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Geometry Dash
DeveloperRobert Topala
PublisherRobTop Games
DesignerRobert Topala
ProgrammerRobert Topala
EngineCocos2d-X
PlatformsiOS, Android, Windows Phone, Microsoft Windows, macOS
ReleaseiOS, Android
13 August 2013
Windows Phone
12 June 2014
Microsoft Windows, macOS
22 December 2014
GenresPlatform, rhythm
ModeSingle-player

Geometry Dash[a] is a 2013 side-scrolling rhythm platform video game developed by Swedish game developer Robert Topala and published by his company RobTop Games. It was released for iOS and Android in August 2013, Windows Phone in June 2014, and on Steam in December 2014. The player controls an icon and must navigate through levels while avoiding obstacles. Geometry Dash includes 26 developer-made levels: 22 are auto-scrolling, and 4 are platformer levels. It also includes a level editor, enabling players to design custom levels, share them online, and play levels created by other users.

Topala released his first game, Bounce Ball Thingy, on Newgrounds in June 2010. As he continued to develop games, he quit his civil engineering course to pursue his career as a game developer, releasing a handful of games prior to Geometry Dash. He began development in early 2013, being inspired by other titles such as The Impossible Game and Super Meat Boy. He published Geometry Dash in August 2013 and it quickly gained popularity. Since its release, Geometry Dash has seen numerous updates that have added new gameplay elements, levels, game modes, and features.

Geometry Dash has received mostly positive reviews from critics, highlighting the large variety of music, colorful visuals, and extremely difficult but rewarding gameplay. The level creation feature and the user-made levels it has spawned have also been the subject of praise and has allowed Geometry Dash to bolster a large and growing community.

A free version of the main game, Geometry Dash Lite, was released a month after the original. It removes certain official levels and icons, access to the majority of user-generated content, and the level editor. Three spin-off games accompany the main series: Geometry Dash Meltdown, Geometry Dash World and Geometry Dash SubZero, featuring their own levels and music.

Gameplay

The beginning of Electroman Adventures, the 13th level

Geometry Dash is a side-scrolling platformer.[1] The player takes control of an icon and must navigate through levels until reaching the end.[2] Classic gameplay[3] uses an auto-scrolling camera,[1] requiring the player to use a single button to complete each level.[2] The level restarts from the beginning if the player collides with an obstacle. A practice mode option allows checkpoints to be placed that the player can restart from, though this mode doesn't reward certain collectibles.[1][2][4] In platformer levels, players can move left or right without the auto-scrolling camera and can access preset checkpoints without using practice mode.[3]

Various gameplay elements can affect the movement of the player icon. Jump orbs (rings) allow the player to gain extra height in mid-air.[2][4] Some portals[5] (gates) can change the players gravity, allow the player to teleport,[6] or can change the game mode. For example, the default Cube game mode allows the player to perform jumps, the Ball game mode lets the player change gravity, while the Ship game mode allows the player to fly.[2] The Dual game mode duplicates the icon, allowing the player to control both at the same time or each individually in Two-Player mode. Other elements may change the player's speed and size.[5]

Each level has an accompanying song. Timing and rhythm are crucial, and the music often synchronizes with a level's gameplay and design elements.[1][2][7] Geometry Dash includes 26 developer-made levels, four of which are platformer levels located in The Tower section.[3][8] Each level is assigned one of six difficulties: "Easy", "Normal", "Hard", "Harder", "Insane", and "Demon".[RT 1] Each Main level contains three secret coins, requiring the player to take an alternate pathway or complete a task to obtain them.[9][10] The player must obtain a certain number of secret coins before the demon levels can be played.[9]

There are several collectibles and currencies that can be obtained in various ways. Completing classic levels will award the player with stars, and platformer levels will award moons.[3] Levels will also award mana orbs, with 500 mana orbs rewarding a key. Keys can be used to unlock chests in the Treasure Room, which will give various rewards.[11] There are also daily chests which will award diamonds, mana orbs,[12] and may award shards, the first of which also being obtainable through completing quests and certain user-made levels.[13] Mana orbs and diamonds can be used in shops to purchase icon designs (skins) and other cosmetics.[13][14] Vaults can be unlocked after obtaining certain amounts of collectibles, where entering codes can unlock customization options for the player icon.[11][15]

