Worms 2: Armageddon tells us you can still be good, even when you’re exceedingly simple.
Worms has been around for 14 years now, and despite humans and games growing ever more advanced with their engineering and mechanical builds, remakes of classic games stand the test of time and continually show up with brilliant originality. Worms 2: Armageddon is no different, the principal of looking somewhere and holding a button to gauge the strength of a shot is back again, better than ever.
WHAT YOU’LL LIKE:
It’s still Worms
You point-and-shoot your way around in Worms 2: Armageddon, and feels just as old school as any other Worms title. The wind can sway your shot, but timing a grenade to perfection and arcing a rocket over a gigantic hill can not only completely sway a battle’s finale, but also leave you with the reward that only a Worms game can give: total mischief.
Having a selection of outrageous weapons freshens up Worms 2: Armageddon, Super Bunker Buster’s result in even the sneakiest of Ninja Ropers facing certain death and the irritating Sentry Gun lets nobody nearby. Old favourites like the Holy Hand Grenade and Sheep return, and even they have new and upgraded variations.
Your magnet can do all kinds of things
Environmental hazards, so to say, are once again placed conveniently around the maps to ensure you don’t land somewhere you shouldn’t. Mines tick and tock as you anxiously wait for them to blow your worm to the awaiting water following a mistimed leap, and the toxic barrels now emit flames upon explosion, potentially handy for blocking off an area. You could always blowtorch underneath them though, as everything is once again fully destructible.
Tons of voices and personality
Almost every accent can be dropped into your worms throat, including Formula 1 and Movie Trailer style attempts, which are absolutely hilarious. Your worm can also have custom hats, skins and victory dances, giving you total freedom to create the craziest group of fighters possible. Very rarely will you find anyone with the same style as you online, the game really lets you be and do what you want.
Interesting and lengthy single player
The 35 levels are well laid out, and regularly leave everything up to you in order to complete successfully. You may start out at the bottom of a tall level, against the odds where you can easily be shot down on, but ease you into creating your own style of play. At interventions before moving on to the next area, you are set tricky challenges which can be either reaching a destination with a specific and restricted number of items, or racing to a checkpoint with a jetpack before the clock runs down. After completion of each level you’re rewarded with points to spend in the games shop, of which you can choose from landscapes, missions, weapons. and other neat items. It’s a big improvement over the original Worms title, and takes a lengthy amount of time to complete.
Just do this if you get really confused
Fantastic online play
Four players can play both locally and online, in game modes that require you to race, hold a fort, or enter a straight up deathmatch. All the weapons from the single player are available and like any Worms game, is the flagship selling point of the title. It runs seamlessly in every mode, and may well be your first destination over the single player.
WHAT YOU WON’T LIKE:
“So close yet so far” - You
Being pipped at the end of a long fight because you have slightly less HP than the opposite worm due to a fall is massively frustrating. Especially in the levels where you have to work from the ground up, Worms 2: Armageddon is viable to a few rage quits when you get so close to the finishing line after spending 10 minutes perfecting the wind speed and power of your shots.
RECOMMENDATION:
While Worms 2: Armageddon may not bring anything spectacularly new to the table, who’s to say it needed bulking up from the first game anyway? The graphics are a lot prettier, and Team 17’s aim to bring the complete experience is a definite success with the crafty single player adding to the frenzied multiplayer. DLC will almost certainly appear in the coming months, adding more madness into the game. Buy it.
Worms 2: Armageddon
Systems: XBLA
Developer: Team17 Software Ltd
Publisher: Team17 Software Ltd
Find: Amazon, Goozex, Xbox Live Marketplace
All reviews are based on final retail code unless otherwise noted.
Want to know more about the game? Just ask! We love to hear ourselves type, and might even say something vaguely resembling an answer to your question(s)…
