Geometry Wars: Galaxies

First up, this game is quick. Very quick. In fact, if if you find yourself confused by the pace of Pong, this really isn't the game for you and should probably be avoided. Put it this way, we got a migraine from playing it for three hours straight. Sure, probably not the best idea, but when you consider we're used to playing games like Halo and Animal Crossing sometimes for eight hour stints (with toilet breaks we hasten to add), three hours really shouldn't faze us. This game is an attack on the retinas, an assault on the senses and a bombardment on the brain. And we love it.

The lovely folk at Kuju, who developed the game for Wii, have made some great changes for the franchise on Wii. First up is the inclusion of a full on sixty-four level world. These levels are split up into galaxies which you unlock by doing well in the game. There are also some new enemy forms and a rather enjoyable multiplayer mode to get your teeth stuck into. For what is essentially an arcade game with bells on, this is one hell of a title.

For those of you not well versed in the ways of GW, allow us to briefly introduce you before we wax lyrical any further. The goal is to survive a fairly endless and unrelenting onslaught of enemies from all directions. You kill them, more appear, sometimes slower, sometimes faster but always and forever they will appear. You control a tiny little ship which you can zip around the screen with the directional stick on the nunchuck whilst holding down fire and waving the Wii-mote around frantically to fire off in all directions like a possessed dervish. The magic of this game is found in its blinding simplicity combined with devilish difficulty - which is in no way a paradox. The first time you have a go you might last a minute or two, then a bit longer and then a bit longer still. Give it a bit of time and you'll be going on for ten minutes endlessly killing everything you see until your eyes ache and you start to cry blood.

 

So, what's new? Well, there are loads of different level shapes and level colours which brings such much needed variety to proceedings. And, as if that wasn't enough (which really it isn't...) you now have a friend with you on your mission of relentless killing. A little drone (which if you're as dumb as us you'll not notice for about fifteen minutes) which will help you on your missions by doing a bit of the legwork. You can get upgrades for your Navi-esque buddy, and whilst it isn't a sensational addition, it does add a new dimension to the game.

Perhaps the most exciting new addition to the game is the multiplayer. You can either compete against a friend for the highest score or enter co-op mode in which you team up with a mate to get the highest score possible. Both modes are, to put it politely, the dogs gonads. If you don't like the single player mode we defy you to dislike the multiplayer.

Having built it up, we'll now have a bit of a bitch. Whilst it does sound lovely and looks very pretty, it doesn't look as good as it does on the Xbox. The crispness and the clarity of detail is somewhat lost in the Wii version, which is a bit of a shame. Also, whilst the Wii controls work really well to begin with, as the game steps up the difficulty it does get a bit confusing. On the Xbox you simply woggled about the analogue stick to move around, now you woggle about the Wii-mote. It might be intuitive, but you will get lost and confused from time to time. A bit of a minor moaning point really.