Bookworm

"Not what i've expected"

Bookworm, is simply, a simple and substantial game for casual word gamers. Its quite cool playing it in your PC, but what about having it on-the-go?

Basically, the point of the game is to create words. Think having a table of scrabble tiles and you have to link each of them together to form a word. As you make the word, it disappears, and the tiles fall to fill up the space. The game goes on and on like that. However, there are some things added to spice up the gameplay.

Story (n/a)
There is no story at all. This is a port of a webgame by the same name (also known as Bespelled on other gaming networks like Zone). Like most webgames, there is no story. You just play, and play, and play. Simple.

Gameplay (7)
As stated above, this is a word puzzler. The game is (obviously) built in with a dictionary. So, you can't make rubbish words. You just make words, and it'll add to a tally. Once the tally goes full, you level up and the tally resets. It keeps on going and going until you reach the highest rank, where you still go on. If you think its boring, there's more. Other than normal "Letter tiles", there are special tiles like "Flaming Tiles" which is the only cause for a "GAME OVER" Screen. Since the game takes place in a library, the flame tile will burn the whole place if it reaches the bottom. So, be careful. Other than that, there are bonus tiles. These tiles are different than the normal "brown/biege" tiles. You'll know when you get them.

Controls (5)
Something should have been done with the controls. It doesn't feel fluid. It is also fustrating to roll on your control pad to get the right words (or test the words). Somehow or rather, this game would have been better if it was ported to the Nintendo Developer System (Nintendo DS) as there is a stylus. It'll be even better to control that way. The original game controls uses the mouse. Anyway, there are two ways to control You can either select each tile seperately or drag your control pad. New players will need some time to get the hang of it.

Graphics/Sound (4)
Something should be done! Despite the fact that Bookworm looks great on PCs, the GBA version is a letdown. The graphics are EXACTLY the same and nothing is done to Mr. Bookworm. However, he looks splotchy, and so is his library. The graphics are all compressed and looks terrible. The tiles do look shabby. The music is the same throughout the whole game but normally you'll turn it off.

Replay Value (10)
Being a puzzle game, this game lasts forever. You'll be happy to spend lots of time on this game. It is fun and it makes you think (somehow). So, even with the bad clinches, this game still shines (a little) for you to pick up.

So? To buy or to rent, or just forget it?

If you are a fan of BOOKWORM (or any wordgames)
Buy It! You won't regret the fun playing this on-the-go!

If you REALLY NEED nice graphics/sounds:
Rent it. Rent first and decide later.

This game has a very tiny footprint (32Mbit) . Perhaps to save costs? If the game was done better with a larger amount of memory (64Mbit) allocated, it will certainly be one of the best games.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 05/19/04