In 1995, a company based in Yorkshire, England named Team17 released a game under the simple name of Worms. A lot was expected of the game, after the company had previously released several highly regarded titles, starting with beat-em-up, Full Contact on the Amiga. This was followed by other successful games on the system throughout the early 90s, such as Alien Breed and Assassin. Worms was Team17’s first multiplatform release after initial Amiga exclusivity and featured turn-based gameplay, where one team of worms aims to kill the opposing team, until there is only one team standing. The game featured an array of weapons, such as shotguns, bazookas, and grenades, but what the series ultimately gained its popularity and cult following from was its bizarre and unusual weaponry, such as the exploding sheep. These trademark weapons continued to be included in the games’ sequels, like Worms Armageddon – the first game in the Worms series to be released on the new generation of consoles (Dreamcast, Playstation 1, and Nintendo 64). One of the stranger weapons added was the infamous Holy Hand Grenade, which triggered a ‘Hallelujah!’ sound effect when thrown, in homage to the well-loved film Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
The series continued to implement very similar gameplay mechanics as more games came out, but the character design changed dramatically. Worms 1 on the Amiga (see below, top segment of picture) saw tall, thinner smirking worms, a stark contrast when compared to those portrayed in Worms 2 on the PC (see below, middle segment of picture), who were shorter, fatter, and…down-right angry! The series ventured into 3D in 2003, with the aptly named Worms 3D, which was the beginning of a newer, cleaner design for the many charismatic protagonists of the series (see below, bottom segment of picture). This character design was retained for the 2007 downloadable release of Worms on the Xbox 360, and later, on the Playstation 3 and iPhone.
The Worms have changed a lot down the years.
Initially titled as Worms HD during development, the title went back to the games’ 2D routes, to the delight of many faithful fans of the series. Visually, the game is a lot brighter and sharper than previous titles, during gameplay and also the menus. Menus are extremely quick to load, and with the initially charming, but ultimately annoying music repeating every minute or so, you’ll be eager to get straight into a match, rather than browse through the menus for too long. There are several different level themes in the game, two of which (The hell and jungle landscapes) are paid DLC in the 360 version of the game, but are included free of charge in the PS3 version, possibly as a ‘sorry’ gift after the game was released more than 2 years after the Xbox release. The levels themselves are randomly generated online, and the developers claim that you will ‘never see the same level twice’. Priced at a modest $12.99/£7.99/€9.99 on PSN, the title encourages gamers who have yet to dabble in the Worms series to give it a chance, with 3 helpful tutorials, introducing the basic game mechanics. This is a much better way to get to grips with the game, rather than a long ‘how to play’ wall-of-text option…which also happens to be included! Worms offers 5 different difficulty settings, ranging from Beginner to ‘Full Wormage’. A very useful feature within the game enables you to create your own game style, allowing you to modify the number of rounds, time designated to every player for each turn, the round time, retreat time, and mine detonation time. You also have the ability to create a custom weapon set, effectively giving you the ability to create unlimited super sheep only matches! Awesome! You can also limit the amount of ammo each weapon is designated. Using the default teams (Marines, Champions, Old Skool, Doctors, Clowns, Rookies, Warlords, Hotshots and Boffins) is fun, but if you’re as eager to create your own team as I was then you’ll be pleased, as you are able to pick a name, give them a unique voice style (you have more than 60 light hearted tones to chose from), A unique gravestone (should you need one!), and if they are an AI driven enemy, you can even chose their personality traits, from being vengeful, to being stupid. You can also change each worm within the team’s name. The leaderboard functionality not only allows you to compare your score from the Challenges with people from around the world, but also with those on your friends list.
Pick your weapon!
The single player portion of the game includes 20 deathmatch levels against AI opposition that get increasingly difficult as you continue. Whilst you can get a decent amount of enjoyment out of playing against AI opposition, you will soon feel inclined to venture online, and this is truly where the game shines. Worms features full voice-chat support, allowing for up to 4 players to talk (and more importantly trash talk!) amongst each other online during the match. From what I’ve played, the PSN version of the game works incredibly well online, with no signs of lag or slowdown, which could be a potentially game-breaking feature in a fast paced title such as this – Well, it’s definitely one of the faster turn-based games anyway. Rounds tend to last between 5-10 minutes each, depending on the standard of opposition, and whilst matches online are competitive, you never get the feeling that they’re too competitive, as the humorous voice-work for each work can break the ice in the most tense of situations. If you prefer sitting down on the couch with friends for some local multiplayer battles, then Worms should definitely have some appeal to you, with support, again, for up to 4 players locally.
Matches are easy to come across online, as the series’ faithful fans still turnout day after day to face new opposition over the PSN and Xbox Live, and despite having a slightly smaller number of weapons to chose from when compared to certain other games in the series, the sheer variety of arms should prove satisfying to anyone who has any interest in the title, with more than 20 to chose from. Whilst the audio aspect is let down slightly by the mediocre and often repeated music, it is made up for by the character and charm of the worms’ voices. Long-term replayability and an impressive array of customizable features will keep you coming back for more, and while the game’s mechanics aren’t drastically different to those introduced way back in 1995, the foundations the series was built upon still hold strong, feel satisfying, and above everything else, still prove to be great fun. Why change a working formula? A recommended buy at a bargain price, can’t beat that!
I'm a sheep.
By ZippyPatrick
