Defender (2002 video game)

Defender
Defender
	North American box art
Developer(s)	7 Studios (PS2); Inevitable Entertainment (GC, Xbox); Outlook Entertainment (GBA); Lavastorm (Mobile); Digital Eclipse (Xbox 360)
Publisher(s)	Midway; THQ (Mobile)
Director(s)	George Collins
Producer(s)	Matthew Candler; Christine Thomas
Designer(s)	Robert Berger; Richard Bisso; Jeffery Gardiner; Michael Kirkbride
Programmer(s)	Brian Hawkins
Artist(s)	Miguel Lleras
Writer(s)	Robert Berger; Michael Kirkbride; Margaret Stohl
Composer(s)	Michael Cohen
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, mobile, Xbox 360 (digital)
Release	NA: 21 October 2002 (PS2); NA: 4 November 2002 (GC, Xbox); NA: 7 November 2002 (GBA); EU: 24 March 2003; Mobile; 13 June 2003; Xbox 360; 15 November 2006
Genre(s)	Shoot 'em up

Defender (subtitled For All Mankind outside North America) is a shoot 'em up video game developed in October 2002 for the PlayStation 2, and Xbox, and was ported to the GameCube the following month, followed by a port to the mobile phone version published by THQ in 2003. The game was also rereleased for Xbox 360's Live Arcade in November 2006. It is a remake of the 1981 game of the same name. Featuring three-dimensional (3D) graphics, the game is set on multiple planets and moons within the Solar System where the player must defeat waves of invading aliens while protecting astronauts.

A separate version of the game was released for the Game Boy Advance. Despite sharing a name, box art and a release date with the console versions, it is a different game.

Gameplay

The player picks up humans, who are in danger from aliens, and brings them to a drop zone for extraction. The enemy landers are attacking them, and will constantly try to pick them up for themselves. Once a human is stolen, the player has a short amount of time to blast the lander and catch the slowly falling human. If the player fails to free the human, they are absorbed into the lander and the lander is transformed into a much more difficult enemy. If the human hits the ground from falling they will die. The enemies are a handful of other alien craft, including some ground units that can turn humans into zombies.

Game Boy Advance version

A separate version of the game was released for the Game Boy Advance. It contains a faithful recreation of the 1981 Defender, and an updated version with digitized sprites and new game modes.^{[citation needed]}

Development

Reception

Aggregate scores
Aggregator	Score
Aggregator	GBA	GameCube	mobile	PS2	Xbox	Xbox 360
GameRankings	36%^[3]	68%^[4]	53%^[5]	74%^[6]	66%^[7]	57%^[8]
Metacritic	37/100^[9]	66/100^[10]	N/A	73/100^[11]	69/100^[12]	58/100^[13]

Review scores
Publication	Score
Publication	GBA	GameCube	mobile	PS2	Xbox	Xbox 360
AllGame	2/5^[14]	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Electronic Gaming Monthly	N/A	N/A	N/A	6.5/10^[15]	N/A	N/A
Eurogamer	N/A	N/A	N/A	6/10^[16]	N/A	6/10^[17]
Game Informer	2/10^[18]	N/A	N/A	7.75/10^[19]	8.25/10^[20]	N/A
GamePro	N/A	N/A	N/A	4/5^[21]	N/A	N/A
GameSpot	4.9/10^[22]	6.9/10^[23]	N/A	6.9/10^[24]	6.9/10^[24]	6.6/10^[25]
GameZone	5.5/10^[26]	7.8/10^[27]	N/A	8/10^[28]	6/10^[29]	N/A
IGN	2/10^[30]	7/10^[31]	2/10^[32]	7.5/10^[33]	7.1/10^[34]	5.5/10^[35]
Nintendo Power	3/5^[36]	3.1/5^[37]	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Nintendo World Report	N/A	6/10^[38]	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine	N/A	N/A	N/A	3.5/5^[39]	N/A	N/A
Official Xbox Magazine (US)	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	8/10^[40]	6.5/10^[41]
X-Play	N/A	N/A	N/A	4/5^[42]	N/A	N/A

The game received "mixed or average reviews" on all platforms except the Game Boy Advance version, which received "unfavorable" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.^[9]^[10]^[11]^[12]^[13]

