Earth Defense Force 2017 Wiki

Earth Defense Force 2017 is a rebranded version of Earth Defense Force 3 which was first released for the Xbox 360 back in 2007.

It is published by D3 Publisher and developed by Sandlot. It’s also the first game in the Earth Defense Force series to be released in the North America.

The game consists of humans vs the insects and the scenes are not pretty. You are obviously on the human side and are given an incredible arsenal to take down the insects ranging from big spiders to creatures that are simply disgusting to see.

A port of the game was also released on the PS Vita, it was received well by critics giving it an average of 7/10. [reference]

The game was released on the PS Vita in Japan on 27 September 2012. It was released in downloadable form in North America on 8 January 2013 and in Europe on 16 January 2013.

• 1. Development
• 2. Gameplay
• 3. Story
• 4. Reception

Development

The game was developed for the Xbox 360 first and then ported to the PlayStation Vita, which was released last year on the platform.

Reviews have panned the Vita version for being an inferior product compared to the Xbox 360 one, and it looks like the entire development was rushed.

The Vita port does contain a lot of new features and content, and also included online co-op, which gives it a slight edge over the Xbox 360 version. However, despite all the additional content, technically it’s not comparable and doesn’t realize the true potential of the Vita.

The game was released on the Vita in NA on January 8, 2013; Europe on January 16, 2013.

There aren’t many notes about its development because it’s such an old game that was created in Japan by an obscure studio, however, what we know of the PS Vita version is well documented.

Gameplay

The gameplay is very straightforward, you are placed in a team and start off as a lowly soldier and then you move up in the ranks. [reference]

You get access to incredible weaponry like tanks and a lot of other things.

The PS Vita version contains 60 missions. The destruction mechanics are lowered a bit compared to the original version but that was expected.

You can join the legendary Earth Defense Force and battle against giant alien robots and hordes of creepy insects.

You can squash all bugs in your path with over 230 explosive weapons, such as the Acid Gun, Flame Cannon and ZER-GUN. Team up with – or tear down – your friends in action-packed multiplayer modes for up to four players.

There are five difficulty levels for players to choose from. More effective weapons are dropped by the enemies in the game at the higher difficulty levels, encouraging players to repeat the missions.

Story

In 2013, radio waves from deep space are picked up by scientists, proving to humans that they were not alone in the universe.

The Earth Defense Force, a unified multinational military sponsored by nearly every country, is founded a few years later, in case the aliens prove to be hostile.

In the year 2017, first contact is made when hundreds of UFOs proceed to hover over every major city across the globe, led by a massive mothership positioned over Tokyo, Japan.

The aliens, dubbed Ravagers, initially make no aggressive action towards humanity. You are the Captain of Storm 1, the best Unit in the EDF, and your job is to protect the earth from the Ravager assault at all costs.

Reception

The PS Vita version got completely panned by online critics, while the Xbox 360 version managed to get some high scores from respectable outlets like Eurogamer.

The game is currently sitting at 69% on Metacritic. [reference]

Our review of the PS Vita version praised it for the action but also pointed out the technical issues of the game. [reference]

“There’s a lot of things to shoot here and the destruction mechanics are impressive for what we’ve seen before on a Vita, and in a way actually shows what the handheld is capable of, if used in a proper way.

“It’s not as good as its big brother but that’s expected, however, the Vita version’s co-op could prove to be the best thing if you own the 3G version. Imagine shooting insects with amazing firepower with a bunch of friends.”