User-generated content

Geometry Dash features the ability to upload and play user-made levels. These levels may use music from the main levels or feature custom music imported from Newgrounds.[2] Players may also use music from 10 selected artists,[RT 2] as well as music from the British record label NoCopyrightSounds.[16] Certain user levels are featured in collections known as "Gauntlets" and "Map Packs", or individually as "Daily Levels", "Weekly Demons", or "Event Levels", which will reward players additional collectibles upon completion.[RT 1][13] Some user levels also contain user (silver) coins, which are similar to secret coins.[15][12] User levels may be rated one of the six difficulties the developer levels have, or given the "Auto" difficulty if user input is not required to complete the level.[RT 1] User-made demon levels are divided into five additional difficulties: "Easy Demon", "Medium Demon", "Hard Demon", "Insane Demon", and "Extreme Demon", many of which are significantly more challenging than the three official demon levels.[17]

Through the level editor, players have created over a hundred million online levels.[b] Some players have recreated entire video games within the level editor, including Super Mario Kart, Five Nights at Freddy's, and Celeste, among others.[18] Some parts of the community are dedicated to making levels as difficult as possible. The community maintains a list of the 150 hardest demon levels in Geometry Dash (known as the "Demonlist"), which is regularly updated. The verification and completion of these levels are inspected by the list's moderators to ensure that they are not done illegitimately.[17]

Development

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 studying civil engineering. He abandoned his course as he became more interested in the video game industry.[19] Topala operated Rune Digital with Niklas Dennerståhl and Daniel Rocque Bengtsson, developing the video games Forlorn and Kingdom Escape. Both were nominees for the 2012 and 2013 Swedish Game Awards respectively.[20] Forlorn ended up winning the award for Best Mobile Game, but it and Kingdom Escape were eventually scrapped.[21] By 2012, Topala had founded RobTop Games, releasing Boomlings, a puzzle video game released in May 2012 for iOS.[22][23] Topala continued to create video games, releasing Memory Mastermind in January 2013[24] and Boomlings MatchUp in February 2013.[25]

According to Topala, Geometry Dash began as a platformer that could have moved in any direction. He wanted it to be a tribute to the "Super Mario Bros.–style" platformers he played when he was young, and remarked "there really was no detailed plan. It simply started as a template with a cube that could crash and jump". Other games such as The Impossible Game, Super Meat Boy, and Bit.Trip Runner inspired Topala to make Geometry Dash.[19] In the beta version, Geometry Dash was called Geometry Jump.[RT 3] It was developed on the Cocos2d game engine[26] and took Topala about four months to create.[19] The official trailer was released on 2 August 2013,[RT 4] and Geometry Dash would release on iOS and Android on 13 August.[c] It would later release on Windows Phone and Steam the following year on 12 June 2014[RT 5] and 22 December 2014 respectively.[28]

Post-release

Since its release, Geometry Dash has received several updates, adding new levels, game modes, player icons and other features. In August 2015, update 2.0 was released. The update introduced the user coin system, teleportation portals, the Robot game mode, and moving objects.[6][d] In January 2017, update 2.1 was released, introducing the Spider game mode and the level Fingerdash.[30] The next update, update 2.2, had been teased since November 2017[RT 6] but would not be released for nearly 7 years. In August 2023, Topala hosted a YouTube livestream celebrating the 10-year anniversary of Geometry Dash which revealed the release date to be in October,[RT 7] though this was delayed, with 2.2 being released on 19 December 2023.[18] It introduced the Swing game mode, the level Dash, and platformer mode with four platformer levels.[3] From February[RT 8] to April 2024,[RT 2] 10 artists songs to the music library, and in June, Topala partnered with NoCopyrightSounds to add their music to Geometry Dash as well.[16]

Other games

Release timeline
2013Geometry Dash
Geometry Dash Lite
2014
2015Geometry Dash Meltdown
2016Geometry Dash World
2017Geometry Dash SubZero

Geometry Dash Lite

Geometry Dash Lite is a free version released on 12 September 2013.[31] Lite includes most of the levels in the original game and a few selected user levels. It also has a significantly more limited selection of character customization options, lacking many icons, colors, and other content in the full game.[31][32]

Spin-offs

In November 2015, Topala posted a teaser on Twitter about a "secret project" he had been working on, calling it Geometry Dash Meltdown.[33] He posted a trailer on 16 December,[RT 9] and it would release on the 19th. It includes three levels featuring songs by F-777.[34] In December 2016, Topala released his second spin-off game, Geometry Dash World, which includes ten levels featuring music from Dex Arson, Waterflame and F-777. It also features a selection of user levels, including weekly demons, event levels, and a select list of featured levels.[35] In December 2017, Topala released a third spin-off game, Geometry Dash SubZero, containing three levels with music from BoomKitty, MDK, and Bossfight.[36]

