Galak-Z: The Dimensional

 PlayStation 4
  • Publisher: 17-Bit
  • Release Date: Aug 4, 2015
  • Also On: PC
User Score
7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 139 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 89 out of 139
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 139
  3. Negative: 27 out of 139

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  1. homer4president
    Apr 29, 2016
    6
    As with every other PS Plus game that is released every month (except a few exceptions) it gets boring way too quick. Although, I liked the art style of the game.
  2. drlowdon
    Nov 2, 2016
    5
    Playing Galak-Z instantly brought to mind the NES title Solar Jetman which, given the 80’s arcade style presentation, is probably not completely unintended by the developers. Unfortunately however the game doesn’t really add all that much to that now 25 year old formula. Gameplay wise there are a few unlockable abilities, that do help add a little variety to proceedings, but the sluggishPlaying Galak-Z instantly brought to mind the NES title Solar Jetman which, given the 80’s arcade style presentation, is probably not completely unintended by the developers. Unfortunately however the game doesn’t really add all that much to that now 25 year old formula. Gameplay wise there are a few unlockable abilities, that do help add a little variety to proceedings, but the sluggish controls and repetitive missions meant I lost interest pretty quickly and matters are not helped by the dull graphical style or overly long load times every time you (re)start a level.

    In the end I can’t really say this game is any more than OK and not really a title I’d recommend to anyone.    … Expand
  3. Dal_ReviewedDat
    Mar 17, 2016
    7
    PS+ for March 2016:

    So another freebie for PS+ subscribers. And another little treat! I am a huge fan of Manga / Anime and instantly loved the 80s Neo Genisis feel to Galak-Z. The graphics and animated cut-scenes are drowning in retro-loveability. It's painfully appealing, but did the gameplay match? Yes, pretty much. At first I was really put off by the initial level. I    PS+ for March 2016:

    So another freebie for PS+ subscribers. And another little treat!

    I am a huge fan of Manga / Anime and instantly loved the 80s Neo Genisis feel to Galak-Z. The graphics and animated cut-scenes are drowning in retro-loveability. It's painfully appealing, but did the gameplay match?

    Yes, pretty much. At first I was really put off by the initial level. I avoided astroids and the cave system basically made me feel like this was a very linear game pretending not to be. But, I was wrong. The game overlooks the collisions if you've good shield levels and what could of been a pretty basic glorified-star-wars-1983 arcade coin-up, is actually a lot more rewarding and tactful. I've only put in 20hrs or so on Galak-Z, just because of my sick addiction to Fallout4, still, but there hours I appreciated!

    The only downside is some frame-rate issues, but these dont really hinder gameplay all that much all that often, but a patch would be nice.

    It's not the greatest of games, not even the greatest of PS+ titles in the past 12 months, but it is good fun and deserves your time - especially for FREE!!    … Expand
  4. Nel
    Jan 22, 2017
    7
    This game takes some time to get used to, but when you have got used to it you will have a fun time. The controls are hard at first. The game is fairly short, but it is hard, which will add to the playtime. The music is great.
  5. stamito
    Apr 12, 2016
    7
    I’ve gone through half of the game already and I can, confidently, say this game is good; good but not great. Good things, if you like old arcades, quick direct funny games, you’ll find quite a bit of that in this one and that is a good thing. Also, the game play is great, simple but very well implemented and the controls are very very good, you really feel in control of the ship, notI’ve gone through half of the game already and I can, confidently, say this game is good; good but not great. Good things, if you like old arcades, quick direct funny games, you’ll find quite a bit of that in this one and that is a good thing. Also, the game play is great, simple but very well implemented and the controls are very very good, you really feel in control of the ship, not frustrating at all. So basically, I’d say the strongest point of this game is its gameplay, it is funny to play (and unfortunately not so many games can say that today).

