WRITHE
Set in an alternate 1970s Bangkok, Mission Ctrl’s WRITHE follows the aftermath of a devastating worm outbreak at Magani International’s Factory Site 17. The Magani Corporation got into the business of soft drinks utilising Giant Sago Wyrms, as they produce a substance that can be formulated into an energy drink known as Grub Juice. But as the company grew, this led to them genetically modifying the Wyrms - referred to as Grubs by many Exterminators - to produce higher quantities of their sweet, sweet nectar, until things got out of control. The Wyrms evolved horrifying knife-like teeth in their giant mouths, leading to many factory workers being bitten, or killed. Before long, these Wyrms were growing in size and number, infesting the factory and the nearby areas, as well as mutating into other terrifying forms: variants known as Fusewyrms that explode upon death due to the level of radiation contained within; as well as Bullwyrms, large brute-like grubs that spawn from hardened eggs, faster and stronger than any other wyrm you’ll come across - and will take you down in no time.
There are three separate levels in WRITHE: Rundown, Jungle and Factory, representing the three areas most affected by the chaos inflicted by these Wyrms. The last level, Factory, is the source of the outbreak, with Jungle being the next area to have been compromised, and lastly, Rundown being the least affected due to its distance from the origin site - despite still being overrun with these monsters. The purpose of the game is not to kill as many Wyrms as you can, although that certainly helps, it is for you to survive as long as you possibly can. A counter atop the screen records the number of seconds you’ve survived and it takes dedication, skill and a little bit of luck to make it.
Wearing a suit called a P.H.U.L.A. (Protective Hardshell Universal Life-Support Armour) suit, you’ll face off against the onslaught of wyrms alone, although local co-op could possibly be added further down the line. It’s extremely fast-paced, and a lot of fun even when you get completely overwhelmed with wyrms. Two weapons can be used at once, your L3 Phosphorus-Caster (shotgun, known as Lek) which is your left trigger weapon, and the E-4300 Plasma Launcher (known as Prapai) for the right trigger. The prapai is the weapon you’ll utilise most, but the shotgun should be used frequently to keep control of the Wyrms due to a higher blast radius.
Visually, WRITHE is really well done with a style reminiscent of 90s FPS icons. Additionally, there are a few ‘filters’ that can be added via the menu, further adding to this retro vibe: Modern being the main one (that the game is auto-set as to begin with); Retro which gives a far more pixelated look; and CRT, which mimics the looks of an old CRT screen remarkably well. Whilst visual filters such as these are normally more of a fun little gimmick to add, I actually really appreciated them here, and found myself using them more often than usual. Audio-wise, it is filled with super catchy tracks that fit perfectly within the style of game, urging you to keep going and further emphasising the nostalgic vibe.
Leaderboards are available for each arena allowing you to compare yourself to other players, and with plans to add specific Friends Leaderboards soon, this will really up the ante in the competitive stakes. Even as it is just now, Allan was determined to get himself as high on the leaderboard as he could, ending up 2nd in the world for the map “Factory”. It’s a simple but addictively effective game, keeping the attention of not only us, but the kids too, as you always want to try to achieve a new high score each time you play - and seeing devs on the leaderboard gives you a little boost when you pass by them.
When you kill wyrms they will drop gems, and these are used to unlock Lore Pages - with a total of 30,000 gems needed to unlock all. This seems like a pretty daunting task at first, as you’ll undoubtedly die quickly on at least your first few attempts, but thankfully, as these gems stack over multiple runs - and if you manage to last a decently long time, you’ll have built up a fair amount by the time you die. Trying to last as long as possible forces you to think creatively, and always be on the lookout for good spots on the map (God spots, as our son named them) to defend yourself against the swarm. Maps are designed to push you to always keep moving, but being wary of these spots and making sure to test out any you see will greatly add to your success.
Lastly, there is also a museum section available - the Museum of Unnatural History. The museum is beautifully designed, with further information about the enemies, weapons and armor - as well as the background of the sites. It’s a nice change from seeing a lot of these kind of art models and info within a menu screen, to seeing them displayed in a museum that you can actually wander around. You can even chat to a veteran within the museum who will tell you some random info and facts.
Priced at £7.99 on the Nintendo eShop, it’s a great price for an arcade style game that will provide plenty of entertainment. We had a great time playing WRITHE, and really loved how easy it was to get sucked right in for hours upon hours, although we do wish there was a bit more variety in weaponry as well as more levels - so we’re excited to see what gets added in the future.
In the end, we decided to give Writhe the Collecting Asylum rating of 8.5/10.
Have you played Writhe yet? What did you think of it?
Let us know in the comments below!
- V x
Thank you to Mission Ctrl Studios for the Nintendo Switch review code!
