Worms Blast is a puzzle/action game

Action game

Action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes diverse subgenres such as fighting games, shooter games, and platform games, which are widely considered the most important action games, though some...

 for Windows

Microsoft Windows

Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...

, PlayStation 2

PlayStation 2

The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...

, GameCube

Nintendo GameCube

The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...

, Game Boy Advance

Game Boy Advance

The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...

 and Mac

Mac OS X

Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...

 released in 2002, developed by Team17

Team17

Team17 Software Ltd. is a video game company best known for developing the Worms series of games , but it has made many other games, notably Superfrog and the Alien Breed series. Most of its early releases were on the Amiga home computer system and featured trademark smooth scrolling, and detailed...

, and published by Ubisoft

Ubisoft

Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....

 (except for the Mac version, which was developed and published by Feral Interactive

Feral Interactive

Feral Interactive is a publishing company founded in 1999 that publishes games and other software that did not fit in with the release programs of the large established publishers. It publishes Macintosh games and has relationships with publishers such as Electronic Arts, Eidos Interactive,...

).

Game

The gameplay

Gameplay

Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and player's connection with it...

 is similar to that of Puzzle Bobble

Puzzle Bobble

, also known as Bust-a-Move, is a 1994 arcade puzzle game created by Taito Corporation, based on Taito's popular 1986 arcade game Bubble Bobble, featuring characters and themes from the original...

/Bust-A-Move, but with several key differences. There is a hexagonal grid of coloured blocks at the top of the screen, while the player's character

Player character

A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...

 sits on a boat

Boat

A boat is a watercraft of any size designed to float or plane, to provide passage across water. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In naval terms, a boat is a...

 floating in water. Unlike Puzzle Bobble, it is able to move side to side. There are multiple weapon

Weapon

A weapon, arm, or armament is a tool or instrument used with the aim of causing damage or harm to living beings or artificial structures or systems...

s that can be used, however the only weapon the player has to start with is a bazooka

Bazooka

Bazooka is the common name for a man-portable recoilless rocket antitank weapon, widely fielded by the U.S. Army. Also referred to as the "Stovepipe", the innovative bazooka was amongst the first-generation of rocket propelled anti-tank weapons used in infantry combat...

. As with Worms

Worms (computer game)

Worms is a series of turn-based computer games developed by British company Team17 Software. Players control a small platoon of earthworms across a deformable landscape, battling other computer- or player-controlled teams...

, holding down the fire button

Button (control)

A push-button or simply button is a simple switch mechanism for controlling some aspect of a machine or a process. Buttons are typically made out of hard material, usually plastic or metal. The surface is usually flat or shaped to accommodate the human finger or hand, so as to be easily depressed...

 increases the power behind the weapon's launch, affecting how far it will travel. It is possible to fire the bazooka (and some other weapons, such as the grenade

Hand grenade

A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...

 and dynamite

Dynamite

Dynamite is an explosive material based on nitroglycerin, initially using diatomaceous earth , or another absorbent substance such as powdered shells, clay, sawdust, or wood pulp. Dynamites using organic materials such as sawdust are less stable and such use has been generally discontinued...

) in an "arch", allowing players to reach difficult areas.

Shooting blocks will have one of two effects:

• If you hit a block that is either the same colour as your bazooka missile, or is a rainbow block, that block and any other same-coloured or rainbow blocks connected to it will be destroyed. Any blocks that are not the same colour will not be affected; however, if the only thing holding those blocks up is the coloured blocks you have just destroyed, those blocks will fall into the water.
• If you hit a block that is a different colour from your bazooka missile, or is a "dead block" - an uncoloured, grey
  Grey
  Grey or gray is an achromatic or neutral color.Complementary colors are defined to mix to grey, either additively or subtractively, and many color models place complements opposite each other in a color wheel. To produce grey in RGB displays, the R, G, and B primary light sources are combined in...
  
   block - it will be recoloured to match the missile.

(Weapons are affected differently by other blocks. This is covered further below.)

Single-player puzzle mode

In this mode, the player travels around the world (in a method slightly reminiscent of Capcom game Pang

Pang

-People:*Includes name origin of the alternate romanization of Peng*Pang Juan , military general from the Warring States Period*Pang Tong , strategist and advisor from the late Han Dynasty*Pang Wanchun , fictional character from Water Margin...

