Geometry Wars almost spawned a  new genre of shoot 'em up when it arrived in 2003, as a Trojan horse of sorts inside of Project Gotham Racing. While developer Bizarre Creations thought it would be a throwaway extra that would be relegated to a behind-the-scenes lifespan, it became wildly popular and was eventually remade into its own release, and eventually, its own franchise. Characterized by a confined grid-like arena and its endless supply of cell-like enemies, the idea wasn't wholly new, but the neon art style conjoined with that setup was unique at the time. Hyperlight EX [$0.99] replicates that same experience, albeit with slightly less bravado.
It's a bit of a misnomer to consider Hyperlight EX a traditional shooter, as it's more about movement than anything. With a digital analog stick at your disposal and a sole boost button, you'll need to maneuver around enemies quickly as the game throws multiple formations at you. Fuel is required to boost around (denoted by blue droplet icons), and power-ups come in multiple forms, including "Entities," which are like NPC helpers that blow up enemies on-screen. Other power-ups include typical shooter conventions like bombs, lasers, and crystals.
On paper, Hyperlight EX doesn't do anything revolutionary. Most of the enemies follow the same patterns you've seen since Galaga, and outside of some deviations (like Temporal foes, which are numbered, and should be defeated in order, lest they explode), it's all very famil...