Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions Reviews

Geometry Wars 3 makes big changes, but retains the excellent core gameplay and delivers another addictive blaster.

The Real Geometry Wars 3 starts here.

Back when the Xbox 360 was released I loved checking out games in the arcade section of the Xbox Live Arcade store. Our household quickly became addicted to a twin-stick shooter called Geometry Wars. It was fast, flashy, and very addicting to try to reach even higher scores. A sequel was released a few years later that was just as fun. Eventually other games drew our attention away from the game while the developer was bought up and eventually closed by their new owners. Fast forward to present day, we have the Xbox One with impressive hardware inside of it and a new area for arcade game. Rising from the ashes is a new Geometry Wars, aptly titled Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions. This game has been brought to us from a new developer, Lucid Games, and published by an old name brought to back life, Sierra. Can this game live up to its ancestors or will it be just a ghost of its former self?

Geometry Wars 3 is basically digitized crack. It's challenging, it's visually amazing, and it's soundtrack should be available to purchase separately. Take my Money!

The online modes are perhaps the weakest part of the overall package, as despite it being launch week the two offered modes of Stock and Summoner never accrued enough players to feel worthwhile. Though mechanically sound I would wager that they’re simply not what players are looking for from the game or the series, as the blistering action lends itself better to solo achievements than manic multiplayer, and the online leaderboards provide more than enough interaction for this type of game. Perhaps it will find a following in coming months but I think players are more likely to ignore them in favour of the main offline package.

After six long years, Geometry Wars has finally returned. Now set on three-dimensional stages, this sequel delivers a host of fun game modes. Unfortunately, the level designs sometimes make seeing enemies difficult and the single-player campaign is more frustrating than it needs to be. Regardless of whether you like the three-dimensional shift or not, there's enough content in Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions to warrant a look.

No summary available

Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions is a good reason to revisit a classic arcade game. New 3D maps add depth and ideas to a tried-and-true formula, but they aren’t taken far enough to make this feel like a real sequel. Adventure mode’s poor pacing and repetition didn’t hold my interest, but King and Pacifism modes are much more interesting – as are the helpful A.I. drones, which provide more than enough reasons to go back and chase those leaderboards.

3D twin-stick shooters are nothing new as there have been quite a few released since Geometry Wars 2 hit the scene, but the series’ eventual progression to offering this kind of gameplay mechanic is very much welcome. Geometry Wars 3 brings the tight twin-stick feel of the series to the modern gaming era while also paying homage to the series’ roots. Just steer clear of its online multiplayer game modes.

An enjoyable entry in the Geometry Wars franchise that manages to add new life into the series, but keeps fans happy with returning classics.

With Geometry Wars 3, Lucid Games have taken the pure and unsullied Geometry Wars mix and added nothing but good things to it. No corners have been cut here and the game is almost a love-letter to everything that was great about the series in the first place. The Adventure mode is an absolute success, taking an almost arcade-like experience and adding depth and replayability (like the latter was needed!) along with newly-shaped playfields that are interesting and fun. With the addition of customisable weaponry, a new level of tactical nuance has been added, too. It all just works, and we absolutely cannot recommend Geometry Wars 3 highly enough. Outstanding.

Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions is the latest release in Bizarre Creations’ once Xbox exclusive twin stick shooter series. Starting life as a minigame in Project Gotham Racing 2, the untimely demise of the aforementioned British outfit means that startup Lucid Games has taken up the neon reins – and this also marks the first title to be released under the newly reformed Sierra brand. If that’s not enough setup for you, know that this also happens to be a fine continuation of retro gaming conventions melded with some more contemporary ideas.

Classic Mode’s inclusion might just be a nod to the mindset of Lucid Games when developing Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions — improve as much as possible while still staying true to the core of the franchise. That old game is still there, it’s just unspeakably better now. It may have been past installments in the series that were billed as evolution, but Dimensions is where Geometry Wars truly evolved.