Famidash

Famidash version of Electroman Adventures, the thirteenth level

Famidash[e], a fan-developed "demake" of Geometry Dash, was released for the NES in October 2024.[37] It recreates the original's gameplay and visuals in 6502 assembly, and supports input from a controller or the SNES Mouse.[37] At launch, Famidash featured the first 14 developer-created Geometry Dash levels with chiptune remakes of their songs, as well as many major gameplay elements such as gamemodes, orbs, and practice controls.[38] After multiple updates, all official levels from Geometry Dash have been remade, alongside a selection of user-generated levels that have had their music and gameplay recreated.[37] The developers have also stated their intentions to crowdfund the creation of a physical Famidash cartridge.[38]

Reception

Geometry Dash's music, along with its graphics, have been highly praised. Andrei Dobra at Softpedia called it "gorgeous-looking", praising the animations and vibrant colors.[1] David Ingrusee at Indie Hive said that the graphics have the potential to be "excessively beautiful", although that some levels' decoration was overly distracting.[2] The in-game music has been met with acclaim; Dobra described the music as "phenomenal", further praising how it "flawlessly" complements Geometry Dash's action and level design, although stated that restarting a level many times makes some songs annoying.[1] Ingrusee further commented on the quantity of music available, writing that the player "could jump to the beat of literally any genre".[2]

The gameplay was also met with generally high regards. Ingrusee said that players "would sink in hours into Geometry Dash" in order to complete a level.[2] Its high difficulty, however, has been criticized, with Chris Morris at Common Sense Media describing it as "maddening",[39] and Dobra finding Geometry Dash potentially too hard for some players to enjoy.[1] Rob Rich at 148Apps also felt it to be frustratingly difficult, although argues "that's sort of the point", and that the satisfaction of completing a level still made the experience worth it.[4] Dobra similarly expressed that it can feel too difficult at times, but that it never felt unfair.[1]

The level editor feature and the user-generated content was met with approval. Rich considered the editor to be "surprisingly simple",[4] while Ingrusee enjoyed the amount of variety that the user-made levels had to offer, calling the amount of levels "uncountable".[2] Dobra commented that the level editor was "pretty solid" and that the user levels offered "really imaginative experiences".[1]

