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"The Jet Gamer" Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon
8 years ago
A cheap PS3 this time instead of cheap wii games for a change.
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon
This was one of those inpulse cheapo games I picked up that while looking interesting from the cover and first glances, you have to really play to understand what it is all about. You hear a game that says something about an insect Armageddon and you wonder what in the world could that be about. It was cheap and another game for us all to check out to see if that price is a deal, or if the cheap price is that way for a reason. Let us all take a closer look and find out shall we?
Gameplay
The basic gameplay of EDF is that you are a soldier running around an open city area shooting giant insects that are trying to kill you. That’s about it. You run from objective point to objective way point on the map, with each point being another large wave of bugs that are going to try and kill you and your team mates and you have to shoot them all while surviving, so you can move to the next waypoint. Yeah, it is that basic. There is really no variety at all, as the bulk of the game is just running around, shooting and moving on. I know they are trying to make something simple, but this is really just mindless shooting. On top of that, most of the creatures you are shooting take so much gunfire and there are so many of them that you just feel like waves last for longer than they should. I wouldn’t mind long waves if it felt like was dealing good damage to the enemies, but it just feels like you are continuing to shoot and shoot and shoot and are barely getting things done at times. While I can see the appeal this game could have, that appeal likely comes from this being a game that would work well if mainly played online, and less in a single player mode. This game does have an online mode, but at this point, I’m sure it is likely offline anyway. Even then, the AI you have doesn’t help that much. They do shoot and do get kills and such, but they just aren’t smart about it. They will help you out in some ways, but they just don’t know how to do the small things that can make a human player likely the better way to play this game. They don’t know to cover you when you need to blow up nests, and they can sometimes delay coming over to you to revive you, which could mean the difference between continuing on and game overing on a long level. Yeah, the AI isn’t that much help. While they are helpful in their own ways, I just more and more, the more this game went on, could tell how a human player would be way more beneficial than an AI player would be. This is especially so when the AI isn’t as bright as you wish it could be. A big problem as I said is that the game is just the same thing over and over again. When it is just move from way point to way point without really any change, you get bored rather fast. This is something I’m going to bring up again later, but really I think you can already tell that if you are doing the same thing over and over, you are lacking gameplay variety quite massively. While there is a survival mode that is separate from the main campaign, all this mode is, is literally just shoot more things, you are just doing it on your own, with not as good equipment. Yeah, as you can see, the bulk of the gameplay is nothing but running and shooting. While this is okay for a short while, the lack of variety, and the tough enemies, along with long levels just sort of wears on you after a while. Even then, the game isn’t even that long with their only being fifteen levels in the game, and you are done. Yeah, I must say, while you can get off to an interesting start here with the gameplay, you just yearn for more from this game is all.
Story
The story here is honestly just pitiful. While I can see bits and pieces of a story here, it just doesn’t make sense overall as this game feels like the story was just an after-thought. You are playing as a small three man team, which is a part of the EDF. You are in New Detroit and you are trying to kill the invading alien like insects that have invaded the city and all around the world. You not only are meant to just be killing them, but you are also trying to find something that is lost in the city, but you barely find out anything about it until the end of the game. Most of the game, as I mentioned, is just your team moving from waypoint to waypoint as you kill giant insects. You just feel like you are being led along most of the game and you really don’t feel like you are accomplishing anything at all. I know some of that is the point, in that you are just fighting endless waves of enemies that make it seem hopeless, but you should at least feel like something is happening in the story. There are bits and pieces of story here and there, such as this mysterious object you are looking for later in the game, and the fact you are trying to get out of the city after a while too, but it is just so minimalistic that I can’t help but feel they just tried to make this just your generic online shooter with a watered down story mode. Even when it does try for story, the game just ends when you get to the last mission. There is really no explanation of how this all happened, nor is there any explanation about what happens in the end. You are left on a cliffhanger that isn’t very good. Yeah, not only did you not tell your story well, you don’t even have the decency to end if properly. I gave it a few points for trying, but that’s about all the game does in the story department, it just tries.
