Earthworm Jim 2

"Not exactly what a 32-bit Jim should be, but it'll do I guess..."

Earth Worm Jim 2 isn't exactly a gigantic leap from its 16-bit brethren. If you’re expecting a totally different game than the one that appeared on the Super NES and Genesis, you aren’t going to get one. What we *do* get is a brand spankin' new soundtrack by Tommy Tallarico (great stuff from this man, as always), and the backgrounds have been beefed up here and there (nothing Earth-shattering, but they’re nice). What we got here is the same crazy worm in a slightly fancier space suit, so if you own the Super NES or Genesis versions, you can safely skip Saturn EWJ2 without losing any sleep. Earth Worm Jim has had his share of troubles with Psy-Crow. Now, the evil birdy bandit wants to steal Princess What’s-Her-Name in order to marry her and become the supreme monarch of all the galaxies! Is Jim just gonna sit back and let his gal get stolen and married by his worst enemy? Will Jim exact revenge on Psy-Crow for all of this, plus the old wounds Psy-Crow gave him (“Psy-Crow killed his parents.” – EWJ1 ad)? Heck no. Jim sets off across the stars to track down Psy-Crow, get the Princess back, and maybe run into a few old friends and enemies along the way. Evil the Cat, Bob the Goldfish, Peter Puppy, Major Mucus make return appearances from EWJ1, and are joined by new weirdos like Flamin’ Yawn and Pedro Pupa, and all the new enemies fit right into this strange land of insanity. Jim has his trusty blaster and he can use his worm body like a whip to attack enemies and swing. He also uses Snott, the sentient green goop that lives in his backpack, like a parachute to slow his descent while falling. Jim can use homing guns (which shoots…wait for it…little houses that track the enemies), mega plasma guns (great firepower), the three-finger gun (spread shot for multiple enemies), the Barn Blaster (a screen-clearing mega blast), and the totally useless bubble gun (just like those toy bubble guns you might’ve had as a kid) to plow through his enemies. You’re not saddled with the guns until they run out; you’re free to cycle through them at any time to use them in the best situations. Jim runs across energy units and super energy units to replenish his health, and the mysterious “Chip Butty” sandwich that boosts Jim’s health level to 200%! “Chip Butty”…? Okaaay…He can also find ammo, meal worms, extra lives, and stopwatches (meal worms and stopwatches are only found on one level apiece). Most of the game is side-scrolling action, but this, being a Shiny game, mixes it up a little here and there. On the Peter Puppy levels, Jim carries a big marshmallow and must safely bounce Peter’s puppies across the screen to their father on the right after Psy-Crow tosses them out the window on the left side of the screen. The Flyin’ King level is an isometric shooter, and you have to get a large bomb from the start to the finish to blow up Major Mucus. The Villi People transforms Jim into a blind cave newt (???), and he must make his way through the innards of a giant beast, only to play a gameshow at the end, and then a round of pain like the matching game “Simon” (repeat the pattern shown to you flawlessly or you lose) after that! Also, there is a secret level, “Totally Forked”, to stumble across. Earth Worm Jim is ultimately not as great as the first Jim adventure, but it is a fun game. I only wish there was a bit more to it…and that the third game hadn’t been made by a different company in 3D…

Graphics: Back when Shiny did 2d games, they did them great. Spectacularly. Gorgeously. All the trademark Jim humor is crammed into many, many frames of animation, both for Jim and his friends and foes. Dodge falling Grannies, turn into a blind cave newt, catch Peter Puppy's offspring before they splat onto the cold, cold ground, pilot your super rocket, carry around pigs and cows...These guys were really into the creative process involved in creating games. The backgrounds all look good, and the new Saturn-exclusive touch-ups look nice. I kind of wish Shiny had produced an animated intro to the game, but they might have used the horrible animation studio that produced that lame Earth Worm Jim Saturday morning cartoon, so I guess we’re better off without one.

Sound: The true beauty of CD technology is showcased here in the redone soundtrack. Tommy Tallarico's soundtrack is recreated wonderfully. He did a bang-up job, he did. Mm-hm. He even plays one tune with his dad. Feel free to plop the disc into your stereo; the track listing is in the instruction booklet with the credits. There are tons of voices scattered all over the place, too, and most are good stuff, as are the great cartoon sound effects.

Controls: Kinda wish they just stuck to swinging with the ''worm whip'' instead of putting ''Snott'' in Jim's backpack. That's my only real problem with the controls. The whip is virtually useless unless you happen to empty your blaster, and that doesn't realistically happen in this game since ammo is virtually everywhere. Jumping gets floaty every now and then, but not to Metroid extents. It’s very playable in every section, although I personally hate The Flyin’ King level… “Gee, I get to go back for my bomb balloon AGAIN? Sigh…”

Replayability? Depends on whether or not you earn the three password icons sprinkled throughout each level, that allow you to pick up right where you left off. Some levels are annoying to me, though; The Flyin’ King, as I mentioned, and the Peter Puppy level really didn't need to be repeated so many times...once was enough, then the joke wore thin. Earth Worm Jim is a great character, and he really should have been treated to a true third game instead of the 3D outing handled by some other team. Too bad, Jim…you were one of the great ones. Guess this will be your last good one. GlucoseJoe

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 05/28/00, Updated 05/28/00