To be completely honest with you, Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon is a very difficult game for me to review. That’s because I’d much rather be playing it than writing about it.

The bugs are BACK, baby. Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon (henceforth referred to as EDF:IA, or just awesome game) is a reprisal of the cult classic Earth Defense Force 2017, though this time by American developer Vicious Cycle as opposed to Japanese developer Sandlot. Some things have changed, but trust me when I say the insect crunching action is just the same, and in some cases better.

The premise of EDF:IA is hardly unchanged from 2017, and if you’re not familiar with that there’s not a whole lot to explain. Extraterrestrials dubbed Ravagers attack the world with giant insects, robots and spaceships, and it’s up to the worldwide coalition Earth Defense Force to crush them. This time the setting is the near future New Detroit, and you play as the soldier Lightning Alpha, essentially an avatar for yourself. Unlike past EDF heroes (and there have been a few; Japan and Europe have more than 2017) Lightning does actually talk, but he’s hardly chatty. For the most part he just acknowledges whatever order is given.

As you can imagine then, EDF:IA is a very basic and arcade focused game. It doesn’t take itself seriously, it doesn’t have a deep or cinematic story, and it’s not about carefully directed gameplay or quick time events. Simply, you grab a gun and you start shooting at the giant insects around you, which there will seldom be a shortage of.

"Welcome to Earth, stupid bugs!"

Of course, it’s hard not to compare the game to 2017. Right off the bat, 2017 seems to win out on amount of content. EDF:IA has far fewer stages than 2017, although the actual stages are much longer. This can work against EDF:IA at times, since on the harder difficulties stages can take well around a half hour or more to clear, which defeats 2017‘s pick up and play value a little. You can quit out early but then you lose you character building progress. Furthermore, all the stages take place in New Detroit, and although they cover three distinct regions, they come across rather samey nonetheless. This is in contrast to the varied settings 2017 has, like beaches, underground tunnels and already ruined cities.

On the other hand, EDF:IA definitely wins out when it comes to refinement in gameplay and character abilities. For example, players now have the ability to sprint, and to reload their weapons without having to burn through the clip. Simple updates yes, but they make a whole world of difference. You also have the ability to revive your fellow players, and everyone gets back some HP whenever one person grabs a health pack. These additions make multiplayer a lot more fun and lasting; no longer does a player just have to sit and watch the other guy when he dies. Some might think these would make the game too easy, but trust me when I say you’re still very apt to getting overwhelmed and crushed. One small slip up can make a lot go wrong, and stages don’t have any checkpoints.

The biggest change by far is the addition of multiple character classes and the ability to level them up. The score you accrue as you kill bugs acts as both experience and money. Gain enough experience and you’ll move to a higher rank, where your class’s health and native abilities improve. Meanwhile, the money is used for purchasing new weapons. The game boasts over 300 weapons, including various assault rifles, shotguns and missile launchers, although some are specific to a certain class and many are not available until you rise to a higher rank. Furthermore, roughly a third of the weapons are random drops from elite enemies, harking back to 2017‘s system of gaining new weapons.

"I don't think we brought enough ammo for this."

Going into more detail on the character classes; the Trooper is the most basic type. He doesn’t have any special abilities, but he does reload, plant chargers and revive players faster as he ranks up. He also has access to all the weapon types. Nice features, but it’s rare they’d really turn the tide in battle. The Jet class is a call back to Global Defence Force‘s Pale Wing character. The Jet has the fastest mobility but is also the weakest. He can also fly for a limited time, and his weapons are generally energy based. The Battle class is essentially the tank, very good at dishing out and taking damage, but he moves the slowest. He also can bring up an energy shield, and has some special short range power attacks. Finally there’s the Tactical class, or as I like to call it the Useful Trooper. He has the same health and damage tolerance as the Trooper. Where he differs is his ability to lay down support items, such as various turrets, mines and radar systems.

EDF:IA also has superb multiplayer options. The game features two-player split screen for local co-op, which already sets it apart from most 360 and PS3 games out there. Online, you can play in the campaign mode with three players, or play survival mode with six. Survival is basically endless rounds of bug attacks with increasing difficulties. There is also a campaign remix mode, where you can play the campaign but with alternate bug spawns to add a bit of spice. Both survival and campaign remix are playable offline as well. I must stress though, as fun as the game is, it’s infinitely more fun when you play it with friends.

I think it’s also necessary to delve into the game’s cheesiness, since 2017 was indeed a deliciously cheesy game. I’ve noted a number of people say that EDF:IA doesn’t seem as cheesy, but really it just offers a different kind of cheese. In 2017 all the characters took what was happening in a dramatically serious tone, with some nearly cracking under the pressure. It was very reminiscent of a 1950s B science fiction movie. On the other hand, in EDF:IA the characters seem to take on an attitude closer to the player; they are all too happy to be blasting away aliens and seldom seem very concerned about the world falling apart around them. The characters do seem to have less memorable one liners, but there’s still quite a bit of funny writing to go along with the nonstop action, which still works to make you smile.

"Short stack of buttermilk pancakes would sure hit the spot right now."

Earlier this year I did express some worry over Vicious Cycle taking a stab at Earth Defense Force. Playing the game now, the only thing I can fault them for is not doing more. This is a fantastically fun and action packed game, and at its budget price it’s practically a steal. Yeah sure, you got your Uncharteds and your Metal Gear Solids, but those are fun in the same way as reading a good book. You consume it and then you put it away to seldom appreciate it again. But with a game like Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon, you will still want to be slaughtering bugs and robots for months and months.

Heck, if you get this game for Xbox 360, I will be more than happy to play it with you.

This review is based on a copy of Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon for Xbox 360 purchased by the reviewer.

Tags: action, D3Publisher, Earth Defense Force, Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon, Playstation 3, review, Vicious Cycle, Xbox 360

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 14th, 2011 at 5:00 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.