Can of Wormholes Review

Game: Can of Wormholes
Genre: Puzzle, Indie
System: Steam (Windows & macOS)
Developers | Publishers: munted finger
Controller Support: Partial Controller Support
Price: US $19.99 | UK £16.75 | EU € 19,50
Release Date: March 24th, 2023

Review code used, with many thanks to Thinky Games.

Can of Wormholes is a puzzle game by first-time developer Munted Fingers, and it was released last year on Steam. This game is one of many games that have been nominated for a Thinky Award, which is taking place at the moment; you can find out more about the awards here.

Can of Wormholes

A worm-shaped ship navigating through a wormhole tunnel
A worm-shaped ship navigating through a wormhole tunnel

Can of Wormholes combines sokoban-style puzzles with snake-like movements for one of the two characters you control. In ways it reminds me of a few games I have played before, like Snake and Pipe Push Paradise.

There isn’t any voiced or texted narrative or much of a story to speak about in the game, and I have no idea what to make of the opening scene. So you are going to have to bear with me as I try to explain the beginning of the game.

Can of Wormholes starts with a worm-shaped ship navigating through a wormhole tunnel. It crashes into a tennis ball and then explodes. Then you witness what looks to me like gumballs being put into the tin can and see the tin hops into a rocket and arrives on an alien ship. Then, the tin can merges with eight worms, and it becomes a sentient tin can that makes an admirable impression of a spider.

The Puzzles are the Star of the Show

interactive overworld that connects the puzzle stages
an interactive overworld that connects the puzzle stages

Anyway, regardless of the story, it’s the puzzles in Can of Wormholes that shine through and is the star of the show by a mile. You control the tin can, moved by worms that inhabit it; the tin can also throw rings out, similar to the rings in kid’s game Ring Toss.

There is an interactive overworld that connects the puzzle stages. So you move the tin can on legs around the interactive overworld and interact with the puzzle stages by shooting out a ring, which then moves a worm into the puzzle.

Move the Worm

move the worm to the goal marked by the yellow and black
Move the worm to the goal marked by the yellow and black

In the puzzle stage, you must move the worm to the goal marked by the yellow and black danger tape. The worm can’t fully touch the outside area of the puzzle; otherwise, the worm dissolves, and you begin the puzzle again.

Moving the worm around the puzzle area is fun as you push, slice, ingest, flip, and squish the worm in over 100 quality puzzles. The mechanics of the game change with each puzzle; new mechanics are added all the time. It’s amazing how many different ideas focused around moving a worm that the developer has thought of to add to the puzzles.

Can of Wormholes New mechanics are added all the time
New mechanics are added all the time.

Of course, it’s not just as simple as moving the worm to the goal, as the worm has to be the correct size to fit in the goal. All the puzzles have different mechanics, for intance some puzzles have little balls in them that the worm automatically eats, making them longer, and sometimes you have to navigate these balls by pushing them out of the way; otherwise, the worm won’t fit in the goal.

The puzzles definitely get much more challenging, but they never feel impossible or frustrating to complete. There’s just a constant stream of new ways to utilise the mechanics in interesting ways and it keeps the gameplay fresh for the player.

Need a Hint? Check the Game Insights

Use Game Insights to leanr how the mechanics work.
Use Game Insights to learn how the mechanics work; this is the insight for the puzzle in the image above.

On top of that, the hint system in Can of Wormholes is one I haven’t seen before. In the game settings menu, you can click on Game Insights, and it shows you a simplified version of the puzzle that focuses on the main mechanic you must understand to complete that particular puzzle. So, by solving the game insight level, you gain knowledge of how to solve the puzzle and how that mechanic works.

The hint system is one of the best things about Can of Wormholes, as the puzzle designs get much more clever and complex, and the hint system avoids the feeling of frustration. It’s a cool way to make these types of puzzle games much more approachable and accessible to casual gamers by adding a helpful hint system, and one that doesn’t give the game away.

Visuals and Controls

lots of vibrant colours in the interactive world
lots of vibrant colours in the interactive world

Visually, Can of Wormholes is bright and colourful with lots of vibrant colours in the interactive world. The music and sound effects all add to the experience and bring the gameplay together.

Controlling the game is done by either the keyboard or the controller. Even though the game’s Steam page says that there is only partial controller support, I played using a controller, and everything worked as you would expect.

A pleasant gaming surprise.
A pleasant gaming surprise.

Conclusion

Can of Wormholes is a brilliant puzzle game, and the help system, Game Insights, is well thought out. It is pretty impressive just how far the idea of moving a worm into a hole has been extended. Overall, it results in very innovative mechanics throughout the gameplay and Can of Wormholes proved to be a very pleasant gaming surprise.

Final Verdict: Two Thumbs Up  Two thumbs up

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