Nintendo Wii Reviews: Geometry Wars: Galaxies Review
Overview
Don’t let the name scare you. Math skills are not required to have a good time playing Geometry Wars: Galaxies on Wii. Originally a bonus game for Xbox this arcade blast has moved on to the Nintendo Wii console. Enhanced from its predecessors Geometry Wars: Galaxies take players on a nostalgic journey back to the Tetris era of gaming. Enter a universe with 64 planets filled with hidden mines and lurking enemies. Players control a small space craft which resembles a hexagon (hence the title Geometry Wars). Your craft hoovers around a streamlined grid shooting various geometric objects such as a triangle ship, swirling pinwheels, and round serpents. The main objective is to destroy the flying shapes and clear the screen. If you’re not fast enough or if you get hit you’re dead. The more objects you destroy the higher your ultimate score.
Gameplay (5 out of 5)
The gameplay in Geometry Wars: Galaxies is good clean fun with plenty of replay value. It plays similar to a version of Astroids gone wild. The shapes increase in numbers and speed as they hurl in your direction. There are several distinct changes to this version that makes the gameplay stand out. The Campaign Mode has players travel to 64 diverse planet stages. Every planet features slightly different grid sizes. Depending on the particular level you can be blasting shapes in a bottleneck-like tube or small rectangular boxes. The complexity of stages changes randomly as well. At certain points during the game you’ll be flooded by non-stop enemies and other sections you will have to face massively large shapes.
A helpful feature is the drone that follows you and offers assistance, which is a cool addition to the game. These drones give players backup by blasting at approaching enemies, blocking, pushing obstacles in the way, and gathering floating Geoms. Geoms are shapes that appear after an enemy is defeated. Collecting them adds to your overall score depending on your current mode. The drone upgrade option allows players to select which ability they want their drone to have for each planet stage. You gain medals as the game progresses. Each level deciphers your scores and determines whether you’ve earned a gold, silver, or bronze medal. Geometry Wars: Galaxies has a two player mode which enables a friend to join you in your space war.
Graphics & Sound (4 out of 5)
The graphics are rather simple but it gives the retro vibe off nicely. The dark grids exploding with brightly colored neon geometric shapes spinning out of control almost look like a Fourth of July fireworks display. It was visually impressive overall. The heart-pumping techno soundtrack gets you fired up for some enemy blasting action.
Graphics & Sound (4 out of 5)
The controls for this arcade gem fall short. Players have the Wii nunchuk attachment to move and the Wii remote to shoot. Your ship is in a constant moving state, and aiming with the Wii remote becomes quite difficult when trying to simultaneously shoot. The developers were fully aware of this flaw and decided to be kind by tossing in a Wii laser gun for players. Unfortunately, this just adds to the chaos of having too many controllers for a simplistic game. Luckily, for those gamers who didn’t toss their classic Nintendo controller away it can be used in Geometry Wars: Galaxies. Using a classic controller makes this simple game the way it was meant to be. There is also a connectivity feature involving the Wii system and Nintendo DS to harmonize unlocking an additional galaxy in each game version.
Graphics & Sound (4 out of 5)
This is an extremely fun and addictive game. The endless gameplay and retro shooter style creates an intergalactic gaming experience worth exploring. The neon flashing lights, non-stop geometric saucer flying action, and challenging campaign mode signifies Geometry Wars: Galaxies on the Wii a classic. The original game Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved is even included. Arcade shooter fans will rejoice when they get their hands on this entertaining game.
