Earth Defense Force 2017 didn’t win any awards when it was released in 2007. The low-budget shooter from developer Sandlot and small-time publisher D3 cultivated a cult following over the next few years, culminating in the release of a sequel/remake, Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon, in 2011. But Insect Armageddon was developed by an American team, Vicious Cycle, and fans clamored for the distinctly Japanese flavor of the original developers. Thankfully, D3 and Sandlot have obliged with Earth Defense Force 2025, another game that won’t win any awards, but is satisfying all the same.
Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360 (Version Played)
Publisher: D3 Publisher
Developer: Sandlot
Genre: Starship Troopers: The Game… Again
Release Date: February 18, 2014
ESRB Rating: Mature
It’s one of the biggest cliches in a critic’s arsenal, but if you liked Earth Defense Force 2017, you’ll love Earth Defense Force 2025. EDF 2025 is basically a prettier and more refined version of EDF 2017. If EDF 2017 was a caterpillar, EDF 2025 is the butterfly that emerges from the chrysalis.
As part of the “Simple Series” line of budget games in its native Japan, the story of Earth Defense Force 2025 is as simple as it gets. After the invasion was stopped at the end of EDF 2017, the Ravagers went home. But they left a surprise on Earth. Eight years later, more mutated bugs emerge from underground, and the EDF is called in to stop them. In short order, the Ravagers return and begin dropping mechs, flying drones, and more mutated bugs on the scared populace.
The structure of the game is exactly the same, and most of EDF 2025’s 85 missions even hit many of the same beats. First, there’s an urban ground assault, then an underground raid, followed by several missions cleaning up alien sinkholes. After that, you tackle giant mechas storming the beach, a walking tank in the city, spiders in the mountains, and then back to the beach for a battle against red ants. Finally, you take down the queen and the mothership. However, after you destroy the mothership, EDF 2025 takes its story into a wild new direction.
But really, how much emphasis can you place on the story when the game encourages you to replay earlier levels to obtain better weapons and armor while you’re in the middle of the campaign? As it is, most of EDF 2025’s attempts at story fall flat. You’re in touch with EDF HQ and a “Ravager researcher” is giving you regular updates, but he trails off into gibberish more often that not. And while many soldiers will discuss their experiences of the first invasion with you, none of them can seem to agree if it happened seven years ago or eight.
That said, you don’t play a game like EDF 2025 for its stilted and often corny dialogue. You play it because it features some of the biggest bug battles this side of a Starship Troopers movie. And on that count, EDF 2025 delivers. Grabbing a rocket launcher and blasting away at a group of giant spiders or unloading a complete machine gun clip into a bipedal mech is just as fun as ever. The kind of arcade-like shooting action that makes up the majority of EDF 2025 is a rare find today. With its seemingly neverending waves of enemies, it’s almost like a third-person Smash TV, in a way.
Another common criticism leveled against EDF 2017 was the game’s poor visual presentation. The blurry environments and lifeless characters featured in the game didn’t exactly push the Xbox 360 to its limits. Missions set underground were especially bad as one brown-gray rock wall looked just like the next, turning the game into a slog through the world’s most confusing maze. However, the city (and the caves underneath the city) underwent a complete overhaul in EDF 2025. Buildings and underground areas now feature distinctive designs, and the enemies look appropriately bug-like without looking cheap. Sandlot even improved how the bugs move. The creepy crawlies can now slide across the screen or bite down on your EDF soldier and throw him around, as well as create webs that pull you towards their gaping maws (arachnophobes need not apply). In addition to the bugs and mechs that made up the enemy roster of EDF 2017, Sandlot has populated the city of Tokyo with a variety of new bugs and technological marvels. Big spiders known as Retiarius spiders weave giant webs while mutated bees throw javelin-sized stingers at the ground. Instead of summoning Godzilla, this time the Ravagers took inspiration from Game of Thrones and ordered up a few genetically-engineered dragons. And the battles against the Earth Eaters (massive interconnecting motherships that blot out the sky) makes for a thrilling finale.
The developer has even changed how you dispose of the alien menace. Yes, guns and grenades still work best, but the addition of three new character classes has expanded the game considerably. Players are still expected to start with the standard foot soldier class, the Ranger. But Sandlot has also added Wing Divers (a jetpack squadron that uses laser weapons), Air Raiders (soldiers who fight by calling in airstrikes and vehicles), and the Fencers (mech-suited soldiers that attack the bugs using melee weapons). While these additional character classes don’t play as well as the simple Ranger (using melee weapons to fight giant bugs, really?), they do add plenty of replay value for those who are looking for it. I spent slightly more than 21 hours completing the campaign with the Ranger on Easy. Doing that for every class across all five difficulty levels would take quite a long time.
The Earth Defense Force series will never be mentioned in the same breath as Call of Duty or Halo, but it is ridiculous charming in its own way. Players who are looking for an un-serious shooter that is still seriously entertaining would do well to ignore their next-generation consoles for a bit and give Earth Defense Force 2025 a playthrough. You might be surprised by how much fun you have and, as I said before, if you liked EDF 2017, you’ll love EDF 2025.
Review Disclosure: A review copy of Earth Defense Force 2025 was provided by D3 Publisher for the purposes of this review.