) completing puzzles. Again, differing from Puzzle Bobble, missions are usually more complex than simply clearing the blocks off the screen. Some may require you to perform certain tasks (such as shooting down space ships

Spacecraft

A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....

 made of blocks, or avoiding a snake

Snake

Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...

-like series of blocks moving around the screen). As you progress through the game, the missions become progressively harder. The aim of the game is to reach the volcano

Volcano

2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...

 in the centre.

Unlike Puzzle Bobble, there are no walls in single-player mode. If you fire a weapon off the screen, a heavy object (such as a cannonball

Round shot

Round shot is a solid projectile without explosive charge, fired from a cannon. As the name implies, round shot is spherical; its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the gun it is fired from.Round shot was made in early times from dressed stone, but by the 17th century, from iron...

, weight or fridge

Refrigerator

A refrigerator is a common household appliance that consists of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump that transfers heat from the inside of the fridge to its external environment so that the inside of the fridge is cooled to a temperature below the ambient temperature of the room...

) will fall onto your character, reducing your health. If you are fast enough you may be able to dodge it.

Unlockable characters can be earned by reaching certain points on the map

Map

A map is a visual representation of an area—a symbolic depiction highlighting relationships between elements of that space such as objects, regions, and themes....

. It is not necessary to complete every puzzle to reach the centre, however this is the only way to unlock all three characters.

Multiplayer

In all Multiplayer modes, the barrier separating the two players will open periodically. Players can use this opportunity to shoot at each other with their Bazooka in an attempt to reduce their health and ultimately knock them out of the game.

• Deathmatch- Both players start with 2 lives and try to survive as long as possible. The player that gets knocked out first loses.
• Don't Drop Em- The first player to allow a block to freefall into the water loses.
• Star Collection- First one who collects 5 stars wins.
• Tide Trial- Trying to survive as long as possible with water constantly rising.
• One line for two- When some blocks get destroyed enemy's blocks come down. The goal is to destroy blocks fast enough so enemy can't destroy it on time and ends up being crushed.
• Star race- The goal is to shoot targets (more targets destroyed means a player will faster reach the finish line) and survive longer than enemy or reach the end and collect the star.
• Survival-Standard blocks go down faster than usual, but they must not touch the water.
• Fight-There are only bouncy and dead blocks in this mode. The goal is to kill the foe. There are no stars in this mode, only crates.

Single player

• Tournament-Competition. All Hi-Scores are for this mode only. It's actually a few missions from Puzzle mode. When one of those missions is completed it will appear in Tournament mode.
• Puzzle-Go around the map and complete 60 missions. When all missions are done 3 new characters will be unlocked. During the Puzzle mode some missions can be unlocked for the tournament mode.
• Player vs CPU-Play a game against computer.

Characters

The game is played with nine characters (three of them must be unlocked) and most of the characters are actually animal weapons from the original Worms. Every character has a unique boat, and differing stats for Amount of Health, Boat Speed, Speed of Aiming Reticle, Turning Speed, and Boat Size.

Blocks

As well as the coloured blocks mentioned above, there are also different types of block:

• Dead blocks

Grey Blocks with a skull in the centre. They must be hit with any colour to be turned into a standard block.

• Bouncy blocks

Pink rubbery Blocks. Weapons bounce when they touch these blocks.

• Anchor blocks

Light-grey/blue stone Blocks that can only be destroyed with dynamite.

• Rainbow blocks

Blocks with rainbow flowers. If connected they will produce a chain reaction when get hit with any colour.

Weapons

Since animal weapons from Worms are now characters in Worms Blast, there are lots of new weapons in the arsenal. Most of the weapons can be found in crates and they can hurt both owner and opponent . Everything from the crates and everything (except blocks) that can hurt players is listed here.

Note:
Coloured-weapon that changes colors of blocks.

Aim-and-fire weapons

This kind of weapon requires aiming (with up and down arrows). When the target is located press the fire button and keep it pressed down until the required power is reached.

Bazooka: The standard weapon in arsenal, this weapon is always available. The Bazooka is a coloured weapon, and fires in an arc.

Shotgun: The shotgun is a 2 shot coloured weapon. When one bullet is fired the player can't change the weapon until another bullet is fired. The Shotgun fires in a straight line and only strikes one block.