Sales

Geometry Dash quickly gained popularity after its release. In June 2014 it had become the most popular paid iPhone app in Canada[40] and topped the paid iPhone games charts for three weeks in January 2015.[41][42][43] In February 2015, Topala reported it had reached nearly 80 million downloads.[RT 10] By September 2018, the mobile version had earned an estimated $21 million in revenue and received 242 million downloads.[44] In 2019 Breakit reported that RobTop Games had earned kr 75,200,000 in profit the previous year, and a total profit of kr 313,000,000 for the previous four.[45] The number of concurrent players on Steam has been steadily rising, reaching over 9,000 after the release of update 2.1[46] and peaks of 15,000 in 2021 and 16,000 in 2022. Geometry Dash saw a particular spike in popularity after the release of update 2.2 in December 2023, pulling in over 88,000 concurrent Steam players after its release.[47] In December 2025, this record was broken during a sale, reaching over 92,000 concurrent players.[48] This continued to rise into January 2026, when the concurrent player count reached over 100,000.[49]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Dobra, Andrei (9 January 2015). "Geometry Dash Review". Softpedia. Archived from the original on 31 July 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Ingrusee, David (8 December 2019). "Geometry Dash Review – Jumping to the Music". Indie Hive. Archived from the original on 30 April 2025. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d e Flifal, Mohamed (9 January 2024). "Geometry Dash: Everything Added And Changed In Update 2.2". TheGamer. Archived from the original on 19 July 2025. Retrieved 22 July 2025.
  4. ^ a b c d e Rich, Rob (14 August 2013). "Geometry Dash Review". 148Apps. Archived from the original on 14 July 2025. Retrieved 6 August 2025.
  5. ^ a b Flifal, Mohamed (27 December 2023). "How To Use The Level Editor In Geometry Dash". TheGamer. Archived from the original on 9 April 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
  6. ^ a b Musgrave, Shaun (26 August 2015). "The Version 2.0 Update For 'Geometry Dash' Just Hit The App Store". TouchArcade. Archived from the original on 11 March 2026. Retrieved 19 March 2026.
  7. ^ Rota, Michele (31 December 2023). "Music Syncing as Intermedial Translation". Sound Stage Screen. 3 (1). doi:10.54103/sss18678. ISSN 2784-8949.
  8. ^ Dalugdug, Mandy (27 June 2024). "NoCopyrightSounds and Geometry Dash team up to provide free music for gamers". Music Business Worldwide. Archived from the original on 24 July 2025. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  9. ^ a b Lagace, Marc (7 May 2017). "Geometry Dash: Best tips, tricks, and cheats!". iMore. Archived from the original on 30 July 2018. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  10. ^ Lambourne, Aidan (22 December 2023). "How The Tower works in Geometry Dash — Strategy and Mechanics Explained". Prima Games. Archived from the original on 12 July 2025. Retrieved 23 August 2025.
  11. ^ a b Hadley, Jupiter (17 December 2023). "Geometry Dash vault codes". Pocket Gamer. Archived from the original on 7 March 2025. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
  12. ^ a b Flifal, Mohamed (10 January 2024). "Geometry Dash: How To Get Keys". TheGamer. Archived from the original on 28 September 2025. Retrieved 21 March 2026.
  13. ^ a b c Harrison, Christian (22 December 2023). "How To Get And Use Diamonds In Geometry Dash". TheGamer. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2025.
  14. ^ Lubczynski, Dawid (22 December 2023). "Geometry Dash (GD) - Scratch's Shop not Working Explained". Gamepressure. Archived from the original on 13 June 2025. Retrieved 21 March 2026.
  15. ^ a b Khan, Akib Aditya (27 December 2023). "Geometry Dash Vault of Secret codes for December 2023". Prima Games. Archived from the original on 13 July 2025. Retrieved 17 March 2026.
  16. ^ a b Sheehan, Gavin (26 June 2024). "NoCopyrightSounds Partners With Interactive Music Game Geometry Dash". Bleeding Cool. Archived from the original on 7 June 2025. Retrieved 19 March 2026.
  17. ^ a b Skubich, Daz (29 June 2025). "Geometry Dash Demonlist 2025". Pocket Tactics. Archived from the original on 18 July 2025. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  18. ^ a b Zollner, Amelia (1 January 2024). "Geometry Dash's Latest Update Allows Players to Recreate Mario Kart, Five Nights at Freddy's, and More". IGN. Archived from the original on 20 July 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  19. ^ a b c Dormehl, Luke (27 June 2014). "Smart strategies fuel Geometry Dash's slow jog to success". Cult of Mac. Archived from the original on 19 July 2025. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  20. ^ "Rune Digital". Swedish Game Awards. Archived from the original on 6 April 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  21. ^ "Hall of Fame". Swedish Game Awards. 2025. Archived from the original on 15 August 2025. Retrieved 23 September 2025.
  22. ^ "Boomlings". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 15 December 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  23. ^ Caplan, Lisa (24 May 2012). "Boomlings review". 148Apps. Archived from the original on 17 August 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  24. ^ "Memory Mastermind". Metacritic. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  25. ^ "Boomlings MatchUp". Metacritic. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  26. ^ "Cocos Game Showcase - August 2021". Cocos.com. 27 August 2021. Archived from the original on 29 August 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  27. ^ "Geometry Dash". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 10 June 2025. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  28. ^ "Geometry Dash: TODA la información - PC". Vandal (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 19 November 2025. Retrieved 22 March 2026.
  29. ^ Musgrave, Shaun (2 February 2015). "Update Mondays: 'Geometry Dash', 'Farm Heroes Saga', 'Real Racing 3', 'Doug Dug', And More". TouchArcade. Archived from the original on 16 March 2025. Retrieved 19 March 2026.
  30. ^ Tasos, Lazarides (18 January 2017). "'Geometry Dash' 2.1 Update Adds 'Fingerdash' Level, 'Spider' Gamemode, and More". TouchArcade. Archived from the original on 16 June 2025. Retrieved 19 March 2026.
  31. ^ a b "Geometry Dash Lite". App Store. 20 December 2024. Archived from the original on 28 June 2025. Retrieved 6 August 2025.
  32. ^ Hatton, Paul (26 January 2025). "This is the most addictive app I've ever used". TechRadar. Archived from the original on 7 June 2025. Retrieved 24 July 2025.
  33. ^ Nelson, Jared (20 November 2015). "RobTop Games Teases 'Geometry Dash Meltdown' On Twitter". TouchArcade. Archived from the original on 10 November 2024. Retrieved 25 March 2026.
  34. ^ "Geometry Dash Meltdown". App Store. Archived from the original on 25 April 2021. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  35. ^ "Geometry Dash World". App Store. Archived from the original on 25 April 2021. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  36. ^ "Geometry Dash SubZero". App Store. Archived from the original on 25 April 2021. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  37. ^ a b c kandowontu (17 November 2025). "Famidash (NES) Homebrew". ROMHackPlaza. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
  38. ^ a b Yarwood, Jack (11 October 2024). "The Hit Mobile Game 'Geometry Dash' Gets Impressive Fan Demake For NES". Time Extension. Hookshot Media. Retrieved 8 April 2026.
  39. ^ Morris, Chris. "Geometry Dash". Common Sense Media. Archived from the original on 28 December 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2026.
  40. ^ "'Geometry Dash' top paid iPhone app in Canada". Toronto Star. The Canadian Press. 24 June 2014. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  41. ^ Tagliaferri, Simone (15 January 2015). "Classifiche App Store di questa settimana: Geometry Dash e Minecraft in testa". Multiplayer.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on 16 July 2025. Retrieved 20 March 2026.
  42. ^ Pugliese, Tommaso (22 January 2015). "Classifiche App Store, Geometry Dash è primo". Multiplayer.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on 27 March 2026. Retrieved 20 March 2026.
  43. ^ Pugliese, Tommaso (27 January 2015). "Classifiche App Store, Geometry Dash sempre in testa". Multiplayer.it (in Italian). Retrieved 20 March 2026.
  44. ^ Spannbauer, Adam (September 2018). "After Five Years, Geometry Dash Revenue Races to $21 Million". SensorTower. Archived from the original on 5 December 2024. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  45. ^ Blixt, Thomas (21 May 2019). "Nytt miljonregn över Robtop Games – vinst på 60 miljoner kronor". Breakit (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 1 April 2025. Retrieved 23 September 2025.
  46. ^ Borondo, Sara (22 December 2023). "Después de 7 años, Geometry Dash recibe una gran actualización y dispara su máximo de jugadores". Vandal (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 20 June 2025. Retrieved 20 March 2026.
  47. ^ Lane, Rick (21 December 2023). "Game receives huge free update following 10th anniversary and instantly quintuples its previous player-count high". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 22 July 2025. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  48. ^ Krivov, Dmitry. "11 Years After Release, a Player Record Has Been Broken in Geometry Dash". iXBT Games. Retrieved 14 March 2026.
  49. ^ Foster, George (11 January 2026). "Geometry Dash Hits New Player Peak 12 Years After Release". TheGamer. Archived from the original on 2 February 2026. Retrieved 14 March 2026.

