Defender

"Here comes another Swarm!"

Ok ok. The game is another remake of the old 80's game Defender and Defender II. But don't let THAT discourage you from an equally excellent game from the next.

Story:8
The Earth has been invaded by Alien Bugs, or Manti, and the human race have ''colonies'' stationed on Mars, Saturn, etc. protected by the GSA, a space fleet. That seems simple enough. But as the story progresses, you get one step closer to the liberation of earth. Pretty complicated now. You control the pilot Kyoto, led by Colonel Adams. There is also the strange Dr. Mudo, scientist with a German background, and Memory, a huge battleship that gives you details and warns you of any attacks.

Gameplay:10
Oh YEAH! It's awesome! You can choose between 6 customized Defender ships, locked and loaded with your own weapons. Once Adams briefs you, it's Manti blasting time! There is a lot of explosive scenery and destruction all over the field. You collect ''colonists'' and use them for powerups or use them to create an army to defend a base. Be careful, the Manti can also harvest them to turn into a stronger monster. Your objectives possibly are to kill a specific bug, or rescue some colonists, or build a few tanks, or defend a base. No matter what, it's all good. Just be sure you have a lot of time on your hands. Some missions are fairly long, some are amazingly short.

Sound/Music:8
Yup. Even though the music is unlike anyone else's, they rock. The sound is alright, and Colonel Adam's voice during gameplay also makes the game lively. There are also explosions all over the battlefield, from dying aliens to frying buildings. Even lasers and rockets make a big bang.

Graphics:10
Are you kidding me? Movies in the game have perfect graphics. As for gameplay, they are all right. They just have to work on detail. I mean one second a colonist is bigger than your ship, the next it shrinks(I'm serious) and grabs your wings! Yeah, strange. The other thing is that they have to work on faces. Kyoto looks sorta....yucky.

Replay:yes
Once you beat the final mission(one heck of a mission too)you start all over again with your ships and upgrades still in the game! Yeah, pretty cool. But of course, wouldn't it be better to change the difficulty?

Overall:9
Although the old version was a big hit, this game, sadly, is quite unpopular among the crowd. But don't worry. Make your own decision. It's a really good game.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 04/21/03, Updated 04/21/03