Few games can be credited as the launch pad for other titles, but Bizarre Creations’ legendary 2005 racer, Project Gotham Racing 2 ,can. What could have easily been mere set dressing, was instead was a fully playable title, Geometry Wars. Tucked away in an arcade cabinet, few would have known that it would spawn eight mainline titles. But, lately it’s all gone a little quiet, that was until Brain Seal Entertainment unleashed their latest title, Geometry Survivor.
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It must be pointed out that Geometry Survivor this is not officially connected to the Geometry Wars bloodline. Survivor is, rather, heavily inspired by it, which is no bad thing.
Arcade Goals
Geometry Survivor takes arcade thrills, and blends it with a rogue-like survival core. A typical loop will see you fight off waves of enemies with the sole goal to survive twenty minutes.
I say “fight”, but all you need to do is move your ship out of danger, as the game will handle all the shooting. Geometry Survivor is an auto-shooter, very much in the style of Vampire Survivors.
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Also like that indie smash, you will destroy enemies, grab floating ‘bits’ and credits. These let you unlock upgrades during the game, and after, at the shop. You can buy new ships, that add an extra challenge to the game, or buy more lives when you start a run.
Zero Elaboration
But, beyond that there isn’t much more to things. This isn’t a bad thing really, as it’s a game built on a fun gameplay loop that sees you dodging and ducking to improve your skills to hang on through the first few minutes. You will then obtain some upgrades that turn the tables and you can start hunting the enemies.
But, then the game flips against you once more, forcing you into avoidance mode. Knowing when to hold and push are key, as are picking the right upgrades to make your run smoother.
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However, once you have completed your first 20-minute run, a feat which will take a few hours to fully crack, you’ll be greeted by the same things over and over. Enemies come in at the same point, and are of the same type. The map is also the same. This repetition makes Geometry Survivor fall a bit flat.
Price Competitor
The only element that changes is how you tweak the difficulty with unlocks, and the randomisation of the unlocks during your run. This is a bit of a shame, as a few more levels or even modes would have been welcome.
Especially looking at how Vampire Survivors keep things fresh, even with its limitations. Vampire Survivors also costs £3.99/€4.99 on Xbox, compared to Geometry Survivor’s asking price of £6.69/€7.99 on the same console.
War Inspired
Visually, Geometry Survivor looks like Geometry Wars. From the ship, to the enemies, to the grid the action unfolds on, it does a great job of recreating the pleasing mix of neon and geometric shapes.
The audio is good, but it doesn’t have the unforgettable and banging tracks of its inspiration. And you feel that music was a huge part of Wars overall package. Geometry Survivor‘s music is enjoyable, but just doesn’t infest the player with the same ferocious ear-worms.
Retro Auto Shooter
Geometry Survivor is a blast from the past in a lot of ways. It takes inspiration from a true classic, flips it from a shoot ’em up to a dodge ’em up for something that sits between Geometry Wars and Vampire Survivors.
But Geometry Survivor never hits the heights of those titles, sadly. It’s very much a ‘one and done’ game. Getting through your first 20-minute run is a thrill, but after that it just gets lost in space. And this is a shame, a few more modes or challenges could easily give it the injection of replayability it so desperately needs.