Grenade: Grenades must be thrown, and then manually triggered to explode. Once the weapon explodes, it will recolour any block within the blast radius to match the colour of the grenade, or will create dead blocks when used on your opponent.

Dynamite: The dynamite has a 5-second fuse that starts as soon as the weapon is selected. Dynamite must be thrown, and will then stick to any block it comes into contact with it. Dynamite destroys any crates, stars, or blocks in its blast radius, regardless of the colour.

Laser Beam: The Laser Beam will cut through anything it's pointed at except bouncy blocks and wooden doors (in multiplayer mode, a straight border that divides the players). It has 2 shots.

Fire-only weapons

These weapons don't need any aiming. It's enough to press fire and the weapon will be launched.

Weather: Using this weapon brings about a random changes in weather for approximately 30 seconds. The weather could be purely detrimental to your opponent character, such as the Fog and Rain effects, or could have negative impact on both of you (Darkness, Strong Winds, and a Meteor Shower (similar to the Armageddon weapon from Worms Armageddon)).

Sea monster: A sea monster that swims deep under the player. On the PC, Mac and home console versions of the game, it can easily be seen by end of its tentacles circling under water. The tentacles rise out of the water and attempt to grab your opponent, who must tap the Fire button repeatedly to escape. On the Game Boy Advance version, when the Tap Button symbol appears on the screen, the game freezes until your opponent has freed themselves. If the player fails to free themselves, the sea monster drags them underwater, killing them.

Fish Bait: Drops a piece of meat into your water, attracting more fish and providing cover fire against Torpedoes. Although the Fish were not included on the Game Boy Advance version of the game, this weapon was not removed and thus becomes useless.

Piranha: Converts all the fish in opponent's territory into piranhas who will attack your opponent, reducing their health.

Pellet: Makes your opponent's water more choppy for a short time, creating larger waves which will affect the trajectory of their shot.

Stopclock: Stops the time on opponent's side. The player can't move and all weapons that were on its side in the moment when weapon was fired are stopped. Weapons fired just before the Stop Clock is used will continue on their path. If a stopped character is damaged, they will recover movement.

Mine: An underwater mine comes to the surface and explodes after a time delay if anyone touches it. It cannot be destroyed.

Torpedo: A Torpedo is launched underwater, automatically homing in on your opponent. They are warned by an "Incoming" text on the screen. If your opponent has a sufficient number of fish, however, the torpedo may destroy those instead.

Speedfan: Increases your ship's speed for a few seconds.

Shield: Provides a temporary protection against anything that would normally harm you, such as falling blocks or opponents' weapons. You will also be immune to the Sea Monster.

Health: An orange buoy

Buoy

A buoy is a floating device that can have many different purposes. It can be anchored or allowed to drift. The word, of Old French or Middle Dutch origin, is now most commonly in UK English, although some orthoepists have traditionally prescribed the pronunciation...

 with Red Cross flag on it appears to the far edge of your play area. When you touch it your health is restored to full.

Water balance: The water level of both players will equalize; the tank with more water will drain into the other tank until the levels are equal. If the tank levels are equal, it has no effect.

Double radius (x2): For a short time, all bazooka shots that strike blocks of non-matching color will convert an additional layer to the color of the bazooka, or to dead blocks when used on your opponent.

Items

There are two collectible items in the game.

• Crates: Contain weapons which can be used to attack an enemy or to improve the current situation for the player.
• Stars: Reduces water level of the player who collected it.

BLAST mode

In Multiplayer mode, when standard blocks produce a chain reaction (more than 10 blocks must get destroyed), player should collect the falling fruits (every block becomes a fruit after being destroyed). If a player collects these fruits (10 or more) one letter of BLAST word on the bottom of the screen will get coloured. Each colour represents a letter:

• For B- red
• For L- yellow
• For A- purple
• For S- green
• For T- orange

When all letters are filled, BLAST mode begins. All the blocks on player's side of the screen vanish and targets begin to fall on parachutes. Shooting a target produces a Weapon Crate. BLAST mode lasts for approximately 30 seconds before the game continues as normal. During BLAST mode in Multiplayer mode the opponent can't attack with crate weapons and the wooden barrier doesn't open, but they can send the bazooka over the barrier.

BLAST mode was not included on the Game Boy Advance version of the game.