Gaming Trend

Gaming Trend Review

by Keith Schleicher

Back in the days when arcades were still somewhat popular, I remember playing a game called Smash TV.  It was based on the premise of being a game show from the future where your character went through a series of rooms killing robots for cash and prizes.  What made Smash TV unique was that the controls were two joysticks: one for moving your character, and another for controlling the direction of your aim.  While there may have been other earlier games with similar controls, like Vanguard and Robotron, Smash TV really stuck out to me because of the control scheme.

When Geometry Wars came out in Project Gotham Racing 2, it became a huge hit, becoming almost as addictive as the racing game.  Geometry Wars really exploded when Retro Evolved was released on Xbox Live.  The movement and aiming felt natural with the Xbox 360 controller.  Since then, many clones have come out, such as flow and Everyday Shooter.  Now Bizarre Creations has come out with Geometry Wars: Galaxies with a new control scheme for the Nintendo Wii.

The graphics for Geometry Wars have never been anything elaborate, but they still have a style all their own.  The vector graphics and particle effects are clean and sharp, especially when playing in 480p widescreen.  The enemies all have a unique look to them, even if they are mostly made up of straight lines.  Part of that is the different colors each enemy has, but their movement also gives them a bit more personality.

The particle effects are a visual masterpiece and what really make the graphics shine compared to other titles.  The background makes waves when you have a certain weapon shot, you activate a smart bomb, or when your ship reappears on the screen after being destroyed.  It reverberates across the entire screen.  Enemy explosions look like fireworks.  When a Gravity Well becomes active, multicolored sparks fly all around.  When two Gravity Wells get absorbed in each other’s gravity, streams emanate from each of them showing the tug-of-war they are having with each other.

When you have several enemies flying at you, being destroyed right next to each other, the resulting explosions really make the screen a big world of sparkling, multicolor chaos.  With sparks flying everywhere, the colors make Galaxies a light show that is hard to not admire if you aren’t careful.

The music in Galaxies follows the same pattern as Retro Evolved.  The menus have this mysterious sci-fi vibe to it.  If you imagine an old 1920’s sci-fi movie, try to think of the music in the background as you see inside the alien ship.  The music during the game increases the tempo, almost sounding like a Morse Code Machine, with beeps and bloops driving the beat.

The sound effects are a good example of less being more.  Shooting at your enemies has the same sound, but the different weapons you get change the sound.  One gun shoots faster, so you’ll hear the gun firing faster, while another gun is a bit slower and produces a lower tone.  Smart bombs have a sonic boom effect, making a loud noise and then everything is muffled for a few seconds.  Destroying some enemies gives off a little, high-pitched bang, while other enemies give a deep bass boom when shot down.  These audio clues match the action well.

I was a bit concerned about how well the controls would be for Galaxies using the Wii remote and Nunchuk.  The Nunchuk stick controls movement, and the Wii remote controls the aim of your gun.  A or B shoots, and C or Z activate your smart bomb.  It works, but it does take a lot of getting used to.  There is a cursor on the screen that indicates where the pointer is aiming at, as well as a line that indicates the direction of your shot. 

You can use the Classic Controller in Galaxies as well.  The dual analog sticks are used for movement and aiming, and the L and R keys are used for the smart bomb.  If you are used to playing Retro Evolved on the Xbox 360, then this might be the way to go.  What is disappointing is the fact that the original Gamecube controller isn’t supported.  It’s odd that the Classic Controller is supported but the Gamecube controller isn’t.

When I first heard of Galaxies, I thought that it would be the same game as Retro Evolved, just with a new control scheme.  I quickly figured out that wasn’t the case.  While the gameplay is similar, there are some distinct differences.

In Galaxies you are a ship that is being attacked by objects composed of geometrical objects.  These are mostly circles, triangles, and four-sided objects.  Each enemy has their own color and style of attack.  Some move slowly, while others zip across the screen.  Gravity wells dare you to get close as they try to suck in everything, including other enemies and gravity wells.  Learning the different attack patterns for each enemy is crucial to avoid them.  The good thing is that you have the ability to fire at them, but they don’t.  They can only run into you.  Keeping away from them is easier said than done.

