Defender

I give it 3 stars mainly because the game navigation is horrible, there is absolutely no replay value and the multiplayer is completely worthless, unless you enjoy getting sick from flying around in circles. The multiple ship and buying of weapons is also pretty useless. I pretty much stuck to one ship. I found it much easier to complete missions when I stuck to only 2-3 weapons, its a pain scrolling through multiple weapons while in combat. IDifferent buttons would have been a better idea. I just kept buying more ship lives with my money.

Pros are that the graphics are pretty good, some of the missions are fun and challenging, and the "flight simulation" is pretty good too.

This game is one of those that you should rent and beat within five days. Luckily I bought it used for $15.00 on Amazon. I will probably not resell it as I never sell anything.


good game, low replay value   March 16, 2003
 4 out of 4 found this review helpful

Defender is a fun game. I like the multiple ships and the fact that you can upgrade the weapons on each one. Once you beat the game though it offers little replay value, but its a fun ride.


An 80's game done right for 2003.   January 4, 2003
 4 out of 4 found this review helpful

I needed a break from Hitman 2 and Splinter Cell (already played Halo), so I picked up Defender for some mindless shooting. It is actually not so mindless, and is kind of addictive. I almost forgot how much fun it is to fly, and in Defender you have some good choices and you can upgrade your weapons depending on how well you complete each mission.

I am about 1/3 of the way through the missions, they get progressively tougher. When you fail a mission you can start it over. Some of objectives in the missions seem impossible at first, but when you have the right ship, the right weapons and the right strategy "its like butter, baby"!


great update to a classic space shooter   December 27, 2002
 4 out of 5 found this review helpful

This PS2 version is fairly true to the original; it maintains a lot of the style and substance of the arcade classic as far as enemies, crazy mutants, saving colonists, and the sheer relentless feel of the original. It has the added dimension of strategy, as you have to deploy and manage auxillary units to complete missions, you won't succeed by just being a firing maniac.

As you'd expect, the graphics are fantastic. The gameplay is generally top-notch. The different ships and weapons give a lot of options and different feels. Make sure you save multiple copies of games in progress so that you can try them out.

The major pain with this game is on the logistical end, it seems that it wants to make you suffer. Starting, loading, changing things on the fly is slow and VERY tedious. You can't trade in weapons you don't like, so if you run out of credits - tough luck - start over (or reload one of your saved games!). Some of the voiceover game characters are obnoxious; especially when they lag the action. You will hate your CO and that lame nazi mad scientist.

It has three levels of difficulty which is really nice. The "rookie" level is a good start; its moderately challenging - more so in figuring out what you have to do than in gonzo firing. This makes it a reasonable choice for the more casual player. Although it has its problems, and the classic version is NOT included (bummer), I'd say its a must have for those of us that get into spaceship shooter type games.