Geometry Wars has been more than a minor hit on Xbox Live. Featuring psychedelic graphics with geometric shapes twisting and turning, morphing the background grid with lasers and movement trails, and an ever increasing amount of enemies and on-screen projectiles, it is a pure twitch title. As one of the few games to come out that harkens back to the old days when gamers played for score and score alone, it is all kinds of addictive. It is hard to imagine how a Live Arcade game can be made into a full release, but Sierra and Kuju and Bizarre have found a way with the release of Geometry Wars: Galaxies on the Wii and DS.

Taking the basic premise of Robotron beyond weird polygonal creatures flying around while black holes form and sparks going everywhere isn’t as easy as it sounds. Kuju could have simply tweaked some colors or tossed in a few new dastardly shapes, but they took the format to the next level by expanding the design over not just planets … but galaxies! (Dun dun duuunn!)

The games are essentially the same, with the only differences being the controls: the DS is controlled by the directional pad for movement and fire by either stylus or the face buttons; the Wii is controlled by the nunchuk for movement and remote for firing or the classic controller that has a system similar to the 360’s, with movement and firing handled by the left and right analog sticks. If you own both versions, then you are in for a treat, as synching up the systems will unlock a bonus galaxy. Both feature the same system of planets and galaxies that are unlocked by geoms, yellow particles left behind by destroyed enemies, which not only multiply the score but also go towards enhancing the other big addition to the series: the drone. The drone is a small object that follows your shape and assists by utilizing one of its many upgradeable skills: attacking, defending, sniping, spraying, ramming, acting as a decoy, and so on. The geoms and the drone are really good additions that do a lot to spice up the game. The multiple planets also feature varied worlds that have rules and objects, such as a limit of the number of lives available and moving obstacles, as well as point totals for bronze, silver, and gold medals.

Both versions also suffer from some unfortunate slowdown and control issues. The slowdown is just that: the screen stutters and the action slows down a bit when things get particularly hectic. For a game that thrives on the kinetic energy of dozens, if not hundreds, of objects moving on the screen at once, this is a disappointment. The controls on the DS aren’t necessarily bad, because there really is no alternative, but that thought doesn’t make them any more comfortable to use; nor do the Wii control schemes offer anything on par with the 360 version.

Shooting with the face buttons isn’t the best way to attack due to diagonal shots being a pain to pull off, as is diagonal movement with the direction bad, though not as bad, but using the stylus resulted in some severe hand cramps. It is also markedly easier to swivel the stylus around rather than the remote or analog stick - I don’t want to call it cheating, but it is much easier. The stylus and the remote both operate in the same with, with a targeting line pointing out from your unit and a target representing the point of contact. Since the targeting system isn’t centered, as it is with a 360 controller or the classic controller, it can be pretty daunting to keep up with the enemies, especially when using the remote to quickly shoot at enemies on the opposite of the firing side. The classic controller also has problems. Unlike the 360 controller, the classic controller’s analog sticks aren’t perturbing from a rounded base, but an angular one. Instead of being able to quickly swirl the analog stick around, it instead hits the edges of the surrounding aperture, making for a decidedly harsher experience. The classic controller is the best of the options, though.

The nature of the game is still the same, and the additions do a great deal to breath life into the series. Not only is the new galaxy mode available, though, but each also has the original Geometry Wars included, as well as multiplayer in the form of co-op and versus. There is a lot here for those who have long tired of the single plane of the original, or those looking to see what all the fuss is about. If one version has to be chosen over the other, then I would go with the Wii and classic controller. The DS version is fun to have on the go, but I could only play for short durations less I wanted hand cramps. The nunchuk and remote aren’t a terrible combination, but merely serviceable as they aren’t the optimal control scheme for those looking to rack up the high scores.

Overall: 7/10