Graphics
The graphics of the game are just alright. They are nothing impressive by any means, but at least the game doesn’t just look ugly either. There are many characters on the screen at once, and the city is impressive when you look at it as a whole. When the city isn’t falling apart of the insects or your teams stray shots, it really does look like a legit city that you might see out there. While it lacks those small details to make it great, I have to give the game at least some credit for at least making a game that has so little depth and variety look at least somewhat decent. Lag was minimal, and often times only showed up when there were lots of explosions and such very close to the camera really. This is a common thing in many games, so I’m not surprised it is here. Still, if that’s all that is wrong with lag, I can sort of understand. So yeah, the game looks okay, but there were still those fine touches that could have been thrown in to make it great ya know? Like more details, and more variety as I have mentioned several times at this point.
Sound
This is another area where this game is just showing its average side. The music isn’t something you really notice much at all. I can’t even really tell you much about it at all. About all you do hear in this game are gunshots, explosions, and the random chatter of your team mates, with your main radio going off of course to tell you what is going on. While the radio is fine and the voice acting that you do hear is okay, when the bulk of the game is just shooting and explosions, you really just have most everything else drained out. What can I really say about the game when most things are sort of drowned out and what you do hear is just a lady spilling out objectives of what she wants you to do? Really, it’s just so blah and boring. It’s not horrible, but I just can’t say much good here either, other than the lady doing the main hq radio does an alright job at directing you. Other than that though, get used to gun shots and explosions. That’s all you really notice for the most part.
Control
The controls are actually fine in this game. They are mostly responsive, and they seem to fit what you want them to do for the most part. Really, other than taking a small bit of time to get used to them, I can’t really say there is much of a problem here. While I could think of a slightly better controller layout possibly than the one given here, it really isn’t that bad. I know it could be better, but really, when controls are just alright and there is nothing spectacular, but neither is anything bad about them, you really don’t have much to say about the controls overall.
Replay Value
The replay value isn’t that great here really. While there is some replayability in that this game has multiple difficulties, a survival mode, and lots of things to unlock in the form of achievements and weapons and armors, there are things that can keep some people coming back for more, but the base gameplay really doesn’t offer much replay value to your average player. This is one of those games that you may play through once or twice and you are pretty much done with it. Unless you don’t mind trying to grind for little extras, or going through even longer levels due to enemies taking even more of a beating than they already take on normal, then you might have some case for replayability in the long run. Really, when your base gameplay isn’t even that interesting, even collectathons can’t hold your attention for as long as they could if the gameplay was a bit better. Even though collectathons and mass unlocking of items in games isn’t for everyone, if the game overall is fun, it can become passable. In this game, it just can’t hold up in my opinion. While there are multiple difficulties, that just makes the enemies unbearablity hard to take down due to just how much damage they can take. I know that’s sort of the point in some ways, but again, your base gameplay doesn’t offer the overall incentive to care. I have to give the game some pass for trying with so many different things that can offer some replayability, it just doesn’t do them all well in the long run due to the below average gameplay. So yeah, I’m not impressed here, even though they sort of try.
Overall, I must say, while I can see EDF: Insect Armageddon having some good sides for an initial playthrough and it possibly being a game that would be alright online, the game is just not fun in the long run. The gameplay is lacking variety desperately, the story is a bit of a joke, and really the game just doesn’t have much lasting appeal. I can see where they were going with a game like this, but with some glaring problems that keep it from being good, this game sort of falls into the slightly below average territory. There are just some flaws that cannot be ignored, and I feel really need to be fixed if they plan for this series to last a long time. I know there are other games in this series, but after this experience, I don’t know if I will be trying another game in the series any time soon. This is one of those games where if you just must have a squad based shooter, or you have someone else to play with, if that is even possible with this game anymore, I can see you wanting this. Otherwise, I think this is one of those cheap games that is cheap for a reason and is likely one that should most likely be just passed on really. While it isn’t terrible, there is just no overall appeal that is going to make people come back for more, at least in my opinion. So yeah, just let this cheap one pass on by people.
Overall, in my opinion at least, I Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon a five point five out of ten.
