The argument of 2-D versus 3-D comes into play with many a franchise around here. Take a look at Street Fighter, for example. Does anyone really think that the EX games go leaps and bounds over the Alpha games? Some might, but they'd have a hard time with justification. Also coming into play with this theory is Worms, Team 17's long-running franchise where worms go to war against each other on a number of quirky battlefields, using some of the most wicked weapons imaginable. The series was introduced to consoles numerous years ago thanks to Ocean, garnering enough of a success on the PlayStation and Sega Saturn to unleash new chapters.

Then the series took a shift into 3-D with the release of Acclaim's Worms 3-D, and I felt a misstep in the making. Granted, the game still had its humor level intact, but the shift into 3-D took a lot of getting used to, and I found myself turning instead to my PlayStation games. Last year, Sega tried to continue the mayhem with Worms: Forts Under Seige, but, again, something felt out of place. Now I come across Worms 4: Mayhem, this time published by the struggling Majesco, and I noticed something strange.

The formula is about the same, right? The game takes place in randomly generated 3-D environments and has almost the same identical engine as the previous games. And yet, as I began to play this game, something clicked. I liked it. I mean, liked it to the point that I was dropping exploding sheep on unsuspecting soldiers instead of watching the third period of the Avalanche game last night. It's like a worm crawled inside my head and turned on a "fun" switch and I finally got what the 3-D concept was all about. Either that or Team 17 got the idea of what would make the 3-D components work and installed it into this edition. Either way, it's all good.

You've got a number of modes to choose from in the game. The single-player story mode is probably the weakest, but it does introduce you to the personality of the worms themselves, as well as the tactics involved within the game. This mode involves a number of side missions that must be completed, like stealing weapons from the enemy or protecting individual figures that could be in danger from a bombing at any time. They do have a bit of variety but picking up Worms 4 primarily for the Story Mode isn't going to have a "wow factor". This game was built for enjoyment with others.