Tuesday, November 2, 2010

East VS West: Earth Defence Force



A funny little comparison between Earth Defence Force 2017 (X360) and the new Earth Defence Force: Insect Armageddon, by Prinnysquad from NTSC-uk's epic thread on the games (NSFW language used).
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I've only played the second in the series, Global Defence Force as it was called in Europe, or Chikyū Bōeigun 2 (THE地球防衛軍2) as my PS2 import copy was called (hereafter EDF2). It was a budget game, part of the Simple Series in Japan, but despite this I regard EDF2 as one of the best games of the PS2 generation. It was unashamedly fun, and at times quite epic (you could blow up literally EVERYTHING). America from what I can tell only ever received the 3rd game, subtitled 2017, on X360, which wasn't as good as the 2nd. My PS2 version had 2 characters, over 300 weapons and 71 stages, whereas the X360 version, while improving on the PS2's visuals and frame rate, only had one character, with over 150 weapons and 53 stages. So you never got jetpack girl, which was probably my favourite of the two on PS2 since she could fly and reign down destruction on enemies like a lithe angel of death.

Regardless, all three games were extremely enjoyable despite their budget (and some would say kusoge) quality. Even though the US missed out on the best in the series (EDF2) in favour of the cut-down 3rd, every country in the world had official access to what was a lot of damned good silly fun - some of the best, most ridiculous fun you're likely to have had since the glory days of arcades.

The series was originally developed by Sandlot, who have now outsourced development over to a Western developer. Most people were sceptical of this, and Prinnysquad on NTSC-uk made some rather humorous arguments against it. Obviously you can filter what images you use in order to make a specific point, so the above comparison shots are staged, but I think it's rather indicative of... something? Vicious Cycle Software are known for making shovelware, and as pointed out they seem to have missed the point of EDF. They've spoken about trying to fix the original game, and are including fancy lighting and shaders and other graphical nonsense, new and improved physics, a complicated shop system to buy weapon and armour upgrades, and all spread over a measly 3 campaigns of 5 missions each (15 missions compared to EDF2's 71 - which means they'll probably be nauseatingly long). Enemies are small and there are less of them onscreen at one time. It's also very brown. All I wanted was low-budget insanity with hundreds of mile-high insects and all the crazy weapons and stages from EDF2 (the broken nature of the physics added to the game's charm - it's precisely what I liked about the game). Actually, I would have settled for a straight port of EDF2.

So I ask HG101 - which of the two images do YOU prefer? Thanks to Prinnysquad for providing fuel for this entry, and making me laugh with his epic NSFW comments.

EDIT:
Did a quick Google. Colette Bennett of Destructoid totally, utterly GETS IT.

"Watching giant robots collapse and die is semi-orgasmic."



13 comments:

  1. I prefer the first pic. But I did play and enjoyed GDF. This was after having played a bit of EDF for the Xbox 360. Was surprised that the Ps2 title has more levels and an extra character. When I heard about the new EDF (which was ctually only 3 days ago) I was excited. But then I saw that it was not by Sandlot. I dont have very high hopes for it.

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  2. Hahah, thanks dude. Hundreds of hours of EDF has made me a hardcore fan. I am a little worried about lack of bugs in the Insect Armageddeon screens though...

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  3. The first pic is like a light and breezy 50s scifi/monster movie ... The second pic is like a "dirtier" (i.e. the camera is smeared with dirt) more realistic 80s action movie.

    Which one you prefer depends on which movie genre you prefer (in my opinion).

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  4. This new incarnation looks like it was designed by committee. A focus on pushing graphics over stuffing the screen with enemies? Nixing local co-op in favor of pushing a competitive online mode? Yeah, sorry Vicious Cycle, but you missed what made the original Sandlot EDF games so charming.

    The beauty of the Sandlot EDF titles is bite-sized, simple gameplay that puts you up against seemingly insurmountable odds. The games also thrived on excess, with environments packed with hoards of bugs, aliens, Godzilla, giant 50s sci-fi inspired robots and more. The game felt like it was held together with duct tape, bubble gum and a little bit of hope.

