Worms 2: Armageddon Review – A flawed port beneath a flashy surface
App Type: Uncategorized
Our rating: 
By: Team17 Software
Version #: 1.06
Date Released: 2011-09-23
Developer: Team17 Software
Price: 4.99
User Rating:
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You can’t really go too wrong with a Worms games. Keep things 2D and turn-based, and you’re treated to the kind of fun, strategic gameplay that hasn’t fundamentally changed since the series started back in the early nineties. The few Worms games on the iPhone are a testament to the endless appeal of taking it in turns to blow the shit out of teams of cute, big-eyed worms.
Worms 2: Armageddon doesn’t change much from its predecessor, but what it does change is for the better. There are more weapons here, including the Armageddon bomb and more strategic ones such as sentry guns and poisonous gas. There are also some less welcome inclusions, such as the Super Bunker Buster, which stops at nothing to burrow down to you or your opponent and is, frankly, a cheat weapon. All in all though, the assortment of new weapons, scenery and outfits for your worm makes this a decent improvement on its predecessor.
Armageddon features a ‘Campaign’ mode of sorts. While it’s hardly a gripping story, the increasing difficulty of each level makes for a good progressive challenge. There is also a Body Count mode, in which you have to survive for as long as possible while killing as many worms as you can, and a self-explanatory Quick Game mode.
The controls in Armageddon are on the fiddly side, with it being awkward to switch between moving your worm and looking around the battlefield. It’s equally tough to set the cross hair just where you want it with airstrikes and homing missiles, and the poor frame-rate makesit nigh on impossible to pull off that perfect grenade throw. It may look like the Worms you know and love, but the gameplay, which requires fine-tuned precision, has been poorly converted.
While these features are all well and good, they count for nothing if the multiplayer mode isn’t up to scratch. After all, Worms has always been about competing with rival alpha males to see who is the military mastermind of your social group. Armageddon offers all the multiplayer options you could hope for, supporting local Hot Seat and Bluetooth multiplayer, as well as online Wi-Fi matches. The local games work brilliantly, but unfortunately the game falls at the online hurdle which, if you actually manage to find a match, is plagued by brutal lag.
Armageddon has all the charming looks and plethora of weapons and features you could want from a Worms game. On a superficial level, it’s a great port. But when you dig deeper (by that I mean, when you actually start playing the game), it all comes apart in a mess of poor frame-rates, gameplay and online lag. No amount of welcome additions and gloss can cover up the fact that this is an undernourished port of the legendary game.
Quick Take
Value:Medium.
Would I Buy Again:No.
Learning Curve:High - even if you're a Worms fan, the gameplay will take time to adapt to.
Who Is It For:Ultra-dedicated Worms fans.
What I Like:Tons of new weapons, scenery and outfits.
What I Don't Like:Poor frame-rate and online multiplayer.
Final Statement:A pleasing look and ton of new features are let down by poor gameplay.
armageddon THE WORMS ARE BACK!
Authentic Worms™ gameplay with cartoon-style visuals, comical audio and a refined control system using the innovative touch screen user interface.
NEW WORMS™ WEAPONRY!
Defend and attack with new weapons and utilities, including the Sentry Gun, Electromagnet, Napalm Strike, Super Sheep, Petrol Bomb, Armageddon, Drill, Earthquake and Poison Strike.
CLASSIC WORMS™ WEAPONRY:
The return of the Sheep, Holy Hand Grenade, Concrete Donkey, Parachute, Baseball Bat and enhanced Ninja Rope.
SINGLE-PLAYER WORMS™ ACTION:
Campaign Mode: 30 single-player missions across 5 new themes including Manhattan, Medieval, Sports, Construction and Cheese.
Body Count Mode: The player takes on endless waves of increasingly tough enemies across 5 different themes or a random landscape.
Practice Mode: A mode where the player can practice with every weapon against A.I. dummy worms.
MULTI-PLAYER WORMS™ COMBAT:
Battle against your friends with offline Bluetooth multi-player action for 1-4 players.
Take on all-comers from around the globe with online Wi-Fi multi-player action for 1-2 players.
Master the new game styles – Fort Mode, Forts Pro Mode, Crazy Crates and Custom Game Style
The return of the favourite game styles - ‘Bazooka and Grenade’, Melee, Gun Show, Heads Up, Lightside, Darkside and Sinking.
Master the variety of difficulty settings – Beginner, Intermediate and Pro.
ADDITIONAL ONLINE FEATURES:
Plus+ integration provides in-game Awards, Friends list, Leader-boards.
Post your high scores and achievements to Twitter and Facebook.
NEW CUSTOMIZATION OPTIONS:
NEW – in-depth ability to make custom game styles so players can create whichever game style they want to and play with online or offline.
NEW - create the team you want with new personalization features – hats, forts, skins and victory dances.
NEW - spend gold earned by completing the Campaign missions in the Worms™ shop on new hats, forts, and gravestones or unlock weapons for multi-player games.
NEW - customize even further with one of the iPhone exclusive bonus hats.
Further personalization of worm and team names, speech-banks and gravestones.
OTHER FEATURES:
For 3GS and iPhone 4 users – improved visuals with animated 3D backgrounds, water effects and other graphical enhancements.
Unlock up to 30 in-game awards.
Save game status on quit – automatic save to the last turn if you exit - great for longer battles and for saving your single-player progress.
Watch your finest victories again with action-replays.
iPad SPECIFIC FEATURES:
Crisp high definition visuals, graphical enhancements and special effects.
Flip the screen! Great for ‘coffee-table’ style play given the support of the screen orientation feature.
**DON’T MISS THE OTHER TEAM17 TITLES NOW AVAILABLE!**
Worms™ for iPhone and Worms™ HD for iPad.
Get even more Team17 information, including the latest game updates and more…
VISIT US: www.team.17.com
FOLLOW US: www.twitter.com/Team17Ltd
LIKE US: www.facebook.com/Team17Software and www.facebook.com/WormsTeam17
WATCH US: www.youtube.com/Team17SoftwareLtd
Screenshots
Article By Robert Zak
I'm an up-and-coming freelance writer (or so I like to think) specialising in film, apps and gaming. Aside from writing app reviews on what sometimes feels like a mass scale, I've also contributed work to The Independent and IGN.com, and am on the writing team of the popular Lifestyle blog, WhatCulture.com. Like what you see? Follow me on Twitter @Rob_Zed and get in touch!
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