Finding its beginnings on the Xbox's Project Gotham Racing 2, the original Geometry Wars was a simple arcade game which used the joysticks to move and shoot enemies onscreen until they became over-run and died. A high score was all players wanted, and slowly the game appeared on the Xbox Live Arcade as Retro Evolved, and then in PGR4 as Geometry Wars: Waves. The DS and Wii welcome the pinnacle of Geometry Wars evolution in a full retail game, and Geometry Wars Galaxies delivers its simple gameplay and mass of content in spades.

The number of differences between the DS and Wii versions can be counted on one hand; in price (a difference of $10), graphics, sound, speed, and control styles. Otherwise, the games are identical-a noble quality considering that the DS version contains the exact same challenges and options as a console game. The question I've addressed most when discussing the titles with friends are on the graphics, but we'll get to that in time as the control schemes are by far the most polarizing aspect between the games.

Whereas the Wii's control schemes are separated by the actual controllers used, the DS features a variety of customization options all within the console's immediate limits. The default setup is based on movement via the D-pad and using the stylus to aim and shoot enemies, with the L button triggering the bomb. However, this can be shaken up a bit, to cater to players who wish to use the face buttons to shoot, configure the DS for lefties, or use the stylus to move the ship and fire with the face buttons/D-pad. Action can be moved to the top or bottom screen, as the DS only uses one of its screens for the entire game. The controls are spot-on, and the amount of customization that can be made between the simple controls is extremely user-friendly. The only odd thing is that the touch screen isn't used outside of gameplay, and that menu selections must be made with the D-pad and face buttons. Players can look forward to a cramped thumb on either side of the DS in any extended play sessions.

As mentioned prior, the games are identical in content. The only consequence of this is that those playing the DS version will see a copious amount of slowdown in some of the later levels. I suspect that for these particular planets, the developers most likely had a roundtable on what would be the funniest scenario to see someone try to play through for more than a minute, and how many enemies they could spawn onscreen at once, etc. Small graphical touches such as the points earned for each enemy don't appear on the DS, and the grid in the background isn't warped as it is in the Wii or 360 games. The overall speed of the game is a bit less than the Wii version, but when you've got Geometry Wars in your pocket, these are negligible discounts in what is overall a well-crafted version of a fast-paced arcade shooter.

For anyone who doesn't know much about the Wii version, Geometry Wars brings a few additions to the franchise, in the form of Geoms and Drones. Dropped by most enemies, Geoms are multipliers that will multiply the score to a maximum of X150, and also act as the game's currency. You'll use them to buy new universes and behaviors for the previously mentioned Drone. The Drone is a little spaceship which accompanies you throughout the game, and can be assigned a behavior such as attack, ram, or collect, in order to aid you throughout each planet. These small additions make some of the more masochistic levels possible to get gold medals on, as well as the journey of reaching the sometimes astronomical scores required to nab those medals. Although players can spend a few hours in the initial three planets getting the 500,000 Geoms needed to unlock the last universe first, they'll be thankful for the Drone and Geoms' aid at the point in which they set foot in those levels. The game doesn't stay as easy as its easy beginnings may suggest, especially for those who connect a DS copy with a Wii game to unlock the sadistic Lambda galaxy.

The only wrench in the clockwork for GWG is that the game isn't an infinite arcade game anymore. Both versions offer online leaderboards, and while online play would have been a great deal better, the online community for either the Wii or DS is sabotaged from the beginning thanks to Nintendo's lack of interest in exploring that aspect of games. The point is that since the gameplay doesn't change between levels, there's only so far a player can blast gold medals down until they hit a brick wall. Once you spend a significant amount of time on a level only to lose, the drive to play another level is gone. The simple gameplay is both the accessible crux of Geometry Wars, and the primary flaw that can single-handedly turn players off. Fortunately, it's not a scarring detriment to the overall product, but simply a gameplay aspect that doesn't translate well to a goal-based series. Since the gameplay never changes, there's never a new goal to hit up, and that's where Galaxies differs from the 4-hour gameplay sessions of the original, and even Retro Evolved, because the only goal was to take the highest score on leaderboards and nothing else.

That's not to say that Galaxies is fundamentally flawed, because it's a fantastic game. There are other ways to play, such as single or multi-cart co-op multiplayer modes, and the full Retro Evolved is even included in both the Wii and DS versions for those who are fond of it or have never played before. The main point is that Geometry Wars Galaxies survives on the DS, just as successfully as it does on the Wii. It's not a game where you'll lose a night's rest playing it, but having Geometry Wars anywhere, anytime, is just too good of an opportunity to pass up-even if you must sacrifice a few cosmetic differences. Neither disappoints, and some will prefer the stylus controls to either of the Wii control schemes, and vice versa. Whichever version you buy depends on what you want from the game, speaking on the difference of portability or a faster, prettier console version. In either case, it's admirable that the DS managed to pull off a solid Geometry Wars experience with dozens of levels and enemies to blow away, and isn't that what's important?