# Geometry Dash

Geometry Dash is a side-scrolling platformer mobile game created by Swedish game developer Robert Topala. It was released on 13 August 2013 for iOS and Android, with versions for Windows and macOS following on 22 December 2014. The player controls an icon to navigate music-based levels, avoiding obstacles like spikes.
The game comprises 26 full-length levels created by the developer: 22 are auto-scrolling, and 4 are 'platformer' levels. The game includes a level creation system, enabling players to design custom levels, share them online, and play levels created by other users. Players can collect in-game currency—such as stars, moons, coins, mana orbs and diamonds—from official and user-generated levels or chests.
Three spin-off games accompany the main series: Geometry Dash Meltdown, Geometry Dash World and Geometry Dash SubZero. Geometry Dash Lite is a free version of the main game that removes certain levels and icons, the level editor, and many online features. Both the spin-off games and Geometry Dash Lite contain advertisements.

## Gameplay

Geometry Dash can be played using a touchscreen, keyboard, mouse or controller. The player, represented by a customisable icon, is controlled by pressing or holding inputs to navigate through auto-scrolling levels until the end is reached. The level restarts from the beginning if the player collides with an obstacle, such as a spike or wall. A 'practice mode' option allows the player to place checkpoints to help with level familiarity; however, progress cannot be earned towards normal level completion. The in-game music's timing and rhythm are crucial, often synchronising with gameplay. In 'platformer' mode, players can move left or right without the auto-scrolling camera.
The full version of Geometry Dash includes 26 main levels, 20 available upon installation. Three levels are locked behind a specific number of secret coins alongside all but the first main platformer levels, requiring the previous level to be completed before play. Each level rewards players upon completion. The full version of the game features the ability to upload user-created levels, with Lite and World offering a rotating selection of 20 user-created levels.

## Development
### Pre-Geometry Dash

Geometry Dash was created by Swedish video game developer Robert Topala, known professionally as RobTop. On 6 June 2010, Topala created his first video game, Bounce Ball Thingy, on Newgrounds, developing it while he was at university studying civil engineering. He abandoned his course because he became more interested in the video game industry. Topala decided to work alone, founding RobTop Games in 2012. The first video game he produced under RobTop Games was Boomlings, a puzzle video game released on 5 November 2012 for mobile devices. Topala continued to create video games, including Memory Mastermind (2013) and Boomlings MatchUp (2013).
According to Topala, the game began as a project that could have moved in any direction. He remarked, 'It simply started as a template with a cube that could crash and jump'; 'There really was no detailed plan'. He previously developed it for the computer and later altered his plan and made attempts to make it a mobile game. The Impossible Game inspired Topala, and it took about four months to create the game and bring it to the App Store and Google Play Store. In the beta version, the game was called Geometry Jump but later changed to Geometry Dash. The game is developed on the Cocos2d game engine. A trailer was released on 29 April 2013, featuring the song Ultimate Destruction (made by Tmm43).
Upon its release, Geometry Dash had seven levels and two game modes. It gained popularity worldwide, especially in Canada, becoming the most popular paid iPhone app in June 2014. There are four free versions of the game, one being Geometry Dash Lite, which includes 23 levels from the full version, including the tower levels.

## Reception

The game received generally positive reviews from critics. Softpedia complimented the game's style and the challenge it brings up, saying, 'While it can get a bit frustrating sometimes, you can always complete the stages using the practice mode and then jump into the many different user-generated levels'. 148Apps also gave the game a positive review, stating, 'Geometry Dash provides all of the challenge expected from an "impossible" game while also making it more accessible to newcomers'. Geometry Dash has been listed by the reviewer Chris Morris on the website Common Sense Media as a child-friendly video game that parents could let their children play on, stating that the game was a 'good way to handle frustration' and that 'families can also talk about rhythm and the joy of dancing in time with music'. Geometry Dash was the second-best and seventh-best-selling iPad and iPhone game in the App Store in 2018.

## Spin-offs

| Year | Video game | Platform | Ref(s). |
| 2013 | Geometry Dash | 2013: iOS, Android; 2014: Microsoft Windows, macOS | [19] [20] |
| 2013 | Geometry Dash Lite | iOS, Android | |
| 2015 | Geometry Dash Meltdown | iOS, Android | |
| 2016 | Geometry Dash World | iOS, Android | |
| 2017 | Geometry Dash SubZero | iOS, Android | |

### Geometry Dash Lite

Geometry Dash Lite is a free version of the game with advertisements and gameplay restrictions. Geometry Dash Lite includes only main levels 1-19, all tower levels, and a few selected levels that are either Featured, Daily, weekly or Event levels but does not offer the option to create levels or play most player-made levels. It also has a significantly more limited selection of character customisation options, lacking many icons, colours, and other character effects in the full game.

### Geometry Dash Meltdown

On 16 December 2015, Topala announced a spin-off game, Geometry Dash Meltdown, which was released on 19 December 2015 for iOS and Android. It includes three levels featuring songs by F-777. The game showcased new icons and features in levels added in version 2.0 of the original game.

### Geometry Dash World

On 21 December 2016, Topala announced a second spin-off game, Geometry Dash World, saying it would come out on the same day. It includes two five-level worlds, introducing features that came to the original game later in update 2.1. It also features a selection of levels created by other players.
Gamezebo praised the game's captivation and decent gameplay styles. Although, the reviewer noted that it was not the 'most interesting looking game out there'. Gerson Noboa from AndroidGuys said, 'Geometry Dash World is a worthy addition to your game arsenal. Thanks to tightly connected graphical and sound elements, the game provides an awesome, integrated experience that is rarely seen in Play Store games'.

### Geometry Dash SubZero

On 12 December 2017, Topala announced a third spin-off game, Geometry Dash SubZero, which was released on 21 December 2017. Geometry Dash SubZero's levels all contain features present in update 2.2, despite the update's release date being years later.