Sektori Review (Switch 2)

While the landscape is currently filled with Metroidvanias and indie rogue-likes there was a time when twitch shooters were all the rage. Driven in part by the return to high score culture brought about by various online services, games like Mutant Storm and, most prominently, Geometry Wars developed a huge following. 

Sektori is a game heavily drawing on the Geometry Wars ethos and it does it so well that you might just start to forget about the shape-based blaster for a while. It does have serious pedigree behind it though as the developer used to work for the company responsible for Resogun. 

This is clearly a love letter to Bizarre Creations pinnacle game though, and the identity runs through it so strongly that changing a few shapes around would easily make this a direct sequel. As such, this is a crazy twin stick shooter that relies on its pumping techno soundtrack to keep adrenaline high. Too start with you are tied into the campaign mode, but other modes become available the more you play. 

The basic gameplay will be familiar to most. You control a ship, moving with one stick while blasting with the other. You can pick up power ups which move rewards up a scale, and you can then cash in on the one you want with speed ups being low down and things like shields and level wide strikes higher up. You must collect little triangles to fill you powerup meter (a mechanic used to multiply the score multiplier in Geometry Wars), and if you touch anything you die. You also only have one life so make sure to make it count. 

There is a unique trick in here as well with the player being able to do a sort of charging forward manoeuvre which creates a small explosion around where you end up. If this is down with the player landing on a particular icon it creates a much bigger explosion which can take out a host of enemies.

As you progress through the campaign the level will shift and change shape, creating barriers which raise from the floor. There are also boss fights with creations that take up most of the screen even early on. Your standard enemies are a host of neon shapes that form into things that dart towards you, move along fixed rails or turn into swirling snakes. This may well sound very familiar, the one Geometry Wars mechanic that isn’t here though is the black hole which does help create a little separation. 

Once you have played the campaign for a while you’ll start unlocking challenge modes. These are more score attack minded pursuits and seem to be the developer’s favourite modes from Geometry Wars 2. As you achieve a D rank score in each more challenges open up. These include things like gate mode where your weapons are disabled and you must destroy enemies by moving between exploding gates, Charge Mode where you only have the charge move and things like a boss rush and classic score attack modes. There’s certainly a lot here for players to get the most out of if they connect with the game. And it all works beautifully. 

Overall, Sektori is a stunning game. It looks and sounds amazing and plays incredibly well. While we can all wish for some kind of Geometry Wars collection or sequel this really is the next best thing. It’s so successful at what it does that in some ways it has really surpassed those games. Comparisons may be inevitable but the brilliance on display here means it is worth considering as something far more than just a love letter to an iconic franchise. 

Overall 9/10

Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved (XBLA)

It starts with a vector and a grid. No back story, no explanation of why, it just does. Shapes start to appear on the screen, but only a couple at first. You blast them to shards. Easy. More enemies appear, you take them out. Then more. Many more. Glowing wormholes suck in your foes and explode, firing small blue circles, purple cubes split in two as they’re hit, sending smaller purple cubes toward you. Glowing snakes wind their way around the screen at you. Everything is out to get you. All you can do is take them out. There are no levels and – seemingly – no end to the game. Just more and more to destroy.

Geometry Wars is one of the most primal gaming experiences currently available on XBLA’s service. Even its spiritual grandfather, Robotron, has levels and a story. What Bizarre has created is a proper, old-school, show-us-how-good-you-are arcade title. You shoot things, you survive, and your score increases. That really is all there is to it; but it is just so well executed.

The neon lines which form everything in the game have a satisfying eighties look to them. Simplistic yet beautiful, basic shapes swarm over the screen, sparks fly, and wormholes pulse, leaving you mesmerised in the same way most stoners are when they listen to Pink Floyd. Geometry Wars owes a debt to Jeff Minter in terms of design. It could almost be a companion piece to the great llama’s Tempest 2000. It really is a beautiful game, but – as we quickly found out – you won’t have much time to admire it.

Blasting at everything and evading collision with the colourful shapes is the order of the day here. A few minutes in and you won’t have much space on the grid to yourself. You are aided by a decent multiplier system which increases with every 25 enemies killed, an extra life every 75,000 points and an extra smart bomb every 100,000 points. Your fire-power is increased for short periods at certain times. Not only does this help you rain hot laser death on your enemies, it also causes the grid backdrop to ripple in a very pretty fashion. Nowhere to hide, no OTT power ups, no gimmicks, that’s it. The player must rely on nothing more than pure skill, much like the retro titles the game pays homage to.

