PAX veterans Anamanaguchi provide an absolutely excellent soundtrack that really brings the package together. With the excellent sprite art, detailed and varied stages, in-jokes and a litany of game references both obvious and obscure (the Clash at Demonhead references don’t stop with band names), you’re getting one hell of an experience.
Up to four players can join in the fun (local only), and as with all brawlers the game is infinitely more fun with friends around. Old favorite techniques like picking up your buddy and using them as a weapon are present in spades. Nothing is quite as fun as clearing a level of enemies only to spear your co-op partner(s) in the back with a thrown katana. Luckily, you’re able to revive fallen buddies, so the consequences of your backstabbing actions may not be so permanent. If your friends aren’t nice enough to revive you after knocking out your last life, rest assured the time-honored ability of stealing their extra lives is present, and as fun/annoying as ever.
The lack of online co-op is a shame. Though I usually enjoy playing brawlers in a couch co-op setting, it’d be nice to be able to pull in extra players from your friends list to help round out the roster. It also suffers the same problems that have plagued games in this genre since the beginning: no matter how much fun the core game is, you’re never doing much else but walking to the right and mashing attacks on an army of clones. Though the enemies are themed to the level they’re in, they tread dangerously close to outstaying their welcome.
Fans of co-op brawlers have enjoyed some great titles in the past few years, with Castle Crashers and the excellent Final Fight: Double Impact being released, and it’s with pleasure I can say that Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is a worthy addition to anybody’s collection. Now if only Ubisoft would release the soundtrack...
Verdict
Co-Op Score
Overall
The Co-Op Experience: Team up with friends through the game's single player mode, or take on zombies in the survival mode. Co-Op specific moves are included including combos and the ability to revive fallen friends.
Co-Optimus game reviews focus on the cooperative experience of a game, our final score graphic represents this experience along with an average score for the game overall. For an explanation of our scores please check our Review Score Explanation Guide.