The first thing you’ll notice is that you have a drone that flies around your ship.  The drone has eight specific behaviors and you actually assign the drone the behavior before you start out.  At first only the attack behavior is unlocked, but the rest can be unlocked.  The behavior also gains experience as you play through the levels.  The drone stays next to the ship and shoots in the same direction with the Attack behavior, but stays at the rear of the ship with the Defense behavior.  The drone goes out and grabs Geoms when using the Collect behavior.  A beam weapon will attack the highest threat with the Snipe behavior.  With the Sweep behavior the drone circles the ship to protect it, while the Ram behavior has the drone move directly at enemies.  When the Turret behavior is used, the drone fires in any direction at anything a fixed distance away.  The Bait behavior lures enemies away from you so that you can escape hairy situations.

The different areas are represented by solar systems, and each one has a few planets.  Each planet is represented by a different geometrical shape.  While there are rectangles, some might be smaller than the TV screen, while some might be bigger than the TV screen horizontally, vertically, or both.  Not all planets are rectangles though.  Some are diamond shaped, some have six sides with different lengths for each sides, and some planets have a bunch of jagged edges.  These shapes make every level unique.

If you’ve played Retro Evolved, then you are familiar with Wanderers, Grunts, Spinners, Gravity Wells, Snakes, and those blasted Repulsors.  These old “friends” are back again in Galaxies, but there are new enemies to go up against.  They include Mutators, Neutrons, UFOs, Generators, Black Holes, and Darts.  Not only will you have new enemies, some of the old enemies can be grown to a gigantic size that dwarfs your ship size.  When you destroy these big enemies, they unleash smaller enemies, similar to what the regular size Spinners do.

What makes Geometry Wars challenging is the fact that you need to be able to keep your eyes on the enemies while sifting through the information and particle effects displayed on the screen.  As you get more enemies on the screen, more can be destroyed, and the more your vision can be obscured by what is going on.

Another new element in Galaxies are the Geoms.  As you destroy enemies, they leave behind Geoms.  When you collect a Geom, the multiplier goes up by one.  You can amass a multiplier as high as 150, which can make your score grow very quickly.  These Geoms also have a second purpose in that they are used to unlock items throughout the game.  They can be planets, systems, or drone behaviors.  What’s great is that every game will help you increase your Geoms unless you get killed rather quickly.

Each planet has three different levels.  There is a Bronze, Silver, and Gold medal that can be awarded.  While you don’t need to get a medal for each planet to get to the next planet or system, getting one of these medals will earn you extra Geoms.  It is also something to strive for as a goal.

Galaxies includes over 60 planets to visit.  It is easy to go to one planet and get addicted to it for a while, but moving on will open up new challenges.  It will always be interesting to see what new shape and what kinds of enemies will show up on each planet.  Certain planets give you a different number of ships and smart bombs.  You can also move to other planets if you get stuck at a specific planet, so Galaxies never feels frustrating.  The original Retro Evolved is available as well.  The game also retails for $40.

You don’t have to go through Galaxies alone.  You have the option to play two-player games.  You can play Co-op or against each other, as well as ten two-player specific levels.  This can be a lot of fun, as well as a lot of chaos.

You can also download Retro Evolved to your Nintendo DS if you own one.  The game stays in the memory as long as the DS is powered on or in power save mode.  While it isn’t something everyone can use, it’s a nice bonus for those people that have a Nintendo DS.

I have been a fan of Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, but I really wasn’t sure how Galaxies would expand on the Geometry Wars formula.  Somehow Bizarre managed a way to keep the old gameplay intact while introducing new elements that make the game feel fresh.  I figured I would play it for an hour and then move on to do something else.  Instead, two and a half hours passed by.  If you were addicted to Geometry Wars before, get ready for a new addiction in Galaxies.

Gaming Trend Score

86

1. Graphics: 88
2. Audio: 83
3. Controls: 80
4. Gameplay: 86
5. Value/Replay: 90
6. OVERALL:86