplay involves bashing foes in the face with your fists and feet, while also grabbing random items such as pipes, turtle shells, and even bombs to beat up on robots, demons, and vegans. The game supports up to 4 players and can be completed in around 5-6 hours. Drop-in play is also supported so that anyone can join at any time.

Our story follows Scott, Ramona, and the rest of the gang jamming out in Toronto as usual, when suddenly members of the band are abducted and flung into another dimension! It’s a tale full of tired jokes and clichés that never connect, which is deeply disappointing from a franchise that I have generally found to be quite entertaining. If I ever hear a vegan joke again, it will be too soon. It’s not funny, well-written, nor all that impactful. If anything, what’s here made me tune out of the story as much as I could, particularly the many insufferable cutscenes.

Much like a messy breakup, the problems for Scott Pilgrim EX don’t end there. While there’s a pretty deep and decent combat system the likes of which you would expect out of Tribute Games, much of my enjoyment was marred by a boring, linear progression through the main narrative. Things mostly play out like this: talk to an important NPC, fuel up on healing items to fight through waves of enemies, culminating in a generic boss encounter, rinse and repeat. This goes on and on for 6 hours but feels like a lifetime.

Now you might be saying to yourself, Joe, isn’t that how most brawlers play out? And I guess you aren’t wrong entirely, but there are some significant differences here. For one, the game does a poor job of explaining itself, forcing players to dig through an endless slew of tutorials in order to learn the basics of combat. For example, reviving a fallen comrade. This should be a pretty straightforward mechanic, but instead, you have to hold down the back trigger, press another button, and drop a small amount of health on the other player's corpse, which can easily miss if you aren’t positioned just so. I don’t know who came up with this idea, but give me pumping away at someone’s chest any day of the week.

There are lots of cool moves here, like reversals, parrying, super dodges, and summons, but many of these attacks are downright difficult to pull off and feel unnecessary to progress. The only times where I successfully parried were seemingly by accident, and while special attacks which consume GP do come in handy, half of the moves felt like they belonged in a different game, one where the enemies weren’t brainless dolts that don’t require a great deal of thought to deal with.

Putting aside the basic brawling, other aspects of Scott Pilgrim EX feel rushed and underdeveloped. Leveling in the game is particularly strange, with progression often occurring through random item drops or stats being boosted through equipment or items. If playing with another friend or two, equipment is shared, however, money isn’t, nor are experience points. The game also features badges which add specific perks, one of which allows you to gain additional GP while fighting enemies. That’s nice, and badges are shared as well, but food isn’t, even though they are both things that you purchase. Don’t get me started on the fact that we had to figure out how to even carry items with us, as nothing is ever explicitly explained very well throughout the campaign. All of this culminates in not wanting to experiment with different characters as you’re more rewarded for sticking with one. Both my co-op partner and I never really felt like we were getting stronger either, as the game’s challenge level felt consistently the same regardless of how far in we progressed. No real grinding was required at least on normal difficulty, though players do have a few difficulty options should the going get too tough. Not to add insult to injury, but platforming also feels miserable the few times it is required.

If all of that weren’t enough, let’s talk about how unexciting this version of Toronto is to explore. The main problem here is the sheer amount of backtracking required. Toronto in real life is a big, vibrant city to explore, but in Scott Pilgrim EX’s version, it's dull and lifeless. You get a smattering of shops which all feel bland and sell boring items. You revisit the same places time and time again, fighting the same small offering of enemies, with characters regurgitating the same tired vegan jokes. Progress is further hindered by a rudimentary map. Sure, it tells you where to go, but not always what to do when you get there. There’s a shocking amount of questionable design choices from a developer that clearly knows better.

If you were hoping for some gameplay variety, you’ll also be disappointed. While a few side quests exist, these mostly boil down to more basic bashing and fighting with additional waves of enemies. Completing these will net you a treasure chest that helps exactly one member of your party. There’s really not a ton to collect in the game either, and we eventually ran out of useful things to buy. One unlockable that is worth shooting for if you care enough is different color palettes for characters, but other than that, there’s just not much worth coming back for outside of a few different endings which are hinted at in the Steam achievements. Let’s just say once the credits rolled, I felt like I was done with this game forever. I guess you could say we had a breakup.

Let’s not be entirely negative, however, as Scott Pilgrim EX does have decent, colorful visuals, albeit far less detailed than its predecessor. Still, animations are nice, character art and enemy designs accurate to the comics and show, and Anamanaguchi once again delivers a crunchy retro soundtrack even if it didn’t get in my head like in Vs the World. Again, Toronto feels a bit empty and lacks energy and charisma. The screen can feel a bit cluttered when unleashing certain abilities, which isn’t entirely Scott Pilgrim’s fault, but I’m gonna blame him anyway because this game pissed me off. All told, it's not a bad-looking release, but I feel like it shouldn’t have been a visual and audio downgrade compared to a game that was made 16 years ago.

And that’s the thing, I am a bit annoyed writing this review because Scott Pilgrim EX SHOULD be a good game. It has a great developer, it's a fun license, and the last game was highly enjoyable. On paper, I should love everything about it. I love brawlers, I love playing with friends, River City Ransom is awesome, and hell, the indie scene has been killing it with brawlers lately, so why would that streak end now? But instead, with games like River City Girls existing, I was left wondering what this game has to offer that others don’t already. It’s not fun to play, it was glitchy in spots, including one that allowed me to control 2 characters at once, making this the first 3-player footage we ever captured with only 2 people, and it isn’t challenging or rewarding either. Even worse, it’s just not funny despite its best efforts. It pains me to say that Scott Pilgrim EX is kinda bad, it's more disappointing than a frozen vegan burger, and I fear this could be the end for this once promising franchise in the world of video games. Could some patches and fixes turn it around a bit? It’s possible, but I won’t be around to find out. I’m ghosting this game faster than a bad Tinder date.

BROKEN LAMP: BELOW AVERAGE