Sound:  
The sound is very solid. Background music fits the feel of the game perfectly, and the additional noises such as Jim’s voice, grunts of enemies, moo’s from cows, and more are all crisp and clear as well. I have no issues at all with the sound, especially when using headphones. Shin’en has proved yet again that their sound tools are as good as any around for the GameBoy Advance.

Control:  
The controls are very fluid and offer a player nothing to complain about. The d-pad is used to move Jim around and aim weapons, A fires armed weapons, pressing B once makes you jump while a second time while in the air results in Jim’s head swirling in a helicopter motion thus allowing you to extend your descent for short distances, and the R button makes Jim whip, which, in addition to attacking, is also used for various purposes like knocking a fridge to the ground. I don’t have any control gripes.

Gameplay:
First and foremost, it really blows that there is no way to save your progress at all. Absolutely nothing – no built in save functions to the game pak, and not even any passwords for continuing after levels. The game is on a portable handheld, how can it be expected that you try to beat the game in one sitting? Simply ridiculous.

With that said, Earthworm Jim remains true to the form of its predecessors. There are some very minute differences in some of the levels, but more or less, everything is very similar to the original on SNES and Genesis. All the environments you have to conquer, such as “New Junk City,” “Andy Asteroids,” “Intestinal Distress,” and “Snot A Problem,” are very bizarre and strangely satisfying – that is, if you ever make it through them all without having to cheat to access the later levels.

The gameplay is very standard fare. You go through levels mowing down anything in your way, solve the relatively easy puzzle from time to time, and end the level with a boss encounter. Due to the small size of the GBA screen (in comparison to a television), some encounters with large bosses are made more difficult due to it being much harder to have precise timing. Additional variety comes from you being able to use the occasional vehicle to aid you in your adventure – some that shoot projectiles and such at enemies, and others that don’t.

The other gameplay quirk that survived is that you cannot change weapons. In essence, as you receive weapon powerups, those have to be used until you run out of its ammo, thus forcing you to downgrade once again. It would have been convenient to be able to save your most powered up weaponry for boss encounters and other nuisances.

OVERALL:
Earthworm Jim is a fun gaming experience – without an enormous amount of staying power. Being that this is essentially the same experience as the original, it ultimately depends on how big of an Earthworm Jim fan you are for it to be determined whether the game feels like sloppy seconds or a truly nostalgic journey through time. If you have yet to play Earthworm Jim on other consoles, you’d be wise to rent it and see if it floats your boat.

 

The Lowdown on  Earthworm Jim Aesthetics: Very Good Control: Above Average Gameplay: Average Multiplayer: Sound: Very Good Innovation: 2/6 Lasting Appeal: 2/6 Overall: Above Average! "A Quality Game"