Worms is a series of artillery strategy computer games developed by British company Team17. Players control a small platoon of earthworms across a deformable landscape, battling other computer- or player-controlled teams. The games feature bright and humorous cartoon-style animation and a varied arsenal of bizarre weapons.
Each player controls a team of several worms. During the course of the game, players take turns selecting one of their worms. They then use whatever tools and weapons are available to attack and kill the opponents' worms, thereby winning the game. Worms may move around the terrain in a variety of ways, normally by walking and jumping but also by using particular tools such as the "Bungee" and "Ninja Rope", to move to otherwise inaccessible areas. Each turn is time-limited to ensure that players do not hold up the game with excessive thinking or moving, however this rule can be modified in some of the games in the Worms series.
Over fifty weapons and tools may be available each time a game is played, and differing selections of weapons and tools can be saved into a "scheme" for easy selection in future games. Other scheme settings allow options such as deployment of reinforcement crates, from which additional weapons can be obtained, and "Sudden Death" where the game is rushed to a conclusion after a time limit expires. Some settings provide for the inclusion of objects such as land mines and explosive barrels.
When most weapons are used, they cause explosions that deform the terrain, creating circular cavities. The types of playable terrains include "island" or "cave". If a worm is hit with a weapon, the amount of damage dealt to the worm will be removed from the worm's initial amount of health. The damage dealt to the attacked worm or worms after any player's turn is shown when all movement on the battlefield has ceased.
Worms die when one of the following situations occur:
- When a worm enters water (either by falling off the island, through a hole in the bottom of it, or by the waterline being raised above the worm).
- When a worm is thrown off either side of the arena.
- When a worm's health is reduced to zero.
