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Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon
Before getting all amped up about America tomorrow, you can put away the fireworks and prepare for the real celebration: Insect Armageddon. The latest entry in the Earth Defense Force series has players defending the world from an onslaught of aliens. EDF 2017 developed a cult following, and these are five things fans should know about the sequel, which is out now (our review is forthcoming).
1. It Has Online Co-op
Playing split-screen with two players in local co-op is still an option, but Insect Armageddon also introduces three-player online co-op to the mix. Your squad will always have three core members, but you can choose to fill the extra slots with buddies or bots. If you’re a masochist, you can also turn off the extra squadmates and go completely solo, Storm One-style. The online Survival mode (where you try to hold out against waves of Ravagers) supports six players.
2. Vehicles Are Better
In EDF 2017, the vehicles were hilariously useless. As soon as you hopped into a helicopter, it would be destroyed…and don’t even bother trying to control the hoverbike. For Insect Armageddon, the vehicles (mechs, tanks) and turrets (machine guns, anti-aircraft) are actually useful. Proper use of these devices can turn the tide of a battle, so you don’t just want to ignore them like you did last time.
3. Lots of Replay
Insect Armageddon has four suits of armor, and each
one functions as a different class. The armors allow access to
different special abilities and weapons, and they level up
independently. If you beat a level in the Jet armor, you only get
experience for the Jet armor. Since your level determines what weapons
you can access, you’re looking at a ton of playtime if you want to
unlock the best weapons for each armor type.
4. The Developer Is Funny
Earth Defense Force 2017 was a funny game, but in more of a “so-bad-it’s-good” way. The studio behind Insect Armageddon is Vicious Cycle – the same one that made Eat Lead: The Return Of Matt Hazard. While that game might not have been amazing, it had plenty of entertaining dialogue and tongue-in-cheek humor, and some of that has carried over to the team’s work on the EDF series.
5. It’s Cheap!
The game only costs $40, so it isn’t a big investment. Insect Armageddon isn’t exactly on the cutting edge of modern technology, but it does give you a chance to shoot a lot of bugs, robots, and spaceships with lots of different weapons. That’s the formula that made the last game a winner, and that isn’t changing this time around.
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