Why Geometry Wars 2 is one of the greatest games ever made

So the shapes are geometric, they shoot each other (like a war, see?), we’ve discussed the retro… but why is the game called Retro Evolved? That is almost certainly to do with its online connectivity, turning the retro shooter into a modern phenomenon. Online leaderboards make Geometry Wars 2 the perfect high-score game.

That means a lot of retries. But as if to highlight yet again how brilliantly designed Geometry Wars 2 is, restarting after death is close to instantaneous, meaning you never really give yourself the time to say ‘that’s a good place to stop’. No loading, no waiting, just zip zip zip through single-click menu screens that remember which mode you’re playing, then you’re back in the action. Minutes turn to hours and you simply cannot stop playing.

So there it is. Geometry Wars 2: Retro Evolved is without question one of the greatest games ever made and a proud monument to the greatness of the now sadly-closed Bizarre Creations. It’s the age old story. Studio makes Geometry Wars, Activision buys studio, Activision gives studio the Bond license, Activision closes studio… you know how it is. But that shouldn’t sour our enjoyment of Geometry Wars 2, which will never age. Boy and girl will always have Geometry Wars 2.

And boy is still better than girl at Pacifism. Boy has some pride remaining.

"Why _____ is one of the greatest games ever made" is a weekly feature that goes through GamesRadar's list of the 100 best games of all time and highlights different titles, explaining why they're on the list, what makes them so amazing, and why we love them so much.

Justin Towell

Justin was a GamesRadar staffer for 10 years but is now a freelancer, musician and videographer. He's big on retro, Sega and racing games (especially retro Sega racing games) and currently also writes for Play Magazine, Traxion.gg, PC Gamer and TopTenReviews, as well as running his own YouTube channel. Having learned to love all platforms equally after Sega left the hardware industry (sniff), his favourite games include Christmas NiGHTS into Dreams, Zelda BotW, Sea of Thieves, Sega Rally Championship and Treasure Island Dizzy.