The player begins a game with a team of four worms, and in order to win, all the opposing teams must be crushed using a number of destructive and sometimes wacky weapons. A worm will die when its health hits zero, or it drowns after being pushed or blasted into the water surrounding the level. It sounds like a simple concept, and it is, but to become an uberworm takes time, practice and skill.

There are three themed maps in this version: London, Egypt and Ice. It is somewhat limited, but the shape of the maps are randomly generated, so there is a fair amount of variation in the landscapes played on. The voice themes, always a fun part of the original game, are very sparce too; none of the zany or comedic worm musings are available in the XBLA edition. It’s said that both of these issues are going to be addressed with downloadable content, later this year (and at this time there are three additional themed maps available).

There are some omissions which are a little disappointing. The religion bomb was removed for reasons unexplained, though this is perhaps down to not wanting to upset some of the XBLA community, even with it being very much tongue-in-cheek. Also missing is the bungee rope, allowing a worm to leap from a rocky outcrop to the floor below with balance and grace. These exclusions don’t prevent the game being a lot of fun as the range of available weapons is still extensive, and thankfully the banana bombs and killer sheep remain present and correct. If any of the set rules don't suit, it's possible to create custom games, changing the gameplay and availability and numbers of weapons.

The AI can be very frustrating at times. Even if a worm is hiding under a cove of rock, with the wind blowing a howling gale, the AI can deliver a missile with pin-point accuracy, or bounce a grenade off two or three walls with angles Stephen Hendry would be proud of. It's insanely clever.

The most enjoyment to be had from Worms, as has always been the case, is in multi-player; Xbox Live is the perfect medium for achieving this.

The level of player can vary enormously, from the bumbling fellow who drops bombs at his own feet, to the paranoid defensive who will plant girders, and bury himself deep underground using the blowtorch. The ultimate though must be the master, who can zip about the screen on the ninja rope whilst raining down terror with mines and dynamite from above. There are several different strategies that'll work, so games are usually good humoured, but they can also become very intensive and tactical towards the end. This is particularly true when sudden death strikes, leaving every worm with just a single point of health, and the water levels start to rise.

Even with the limited themes, Worms has a lot of legs, or at least a lengthy slimy belly, and it’s a worthy addition to XBLA, especially as a multiplayer game over Live.