Interview: Worms in the third dimension

Team 17's Worms series has always been an addictive little blighter. It seems strange, on the face of it, that wiggly combatants destroying each other on destructible battlefields should prove so appealing, but the franchise's success is all down to the UK-developer's turning of the combination of turn-based strategy gameplay with Tom & Jerry-style violence and humour into a fine art.

Until now Worms games have been solely 2D affairs, but with the next iteration in the series annelid warfare is making the big leap into 3D. Worms 3D is heading to all current consoles and PC, hitting store shelves in time for Christmas. We recently grabbed hold of Team 17 creative director Martyn Brown and grilled him about the game.

As the title implies, this is the first time the series has gone 3D. What challenges have you faced making the gameplay work from this new perspective?

Brown: The challenges taking the game to 3D were considerable. Not least technically, since the game mechanics rely on an unlimited, unscripted totally dynamically destructible 3D environment, which to our minds has never been seen before. In addition to that, getting the flavour and atmosphere of the cult 2D series into 3D without breaking the game was perhaps our biggest fear.

Has it offered you new freedom, or actually imposed constraints on the gameplay?

Brown: It's actually given us much more freedom - a lot of people were sceptical about the move, but it works really well. It's changed the way the game plays (it's a little bit more action biased) but the flavour, humour and ambience is pretty much all intact.

For people coming to the series for the first time, can you explain the concept behind Worms?

Brown: It's very complex. Teams of worms battle it out on bizarre and diverse landscapes, with an assortment of weapons. You take turns to shoot, having a limited time in which to move and fire, pretty much how you'd play a board game. Your worms have a limited number of hit points, and weapons affect this in different ranges.

However, in terms of a social aspect, this means a lot of banter and plea-bargaining (and time to have a quick swig). The last team standing wins. Things to remember - everything blows up and water drowns you.

What are the major new additions you have made to the gameplay?

Brown: We haven't made sweeping changes to the gameplay at all - it was clear that after talking to fans of the 2D series that they wanted to have the full game in 3D.

We have taken the opportunity to really freshen up a lot of the weapons and visuals now they're in 3D, such as first-person guns, fully 3D steer-able super-sheep, lovely jet-pacs and awesome air strikes.

How do the different versions vary from console to console (and PC)?

Brown: There are few differences between any of the versions save for some minor cosmetics on Xbox and 'Cube.

Could you outline the different play modes?

Brown: There are many ways to play the game, since playing with different weapon/game schemes yields dramatically different styles and tactics. You can play as teams or in a deathmatch, or try the single-player, 35-mission campaign. And you can always edit your own game type, or generate random settings on our "Wormpot" machine.

What about new abilities for the worms?

Brown: The biggest change is in the flexibility of movement in 3D. Your worm now has after-touch in the air, which allows a lot of precision movement for the skilled player. In addition, you can perform a number of different jumps such as back and front-flip. First-person weapon aiming is great, too.

Anything else we should know?

Brown: That this is a hell of a lot of fun. Enjoy it.