Review – Worms: Ultimate Mayhem

Arcade Strategy

How do they taste?

Danny

When it comes to Worms, the public consensus on which is better out of the 2D or 3D games is unanimous, the 2D games are the better product. With that said that does not make the 3D Worms games bad per se.  They  just are not as good as the 2D games. Worms: Ultimate Mayhem is essentially Worms 4 with a bunch of new gameplay tweaks and with a stack of Worms 3D content spliced in for good measure. So if you are a die hard 2D Worms fan you should  already realise this game is probably not for you. But for the rest of you who might be interested keep reading because all is not what is seems.

Gameplay arguments aside, Worms still looks better in 2D.

First of all it’s not ALL the content from Worms 3D that has been included with this version of Worms 4. For some reason as of right now it’s impossible to unlock the Worms 3D landscapes or randomly generated lands for multiplayer which is a shame but apparently Team 17 are working on a patch to fix that but again as of right now it’s not available. The ‘Wormpot’ feature which acts like a crazy match-affecting slot machine is also not available in online multiplayer either which is a shame because it adds a Mortal Kombat kode vibe to proceedings.

There where some technical issues too when this game was first launched but Team 17 released a patch within a couple of days and fixed the whole “screen has gone black” error that prevented me from having any fun with the game at first. Then there was the fact that Team 17 decided it would be a good idea to default to control sticks to inverted, really who does that shit still? It’s 2011 people!

While there is some stuff missing from this “ultimate” 3D Worms game, Team 17 did add some new things that actually benefit gameplay a lot. The neat picture-in-picture feature allows the player to track their shots and move about at the same time which is great for getting back in to a safe area after firing. Then there are the binoculars and auto aim assists which help the player aim better which has been a long standing complaint from fans of the 2D games. Something that I never get used to in any 3D game is the grenades, they seem to be super bouncy and because of the 3D geometry have a real randomised element about them. That said with a bit of practice I did manage to get better with them but I find that players tend to stick with bazookas and shotguns more now as they don’t roll around all over the place like the grenades seem too.

Then there is the actual main content of the game itself. There are a ton of worthwhile things you can unlock in the Worm Shop by earning gold coins though completion of the single player missions from both Worms 3D and Worms 4. As per usual in a Worms game you can create your own team of worms and give them silly hats, glasses and facial hair and such but a new feature introduced in Worms 4 (and is in WUM too) allows you to make your own ‘Team Super Weapon’ which is fairly customisable and yet has a decent balancing mechanic to it so it’s impossible to make overpowered weaponry.

Fuck it, you think of a caption.

But how is the multiplayer I hear you ask? Well I have been playing this game exclusively with friends now for roughly ten hours of play time. There are two main reasons for this. The first being it’s always better to play these kind of games with your friends anyway because the banter is so much better and you know you mates are not going to use super cheesy tactics for the most part. The second is that when I did play with random people it took awhile to get in to a game (guessing because not many people have bought it) and then when I started to win the game they suddenly dropped. If you can get a few friends to buy the game or invite them around to yours, you will find it a much more enjoyable experience in the long run.

Overall I enjoyed my time with Worms: Ultimate Mayhem. It still has all the trademark goofiness and destruction that you have come to know and love from the series over the years but with the differences you get from the 3D gameplay. If you can get your head around that, and some of the slight technical issues the game has, and get a few friends to play with you this game is still very fun and boasts a lot of content. If you have never checked out a 3D Worms game this is the one you should to try. But I would suggest checking out the demo first, just in case.

Rating: 7/10