Ever since the launch of the Xbox 360, Geometry Wars has always been one of the systems most popular Xbox Live Arcade games, even now the game is still going strong and it’s no surprise really. However the game everyone loves could be about to depart us however as a new contender to the arcade throne rears it’s head, this contender being none other than the sequel, Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2.
The reason Geometry Wars was successful was the fact that it was simple yet fun, plus it was also pretty addictive when it came to trying to beat the high score of everyone on your friend’s list. So when making the sequel it was important that the developer didn’t tinker too much with the successful part of the formula and instead concentrated on evolving (see what I did there) the parts of the game that needed improving.
So what has changed in the sequel and is it enough to warrant you spending more cash? There are quite a few changes which should make fans of the first game happy, first off the single player mode has been expanded significantly to include six new (well they aren’t all new) modes of play. The first of these modes is called Deadline, here you are given 3 minutes to score as many points as possible, being continually successful in this mode will then unlock the next mode and this is repeated until all six modes are unlocked. Once you unlock any mode you are then able to go back to it and play as often as you like, this is were the addictive part of trying to beat your friends score comes into play.
The games second mode is called King, here you can only shoot enemies from inside the green circles (which also shield you from the enemy), however these circles depreciate over time and turn red, once this happens the enemies can then attack you and since you can’t fire once the circle is red you simply have to move on to the next green circle by dodging the enemies.
The third mode included is a familiar one, Evolved. Anyone who has played the game previously will know that the aim here is to survive as long as you can with three lives, the higher your score, the more lives you will accumulate. There is a slight twist to this mode in that the score multiplier is now acquired by collecting the geoms that defeated enemies leave behind, rather than building up your multiplier just by destroying enemies, there is also the addition of waves of enemies, which swoop in a straight line across, up and down the screen.
The last three modes included are Pacifism, where your ability to shoot is taken away and you need to fly through iron gates to destroy enemies, Waves and then Sequence, which challenges you with twenty mini survival games and gives you thirty seconds to complete each of these.
All of the modes explained above are great fun to play, but I do have to wonder why they were not all unlocked from the start. It doesn’t really take very long to unlock the modes, so there doesn’t really seem to be any justification for the developer doing this, well unless they just wanted to give players an easy achievement.
Unfortunately, apart from the online leaderboards, Geometry Wars 2 lacks an Xbox Live mode, this is a bit of a pity really, however making up for this is the four player local play. All six modes are supported in the multiplayer games, you can even opt to play as a co-pilot, with one player steering and one shooting. The multiplayer works extremely well and is a great addition, it’s just a pity it isn’t online too.
Graphically the game looks as great as ever, the whole presentation has been given some polish and looks wonderful. The sound is also as impressive as ever, without being over the top.
Apart from the lack of online play, Geometry Wars 2 really is the perfect sequel, it’s still the same game that you know and love, but with the addition of the new modes of play it is even better. Get ready to be addicted all over again, if you can drag yourself away from the first game that is.
