Chaos Theory: The top five crowd-control combat games
Why two throngs make a right.
4. Devil Kings
- Platform: PS2
- Released: 2006
Capcom's attempt to snatch a sod of KOEI's lucrative 'Warriors turf, but not as cynical as it sounds. Pumped up with some hallmark Capcom vitality and camp, the combos were sparkier, and enemies actually wanted to fight. You like swords? How about wielding six at once? And robots? Then have Iron Ox, a screen-tall, comically overpowered metal beast that converts button presses into genocide. Trouble is, it didn't match the sense of battlefield scenario and ally presence you'd get in KOEI's games.
3. Serious Sam
Headshots? We don't need no stinking headshots. Often thought of as the spiritual successor to Doom's growling hordes, this FPS strips the genre down to its pubes: shooting. Shooting. And more shooting. No hiding, no reloading, no faffing, no pretensions, no nothing but shooting. By embracing idiosyncratic madness, it still stands tall above the self-conscious drudgery of too many shooters. Received a sequel and a spin-off on PS2/GameCube, but hasn't been blessed with the proper score-combo system that it's been crying out for. Until that happens, I can't get married. Sorry dear.
2. Warriors Orochi
The ultimate wrap-party, this, for the Warriors series and its obese PS2 CV. After countless Tactics/Extreme spin-offs and sequels that required an Excel spreadsheet to track, Warriors Orochi is pretty much the IP-collision that KOEI had been building towards all that time. Lassoing dozens of characters from both Samurai and Dynasty universes and letting them loose against a new, common enemy, this is the ultimate high-five for faithful followers. Imagine the effect that an Eastenders Vs Coronation Street mash-up would have on a typical soap fan. Then multiply it by flaming halberds.
1. Global Defence Force
- Platform: PS2
- Released: 2007
Now, Earth Defence Force 2017 on 360 was lovely. It brought Sandlot's armageddon of giant insects to an audience that otherwise wouldn't have chowed down on its delights. It's a one-track shooter but, boy, does it make some noise. Thing is, the two EDF games made prior to 2017 have been available in the UK for a while, albeit stealthily, on PS2. The first was released as Monster Attack, but let's not talk about that, as it's basically obsolete. EDF2 - known as Global Defence Force over here - was released in utter silence by D3's budget label Essential Games, and it's the standout experience. EDF 2017 was, in essence, a high-def redux of Monster Attack. Global Defence Force, however, upped the ante substantially. It offered Palewing, an alternative character capable of jet-pack glides and a new plasma-based weapon-set, and crammed in bundles of new enemies: giant millipedes, War of the Worlds walkers, pill bugs, UFOs with bullet-reflecting panels... and a last boss the size of a city. The frame-rate often spluttered, but it's not like any developer out there seems to want to usurp it. Well, not until Sandlot releases EDF4. Which, probably, will see the entire animal kingdom converted into B-movie freaks that attack en masse across a single continent-sized level that lasts for fifteen hours. We can but hope.