Worms

aka: Total Wormage
Moby ID: 340
DOS Specs
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Description official descriptions

Worms is a turn-based strategy game. It features up to 4 teams of 4 worms, aiming to destroy the others on a generated terrain. Each worm has 100 hitpoints and dies when his hit points fall to 0. Upon death, a worm explodes, causing damage to everyone around.

Gameplay is turn-based. Each turn, the player can control one specific worm from his team. The worm can crawl left and right or jump. However, there is a time limit to make a move; also, if the worm falls from a great height, it loses health and the turn ends immediately; and if a worm falls into water or offscreen, it dies. Each turn, a worm can also make a single attack: the player can aim up and down, choose a weapon and then fire it. After attacking, the turn ends.

There are a lot of weapons available - the standard ones as bazookas (which are affected by the (random) wind settings and gravity) and grenades. The others include a Fire Punch, dynamite, airstrikes, and utilities such as ropes and girders.

There are 10 styles of terrain, ranging from forests and deserts to Candy land and the moon (complete with affected gravity). Shots leave craters in the ground, and complex tunnels can be formed.

Spellings

  • ワームス - Japanese spelling

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Credits (DOS version)

27 People · View all

Design / Original Concept
Worm Graphics
Amiga Programming
PC Programming
CPU Logic Design
Additional Programming
FMV Playback System
PC Installation Software
Production Assistance, Ocean Software
Additional Amiga Programming & Assistance
Producer
Documentation
Background Graphics
Cartoon Animation and Modelling
Additional Modelling
Additional Graphics
Worms Illustration
Logo & Storyboards
Box Packaging & Manual Design
All Music and Sound Effects
Vocal Narration, Worm-Song
Guitar Solo, Worm-Song
Team 17 Quality Assurance
  • Phil
[ full credits ]

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 80% (based on 47 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.7 out of 5 (based on 173 ratings with 4 reviews)

Take THAT Ringo Starr!

The Good
Whats not to like? I guess you will find out next. Hehe, this game is excellent. I remember playing against the PC and it had all the weird names for its teams and members.

I always ran out of the big bombs, as I proceeded to try and blow everyone off the screen with what I had left. I also tended to be a bit suicidal and end up in the water.

I must mention the great scenes. Totally groovy backgrounds and settings.

The Bad
I guess waiting so long for my turn, and the fact that I was a bit useless at it. Overall its a generally great game!

The Bottom Line
A whole heap of fun. Definately check this one out, then check out Worms 2 and Worms Armageddon. Multiplayer Worms is so much fun!

DOS · by Michelle (176) · 2003

One of the cutest games ever.

The Good
This game should definitely be in the same immortality league as Lemmings - it's just so cute! Kind of like the good old Scorched Earth only newer, smoother and definitely cuter, you simply never get tired of this game.

Despite the annoying music, this game's sound effects are awesome (there are many voice packs you can choose from, Monty Python for example).

A definite landmark in computer gaming.



The Bad
What's not to like? A classic!

The Bottom Line
A terribly cute game most people find incredibly addictive.

DOS · by Tomer Gabel (4539) · 1999

Have you ever seen a a tank with a grappling hook? Neither have I

The Good
Commando style action. Two against 10 and you could actually pull it off. I played this game some 3-4 years ago and am unable to get it running again currently, but as I remember it, the pattern for most games was this: major landscape sculpting in the first few moves, clears out the field, and from then on you get into these desperate cliffhanger (literally) situations, like one of your guys being being stuck in a crater somewhere and the other on an island in the middle of the sea with opposing teams taking potshots at him. In Scorched Earth, it'd be game over. In here, however, you throw your grappling hook and swing about on ropes like crazy, jumping half-screens Indiana Jones style. It takes some skill, but when you've had practice, you can pull off the wildest tricks (whoever thought that WORMS are good material for some Man on the Flying Trapeze action is a bit strange, but he sure came up with an ass-kicking game!). Sometimes it takes like 20 moves until you get out of your jam (whatever it may be), but when as a result you get to land a rocket straight between the eyes of your hapless opponent, it's anything but unrewarding. And the booms sure kicked ass in this game.

All in all, an absolutely engrossing game. The landscapes were amazingly good (as far as I can remember, there was some random generator involved that made every game different but still keeping the "drawn" quality of the landscapes), the weapons were fun and most of the Scorched Earth aiming-maiming-blowing-up-mountains action was there in full glory with the added component of vertigo-inducing mobility. Get yourself 4 teams with 4 worms each on one screen-sized battle field, and just start shooting!

The Bad
Well, there were some concerns with the digging ability: it made the game too wide open. Sure, there sometimes was good dungeon-style fun, but generally it just disrupted the glorious Scorched Earth/Tarzan action for some rather boring Great Escape-style trudges through earth and rock with a spoon. And the computer didn't make use of it either, which didn't seem fair in single-player games. (I don't actually think he made great use of the hook either - there might've been some concerns with the computer AI as well. Though he sure shot like Yul Brynner in Westworld.)