Primary sources

  1. ^ a b c d Robert Topala. Geometry Dash (2.207 ed.). RobTop Games.
  2. ^ a b RobTop Games (20 April 2024). Geometry Dash Artist Reveal 10: Frums (Video). Retrieved 24 March 2026 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ RobTopGames (29 April 2013). Geometry Jump by RobTopGames (Beta). Retrieved 18 August 2025 – via YouTube.
  4. ^ a b RobTopGames (2 August 2013). Official Geometry Dash Trailer. Retrieved 18 August 2025 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ Topala, Robert [@RobTopGames] (12 June 2014). "Geometry Dash is now available for Windows Phone!" (Tweet). Retrieved 12 August 2025 – via Twitter.
  6. ^ RopTopGames (21 November 2017). Fun with 2.2: The Random Trigger (Video). Retrieved 24 March 2026 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ RobTopGames (13 August 2023). Geometry Dash 10-Year Anniversary (Video). Retrieved 24 March 2026 – via YouTube.
  8. ^ RobTopGames (10 February 2024). Geometry Dash Artist Reveal 1: Camellia (Video). Retrieved 30 June 2025 – via YouTube.
  9. ^ RobTopGames (16 December 2015). Geometry Dash Meltdown Trailer. Archived from the original on 25 April 2021. Retrieved 18 August 2025 – via YouTube.
  10. ^ Topala, Robert (11 February 2015). "Here are 5 things I learned that went into Geometry Dash and led to its success with nearly 80M downloads". Game Developer. Archived from the original on 15 June 2024. Retrieved 23 September 2025.

Notes

  1. ^ Often abbreviated by the playerbase as GD or GMD.
  2. ^ Based on the most recent in-game level ID values.[RT 1]
  3. ^ The official trailer on YouTube states the release date for iOS and Android as 13 August 2013.[RT 4] Metacritic gives the release date on iOS as 13 August 2013.[27] A review on 148Apps, conducted a day after its release on 14 August 2013, states that it was available on both platforms.[4]
  4. ^ There were other updates released prior to this.[29]
  5. ^ A portmanteau of Famicom and Geometry Dash.
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