Choose EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair
Choose EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair if it's currently about 67% cheaper on the Steam Store. 5,855 Steam reviews back the pick.
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair vs EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair and EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 both land in Action on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both are Action games on Steam. EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair (2016) is 3 years older than EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 (2019). Both sit near 96% positive on Steam (EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair: 5,855 reviews, EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5: 5,573). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.
Which should you pick?
Choose EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5
Choose EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 if you want the Online PvP, Online Co-op, and Shared/Split Screen Co-op side of the pairing. On Steam, it's the newer release (2019) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 5,573 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair and EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 sit in Action on Steam and both list Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen, and Co-op, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (96.4% vs 95.6% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair |  EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2016 | 2019 |
| Genres | Action | Action |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Playable |
| Price | 19.99 USD | 59.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 96.4% positive (5,855 reviews) | 95.6% positive (5,573 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Co-op | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Shared/Split Screen Co-op |
| Developers | SANDLOT | SANDLOT |
Side by side
- Both are Action games on Steam.
- EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair (2016) is 3 years older than EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 (2019).
- Both sit near 96% positive on Steam (EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair: 5,855 reviews, EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5: 5,573).
- EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair is currently ~67% cheaper on Steam than EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 (19.99 USD vs. 59.99 USD).
- Both support cooperative play.
- Both are Deck Playable.
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair vs EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 — FAQ
- Which is better, EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair or EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5?
- On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair sits at 96.4% positive (5,855 reviews), EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 at 95.6% (5,573). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
- Should I play EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair or EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 first?
- If you want chronology, EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair (2016) came out before EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 (2019). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
- Are EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair and EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 similar?
- They overlap on Action on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.
- Do both EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair and EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 have co-op?
- Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair ships Co-op; EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 5 ships Online Co-op, Shared/Split Screen Co-op.