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Publisher Team17 Software
Developer
Released: October 10, 2012
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Supported Features:
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What We Liked: What We Didn't: The Final Score: (?) |
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Worms Revolution The Worms franchise has seen countless new games since its first entry back in 1995 on the SNES, and while some of the sequels and spin offs have been great, others have been simply mediocre. Last year, Worms Ultimate Mayhem tried to return to the 3D environments first introduced in Worms 3D, but the execution on the concept was not the best. A 3D Worms game has always been something that sounded fun, and Team17 Software Limited has tried their hand at it many times, but there always seems to be a level of polish missing in the 3D Worms games. Fortunately, Worms Revolution returns to the classic 2D style that’s worked in the past, even if it doesn’t offer many significant changes.
If the word “revolution” being in the name is meant to be ironic, then it’s definitely a good fit, otherwise it’s simply misleading. Worms Revolution doesn’t break away from what’s defined the franchise for near two decades. The same weapons found in every other Worms game are largely still there including the baseball bat, bazooka, shotgun, minigun, dynamite, sheep, dragon ball, teleport, drill, and pretty much any other weapon you can think of. Not only does this make the game seem like a rehashing of old systems, but it also causes the matches to play out in similar fashion to every other game in the franchise. The big weapon change in Worms Revolution is the addition of water weapons. Water guns and water balloons allow for selective drowning of worms that are stuck in craters or holes. These weapons can prove useful in certain situations, but their usefulness is limited enough that it doesn’t often cause the action to shift away from constant bazooka blasts and grenade explosions. The truth is the same tactics that have worked in the past will still work now, and the strategic changes they do make in Worms Revolutions don’t end up making it all that much different. Worms Revolution introduces a class system for the worms that gives them unique abilities and traits in an attempt to add another level of complexity to the strategy. The Heavy is slow yet resilient, the Scout is quick and light, the Scientist heals the entire team after every round, and the Soldier is just the plain, well rounded worm. Each of these classes is supposed to have their strengths and weaknesses, but it’s almost as if they were conceived completely despite the rest of the game. Even though the Heavy is tough, his ability to take more damage is not all that useful considering it takes only a few direct hits from a bazooka to kill him just like the regular worms. He can also be knocked off ledges and drowned in water exactly like normal worms, making his extremely slow movement more trouble than it’s worth. Similarly, the Scientists heal ability is not all that useful because he really isn’t healing for a significant amount of health after each turn. This makes the Scientist and Heavy classes the same if not worse than regular old Soldier worms. The only real class with a noticeable advantage is the Scout because his speed and higher jumps actually give him a clear advantage when traversing the battlefield.
In fact, I think that really summarizes what Worms Revolution, and more specifically the Worms franchise, has become. There seems to be an inability to break away from what’s worked for the games in the past, while every attempted at changing things up is only brought down by them sticking to the age old formula. The fact that the name of this game has the word “revolution” says to me that Team17 Software Limited understands that Worms is getting stagnant and stale, which actually makes it even more disappointing that they weren’t able to make a game that separates itself from the past entries in the franchise; although, this may actually be a positive thing for some people. Worms Revolution is just another worms game, and that might be really appealing for both fans the series and those who haven’t played a worms game in a long time, but it’s definitely not going to attract anyone new. It’s really as simple as that. If you know you want some 2D Worms action, than Worms Revolution is probably for you, otherwise it would be a good idea to steer clear of this generally rehashed Worms game. Screenshots 
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Genre: Strategy
There are probably very few, if any, reading this Worms Revolution review who don’t actually know what a Worms game is, but I’ll give you the quick rundown for those who don’t. Worms Revolution is played in randomly generated 2D environments with teams of worms pitted against each other and fighting to the death. There are between two and four teams consisting of four worms each that take turns moving and attacking with a variety of weapons available in the worm’s arsenal. The goal of a game of Worms is simple: kill all of the opposing team’s worms before they kill your worms. Those who have somehow managed to avoid playing a Worms game will probably find the strategic elements of Worms Revolution to be satisfying and enjoyable, while those previously acquainted with Worms games will find that this game is far from the revolution the name implies.
Although the game is played in 2D, all the characters, stages, and backgrounds are actually 3D. This allows for better looking animations and more interesting backgrounds even if it does lack variety. It sticks with the cartoony style that has always been the theme of Worms games, and it looks nice I’ll give it that, but a total of four different background settings leave much to be desired in terms of presentation. The same can be said of the attempted humor and witty banter of the worms and narrator of the campaign missions. Maybe there was a day when I would have found the terrible humor and awfully delivered jokes funny, but I doubt it. Each campaign missions begins and ends with the narrator delivering a barrage of terrible non sequiturs that add nothing to the game other than a monotonous wait to get back to actually playing the game. I will say these types of jokes aren’t new to the Worms games, and even though they aren’t necessarily cringe worthy, it’d be better to simply do away with the unfunny style they’ve been holding onto for so 
