Remember Snake? That wonderfully simple little game where you guided a hungry line around the screen, gobbling up food while desperately trying not to crash into your own backside? Well, somebody’s taken that idea, launched it into outer space, strapped a few weapons to it, and given the snake an appetite big enough to swallow entire planets. There’s even a cowboy hat involved, because obviously cosmic destruction looks better with a little Western flair.
Meet WORMHOLE, a frantic arcade roguelike where the food fights back, your body becomes an increasingly inconvenient obstacle, and the universe is basically one enormous all-you-can-eat buffet.
Developed by Pocket Moon Games and ThanaThan, WORMHOLE launched in October 2024, gave a gloriously chaotic makeover to one of gaming’s oldest formulas. With over 100 handcrafted levels, stackable perks, and enough explosions to make an entire galaxy nervous, this little indie deserves considerably more attention than it’s received.
Eat Planets, Not Your Own Tail
Your mission in WORMHOLE is to eat absolutely everything you can get your mouth around. Planets, alien creatures, and anything else floating through space are all potential snacks for your enormous cosmic worm. There’s one fairly important dietary restriction, though…Yourself.
Much like the original Snake, your growing body can become your worst enemy. Every turn needs some thought, especially when the screen starts filling with obstacles, enemies, and an increasingly long trail of worm. The difference is that you’re no longer restricted to casually slithering around collecting little dots.
Enemies can provide useful effects when eaten, giving you reasons to plan your attacks rather than simply charging toward the nearest available meal. Wormholes scattered throughout the levels let you warp across the battlefield, navigate obstacles, and replenish energy.
They’re handy little shortcuts when you’re running out of space, although emerging from one at the wrong angle could leave you heading straight toward a very unfortunate collision. Who knew being a giant space worm required so much spatial awareness?
Three Worms, Three Ways to Cause Trouble
There’s more to cosmic domination than having an impressive appetite.
WORMHOLE features three distinct abilities, each offering a different way to turn the galaxy into an absolute mess. DASH gives you a burst of speed, CLAW provides another way to tear through the opposition, while YEEHAW introduces some gun-slinging action.
Watching a gigantic interstellar creature shoot its way through space feels like the sort of idea somebody came up with at three in the morning and immediately decided was too good to abandon. The roguelike mechanics add even more possibilities through stackable perks, allowing you to develop increasingly powerful combinations as you progress.
You may start a run carefully weaving between planets, only to find yourself blasting through enemies and setting off enormous chain reactions once your upgrades start working together. The real challenge is keeping control of your worm while all that destruction unfolds around you.
Over 100 Levels of Cosmic Chaos
If you’re wondering how much mileage you can get out of an angry space worm, Pocket Moon Games has packed in more than 100 handcrafted levels across the main game. Each stage challenges you to navigate its layout, manage your growing body, and make the most of your abilities without accidentally turning yourself into a cosmic knot.
There’s also a Marathon Mode for players who fancy pushing their survival skills further, alongside online leaderboards for comparing scores with friends and other players. That old arcade obsession with beating your previous best is very much alive here.
The presentation deserves some attention, too. WORMHOLE uses a striking black-and-white visual style inspired by early arcade games, complete with chunky retro graphics and an atmosphere that feels pulled from some long-lost arcade cabinet. Not keen on monochrome? There are more than 60 unlockable color palettes to give the universe a makeover.
The soundtrack is equally ambitious, featuring over 40 original tracks covering everything from spooky gothic-inspired chiptunes to energetic electronic music. It’s an unusual combination, but a giant planet-eating worm wearing a cowboy hat was never going to demand a conventional soundtrack.
A Little Worm That Deserves a Bigger Audience
For a game released back in October 2024, WORMHOLE has managed to stay surprisingly far under the radar. At the time of writing, its Steam page shows a Very Positive rating, with 98% positive feedback from just 51 user reviews. That’s an impressive reception for a game that relatively few players seem to have discovered.
The appeal is easy to understand. It takes the traditional mechanics of Snake, throws in roguelike upgrades, adds a generous helping of arcade mayhem, and makes controlling a giant worm feel like a surprisingly serious test of skill. There’s a free demo available on Steam if you fancy seeing how far your appetite for planetary destruction can take you.