References

^ ^a ^b "Midway Press Release: PR 2002-11-04 A". 11 November 2006. Archived from the original on 11 November 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
^ "Midway Press Release: PR 2002-10-21 A". 11 November 2006. Archived from the original on 11 November 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
^ "Defender for Game Boy Advance". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ "Defender for GameCube". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ "Defender for Mobile". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ "Defender for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 30 May 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ "Defender for Xbox". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 22 May 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ "Defender for Xbox 360". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 28 May 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Defender for Game Boy Advance Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 14 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Defender for GameCube Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Defender for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 14 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Defender for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 14 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Defender for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Marriott, Scott Alan. "Defender (GBA) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on 14 November 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
^ "Defender (PS2)". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 161. Ziff Davis. December 2002. p. 202. Archived from the original on 4 June 2004. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
^ Reed, Kristan (5 December 2002). "Defender (PS2)". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Reed, Kristan (25 November 2006). "Defender (Xbox 360) [date mislabeled as "November 28, 2006"]". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 7 October 2009. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Kato, Matthew (February 2003). "Defender (GBA)". Game Informer. No. 118. FuncoLand. p. 110. Archived from the original on 13 November 2004. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ "Defender (PS2)". Game Informer. No. 115. FuncoLand. November 2002. p. 126.
^ "Defender (Xbox)". Game Informer. No. 118. FuncoLand. February 2003. p. 105.
^ Pong Sifu (11 November 2002). "Defender Review for PS2 on GamePro.com". GamePro. IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on 9 February 2005. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
^ Provo, Frank (2 December 2002). "Defender Review (GBA) [date mislabeled as "December 5, 2002"]". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Gerstmann, Jeff (18 November 2002). "Defender Review (GC)". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ ^a ^b Gerstmann, Jeff (31 October 2002). "Defender Review (PS2, Xbox)". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Gerstmann, Jeff (20 November 2006). "Defender Review (X360)". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Code Cowboy (30 November 2002). "Defender - GBA - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 28 December 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
^ Knutson, Michael (22 November 2002). "Defender - GC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
^ Hopper, Steven (10 November 2002). "Defender - PS2 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 20 December 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
^ Bedigian, Louis (18 November 2002). "Defender - XB - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 3 February 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
^ Harris, Craig (19 November 2002). "Defender (GBA)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Roper, Chris (27 November 2002). "Defender (GCN)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Buchanan, Levi (21 April 2003). "Defender (Cell)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Roper, Chris (22 October 2002). "Defender (PS2)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Roper, Chris (31 October 2002). "Defender Review (Xbox)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ Brudvig, Erik (16 November 2006). "Defender Review (Xbox 360)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ "Defender (GBA)". Nintendo Power. Vol. 165. Nintendo of America. February 2003. p. 160.
^ "Defender (GC)". Nintendo Power. Vol. 165. Nintendo of America. February 2003. p. 156.
^ Nation, Justin (29 November 2002). "Defender (GC)". Nintendo World Report. NINWR, LLC. Archived from the original on 10 August 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
^ Baker, Chris (November 2002). "Defender". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 62. Ziff Davis. p. 184. Archived from the original on 26 June 2004. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
^ "Defender (Xbox)". Official Xbox Magazine. Future US. January 2003. p. 92.
^ "Defender (X360)". Official Xbox Magazine. Future US. January 2007. p. 75.
^ Gallaway, Brad (13 November 2002). "'Defender' (PS2) Review". Extended Play. TechTV. Archived from the original on 16 November 2002. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

External links

Defender at MobyGames
Defender (Game Boy Advance) at MobyGames
Defender (Xbox 360) at MobyGames

[release-1] "Midway Press Release: PR 2002-11-04 A". 11 November 2006. Archived from the original on 11 November 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2023.

[2] "Midway Press Release: PR 2002-10-21 A". 11 November 2006. Archived from the original on 11 November 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2023.

[3] "Defender for Game Boy Advance". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[4] "Defender for GameCube". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[5] "Defender for Mobile". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[6] "Defender for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 30 May 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[7] "Defender for Xbox". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 22 May 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[8] "Defender for Xbox 360". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 28 May 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[MCGBA-9] "Defender for Game Boy Advance Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 14 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.

[MCGC-10] "Defender for GameCube Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.

[MCPS2-11] "Defender for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 14 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.

[MCXB-12] "Defender for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 14 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.

