Best of the Decade - Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved
Fri, December 3, 2010 at 7:26 PM 
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved
Platform: Xbox 360
Release Date: November 22, 2005
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Bizarre Creations
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved has many honorable traits worthy of mentioning all on its own. During a time period where there was a notable drought of quality retail Xbox 360 games, it provided an oasis of cheap, downloadable fun. Its simple design hid an addicting game that could eat up hours of your time without you even realizing it. Its single-minded focus on topping your score and testing your reflexes channeled the simplistic appeal of the arcade games of yore, but brought the experience right to the living room and updated it with modern features and a fresh coat of paint.
You didn’t need a bag full of quarters from your mom to enjoy this gem. For a measly $10 or so, you could download it right to your console and play to your heart’s desire, whether for 5 minutes or 5 hours.
As laudable as Geometry Wars was, and its sequel surpassed it in nearly every way, what it represented in a more philosophical sense is why it’s on this list.