Homefront

 Story and concept came first for Homefront – they are the things THQ are pushing – so it’s only right that we tackle the singleplayer campaign first before moving on to the multiplayer, Homefront’s trump card.

Homefront’s story takes place in America, in the year 2027, two years after a Korean invasion and occupation. The cruel oppressors are out to crush whatever fight the Americans have left, through whatever means necessary. However, the American people are made of sterner stuff, as we’re sure you’ve already guessed. They’re mounting a resistance, and your character will have a key role to play.

Homefront’s story sounds completely implausible; it mostly is. Therefore, Kaos Studios deserve all the praise in the world for having us sold after only half an hour of playing. Kaos with the help of John Milius – writer of Apocalypse Now and Red Dawn – have worked incredibly hard to fill in the gaps, to turn this into a believable what-if scenario.

It starts with the unification of North and South Korea, then the invasion of Japan. This all happens while the world’s biggest economies are collapsing due to rapidly increasing fuel costs and other banking sector mishaps. As the world-leading nations, especially America, descend into something close to civil war, they become powerless to put pressure on the powerful and politically savvy Korea, who now finds a strong ally in the form of Iran. Crippling America further is a virulent strain of Bird Flue, which kills millions. America is on its knees when Korea launches an EMP blast.

You see all this happen in Homefront’s powerful opening cutscene, but what really cements it all are the tens of newspaper clippings scattered around Homefront’s world, waiting for you to find and read them. They cover the years from today to the invasion, and cover topics as wide and varied as the second collapse of GM to rising racial tensions in Japan. The writers have been thorough. The intro has all the impact, but these newspaper clippings really bring Homefront’s world to life.

These are your friends. They'll shout orders at you for the next five hours.

It’s just a shame most people will probably skip over these text-heavy dully-presented extracts, because the content is rich with interesting. Surely, Kaos could have found a better way to present them. Some BioShock-style radio broadcasts or some televisions footage (presuming there is still working technology for both) would have been more engaging.

READ THE REST OF THIS REVIEW AT PS3 ATTITUDE