Summary
A commercial offshoot that has almost nothing to do with its title.
The Good
The graphical design is overwhelming - bright colours, clear shapes, and all that jazz. It makes the game very appealing to children. The gameplay and animation is smooth, and the sounds are nice. Some of the level designs are pretty original for a Bust-a-Move clone. But...
The Bad
The game looks like it almost wasn't playtested. Every time you launch the single player mode you start at the beginning, which means that you must traverse the map again. You don't have to play the challenges that you have already beaten, but every time you travel from one point to another, a menu pops up, asking if you want to. It means that you have to move on the map battling with a frustrating "GO THERE -> NO, I DON'T WANT TO PLAY IT AGAIN -> GO THERE -> NO, I DON'T WANT TO PLAY IT AGAIN" sequence. This is very annoying. Also, the gameplay quickly gets repetitive, and it seems very weird that a game that is supposedly targeted for children (no classic Worms-style death, violence and hell) can get so difficult. Some of the middle challenges are almost impossible to beat even for a skilled player, so it's a great way to make kids cry. Way to go, Team17.
The Bottom Line
Worms Blast is just another rapid-made money maker, intended to be appealing to children and to get the attention of Worms fans. Sadly, the list of things that Blast shares with Worms is awfully short:
- Some of the characters (not all of them, I don't remember any superfrogs in Worms for example)
- Some o the weaponry
- "Water kills" rule
- Artillery-style shooting mechanics
- Title
It seems to me that if you're not a hardcore Bust-a-Move fan and you're not collecting every single Worms title, then you don't have any reason to buy this game.