    By trying to appeal to everyone, Vicious Cycle and D3 have sealed their fate. They have essentially destroyed what little hope the niche fan base has for Insect Invasion. The mainstream will likely pass as well, as there is nothing here that will catch the Call of Duty or Halo player's eye.

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  5. Kieron Gillen's review on Eurogamer of EDF 2017 is still one of my favourite reviews of all time.

    http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/earth-defence-force-2017-review

    Something to compare Insect Armageddon with alongside 2017 is also Zangeki no Reginleiv (Let's call it Earth Defence Norse) which was the fantasy inspired Wii game also developed by Sandlot this year, which as well as being a spiritual sequel of sorts also allowed for 4-player online coop.

    Sadly the coop wouldn't work for cross country play, since it wasn't designed with that in mind, but what the game does present really needs more recognition than it had.

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  6. I compared the PS2 Chikyuu Boeigun and the Xbox 360 sequel to each other, coming to a basic 'its a tradeoff' conclusion between the two... leaning somewhat to PS2 one for its greater variety (see the Fanboy Ramble).

    Since my own likes about the series echo the sentiments of almost everyone here, my misgivings are also the same.

    When it is released, if it is shite, I will probably 'blog just as negatively as all EDF lovers will but with more spirited cussing.

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  7. When the new game was announced to be developed not by Sandlot, I was sceptical of the sceptics. Surely the formal is a basic one, and well enough established, that it would be a hard thing to get wrong. All a new version needs is the return of the Pale Wing character, and more things to shoot. Perhaps a 10 player online version, if the developer feels they have the resources. A level editor would be a perfect fit for a Sandlot game. It would suit in much the same way it suits Bangaio Spirits.

    At the moment, this sounds like they're trying to make it closer to the 'other' third-person shooters. Why did they make the ants so ugly, and unant-like? A different approach is not inherently a bad thing, though. So like a sensible, dull man, my judgement is reserved. (And I probably have enough good EDF to last me for the rest of my gaming life, anyway.)

    I guess the positive to take from all this, provided the game is pish, is that Sandlot will we working on something new!

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  8. @Myth:
    Colette Bennett actually posted a Destructoid exclusive video of the local co-op a couple of days ago, which I missed (I found it via Selectbutton's forum):
    http://www.destructoid.com/destructoid-exclusive-edf-insect-armageddon

    Admittedly, it does look rather sparse.

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  9. I haven't played any of the two, but this article gives me the impression that the new developers are forgetting about the game's fans in favor of going mainstream. Sadly, this is something developers are into these days. :(

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  10. Sketcz: Oh, cool. I just saw that myself on Destructoid's site.

    It isn't going to radically alter my opinion of the game, but at least Vicious Cycle has the good sense to put it in.

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  11. I have EDF 2017 and it's a lot of fun. I plan on importing Zangeki no Reginleiv at some point (I have Wii Homebrew so I could play it), and hopefully Global Defense Force too (I don't currently have a way to play PS2 imports though, so this will probably happen later).

    This new game, however... I like the way the soldier looks, but I'm worried it'll take itself way too seriously. I also don't like the idea of fewer levels that take much longer to complete. Vicious Cycle had better not mess up what makes the series so fun in the first place.

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  12. Alex Sargeant wrote:
    Sadly the coop wouldn't work for cross country play, since it wasn't designed with that in mind, but what the game does present really needs more recognition than it had.



    I don't know what you're talking about, I play this game online with Japanese people all the time, and it works fine.

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  13. Mark Bussler (CGR) said that this game is fantastic, that it's one of the most fun games of this generation, and he made a 2-part review of it, which he generally does with some of the more popular games. Colette Bennett loves the game too. I've seen gameplay of it (on the CGR review) and it looks like an awesome game.

    And yet I don't know why I still haven't got or downloaded the game. Maybe I should. Heck, I DEFINITELY should!

    The new EDF, however, doesn't look that special.

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