And the main drawback in comparison with Scorched Earth: the weapons were just not as cool. Sure it figures, them being worms not tanks after all, but I miss Napalm Death and all that firework kinda stuff. And you can't bury anyone alive either.

One more minor complaint: there was one landscape with a big (and super fing cool!) bridge making up 2/3 of the game field. It was hanging over water, creating ample opportunities for some pushing and shoving-style assassinations (the worms shove like crazy, I should've mentioned that) - BUT. Guess what happens when you blow up the bridge in two places. One section of it just hangs there in mid-air, with no support at all. Uh-uh.

*The Bottom Line

Scorched Earth meets - a bunch of amateur worm alpinists. Beautiful Switzerland scenery better beware!

DOS · by Alex Man (31) · 2002

[ View all 4 player reviews ]

Trivia

1001 Video Games

Worms appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Development

The first prototype of Worms, called "Total Wormage", was developed by Andy Davidson in 1994 as part of a Blitz Basic programming competition in the magazine Amiga Format. The entry did not win the competition, and after sending the game to several publishers he finally struck a deal at the European Computer Trade Show to develop and publish the game with Team 17.

Sound

Replacement sounds were made available shortly after the release of Worms that include dialects like Scottish, Finnish, British, etc.

Tribute

Andy Davidson was a huge fan of Hired Guns game by DMA Design. Banana gun used in Worms is a tribute and was inspired by Banana Bomb from Hired Guns.

Wormsong

While the game is in demonstration mode, an original song known as the "Wormsong" is played. It quickly became famous among the fans of the game, and has been declined in all the Worms games to date. Here are the Wormsong lyrics:

This is a story of courage, honour and worms.

War had cast a shadow over their once peaceful land,

gunfire filled the air, as worm turned against worm.

Where so many had fallen, others knew they must follow.

For one such worm, this day had alredy come,

when he was two, his father had left, never to return.

Three years he had waited for his chance to fight,

three years of training, both day and night.

And though he was scared as he set off for battle,

he knew in his heart that it was something he must do.

Three inches tall, and armed to the teeth,

a fine soldier he made, and his name was Boggy B.

[Chorus]:

We are worms, we're the best, and we've come to win the war

We'll stand, we'll never run, stay until it's done

Though our friends may fall, and our world be blown apart

We'll strike with all our might, We'll fight for what is right

till the end.

Scrambling up a hill and hiding behind a tree,

he looked at the battle that raged below.

It was there he saw his friend Spadge, stood upon a bridge

but another worm had also seen him, and aimed to have him dead

Boggy called to Spadge, but Spadge didn't hear,

he never knew what hit him, as he flew into the air.

It was all to much for Boggy, as he watched his best friend die.

Charging down the hill he had to have revenge,

What had Spadge done to come to such an end?

Reaching the bottom of the hill, Boggy suddenly heard a click

he realised to is terror there was a mine under his tail!

[Chorus]

We are worms, we're the best, and we've come to win the war

We'll stand, we'll never run, stay until it's done

Though our friends may fall, and our world be blown apart

We'll strike with all our might, We'll fight for what is right

till the end.

Hitting several cliffs and landing in a tree,

Boggy pulled himself together, there was much he had to do.

Spotting the enemy down below, he knew this was his chance.

Boggy grabbed a stick of dynamite and dropped it on his head.

The enemy, he tried to run, but all he could really do was squirm.

As the fuse ran out there was a mighty *BANG*!, and everywhere were bits of worm.

With their leader blown to kingdom come, the enemy, they turned and ran!

Boggy bungeed from the tree and landed safely on the ground.

As he watched the enemy squirm away, the cry went up: "WE'VE WON THE WAR!"

[Chorus]

Awards

  • Electronic Gaming Monthly
  • March 1997 (Issue 92) - Strategy Game of the Year runner-up (PlayStation / Saturn version)

  • GameStar (Germany)

    • Issue 12/1999 - #55 in the "100 Most Important PC Games of the Nineties" ranking
  • Retro Gamer
    • September 2004 (Issue #8) – #60 Best Game Of All Time (Readers' Vote)

Information also contributed by Cochonou

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Identifiers +

  • MobyGames ID: 340
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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by robotriot.

SNES added by J. Michael Bottorff. Genesis added by B.L. Stryker. Macintosh added by Charly2.0. Amiga added by Famine3h. PlayStation added by nullnullnull. SEGA Saturn added by Kartanym. Amiga CD32 added by Martin Smith. Antstream added by lights out party. Game Boy added by SupSuper. Jaguar added by Jeanne.

Additional contributors: Trixter, -Chris, Alaka, Martin Smith, BdR, ケヴィン, Patrick Bregger, mailmanppa, FatherJack, joicrawu.

Game added October 31, 1999. Last modified March 14, 2024.