    Bad things, lacks story and background info to explain its universe. I don’t think this is a completely bad thing, this game feels a bit like a classic and a lot of great classic games don’t really have a great script behind them. But at the same time can be frustrating for other people, so just be aware you won’t find an interesting story behind this game. The other main bad thing is that is feels awfully repetitive. As I said the gameplay is really good, but the missions all feel the same, really similar objectives and, for me this is worse, almost identical stages in terms of the art and how they are. So, for example, all stages are always maze like structures, and these structures don’t vary a lot in terms of how they look. I mean, for instance, in season one, it’s always inside an asteroid and season 2 is always inside space hulks. It lacks life and the settings are not memorable at all; you want all season 1 missions to be inside asteroids?, fine no problem, but make those asteroids a bit different. For example, one can be the typical rocky type asteroid, another one can have crystal like structures, another one can have massive plant life, and next one can have some kind of ancient civilisation structure inside and that can also slightly affect the gamplay (e.g. find traps in the ancient civilisation structures). I mean, the asteroid concept accepts variability but unfortunately they didn’t think of that (or they didn’t have budget, could also be that). Anyway, summarising that lack of, let’s say, life on the settings plus not a lot on variation in mission objectives makes the game feel a bit repetitive after a few hours…and in my opinion, ruins the experience a bit.

    Still quite a bit of things to enjoy about this game, I just felt a bit disappointed as I think it could have been a great game and it is just good (in the more strict meaning of the word). Did try it for “free” with PSN plus but, now that I know how it is, I wouldn’t mind to have paid a few quid for this. By the way, this isn’t good or bad and is highly subjective, but I don’t think this game is too hard as some people do suggest, nor too easy either, sits in the middle in my opinion.    … Expand
  6. tomvs123
    Oct 20, 2020
    5
    Having fond memories of Solar Jetman, I bought this game, looking for something similar. It's not at all like Solar Jetman.

    It is a roguelike and is very difficult, even by roguelike standards. You will be going through 5-15 minute missions to find stuff or kill enemies. The story mode has 4 seasons with 5 missions each, and it took me a good 10 hours to get through the first two    Having fond memories of Solar Jetman, I bought this game, looking for something similar. It's not at all like Solar Jetman.

    It is a roguelike and is very difficult, even by roguelike standards. You will be going through 5-15 minute missions to find stuff or kill enemies. The story mode has 4 seasons with 5 missions each, and it took me a good 10 hours to get through the first two seasons due to my constant dying.

    The main difficulty comes from the controls, which are not rebindable. I've played a lot of space games, but this is the first I've played with such a control system. The left stick points you in a direction and the triggers move you frontwards and backwards. The right stick is limited to moving the screen around so you can see a bit farther, which isn't the best use of the stick, in my opinion.

    So no, this isn't a twin-stick shooter. Though a twin-stick layout would have needed some major modification done to your ship model and mechanics to work well.

    I was all up for learning the controls and getting better at moving my ship, but my carpel tunnel got in the way. Using the top triggers frequently doesn't work well for me, and with no option to rebind keys, after 10 hours (and two seasons), I had to put the game down.

    The first season was relatively fun and easy. I especially liked the commentary between the pilot and the ship's captain. It successfully pulls off being serious, corny, and silly, all at the same time. Both characters also had appropriately-cast voice actors.

    The second season is a big difficulty spike, with a clear rate of 3% on PS4. You simply must learn to control your ship (and its robot form) better, including creating tactics for getting rid of especially big/fast enemies.

    On the easiest mode, I was thankfully able to restart after each mission, rather than starting all 5 over again (which is the intended way to play). The missions varied too. So each time I had to restart a mission, the map and dialogue between the characters changed, which was a welcome addition.

    At the end of the 2nd season, another character joined the bunch, who was not nearly as interesting or well-voice-acted. With my wrist in pain and my dislike of the new character, I then moved onto the next game in my backlog.

    The game also has what appears to be an endless score-attack mode, where you fly forever, getting items and killing enemies in a more traditional roguelike setting (without much of a story). I lasted about 10 minutes here and decided it wasn't for me.

    So for hard-core roguelike fans who are able to easily learn new control schemes, this game might be just what you're looking for. I don't really recommend it for anyone else, unless they add in a super-easy mode in the future.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

39
#39 Best PS4 Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 42 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 38 out of 42
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 42
  3. Negative: 0 out of 42
  1. Hobby Consolas
    Mar 24, 2016
    79
    A challenging roguelike space shooter with anime style and a varied set of procedurally generated levels. Great!
    Read full review
  2. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    Oct 16, 2015
    80
    It looks lovely and the frantic combat is delightfully nuanced, but be warned: it’s brutal. [November 2015, p78]
  3. Games Master UK
    Oct 15, 2015
    85
    A roguelike for the cerebral pilot. Those with viper-like reflexes shouldn't miss this step up for gaming AI. [Oct 2015, p.69]
See all critic reviews »