Gravity Crash Review

The enemies are red, which is quite decent of them, really.

There's a snag. When played with the classic control set-up (the alternative Geometry Wars-style twin-stick control scheme doesn't feel right), the laser only fires forward. Gravity forces you down. To combat this, you need to thrust up. But most enemies are either below, or at either side, of your craft. This means mastery of the "thrust up, quick turn with the left stick, spam fire, then quick turn to thrust up before crashing" technique is essential. Once you do, Gravity Crash becomes doable.

Unfortunately, before then, it feels almost impossible. Gravity Crash is hard at first - proper hard. The controls and the feel of the game aren't immediately accessible. It takes a good hour of practice before you're able to prevent yourself from crashing every five bloody seconds. Geometry Wars fans may find the emphasis on slow, careful, considered movement not to their fast-moving tastes. Some of the planets are sprawling, and take upwards of 15 minutes to complete all the objectives. Gravity Crash is not an instantly gratifying game.

Don't be put off. Gravity Crash is great. But it only becomes great when you pass the point where you finally get good enough to cope with it. When you find yourself effortlessly weaving in and out of tiny gaps, when you find yourself at one with gravity and inertia and able to destroy multiple enemies with one thrust-powered slingshot manoeuvre across an entire section of a map, that's when Gravity Crash becomes great.

The problem is, many won't want to put in the hour or two required to get to that point. They'll play the demo, not get on with the controls, die a whole bunch, and then discard it un-purchased. Don't do that. Soldier on. It's worth the effort.

My only criticism is with the four-player local multiplayer. It feels tacked on; a tick box addition that doesn't sit well with Gravity Crash's considered gameplay. The deathmatch mode isn't fun, neither is the gem collect-a-thon salvage mode. Only race mode is worth a look. It's a bit like Micro Machines, except floaty.

There's loads to be getting on with in the single-player campaign

The single-player game, then, is where it's at. The 35 single-player planets are varied, well designed and increasingly challenging. The later levels, packed with environmental hazards, water (which reverses the gravity effect), moving structures, enemies and native creatures, are particularly brutal. But that just makes their completion all the more satisfying. And, for sadists, there are friendly space men to save (by landing your craft - one of the hardest things to do in the game), awkward to get artefacts to collect, and gems to seek out. Trophies hunters and online leaderboard fanatics will find plenty to sink their teeth into.

And when you're done with the single-player campaign, a superb level editor awaits. It's easy to use, which should, hopefully, ensure there will be loads of player-created levels to download from the Gravity Crash Store.

Gravity Crash isn't for everyone. Stubborn fans of Super Stardust HD, perhaps PSN's best retro shooter, and Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2, a game that remains, for me, the pinnacle of the downloadable retro game revival, might find it difficult to adjust to. But Gravity Crash is a great game in its own right. It's challenging, often frustrating, but wonderfully satisfying. Buy it. Play it. Get the t-shirt.