armada: video games meets alien invasion
- paigenherbooks
- Jan 22, 2022
- 6 min read
Rating: 3.5/5
Ernest Cline is a huge dork. I didn't realize that until I realized all of his novels are video game centric...and this man, this man knows his stuff! Just to preface I am literally astounded by how many references he can manage to throw into one story line. It's nuts. I will say though that Armada is right there with Ready Player One, a fast pace, video game based, crazy adventure, featuring (for the most part) likable characters and a riveting plot line!
Synopsis: Zack Lightman has never much cared for reality. He vastly prefers the countless science-fiction movies, books, and video games he's spent his life consuming-and too often he catches himself wishing that some fantastic, impossible, world-altering even could happen to whisk him off on a gran spacefaring adventure. So when he sees the flying saucer, he's sure his years of escapism have finally tipped over to psychosis. Especially because the alien ship he's starting at is straight out of his favorite video game, Armada. It's the first in a blur of revelations that will force him to question everything he thought he knew about Earth's history, it's future, and even his own life-and to play the hero for real, with humanities fate in the balance.
Armada...honestly a pretty decent book. The concept of video games being training for people to fight off a legit alien invasion is something that was interesting to me. I think that Cline did a good job of creating a scenario that was real enough within the bounds of science fiction. I have read both of Ernest Cline's other books, Ready Player One and Ready Player Two, both which I genuinely enjoyed. Armada would have to take third place for me though. Let me tell you why (negative stuff first then the good stuff promise!)
Armada is obviously a video game centric book, which I enjoyed. I like old video games and I think video game science fiction stories are interesting! Though in Armada there was ALOT of references that went waaaaay over my head. I did expect this a little, due to the fact that I am not an avid video game character. But, in my defense, Cline does over do it in my opinion. There is so much video game knowledge within some of the scenes of the book, that I found myself skimming over them. To me some of it was just unnecessary. Though to other readers maybe these scenes were astronomically amazing. For me, it seemed like detail fluff that wasn't needed (in it's entirety)
The story itself was interesting. Following Zack Lightman around as he figures out that the EDA, the Earth Defense Alliance, is real. Not only real, but watching him and a bunch of other great video game players to recruit to help defend the end of the world. That part was cool! It was giving me Men in Black vibes almost. This unseen group that has been defending Earth's honor for decades!!
That being said some times the story was cliche.
Very very cliche.
My first example being the character of Lex. Lex is this punk rock chick that our main character instantly falls for after two seconds of staring at her. I'm here for that, don't get me wrong, it's the development of relationship that gets me. Zack and Lex talk for about 10 mins or so (lots of giggling and flirting, which was semi cute) and then boom worlds ending, cue the two of them being in love (???) Zack thinks about her all throughout the book and before she leaves to go to her own alien fighting base she kisses him........ WHAT. It was awkward guys. Like ZERO chemistry and boom we have a love interest. Which had potential (???) but I hate to say this *ugh* the characters were all so one dimensional, save Zack.
Lex is your typical "bad girl". Shaved hair, weird clothing, bad b attitude with a chip on her shoulder. She's also some amazing hacking genius...which this never gets explained and I am confused still on how this random 18 year old girl can hack government systems like it's nothing. The other characters that were introduced were also cookie cutter. We had a middle aged mom who was very religious, a pot head, a sassy southern girl, and a kid from China who spoke no english. To me Cline just dropped the ball. He leaned into stereotypes in my opinion, when he could've really gave the characters personalities. The book is 481 pages long... give me some character development!!!! Guys, like some of these characters died and I didn't even bat an eye. I was "sad" but it's like I didn't know them. They were just these NPC (non playable characters *video game reference) that I did not find interesting.
Then Cline pulled a Disney. Zack's long lost dead dad whom he had been yearning for his whole life, was actually alive. I was initially shocked. I wasn't super expecting it, but then it happened and I was like huh...okay. I started to enjoy the small dynamic that Zack and his dad were having (again as the only characters with legitimate personalities) but then Cline actually killed him off. That angered me. Why go though the effort to bring this character all the way back to life, let your main character have maybe a DAY with him, and then actually kill him off. I understand but also I don't. I think it would have been so much more influential and interesting if Zack's dad stayed alive. As one of the most interesting characters especially.
Also, I'm going to just say it, Zack was so annoying at times. He acted like a 12 year old and I kinda understood why, but also it made it annoying to read. He would get super angry over random things and then just change his whole perspective on life. I don't know if this is suppose to signify trauma or teenage angst but man, Zack Attack was bothering me at times. I will say in Ready Player Two, I also had this issue with the main character. At times he was just so hate-able! So, I'm not sure if that's just Cline's writing style (???)
Then the ending. THE ENDING. WHAT THE HELL. I was actually so shocked. Y'all don't even understand. I know I said my reviews are going to be very spoiler dense, I'm just saying turn back now if you actually want to read this book. This ending was so far from what I was expecting, everyone should have the same "wtf" shock factor I did...
*TURN BACK NOW IF YOU DO NOT WANT THE ENDING SPOILED*
Ernest Cline, I have so many questions.
So the ending...
The ENDING.
It's basically found out that the alien race they have been fighting (the one straight out of the Armada game) is actually just one sentient machine being that is testing humanity for a spot in their super secret, super cool science club.
No loser allowed.
So this sentient being comes face to face with Zack Attack here and explains the invasion was a whole test of humanity. It was just a test. They killed 30 million people as a test to see if they wanted Earth and humanity to join this elitist club. Then it gets worse? This being asks Zack if he wants Earth to join and if "they" do, this group will basically help them move into a new generation of technology and everything.
Zack just says yes and then the being goes back into Europa. True to their word though these drones that were just trying to kill them, start curing cancer and buildings and gives the world new energy. Cool concept but just so far out of left field I was sitting there just staring into space trying to understand what I just read.
That ALL being said, I promise I did enjoy the book. If you're not looking too deep into it, it's an interesting story that has some really cool Star Wars esq. scenes. I think if you're well versed in vide games this book might be a better fit for you.
Overall, I really do enjoy Ernest Cline's writing and I applaud him for his extensive knowledge on vide games and science fiction in general. I did enjoy the story, but it had the potential to be so much more great than what I felt like it was. It had the bones to be a truly amazing science fiction novel, but it fell short just a bit for me! Cline's stories do keep you interested and intrigued, it's just the small executions that do it for me.
But, I am glad to say that I have checked it off my TBR!
happy happy reading friends,
paige :)
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