Earth Defense Force

Story

In 2013, radio waves from deep space are picked up by scientists, proving the existence of extraterrestrial life. 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 each of the games the player assumes the role of an EDF soldier during an alien invasion.

Monster Attack

The first game in the series was originally released in Japan as "Simple 2000 Vol. 31: The 地球防衛軍" for the PlayStation 2. "Chikyū Bōeigun" or "Earth Defense Force" was created by Sandlot Games as part of D3 Publisher's Simple Series of budget-priced games on compact disk. It was later distributed in PAL format on CD in Europe by Agetec, Inc. under the title "Monster Attack".

Global Defence Force

Chikyū Bōeigun 2 is the second game in the series, released for the PlayStation 2. The game was released in Europe as Global Defence Force but was not released in North America. A PlayStation Portable version of the game, titled Earth Defense Force 2 Portable was released on April 7, 2011 in Japan. A remake for the PlayStation Vita, entitled Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders from Planet Space, was released on December 11, 2014 in Japan, with a North American port released on December 8, 2015.

Global Defence Force Tactics

Chikyū Bōeigun: Tactics, known as "Global Defence Force Tactics" in Europe, is a turn-based strategy game, taking place after the events of Global Defence Force.

Earth Defense Force 2017

Earth Defense Force 2017, known in Japan as Chikyū Bōeigun 3 is the third game in the series, released for the Xbox 360. It was the first game in the series to be released in North America. A PlayStation Vita version of Earth Defense Force 3 was announced on June 5, 2012 as Earth Defense Force 3 Portable. The new version will include both local and online co-operative play, as well as the return of Palewing from Earth Defense Force 2. The game was released on September 27, 2012 in Japan.

Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon

Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon is the fourth game in the series, released for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC. It was the first game in the series to be developed outside Japan and also the first to feature online co-operative play.

Earth Defense Force 2025

Earth Defense Force 2025, known in Japan as Chikyū Bōeigun 4, released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on July 4, 2013 in Japan. Developed by Sandlot, it is a direct sequel of Earth Defense Force 2017. It features four player online co-operative play. It was released on February 2014 in US and Europe.

Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair, an updated port, was released for the PlayStation 4 on April 2, 2015 in Japan and on December 8, 2015 in North America. Europe has an estimated release date for February 12, 2016, and European players will be able to play with North American players online according to Ryan Graff from publisher XSEED Games.

Earth Defense Force 5

Earth Defense Force 5 was announced at TGS 2016, and will be released on PlayStation 4 in 2017 in Japan.

Reception

Despite generally mixed reviews, the Earth Defense Force series, particularly from Earth Defense Force 2017 and onwards, has been described as having a cult following. Joe Juba of Game Informer defined Earth Defense Force 2017 as a cult classic, stating that "the developers at Sandlot clearly want to tell a story about humanity's struggle against giant invading ants and robots, and the passion for that story shines through despite its technical shortcomings." Though Jim Sterling gave Earth Defense Force 2025 a negative review, he did acknowledge that the series "has managed to earn itself a fierce cult following through audacity alone."