Worms Blast (PlayStation 2)

Practically everyone out there has played one of the versions of worms at some point, the series has been admired by all from the casual player to the hardcore gamer. Unfortunately the more recent versions of the game have added little new to the series, but this is where things get a little different. The guys at Team 17 have decided to go back to the drawing board and reinvent the game.

At a first glance the game looks like Bust-a-move, look a little bit closer and the game looks even more like the classic puzzle game, the differences, though, become obvious once you have picked up the pad. The core of the game follows in the footsteps of Bust-a-move, whereby you shoot coloured missiles at a group of coloured blocks, and if the colours match the blocks disappear. Sounds simple, huh? Well its not that easy, you see the blocks above you are slowly moving down towards you, the sea level can rise and there are also some indestructible blocks. The big difference is the fact that in Worms Blast that you move from left to right on your boat/skidoo and you select different weapons. The weapons add a new strategy to the game, using weapons like the laser to carve through a long line of blocks, or using the dynamite to take out a huge chunk of normally indestructible 'anchor' blocks can make or break a level.

Now you'd think that the single player game would get quite dull, but in fact it doesn't. The developers have done as much as they could to vary the game, and they've succeed. The single player consists of a 'world map' you navigate along preset paths to various locations on your dinghy, and each location has a selection of challenges. The beauty of this style of play is that you normally have a choice of two locations, and so all the time you opening up new routes, this means if you get stuck on a challenge you can try another one elsewhere on the map, this really helps reduce any frustration with the game. The challenges never get boring and there are several different types. Some involve destroying all blocks in a set time, some involve running away from snakes, constructed from the coloured blocks and some involve shooting targets, these are just a few of the ways that the developers have used the games 'engine' to their advantage. In fact each time you start a challenge you'll be surprised at how innovative the game is.

The game really comes into its own in multiplayer. The different modes that are available will keep you going for a long time. These modes include death match and a straight forward fight, to name but a few. And each multiplayer mode feels different to the last. Also you start the game being able to select more than one character each with his or her own abilities.

The problem is the game is quite shallow and so some may get bored of it quite quickly, and even though the game seems ideal for children, some of the challenges may be far to difficult for them. Though if your looking for a puzzle game or a simple game you don't have to spend hours at a time playing on, then Worms Blast may be a worthy addition to your collection.