Son of Scoregasm (PS Vita) Review

Son of Scoregasm is a top-down shooter, similar to Geometry Wars. The player is gifted a finite amount of space to work in, and must survive seemingly endless waves of shooter chaos in order to proceed to the next level. Levels really don't last that long, though, taking what seems like forever and jamming it into small time frames that don't seem to take longer than a minute or two.

Where Son of Scoregasm exceeds is coming up with some really interesting twists on traditional shooter opponents. It would be easy to survive a seemingly never-ending onslaught of opponents if the player weren't surrounded by lasers that will instantly kill them. One of the more intimidating early enemies explodes red pellets that will kill you on contact, although they can be absorbed with a well timed pulse.

Managing the pulse is so important. Enemies killed using this feature will add to the player's multiplier, but it also works wonders for damage control. Surrounded by an insurmountable amount of enemies? Hit that R button and clear out a good space of the screen to survive in. As the player moves from level to level, this ensures not only a better degree of success, but also a higher final score when the bell finally tolls for thee.

The act of moving between levels, but being able to start a new run from any level the player wants (as long as they have already beaten it), is a nice touch. Even better, at the end of each level, you have to choose between a green portal or an orange one. The orange one leads to a more difficult level, while the green one leads to something a bit easier. Easier being extremely subjective, that is, as the game only gets easier the more each of the levels are played.

Really, the biggest letdown is the visual presentation. This isn't a huge blemish during gameplay, though, as the most noticeable failure is how weirdly thin and almost choppy the lines of each arena look. Really, the game's most unappealing moments are on the main menu. It's really not a big enough deal, though, to justify avoiding the game altogether. Really, it's a minor price to pay for a title that's this good, overall.