ic-games Review - Worms: World Party - Reviews, Previews and Interviews for PC, Xbox 360, PS2, PS3 and Wii

ic-games Review - Worms: World Party - Reviews, Previews and Interviews for PC, Xbox 360, PS2, PS3 and Wii ic-games Review - Home - Review, Preview and Interview for PC, Xbox,Xbox 360, PS2, PS3 and Wii

Worms: World Party

Information
Reviewer: James Collins
Developer: THQ Wireless
Publisher: Nokia
Reviewed: N-Gage
Genre: Turn-based Strategy
UK Release: 01st Apr 2005
Article Date: 24th Mar 2005
Difficulty: N/A
Retail Price: £29.99
Price Comparison:
0

Score Breakdown

Experience:
Game Play:
Graphics:
Sound:
Overall Score: 85%

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Pros

Old School fun

Multiplayer bluetooth

Lots of options

Cons

Occasional problems

Screenshots

3 of 8

Just about everyone knows about Team 17’s successful franchise “Worms”. Starting life in a young kid’s bedroom, it didn’t take long before gamers caught the craze. Ultimately Worms was released on just about every platform under the sun and now, courtesy of THQ Wireless, the N-Gage as well. And as IC-Games found out, it’s just the sort of title the N-Gage needed.

The thing is, while games like Splinter Cell may offer an interesting diversion on the Ngage, games like Worms: World Party get played until the batteries run down. Part of the reason is that Worms was always ‘all about the gameplay’ and never about the graphics. And the other reason is that the controls didn’t take a mastermind to decipher. Basically Worms: World Party never tries to pretend its something its not. . The original version brought us simplistic graphics, married with easy controls, wacky sound effects and of course pure gameplay. So what does this version bring? Well apart from the jazzed up menu screen you have something resembling the original version. And trust us, that’s a good thing.

For anyone who has missed out on all the fun so far, Worms: World Party has you leading out a team of Worms’s intent on destroying any other teams on the map. The rules of the game are pretty simple, taking turns, each team has a chance to move a selected worm and activate one of the numerous weapons and gadgets at their disposal. The beauty of the game is that the player really has to think about what weapon or gadget is right for the job all while a movement clock counts down. Gadgets can normally be used until the time runs out but once a weapon has been fired, or a worm falls too far, the turn is automatically over and damage calculated. With the terrain normally being bizarre, the first few turns normally consist of players frantically using gadgets (even weapons) to gain the best positions on the map, with the next few moves spent getting closer to the enemy. The weapons were always part of the magic of the original worms though and all the favourites have returned on the Ngage. Players can send in exploding sheep, bazookas or even get in close with shotguns and punches, or you can always rely on the ever faithful Airstrike.

Yes, the graphics are pretty basic but, as they did 10 years ago, suit the game perfectly. The wacky sound effects have returned and sound pretty decent on the Ngage. Hearing “Stupid!” as you make a mistake in one of the many different sound effects always raises a smile. And with multiple accents and styles available there’s plenty of other ways to customise your team. Partly that’s the beauty of the game, once you have named your team, named the individual team members and selected the accents, you begin to get fond of your team and with the N-Gage arena offering up all the team statistics you could ever hope for, your team has a chance of getting worldwide acclaim.

The Controls are every bit as easy to pick up as they are on the consoles. Movement is controlled by the D-Pad with orders issued using the keypad. Although the keypad also alters camera angles the primary orders are issued using the ‘4’ and ‘5’ key in combination with the D-Pad. Advanced players can alter the grenade bounce and fuse using the ‘1’ and ‘2’ key, and worms can jump in combination with movement using the ‘7’ and ‘8’ key. After only a few games, we promise you that the controls become second nature and feel perfectly at home on the N-Gage keypad, something not all developers have mastered.

As you would expect, up to 4 players can connect using Bluetooth and this is where the fun really begins. Teams can be created, worms can be named and friends can be lost. This is exactly what the Bluetooth connection was created for. As you would expect nowadays, Worms World Party is Arena Enabled which provides leaderboards, statistics and other additional downloads. Although Worms: World party is a multiplayer title at heart there’s still an abundance of offline material to explore at your leisure. The training mode teaches any would be worm assassin the basics in easy to understand missions. The learning curve is perfect offering the basics first with advanced tactics nearing the end. Anyone familiar with the original though would be better served with the two main game modes since everything should be self explanatory.

The mission mode has you fighting on predetermined landscapes completing certain objectives. It’s an enjoyable twist and does offer up some decent challenges. The mission mode also serves as an advert as to what can be created using the excellent terrain editor. Although not for the faint hearted, anyone who takes the time to edit their own maps will find some interesting terrains with personalised rules can be created; these of course can be played offline with computer controlled players, or via the trusty Bluetooth connection.

"We really see no reason why this shouldn’t be in every N-Gage owners collection."

A free download of Snakes, and now another classic retail game, things are certainly picking up for the N-Gage. Worms: World Party is exactly what he had hoped for, a faithful port of the original game with some advanced options. The Bluetooth connectivity adds the perfect shine to an already polished game and with the N-Gage arena offering up notoriety for your individual worms we really see no reason why this shouldn’t be in every N-Gage owners collection.

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N-Gage Arena Post & Win
August 15 -- September 15, 2005

Here's your chance to end your summer with a great prize that keeps the fun going long after the holidays are over! Enter the N-Gage Arena Post & Win competition, get to know your fellow gamers, and you may win some cool N-Gage prizes as well.

Prizes
The Grand Prize winner will receive a double set of gear and games so you can play against your best gaming buddy in the N-Gage Arena: two N-Gage QD game decks, two copies of six of the best N-Gage games, and two T-shirts! Two lucky winners will receive second prize packs of an N-Gage QD game deck plus three N-Gage games, and three winners will receive third prizes of an N-Gage QD game deck.

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