I've got news for all my fellow gamers out there. When the real threat to humanity comes, it won't be from alien invaders, government agents, killer cyborgs, mutant freaks, or even hordes of the shambling undead. No, the real threat will come from homicidal geometric shapes. Okay, maybe not. But that's the premise behind Death By Cube, a new casual shooter from the folks over at Premium Agency and Square-Enix.

In Death By Cube, players take on the role of Leo, a robot that's just woke up with a nasty case of amnesia. He's got no idea where he is or how he got there, but he's got one overriding directive on his mind. Somewhere in this place is his female counterpart, Selsie, and it's up to him to track her down, reboot her, and hopefully fill the holes in his Swiss cheese memory bank along the way. And no two-bit, three dimensional, six-sided thing is going to stand in his way.

At its core, Death By Cube is a fast paced, dual stick shooter. If you ever spent any of your childhood in an arcade, dumping quarters into games like Robotron 2084 or Smash TV, you're already familiar with the basics here. Essentially, you move around with one joystick, while using the other to shoot in a full 360 degree arc. Waves of enemies bear down on your position, and you just do your best to survive. Thankfully, Leo is one robot armed with more than a slide rule in his battle against rampaging polygons. Leo is armed with a laser gun, a shield, and the ability to quickly dodge incoming fire. Learning to use all of these abilities is key to getting anywhere in the game. Leo's dodge can confuse and stun enemies, making them easier to shoot, and his shield can be used to reflect shots back at enemies.

As the game progresses, you can buy upgrades for Leo to change how you play. Each upgraded version of Leo has a new look and a whole new set of special abilities. One version might have a faster dodge which can freeze enemies for a longer period of time. Another version shoots his weapon in circular bursts, hitting all surrounding enemies at once. While Leo's pretty balanced from the get go, in later stages, you'll find out that certain upgraded versions will be better suited for certain stages.

It's a good thing that Death By Cube is as chaotic as it is. If it wasn't, you might spend a little more time taking in the game's presentation and realizing that the gameplay is probably the best thing it's got going for it. There's a lot happening on the screen, but it all looks pretty plain. You got a few flashy lasers and explosions, plus gallons and gallons of "red oil" splattering the floors, but at the end of the day you're still just a little guy on a sterile floor shooting moving boxes. It's not exactly the type of visuals that'll push the limits of the 360 and and make people marvel at what it can do. On the upside, there's at least a fair amount of gameplay to distract you from the lack of any eye candy. Aside from the extensive single player campaign, Death By Cube has online support for up to eight players in Deathmatch, Domination, and High Score Challenge modes. Online games are quick and run smooth, assuming you can find some people to play.

Death By Cube isn't a bad game by any means. It's got an old school feel that brings me back to my days of sitting in a dimly lit arcade, in a hypnotic trance fueled by the strobing of the game and the roll of quarters in my pocket. Still, we've come a long way since those days. There's a fine line between "old school" and "basic", and Death By Cube tends to fall a little more into the latter category. While it could have benefitted from a little more visual polish, the game still has just enough frantic gameplay to help balance out some of the its other shortcomings. I'm just waiting for the inevitable sequel, Suicide By Sphere.

Final Score: B-