Worms 3

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You may well roll your eyes at the sight of another Worms game on the App Store. To what degree can Team17 possibly change a winning formula to make the endeavor worthwhile, while staying faithful enough to the gameplay roots that have made this such a popular series over so many generations of hardware?

Well, for the most part, this is very much Worms as you, me, and everyone else on the planet knows it. Across a series of 2D stages, you put the might of your annelid forces against a human or AI opponent's, and the last worm standing determines the winning team. A wide array of navigational aids, silly yet explosive weapons, and situational tools are on offer each turn, as you attempt to inflict as much damage as possible against the enemy, while keeping your own squad safe and sound(ish).

The two major additions to this otherwise very familiar, classic gameplay are the new squad and card systems. The former gives each worm on your team a pair of strengths and weaknesses to help spice up the overall strategy - stronger but slower, nimbler yet weaker, and so on. The latter allows you to play certain cards from a deck before, during and after combat rounds. Each card you play adds a twists to each turn, whether that's adding a bit of extra fuel to jetpacks, packing a meaner punch into weaponry, or improving the replenishment powers of any health packs that drop.

Mercifully, these cards can only be acquired by spending game currency, not real money in the in-app purchase store. It ensures an even playing field throughout, something that's particularly important for the game's predictably solid multiplayer component. Whether you prefer to take that combat online, or through a local pass-and-play system, rest assured that you're well catered for if you prefer to go toe-to-toe against real human strategists.

Worms 3's new squad and card mechanics may not entirely suit the tastes of purists, but if the series is to evolve any further then it surely has to take a few risks somewhere along the line. It's not entirely Worms as you know it, then, but those new twists are entertaining enough to ensure that this new mobile outing for the franchise is more than capable of standing on its own two feet.

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Download Worms 3 (iOS)