The year is 2017 and the world is under attack, no not by any type of chemical creations, or even North Korea, but by bugs…giant alien bugs!
Yes that can only mean one thing…Earth Defense Force 2017. Another early game released for the Xbox 360. A fun little fact is it is actually a sequel to Global Defense Force released in 2005 for the PS2, only in Japan. In Earth Defense Force 2017 the player takes control of an EDF soldier who is part of a elite unit known as “Storm 1”. In the battles against these alien threats, the player can access over 150 weapons including; assault rifles, sniper rifles, rocket launchers, grenades, and laser weapons. Sadly you can only pick between two weapons for each mission. Some levels also contain vehicles that can be used including; tanks, helicopters, hover-bikes, and a mecha machine type device. The game is set across fifty-three levels featuring destructible environments, which at the time of its release were really cool, and even now you can still have fun blowing up a building with a big ant crawling on it (granted its not as detailed or as fun as a game such as Red Faction Guerilla). For the time though it got the job done, and can still make you smile even. However the game is mainly set in a city backdrop that can kind of get a little boring to see, especially when the mission consist of you doing the same thing over and over again, and dying in a ridiculous manner. You would think this game has a big LJN sticker hiding somewhere on it.
While playing you can get other EDF soldiers to follow you and help out with your attacks, but basically they are just easy targets that can also manage to get in your way. As you blow apart the enemies, which are mainly all big ants for some messed up reason, they drop power ups and the occasional health boost that can help.
In the end this game has some arcade style fun. Does it suck? Yes, but can you have some fun with it? Yes, a bit for the first hour anyway, and then I recommend a better game. For the time I’m sure it was considered cool by a lot of people. It may have fallen under the radar, but it is definitely worth checking out for some, and for others just make sure it stays hidden under the radar.
This concludes another short little look at another hidden gem for the Xbox 360…until next time.
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