Worms. The first game I ever purchased. Back in the days of Playstation...the massive grey box of wonder! So it's safe to say I've always had a soft spot for Team 17's top franchise. I've bought most of the subsequent games, with Worms: Armageddon being a particular favourite. So it was with much glee that I downloaded the latest offering of Worms: Revolution.
And so far, I'm not disappointed.
The game goes back to the traditional gameplay style. While I enjoyed the 3D games, Worms will always be better suited to 2D. However, the game is now rendered using a new 3D engine (I believe this is known as 2.5D...essentially, its the classic 2D gameplay presented with 3D visuals). This is a big step forward, and not unwelcome as it adds a new depth to the terrain whilst keeping the traditional gameplay.
Along with the all new engine comes physics. Now this is where the fun begins! The new physics bring some interesting uses for water. Before now, water was limited to the bottom of the level, and was universally lethal. Now we have pools of water dotted around, which can harm submerged worms, and new weapons like water pistols. Just like that, new and more creative ways for eliminating worms opens up. Pool of water above a worm...bazooka the bottom and watch the water pour down and wash them away!
It also introduces objects that are subject to these physics, such as lighters, water bottles, vials of poison; each not only affected by physics, but dangerous in different ways (e.g. the lighter is fairly explosive), giving you new and exciting ways of blowing worms to pieces!
So graphically, its a great step forward. The audio hasn't changed much over the years, but then it doesn't really have to. The explosions sound good, the voice-overs are as good as ever, and the music is typical background jiggle. It fits the game.
In typical Worms style, there are loads of game modes available to play, from the classic game, to forts to a single-player campaign. The multiplayer is seasoned with essentially the same modes, although I confess I'm not a multiplayer gamer. There is online play for those that like to kill the Worms of people you've never meet, or the local 4-player games that we know and love.
Of course, Worms wouldn't be the same without customization. While the options are more limited than Worms: Armageddon, they still have lots of variety. Worms names, Hats, victory dances, gravestones, and the wonderful choice of voices (my favourite one being the Movie Trailer voice!) are among the options.
They are also four worm types, each with strengths and weaknesses; the regular, jack-of-all-trades soldier we all know and love; the scientist, who can produce better weapons and health upgrade, although is weaker; the heavy, whose attacks are more powerful, can withstand more damage, but is insanely slow; the finally the scout, whose movement is ludicrously quick but would probably die if you sneezed on him!
The weapon list is shorter than previous games but they've kept the good weapons (banana bomb) and added some interesting additions (water strike...similar to an airstrike but dropped water balloons!). In a way I'm glad they limited the choice because I would spend most of my tuen figuring out which weapon to use!
For new players, there's a fantastic little tutorial when you first launch the game that highlights the main points, although it is slightly annoying for those that have player Worms before.
Having said all the above, there are some minor issues with it (although some may think I'm the only one that thinks these are problems!). The movement of worms over jagged terrain can leave your Worms slightly off from where you wanted it. The create drops have a tenancy to materialize on knife-edge terrain, wobble, then render themselves useless by dropping in the water and the bottom. The A.I. seems to drift off, doing nothing for the first half of their turn. And heaven forbid your team should died before the rest...I spend 20 minutes watch the remaining three A.I. Worms dig tunnels and skips their turns before one of them actually did something useful!
But those small issues aren't nearly enough to warp the fun out of this game. For any fan of Worms, past and present, this is a fantastic addition to the family. It produces the same never-know-how-this-will-play-out fun with a bunch of new features, more game modes than you can shake a stick at, and all for a ridiculously great price of £12 (I have the PC version through Steam).
If you haven't already...buy this game!