Gameplay: 4
Story: 3
Graphics: 7
Sound: 5
Control: 8
Replay Value: 5
Overall: 5.5
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon
This was one of those inpulse cheapo games I picked up that while looking interesting from the cover and first glances, you have to really play to understand what it is all about. You hear a game that says something about an insect Armageddon and you wonder what in the world could that be about. It was cheap and another game for us all to check out to see if that price is a deal, or if the cheap price is that way for a reason. Let us all take a closer look and find out shall we?
Gameplay
The basic gameplay of EDF is that you are a soldier running around an open city area shooting giant insects that are trying to kill you. That’s about it. You run from objective point to objective way point on the map, with each point being another large wave of bugs that are going to try and kill you and your team mates and you have to shoot them all while surviving, so you can move to the next waypoint. Yeah, it is that basic. There is really no variety at all, as the bulk of the game is just running around, shooting and moving on. I know they are trying to make something simple, but this is really just mindless shooting. On top of that, most of the creatures you are shooting take so much gunfire and there are so many of them that you just feel like waves last for longer than they should. I wouldn’t mind long waves if it felt like was dealing good damage to the enemies, but it just feels like you are continuing to shoot and shoot and shoot and are barely getting things done at times. While I can see the appeal this game could have, that appeal likely comes from this being a game that would work well if mainly played online, and less in a single player mode. This game does have an online mode, but at this point, I’m sure it is likely offline anyway. Even then, the AI you have doesn’t help that much. They do shoot and do get kills and such, but they just aren’t smart about it. They will help you out in some ways, but they just don’t know how to do the small things that can make a human player likely the better way to play this game. They don’t know to cover you when you need to blow up nests, and they can sometimes delay coming over to you to revive you, which could mean the difference between continuing on and game overing on a long level. Yeah, the AI isn’t that much help. While they are helpful in their own ways, I just more and more, the more this game went on, could tell how a human player would be way more beneficial than an AI player would be. This is especially so when the AI isn’t as bright as you wish it could be. A big problem as I said is that the game is just the same thing over and over again. When it is just move from way point to way point without really any change, you get bored rather fast. This is something I’m going to bring up again later, but really I think you can already tell that if you are doing the same thing over and over, you are lacking gameplay variety quite massively. While there is a survival mode that is separate from the main campaign, all this mode is, is literally just shoot more things, you are just doing it on your own, with not as good equipment. Yeah, as you can see, the bulk of the gameplay is nothing but running and shooting. While this is okay for a short while, the lack of variety, and the tough enemies, along with long levels just sort of wears on you after a while. Even then, the game isn’t even that long with their only being fifteen levels in the game, and you are done. Yeah, I must say, while you can get off to an interesting start here with the gameplay, you just yearn for more from this game is all.
Story
The story here is honestly just pitiful. While I can see bits and pieces of a story here, it just doesn’t make sense overall as this game feels like the story was just an after-thought. You are playing as a small three man team, which is a part of the EDF. You are in New Detroit and you are trying to kill the invading alien like insects that have invaded the city and all around the world. You not only are meant to just be killing them, but you are also trying to find something that is lost in the city, but you barely find out anything about it until the end of the game. Most of the game, as I mentioned, is just your team moving from waypoint to waypoint as you kill giant insects. You just feel like you are being led along most of the game and you really don’t feel like you are accomplishing anything at all. I know some of that is the point, in that you are just fighting endless waves of enemies that make it seem hopeless, but you should at least feel like something is happening in the story. There are bits and pieces of story here and there, such as this mysterious object you are looking for later in the game, and the fact you are trying to get out of the city after a while too, but it is just so minimalistic that I can’t help but feel they just tried to make this just your generic online shooter with a watered down story mode. Even when it does try for story, the game just ends when you get to the last mission. There is really no explanation of how this all happened, nor is there any explanation about what happens in the end. You are left on a cliffhanger that isn’t very good. Yeah, not only did you not tell your story well, you don’t even have the decency to end if properly. I gave it a few points for trying, but that’s about all the game does in the story department, it just tries.