Geometry Wars is one of the few games on 360 where the two words “Achievement Unlocked” really matter. A solid test of the player’s reflexes mixed with eye-melting visuals make this a title worth more than its weight in Marketplace points. If you complete all the achievements and make the top 100 on the leader board, we will buy you a drink. What are you still doing here? Go earn some points.

9/10

Written by Dan Gill

Geometry Wars Galaxies Review (DS)

The announcement of a new Geometry Wars title was met with mixed feelings from Retro 101. The 360's Retro Evolved is something of a masterpiece, and the formula was pretty much perfect as it was. When Sierra told us it would be coming to Wii and DS we were delighted, but also worried the fine balance achieved by Retro would be ruined.

While Retro Evolved is still available, the new mode offers a series of planets which effectively serve as challenges. Each planet offers medals for high scores. Some may seem beyond reach, others insultingly easy, but it's here the differences between the titles are seen in the different level lay outs and change in score multiplier. You're also aided by a customisable drone. As the progress the drone will level up and become more effective at whichever job you have given it.

The major difference to the DS version is the control system. The touch screen is the control of choice here, the face buttons unable to accurately respond to Geometry Wars' demands. Moving with the d pad and using the touch screen to control direction of fire becomes natural after a few minutes play.

Our first play of Retro Evolved yielded a score of over a million points, a score that would be unthinkable for a novice on 360. The main reason is that when the screen becomes filled with enemies, the slowdown is very noticeable. This makes it a game of patience as you circle around the playfield, dodging enemies with ease and watching your score rack up. Leader boards are also flawed as they only show your placing in the world, and the top ten. You can't view friends' scores, so the chances to gloat are lost.

While we're on the subject of connectivity, Galaxies allows you (in fact, actively encourages you) to connect the Wii and DS versions in order to unlock another galaxy. This galaxy offers some challenging levels, but it's unlikely you would want to spend around forty quid to own both versions of the game.

All this negativity suggests we were less than happy with Galaxies’ performance, and to some extent that would be true. It starts well, and the prospect of Geometry Wars on the move is certainly an enticing one, yet it feels as though the game has been forced onto the DS. The slowdown is the only real problem here, but it's a pretty big one. At £20 however, you could do a lot worse for you money. If you don't own a 360 or Wii, this is still worth picking up. There isn't anything else like it on the DS, and there are various multiplayer modes and plenty of gold medals to earn that should keep you playing for a while.

7/10

Written by Dan Gill

Geometry Wars Galaxies Review (Wii)

Everyone's favourite fake retro shooter Geometry Wars has come a long from being a mini game in Project Gotham Racing 2. When it was released on Xbox Live Arcade is was met with a kind of excited dizziness not normally seen in this day and age. The move to a retail title always raised a few eyebrows but we never really believed it would be allowed to fall short in terms of quality.

For those that don't know, Geometry Wars sets you in an arena into which enemies of different shapes appear and you have to shoot them. It may be simple but then most of the best ideas normally are. While the previous version of the game only had one arena Galaxies has many of all different shapes and sizes. To progress through the game you must play each arena or 'planet' to earn points which are then used to unlock more levels.

Helping you in your shape shooting quest is a drone. This is a small square which can be programmed to do a number of things. For instance you can get it to go and pick up score multipliers, defend your ship or aggressively go after and shoot targets. As you progress you gain experience points for your drone which raise its effectiveness.

There are a whole host of different planets to visit. Some are a different shape, while others contain new enemies, different attack formations or extremes such as meteor showers and moving blocks. The developers really have done an admirable job of keeping the game interesting from start to finish. Control wise the game lets you use, pretty much, whatever you want. For those settling in for the long haul you may want to master the intricacies of the remote. For the rest of us the classic controller's twin stick set up will do just fine.

The key to longevity in Geometry Wars on the Xbox 360 was the live leader boards. Thankfully the Wii has its own set for each level. After each encounter players have the chance to upload their score and see where they stand against the rest of the world. Unfortunately you cannot check how you have done against your friends as you are restricted to looking at the top ten and scores around your own. This is a bit of an over sight as not many people will really care what score some random stranger has posted on level three.

Overall Geometry Wars Galaxies is a tight and fast paced shooter that is guaranteed to get the pulse flowing. The difficulty builds nicely over the different planets and there are so many good ideas that add variety we really didn't expect to see. Galaxies shows that the basic idea of the game is more than strong enough to stand as a retail title and every single Wii owner owes it to themselves to give it go.

8/10