Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon started out with us asking the question, “What did Earth Defense Force 2017 lack?”
Online play was the one thing that people around the world wanted to experience in 2017, but couldn’t. We decided to make that our focus and started building the game from the ground up with that type of gameplay in mind.
We added multiple character classes to Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon (EDFIA) to feed the group online play idea. We knew it was essential to offer different styles of play so that people would want team up and fill different roles. After all is said and done, all of the classes are still about kicking bug butt. Much like 2017’s predecessor, EDF2, it’s just a case of whether you want to do it with the slower, heavier-hitting character or the fast and agile character. Both of those options exist with 2 other variants in between.
The staples of the series are the Trooper and Jet Armors. The Trooper Armor is much like Storm 1 from the previous titles. He has the widest variety of weapons, but no specific specialization. The Jet Armor is our nod to the character Pale Wing that fans wanted to see return to the series. The Jet Armor has limited flight capabilities and specializes in energy weapons.
The epic newcomers are The Battle and Tactical Armors; both completely new to the series. The Battle Armor is a big, hulking monster of an armor suit that specializes in using explosives at close range with the help of an energy shield. The Tactical Armor is also new to the series and my personal favorite. Everyone I had talked to about 2017 loved using the turrets, so we wanted to make turrets come back in a big way. We decided to make an entire armor class dedicated to turrets. We expanded the number of turret types and also lumped mines into this character’s abilities. All in all, the Tactical Armor has the most diverse abilities.
With the addition of the new armors, came new weapons. We tried to keep the same weapon types that people cherished, bring back some classics (like the Lysander and Genocide Cannon), and expand the list overall to make them feel more unique from one another. We ended up with over 300 weapons, an additional 30 if you get both of the retailer exclusive DLC packs.
The last major enhancement is the addition of Survival Mode. We wanted to allow more people to play together at once, but keep the same feel to the game. The goal of this mode is to let 6 players see how long they can last against endless waves of enemies. It really is competitive co-op, but as a player, you need to find that balance of choosing when to revive your partners and when to let them stay down so you can rack up the points. That element of the game is a ton of fun.
We hope that all of the fans enjoy the new elements we are bringing to the series! Please send us your thoughts and stay vigilant… EDF!!!
