Earth Defense Force
Earth Defense Force | |
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Genre(s) | Third-person shooter, turn-based strategy |
Developer(s) |
|
Publisher(s) | |
Platform(s) | PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 3, Windows, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch |
First release | Monster Attack June 26, 2003 |
Latest release | Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain April 11, 2019 |
Earth Defense Force, known in Japan as Chikyū Bōeigun (Japanese: 地球防衛軍, lit. Earth Defense Forces), is a series of third-person shooter video games. The series is published by the Japanese company D3 Publisher as part of the Simple series.
Story[]
In 2013, radio waves from deep space are picked up by scientists, proving the existence of extraterrestrial life. The Earth Defense Force, a unified multinational military, is founded a few years later, in case the aliens prove to be hostile. In each of the games the player assumes the role of an EDF soldier during an alien invasion.
Games[]
2003 | Monster Attack |
---|---|
2004 | |
2005 | Global Defence Force |
2006 | Global Defence Force Tactics |
Earth Defense Force 2017 | |
2007 | |
2008 | |
2009 | |
2010 | |
2011 | Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon |
2012 | |
2013 | Earth Defense Force 2025 |
2014 | |
2015 | Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair |
2016 | |
2017 | Earth Defense Force 5 |
2018 | |
2019 | Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain |
2020 | Earth Defense Force: World Brothers |
2021 | Earth Defense Force 6 |
Main series[]
Monster Attack (2003)[]
The first game in the series was originally released in Japan as Simple 2000 series Vol. 31: The 地球防衛軍 for the PlayStation 2. Chikyū Bōeigun or Earth Defense Force was created by Sandlot as part of D3 Publisher's Simple series of budget-priced games on a compact disk. It was later distributed in PAL format on CD in Europe by Agetec, Inc. under the title Monster Attack.
Global Defence Force (2005)[]
Chikyū Bōeigun 2 is the second game in the series, released for the PlayStation 2. The game was released in Europe as Global Defence Force but was not released in North America. A PlayStation Portable version of the game, titled Earth Defense Forces 2 Portable was released on April 7, 2011 in Japan. A remake for the PlayStation Vita, entitled Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders from Planet Space (or Earth Defense Forces 2 Portable V2 in Japan), was released on December 11, 2014 in Japan, with a North American port released on December 8, 2015.
Earth Defense Force 2017 (2006)[]
Earth Defense Force 2017, known in Japan as Chikyū Bōeigun 3 is the third game in the series, released for the Xbox 360. It was the first game in the series to be released in North America. A PlayStation Vita version of Earth Defense Force 3 was announced on June 5, 2012 as Earth Defense Forces 3 Portable.[1] The new version includes both local and online co-operative play,[2] as well as the return of Palewing from Earth Defense Force 2.[3] The game was released on September 27, 2012 in Japan.[4] A port of the game is planned to be released for the Nintendo Switch in Japan on October 14, 2021.[5][6]
Earth Defense Force 2025 (2013)[]
Earth Defense Force 2025, known in Japan as Chikyū Bōeigun 4, was released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on July 4, 2013 in Japan. Developed by Sandlot, it is a direct sequel to Earth Defense Force 2017. It features four player online co-operative play. It was released on February 2014 in the US and Europe.
Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair, an updated port, was released for the PlayStation 4 on April 2, 2015 in Japan[7] and on December 8, 2015 in North America.[8] Europe has an estimated release date for February 12, 2016, and European players are able to play with North American players online according to Ryan Graff from publisher XSEED Games.[8] A Nintendo Switch version is planned to be release in Japan in 2022.[9]
Earth Defense Force 5 (2017)[]
Earth Defense Force 5 was announced at TGS 2016,[10] and was released on December 7, 2017 on PlayStation 4 in Japan.[11] The game was released on December 11, 2018 in North America and Europe.[12]
Earth Defense Force 6 (2021)[]
Earth Defense Force 6 is a sequel to Earth Defense Force 5 and set to release in 2021 in Japan.[13]
Spin-offs[]
Global Defence Force Tactics (2006)[]
Chikyū Bōeigun: Tactics, known as Global Defence Force Tactics in Europe, is a turn-based strategy game, taking place after the events of Global Defence Force.
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon (2011)[]
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon is the fourth game in the series, released for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows. It was the first game in the series to be developed outside Japan and also the first to feature online co-operative play.
Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain (2019)[]
Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain was announced at TGS 2017. Under development by Yuke's, the game has been described as "more serious than the series’ traditional campy tone."[14] The game was released on April 11, 2019 on PlayStation 4 worldwide.[15]
Earth Defense Force: World Brothers (2020)[]
Earth Defense Force: World Brothers was announced on June 23, 2020 as an action spin-off with voxel graphics for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and PC. Developed by Yuke's, the game was released on December 24, 2020 in Japan and on May 27, 2021 in North America and Europe.[16][17][18][19]
Reception[]
Game | Metacritic |
---|---|
Monster Attack | – |
Global Defence Force Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders from Planet Space |
– 72[20][a] |
Global Defence Force Tactics | – |
Earth Defense Force 2017 | (Xbox 360) 69[21] (PS Vita) 68[22] |
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon | (PC) 69[23] (Xbox 360) 68[24] (PS3) 63[25] |
Earth Defense Force 2025 | (PS3) 69[26] (Xbox 360) 68[27] |
Earth Defense Force 5 | (PS4) 72[28] |
Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain | (PS4) 69[29] |
This section needs expansion. You can help by . (October 2015) |
Despite generally mixed reviews, the Earth Defense Force series, particularly from Earth Defense Force 2017 and onwards, has been described as having a cult following. Joe Juba of Game Informer defined Earth Defense Force 2017 as a cult classic, stating that "the developers at Sandlot clearly want to tell a story about humanity's struggle against giant invading ants and robots, and the passion for that story shines through despite its technical shortcomings";[30] in reviewing Earth Defense Force 5 five years later, he similarly opined that the series has "always had a single-minded commitment to one simple truth: It's fun to use weird weapons to blast lots of aliens."[31] Though Jim Sterling gave Earth Defense Force 2025 a negative review, they did acknowledge that the series "has managed to earn itself a fierce cult following through audacity alone".[32]
Notes[]
- ^ Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders from Planet Space is the PlayStation Vita re-release of Global Defence Force.
References[]
- ^ "Earth Defense Forces Set for PlayStation Vita". AndriaSang. 2012-06-05. Retrieved 2012-07-16.
- ^ "First Look: Earth Defense Forces 3 Portable". AndriaSang. 2012-06-07. Retrieved 2012-07-16.
- ^ "Earth Defense Forces 3 Portable Trailer Featuring Palewing". AndriaSang. 2012-07-05. Retrieved 2012-07-16.
- ^ "Earth Defense Forces 3 Portable Date Officially Announced". AndriaSang. 2012-06-29. Retrieved 2012-07-16.
- ^ Romano, Sal (April 26, 2021). "Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders from Planet Space and Earth Defense Force 2017 coming to Switch". Gematsu. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
- ^ Romano, Sal (July 27, 2021). "Earth Defense Force 2017 for Switch launches October 14 in Japan". Gematsu. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
- ^ http://gematsu.com/2014/09/earth-defense-force-4-1-shadow-new-despair-revealed-playstation-4
- ^ Jump up to: a b http://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/12/08/earth-defense-force-4-1-and-2-launch-today-on-playstation/
- ^ "Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair coming to Switch in 2022 in Japan". Gematsu. July 30, 2021.
- ^ Purchese, Robert (September 13, 2016). "Earth Defense Force 5 announced for next year". Eurogamer. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
- ^ Makuch, Eddie (September 19, 2017). "Earth Defense Force 5 Release Date Announced For Japan". GameSpot. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
- ^ Romano, Sal (September 20, 2018). "Earth Defense Force 5 launches December 11 in North America and Europe". Gematsu. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
- ^ "絶望の未来に生きる。『地球防衛軍6』2021年発売! 前作から3年後の世界で戦い続ける人類の物語". PlayStation.Blog (in Japanese). 2020-06-23. Retrieved 2020-06-23.
- ^ McWhertor, Michael (September 19, 2017). "New Earth Defense Force looks like a more serious take on fighting giant ants". Polygon. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
- ^ Romano, Sal (January 25, 2019). "Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain launches April 11 worldwide". Gematsu. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force: World Brothers is a voxel graphics spin-off coming to PS4 and Switch". Destructoid. Retrieved 2020-06-23.
- ^ Romano, Sal (July 8, 2020). "Earth Defense Force: World Brothers coming west in early 2021". Gematsu. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force: World Brothers launches December 24 in Japan". Gematsu. September 23, 2020. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
- ^ Nelva, Giuseppe (April 1, 2021). "Earth Defense Force: World Brothers Gets Western Release Date for PS4, Nintendo Switch, and PC". Twinfinite. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders From Planet Space for PlayStation Vita Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force 2017 for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force 2017 for PlayStation Vita Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon for PlayStation 3 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force 2025 for PlayStation 3 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force 2025 for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force 5 for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
- ^ "Earth Defense Force: Iron Rain for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- ^ Joe Juba (May 27, 2013). "Cult Classics – Earth Defense Force 2017 – Features". Game Informer. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ Juba, Joe (December 7, 2018). "Earth Defense Force 5 Review – A Weakening Resistance". Game Informer. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
- ^ Jim Sterling (February 19, 2014). "Earth Defense Force 2025 Review - Giant Insects". The Escapist. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
External links[]
- Official website (in Japanese)
- Earth Defense Force
- Alien invasions in video games
- Bandai Namco Entertainment franchises
- Military science fiction video games
- Sandlot games
- Third-person shooters
- Video game franchises
- Video game franchises introduced in 2003