A fun new to experience Geometry Wars
First-person shooters may be lacking in quantity on Wii and DS, but dual-stick shooters are practically nonexistent on those platforms. Or rather, were nonexistent before Geometry Wars: Galaxies, the first and only Geometry Wars game to take the bullet-hell action outside Microsoft boundaries, arrived.
Taking the series to these platforms no doubt raised some eyebrows. "How could a dual-stick shooter work on a platform that doesn't have the two analog sticks?", many wondered. The answer: use the pointer on the Wii, and the stylus on DS for shooting, with the d-pad (for the DS) and analog stick (for the Wii) being used for movement. As odd as that sounds, it works surprisingly well.
Knowing which way you're shooting is never a problem thanks to a handy line that points where you point the Wii remote (or place the stylus) at, and the method itself provides a lot of accuracy. The d-pad on the DS doesn't allow for the precise movements of the analog stick on the Wii's nunchuck, but it gets the job done. Wii owners can use the cIassic controller instead if the remote and nunchuck combo doesn't work for them, but DS owners aren't so lucky. The only other option they have is to switch to the stylus for movement, making the d-pad handle shooting, which results in much less accurate shots. And if there's one thing you need to survive in this game, it's accuracy, as it won't take long for things to dissolve into absolute chaos.
The game starts off by going easy on you by only throwing two or three enemies your way at a time, but after a couple minutes, the game starts going full force on you. Dozens of enemies begin to flood the area, black holes appear all over attempting to suck you and your adversaries in, and enemies and shots explode in a dazzling display of neon lights all over the level, and distort the background, leaving many little yellow triangles called Geoms in their wake. It's a chaotic, yet beautiful scene to witness, and a blast to experience.
It's also one that requires some quick-thinking and reflexes to survive. As the battle goes on, you'll slowly be surrounded by enemies with no place to run. The only way to make it through alive is to carve yourself a path by shooting through enemy forces, dodging their advances along the way. It's a difficult task, but successfully navigating the droves of enemies and coming through unscathed is an immensely rewarding, and exhilarating feat. In the event that you get cornered, or simply can't fight your way out, however, you can use a bomb and eliminate every enemy on screen. This can be real life saver in dire situations, but using one doesn't net you any points or Geoms -- so you them wisely.
Geoms are little triangular, yellow objects dropped by vanquished foes that serve two purposes: to increase the score multiplier, and to unlock more galaxies and levels. The two are closely connected in terms of importance, as the higher the multiplier climbs, the easier it becomes to earn either a bronze, silver, or gold medal, all of which net you extra Geoms in addition to the ones you collect during battle. This adds a bit of a risk-versus-reward element, as you always must charge into incoming foes to grab the Geoms they drop, which, in turn, increases your chances of falling in battle thereby resetting the multiplier to zero.
Thankfully, grabbing them is easy. All you have to do to is get close to it and it'll fly toward you instantly. It makes Geom collecting a virtually effortless task, especially when you employ the help of the Drone's Geom collecting behavior.
The Drone -- a small ship that follows closely behind you -- is easily the game's biggest addition. It's job is to provide assistance in various ways, including extra firepower, luring enemies away from you, and collecting Geoms. The different behaviors get upgraded as they're used, and more can be bought by spending Geoms. The assistance it provides is small, but it is often the difference between life and death. It's extra firepower, for example, gives your shots a larger range of effect, which helps dwindle the enemies numbers to a more manageable size.
Though on the smaller, tighter levels, the Drone's extra firepower is rendered almost useless. See, unlike the original game which had only one arena, Galaxies features a multitude of arenas that range from simple (ones that resemble the one found in the original game) to complex (ones that feature multiple blocks that you can't pass through, teleports that take you from one side of the level to another, and mines that are dropped by circular enemies that cannot be defeated to name a few). The variety in level design always keeps things fresh, and keeps you on your toes, as you never know what to expect next.
Aside from the controls, the only differences between the two versions are the visuals. The Wii version is better of the two, with bright, colorful neon visuals that are remarkably close to those of the original game, along with some fantastic effects, such as distortions in the background as shots fly over, and explosions that look like a fireworks display. The DS version, however, while still a good looking game, isn't quite on par with its console sibling.
Taking a more sprite based approach, the DS game is a lot simpler in terms of presentation, with more subdued colors, and a lack of the aforementioned visual effects of the Wii version. The game's pace is also somewhat slowed due to the hardware's limitations, resulting in a little less fast-paced experience. However, the slower pace helps compensate for the reduced accuracy in movement, so it's a double-edged sword of sorts. The biggest problem with this version is the frame rate issues. Whenever the game starts to get hectic (which happens quickly and frequently), the game tends to slow to a crawl, which makes carefully moving through the legions of enemies a lot harder than it need be.
Both versions also offer both cooperative and competitive multiplayer modes for up to two players. The cooperative mode is like the single-player mode in that both players work their way through a galaxy full of levels. This mode lacks the Drone, and has players share a set number of lives, making teamwork of the utmost importance. The competitive is essentially a two player version of Retro Evolved -- the original 360 game (which can also be played alone, by the way) -- with both players competing to see who can rack up the highest score. The two modes work well, and are a blast to play on both platforms -- just like the rest of the game.
There's also online leaderboards in both versions, which makes this package a near perfect port of the original game. It may not be as beautiful as it's HD counterpart, but it still effectively creates the same mayhem filled environment as the original. The controls make great use of each platform's strengths while still working exceptionally well, and the game's new single and multiplayer modes are a great addition. Geometry Wars: Galaxies may not beat out the original, but for those lacking Xbox's, it doesn't get much better than Geometry Wars.
