Grid Space Shooter Indie Review
It’s the start of a new year and what better way to celebrate then to review a game you’ve all been waiting for. That AAA budget bombing game we all know and love. That’s right! It’s a review of Grid Space Shooter! An Xbox indie game selling for a whopping $1! My fourth indie review and another stellar game. This neon coloured twin sticker fits right in with Geometry Wars and the million other clones, but:
Grid Space Shooter is my favourite twin stick shooter. Better than Geo Wars, better than Biology Battle and even better than Score Rush or Zombie Estate.
My other indie game reviews: Dungeons of Desolation, MegaCity and Score Rush. All worth four quarters too.
Takes the best parts of other twin stick shooters
You fly your ship, shoot anything that moves, pick up power-ups, clear waves, you get the drill. But read on for what makes this shooter feel more complete than other shooters.
So how does the game look, play and sound?
- Bright coloured shapes fly at you, but they aren’t totally abstract. Some do resemble small ships and capital ships resemble battleships or large fortifications. Enemies have a wide range of ammo and movements
- Blistering 60 fps with no slowdown
- Nice particle effects (as usual with these types of games)
- Is it just me or do all of these games have techno music? Seems fine
- There is a 2 player mode, but I didn’t try it
- The game is divided into stages and levels. It seems like there are 8 levels per stage
- I only reached stage 2, level 5 or 6. There seems to be room for many stages. Stage 1 is pretty easy, but stage 2 got tough
- A great thing is that when you reach a level, you can always start from there (or any other level you achieved). An excellent feature as some twin stickers force you to start from scratch every game, which is a god awful chore
- My first time playing I lasted 30 minutes. Next time I play I’ll start at stage 2. This flexibility is very welcome as I can customize my game as I see fit based on what I’ve achieved and how long I think I can last. In Geo Wars 2, the game starts off so slow, but shortly after it gets so hard it’s impossible. Very predictable
- There is also a classic “arcade” mode which is endless enemies coming at you. No segregated waves
- There are different ships you can choose, each with various attributes and special weapons/moves
- My ship had a uniquely equipped feature: bullet time meter. You trigger it and you go slo-mo to help avoid fire. Deactivate it yourself when you want. It has to recharge if you use it up
- Your ship can take a handful of hits before exploding. You can pick up shield icons to boost them back up
- Many special weapons can be picked up. They rock with nice effects and each feels different. The microwave gun is nifty. Special guns seem to have limited ammo
- The ship I chose can also fly fast (hold down LT)
- Kick ass and multiplier icons pop up. I think the highest I had was 6x
- The gameplay spans across screens and involves a mix of small and large enemies coming at you, as well as asteroids that get in the way. Shoot them apart and they break into smaller pieces. A pain in the ass sometimes! Asteroids add a needed element of distraction and obstacles these types of games usually lack
- The only fault I can think of is that the HUD is a little “too much”. The score bar and bottom bars are a little too big or are too close to the middle of the screen
- Arguably the best $1 I’ve spent on XBL
If you are a twin stick shooter fan, get this game pronto. Out of all the reviews and demo reviews I’ve done so far on GamerVets, I think this game has got my highest rating: 4.5/5. Too bad I can’t find the game maker’s website?!?! They are called Meh Games. I’d like to send them a note to say a job well done. Oh well.
(The game is called Grid Space Shooter, but the faint grid painted on the screen is actually useless. This is a twitch shooter, not a turn-based hex game. They could have simply called it Space Shooter…. the most generic game name ever!)
Grid Space Shooter on Xbox’s Marketplace
Apologies for the laggy vid. Not sure why it’s so stuttery. The real game is 60 fps.
Playing through Stage 1 and 2
Playing Arcade Mode
4.5/5
A note on our rating scale: We rate things out of five, but don't confuse it with ratings from other publications. We’re not professional reviewers who do this for a living, we don't get sent free copies of games, and we don't have the luxury to play a ton of games during our work hours - we buy/borrow all our games and do this during our off-time, outside of our jobs and families. Our ratings take into account the time and money spent, and are here to help you make an informed decision on whether this game is worthy of your hard-earned cash and limited time.
5 – An almost flawless game with good graphics, sound and gameplay. You might even want to replay it many times, despite your busy schedule. A must-buy.4 – It has some flaws, but it’s still worth a playthrough. Buy it if you like this type of game.
3 – An average game targeted to specific niches. It has its redeeming factors. Buy it on sale or if you fit its target demographic/niche.
2 – The game sucks, but some will get enjoyment out of it. Play it at your own risk.
1 – Broken, ugly game with few redeeming qualities. Probably shouldn’t have been made. Leave this game alone and don’t even look at it.
0 – Worse than garbage. Game companies should pay you for the time you spent playing this trash.
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