Graphics
The graphics of the game are just alright. They are nothing impressive by any means, but at least the game doesn’t just look ugly either. There are many characters on the screen at once, and the city is impressive when you look at it as a whole. When the city isn’t falling apart of the insects or your teams stray shots, it really does look like a legit city that you might see out there. While it lacks those small details to make it great, I have to give the game at least some credit for at least making a game that has so little depth and variety look at least somewhat decent. Lag was minimal, and often times only showed up when there were lots of explosions and such very close to the camera really. This is a common thing in many games, so I’m not surprised it is here. Still, if that’s all that is wrong with lag, I can sort of understand. So yeah, the game looks okay, but there were still those fine touches that could have been thrown in to make it great ya know? Like more details, and more variety as I have mentioned several times at this point.
Sound
This is another area where this game is just showing its average side. The music isn’t something you really notice much at all. I can’t even really tell you much about it at all. About all you do hear in this game are gunshots, explosions, and the random chatter of your team mates, with your main radio going off of course to tell you what is going on. While the radio is fine and the voice acting that you do hear is okay, when the bulk of the game is just shooting and explosions, you really just have most everything else drained out. What can I really say about the game when most things are sort of drowned out and what you do hear is just a lady spilling out objectives of what she wants you to do? Really, it’s just so blah and boring. It’s not horrible, but I just can’t say much good here either, other than the lady doing the main hq radio does an alright job at directing you. Other than that though, get used to gun shots and explosions. That’s all you really notice for the most part.
Control
The controls are actually fine in this game. They are mostly responsive, and they seem to fit what you want them to do for the most part. Really, other than taking a small bit of time to get used to them, I can’t really say there is much of a problem here. While I could think of a slightly better controller layout possibly than the one given here, it really isn’t that bad. I know it could be better, but really, when controls are just alright and there is nothing spectacular, but neither is anything bad about them, you really don’t have much to say about the controls overall.
Replay Value
The replay value isn’t that great here really. While there is some replayability in that this game has multiple difficulties, a survival mode, and lots of things to unlock in the form of achievements and weapons and armors, there are things that can keep some people coming back for more, but the base gameplay really doesn’t offer much replay value to your average player. This is one of those games that you may play through once or twice and you are pretty much done with it. Unless you don’t mind trying to grind for little extras, or going through even longer levels due to enemies taking even more of a beating than they already take on normal, then you might have some case for replayability in the long run. Really, when your base gameplay isn’t even that interesting, even collectathons can’t hold your attention for as long as they could if the gameplay was a bit better. Even though collectathons and mass unlocking of items in games isn’t for everyone, if the game overall is fun, it can become passable. In this game, it just can’t hold up in my opinion. While there are multiple difficulties, that just makes the enemies unbearablity hard to take down due to just how much damage they can take. I know that’s sort of the point in some ways, but again, your base gameplay doesn’t offer the overall incentive to care. I have to give the game some pass for trying with so many different things that can offer some replayability, it just doesn’t do them all well in the long run due to the below average gameplay. So yeah, I’m not impressed here, even though they sort of try.
Overall, I must say, while I can see EDF: Insect Armageddon having some good sides for an initial playthrough and it possibly being a game that would be alright online, the game is just not fun in the long run. The gameplay is lacking variety desperately, the story is a bit of a joke, and really the game just doesn’t have much lasting appeal. I can see where they were going with a game like this, but with some glaring problems that keep it from being good, this game sort of falls into the slightly below average territory. There are just some flaws that cannot be ignored, and I feel really need to be fixed if they plan for this series to last a long time. I know there are other games in this series, but after this experience, I don’t know if I will be trying another game in the series any time soon. This is one of those games where if you just must have a squad based shooter, or you have someone else to play with, if that is even possible with this game anymore, I can see you wanting this. Otherwise, I think this is one of those cheap games that is cheap for a reason and is likely one that should most likely be just passed on really. While it isn’t terrible, there is just no overall appeal that is going to make people come back for more, at least in my opinion. So yeah, just let this cheap one pass on by people.
Overall, in my opinion at least, I Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon a five point five out of ten.
Gameplay: 4
Story: 3
Graphics: 7
Sound: 5
Control: 8
Replay Value: 5
Overall: 5.5