[MCX360-13] "Defender for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[14] Marriott, Scott Alan. "Defender (GBA) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on 14 November 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2022.

[15] "Defender (PS2)". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 161. Ziff Davis. December 2002. p. 202. Archived from the original on 4 June 2004. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

[16] Reed, Kristan (5 December 2002). "Defender (PS2)". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[17] Reed, Kristan (25 November 2006). "Defender (Xbox 360) [date mislabeled as "November 28, 2006"]". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 7 October 2009. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[18] Kato, Matthew (February 2003). "Defender (GBA)". Game Informer. No. 118. FuncoLand. p. 110. Archived from the original on 13 November 2004. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[19] "Defender (PS2)". Game Informer. No. 115. FuncoLand. November 2002. p. 126.

[20] "Defender (Xbox)". Game Informer. No. 118. FuncoLand. February 2003. p. 105.

[21] Pong Sifu (11 November 2002). "Defender Review for PS2 on GamePro.com". GamePro. IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on 9 February 2005. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

[22] Provo, Frank (2 December 2002). "Defender Review (GBA) [date mislabeled as "December 5, 2002"]". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[23] Gerstmann, Jeff (18 November 2002). "Defender Review (GC)". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[GSpot-24] Gerstmann, Jeff (31 October 2002). "Defender Review (PS2, Xbox)". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[25] Gerstmann, Jeff (20 November 2006). "Defender Review (X360)". GameSpot. Red Ventures. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[26] Code Cowboy (30 November 2002). "Defender - GBA - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 28 December 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

[27] Knutson, Michael (22 November 2002). "Defender - GC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

[28] Hopper, Steven (10 November 2002). "Defender - PS2 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 20 December 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

[29] Bedigian, Louis (18 November 2002). "Defender - XB - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on 3 February 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

[30] Harris, Craig (19 November 2002). "Defender (GBA)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[31] Roper, Chris (27 November 2002). "Defender (GCN)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[32] Buchanan, Levi (21 April 2003). "Defender (Cell)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[33] Roper, Chris (22 October 2002). "Defender (PS2)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[34] Roper, Chris (31 October 2002). "Defender Review (Xbox)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[35] Brudvig, Erik (16 November 2006). "Defender Review (Xbox 360)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[36] "Defender (GBA)". Nintendo Power. Vol. 165. Nintendo of America. February 2003. p. 160.

[37] "Defender (GC)". Nintendo Power. Vol. 165. Nintendo of America. February 2003. p. 156.

[38] Nation, Justin (29 November 2002). "Defender (GC)". Nintendo World Report. NINWR, LLC. Archived from the original on 10 August 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

[39] Baker, Chris (November 2002). "Defender". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 62. Ziff Davis. p. 184. Archived from the original on 26 June 2004. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

[40] "Defender (Xbox)". Official Xbox Magazine. Future US. January 2003. p. 92.

[41] "Defender (X360)". Official Xbox Magazine. Future US. January 2007. p. 75.

[42] Gallaway, Brad (13 November 2002). "'Defender' (PS2) Review". Extended Play. TechTV. Archived from the original on 16 November 2002. Retrieved 10 August 2022.

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v t e Defender series
Main entries	Defender (1981) Stargate Defender 2000 Defender (2002)
Related	Strike Force Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits
Clones	Dropzone Gorgon Invasion of the Body Snatchas! Repton

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Defender
North American box art
Developer(s)	7 Studios (PS2) Inevitable Entertainment (GC, Xbox) Outlook Entertainment (GBA) Lavastorm (Mobile) Digital Eclipse (Xbox 360)
Publisher(s)	Midway THQ (Mobile)
Director(s)	George Collins
Producer(s)	Matthew Candler Christine Thomas
Designer(s)	Robert Berger Richard Bisso Jeffery Gardiner Michael Kirkbride
Programmer(s)	Brian Hawkins
Artist(s)	Miguel Lleras
Writer(s)	Robert Berger Michael Kirkbride Margaret Stohl
Composer(s)	Michael Cohen
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, mobile, Xbox 360 (digital)
Release	NA: 21 October 2002 (PS2)^[2] NA: 4 November 2002 (GC, Xbox)^[1] NA: 7 November 2002 (GBA)^[1] EU: 24 March 2003 Mobile 13 June 2003 Xbox 360 15 November 2006
Genre(s)	Shoot 'em up