Teeworlds is a retro mashup of shoot-em-up games and sidescrollers. It is an open source MMO with a built-in map editor, a variety of weapons, and fluid controls culminating in fast-paced gameplay.

Welcome to Teeworlds, a mashup of retro sidescrollers like Super Mario Bros and classic shooters. Play as little Tees and dance around the map, collecting buffs to destroy your enemies using weapons from hammers to smash or blast them to pieces with a grenade launcher. Fight in 16 players arena matches and compete in three game modes: Capture the Flag, Team Deathmatch, or Deathmatch. Swing around the map using a grappling hook, where an understanding of the game's mechanics will let you zip around the map. Teeworlds is open source, meaning it heavily relies on the community pitching in to run the site, create maps, and mod however they want. Set up your own game for your friends, creating troll maps or awesome battlefields. Be prepared, because Teeworlds rewards those with skill and fast fingers with kills and high scores.

Full Review

Teeworlds Review

By Chanel Hwang

Teeworlds is an open source game that brings back the nostalgic sidescroller feel with a unique blend of shooter gameplay. It's like playing Super Mario Bros online with fifteen other people, but instead of jumping on enemies, you shoot them. While the graphics are not spectacular, nor the SFX amazing, Teeworlds surprisingly does what it is designed to do well. Fans of classic side scrolling shooters like Soldat should find a lot to like in Teeworlds.

Jump Right In

It took me two minutes to download the game and install it. As soon as I hit "START" and entered a nickname, I found myself in the lobby. There was a long list of maps that I could join, but I noticed that only a small handful had people in them. I joined the first one I saw, and was immediately thrown into a Capture the Flag game. I would strongly advise new players to go to the Settings tab and look at the controls before hopping into a game. The controls are familiar to anyone who has played FPS's: WASD to move, numbers to change weapons, and space bar to jump. For the first few minutes, I was horrified at the mess I had been thrown in—there were bullets flying everywhere and I idiotically was glued to the walls. Soon, I got used to the double-jump and the use of the swinging grapple hook (awesome), and was finally engrossed in the fight.

There are five different weapons available. Every player starts with a pistol and a hammer. The hammer is fun to use and reminded me of old Kirby games. Players can pick up three different kinds of guns around the map: a grenade launcher, a shotgun, and a laser gun. Each weapon has a different trajectory, fire rate, and damage ratio. While the weapon stats are simple, this five-gun variety is perfect to achieve that retro sidescroller feel. Ammo for the guns automatically replenishes over time, though at differing rates. Players can also pick up hearts for health and shields for defense at different points around the map.

What Makes Teeworlds Fun?

To be honest, I didn't expect much from this game when I first saw it. However, within the first fifteen minutes, I was immediately reminded of the good old days of playing Metroid and the Simpsons. But instead of playing by myself or with three other people, I was running around the map with fifteen others. Somehow, the craziness of putting more people into a map ended up being quite entertaining. Also, the happy, upbeat feel of the game with the retro graphics and sound effects were nostalgic, yet at the same time, simple and very clean. Becausematches only last for ten to fifteen minutes max, it's quick fun that doesn't require heavy commitment. In addition, the simplified controls make the game challenging enough, rewarding players with actual skill (not just luck). You can also tell that a lot of love and effort has been poured into this game, from the simple additions of emotes (hold Shift!) to the collection of different Tee sprites you can use (cat ears or no cat ears?).

So Let's Fight!

Teeworlds officially has three game modes: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and Capture the Flag. Deathmatch is where players contend for the highest scores by killing as many Tees as possible. Team Deathmatch is where players are split into two teams, Red and Blue, and compete for the highest score within a time limit. Capture the Flag is the typical two-team battle where players must grab the opponent's flag and hold onto it for points. Large maps usually have teams spawn farther away from each other, and tend to be more serious. Small maps usually have very close spawn points and are insanely messy but fun.

There is also a player-made mode called Instagib, where all Tees start off with a laser gun. Remember Super Smash Bros, Sudden Death? Instagib is exactly that—one-hit KOs rule the field. Let the chaos ensue.

Cool Features for Players

Teeworlds has some pretty neat features, including a map editor and a video recorder. With relative ease, players can create and mod their own maps to use with friends or strangers. Make your own rules, create floating islands, or even disable grappling from ceilings. Players can also take screenshots and video record their matches in-game.

Final Verdict – Good

I would like to emphasize that Teeworlds does a good job of what it aims to do, offer a free game. From what I've heard, Teeworlds has only one coder and relies heavily on volunteers to run everything. It's a concept that someone thought would be cool, spent the time to make, and shared with the world. While the community is quite smal; it's refreshing to see a simple yet well-designed game humbly enter the field, offering a ton of fun and asking for no money in return.