Recommendation: It's a solid game and it's a great port to the iOS, but at $4.99, I'm not sure it's worth it unless you're in love with the franchise. If you're on the fence, wait for it to go on sale.
Worms 3 is definitely a Worms game (it's practically the iOS port of Worms Revolution, but with a few tweaks). For those of you unfamiliar with the franchise, Worms is about blowing each other up with various explosives and firearms.
Source: http://thisismyjoystick.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/worms-sheep.jpg
And sheep. (picture from Worms Reloaded)
And it's pretty fun in the process, I might add. But I was admittedly a little hesitant to transition into the iOS version. Playing on the PC, all the menus are easy to use and the game feels very open. A game like this requires quite a bit of space just to view the weapons, not to mention getting a feel for the stage and trying to plan your attacks. Even the console version is a bit of a stretch for me, but for the most part I feel like consoled versions still have enough buttons and a big enough screen to do Worms justice.
But I've had bad luck with some iOS games when you're required to move using a false d-pad before. And getting the grandiose scale also seemed out of reach. I can happily say, however, that this entry did Worms justice.
The controls work quite well. You move right or left using the d-pad, and aiming weapons is performed by up and down on the d-pad. Given that the game is generally only two dimensional in movement, this works fairly well. I wasn't a fan of the game's lack of description on the subject if you just straight into a quick match, but after going back through things properly it became obvious that the campaign contained a fully fledged tutorial. And a pretty good one, at that.
Body Count: Because we have to remind you that you're a lunatic every now and then
The game plays just like other Worms titles. You have an arsenal to pick from, and your goal is to kill your enemies before they kill you. I will say, however, that this entry in the series, like most of them, feels the same as the rest. The weapons don't really change, the stages always look pretty much the same. The transition into 3D was a big deal for the franchise, but this 2D game feels like the rest of them.
Luckily, there are a few nuances that help boost this game in my head. First off, the very fact that it's a successful port onto the iOS is a pretty strong plus. I recently played the port of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and that was just the classic game. But it was on my iPad, so I loved it. Am I a sucker? Maybe. But I think when a games is put onto a nice, mobile platform, that's a good move (assuming it works).
Secondly, there are upgrade cards in this game, and those are not present in any other Worms game I've played (although, to be fair, it's been a long time since I played the other versions). These had various boosts, such as low gravity or resisting fall damage. They do a very good job of actually altering the gameplay quite a bit. Those kept the game from being a carbon copy of the other games in the series. Honestly, the cards livened things up enough to make me coming back for several more games than I would have if it was just a mobile version of Worms.
Let's be honest, most of the cards are "Help Me Blow Shit Up Faster", but that's also the unofficial name of the game...
If you're new to the franchise, I think this would be a fine place to start. As I mentioned, the tutorial is really good and this is a fantastic game to play by yourself or with friends (it offers online play as well as pass and play). If you're a Worms veteran, this is a pretty strong game in the series and it works well on mobile devices.
Unfortunately, it's currently $4.99. This is still very worth it if you're not sure about the franchise but you want to try it out cheaply. If you fall in love with it, you can buy some of the classic Worms titles for the Xbox 360 in a $10 bundle. But if you're on the fence, I'd wait until it goes on sale.
Scorecard:
Category
|
Score
|
Time Value
|
8
|
Money Value
|
5
|
Originality
|
8
|
Ryplayability
|
8
|
Fulfillment
|
8
|
Final Score
|
7.4
|
Let me know what you think of Worms 3!
Until next time,
Ryan
Images courtesy of Apple except where noted
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