Homefront Review Round-up

THQ's investment in "Homefront," the first person shooter that features the unlikely event of North Korea invading the US, has met a mixed reception of reviews. Notable reviews include The Escapist's 6.0 review, which says "there isn't enough game in Homefront The Game to contain Homefront The Multimedia Concept," and The Telegraph's equally low-scoring review that calls it a well-constructed shooter that sadly remains in the shadow of its competition.

9.3

xboxaddict.com review
We are first introduced to the 2027 vision of the Western United States following a calculated and largely decisive strike against this once great nation. Its citizens live in fear, surrounded by decay and death. The outlook is grim and the propaganda is overwhelming. As we are wrenched from the meager hovel we awake from and loaded onto a re-purposed school bus it is abundantly clear that we are under siege. Immediately your senses are invaded with the cries and devastation that is taking over. When the time comes, in all it's cinematic glory, you are eager and willing to take the fight to the enemy.
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9.0

totallygn.com review
Overall, Homefront is a fantastic game. It was one of my most anticipated titles for the first half of 2011 and it didn’t disappoint. Kaos has created a great shooter and, hopefully, a great new franchise. For those who haven’t done so you should also check out the Homefront novel. I finished reading it before playing the game for this review and it helped me understand some of the back story for the title. The novel covers the events before the game and it gives you the origin to the “Voice of Freedom” among other things. If you are a fan of the first person genre than Homefront should be in your collection. It is a breath of fresh air in a genre that tends to recycle the same old thing. In Homefront, home is indeed where the war is. Will you join the resistance?
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8.7

planetxbox360.com review
A lot of gameplay elements are similar to previous first-person shooters, but Kaos Studios, the developers behind the enjoyable Frontlines: Fuel of War, does very well by them. Aiming and shooting feels like a breeze, and the melee kills are up-close and personal, even if they’re not as vivid as Killzone 3’s. A better cover system would’ve been nice, as we’ve been killed a few times by not finding the proper place to squat and shoot, but overall it handles superbly. What really makes Homefront stand out, however, are the use of vehicles. In one stage, you’re blowing enemies into oblivion with a heavily armed helicopter; the next, you’re controlling a remote control vehicle called the Goliath, a roving tank that targets whatever you indicate. Having it around is really useful, even though it’s too wide open for EMP missile attack. (Luckily, you can take out the rocket launchers in a timely manner.)
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8.6

computerandvideogames.com review
Throw in large scale Ground Control missions, a fierce Skirmish mode and an impromptu priority-based mission generator in the form of the Battle Creator, and Homefront's multiplayer really packs a punch. We'd go so far to say that this is the classiest, best value multiplayer shooter on the market, comfortably bettering both recent CoD monsters and edging ahead of Bad Company 2. It deserves a wide, fully engaged audience.
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8.6

3djuegos.com review
No Synopsis Available
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8.5

spaziogames.it review
No Synopsis Available
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8.5

msxbox-world.com review
The opening scene of the single player game sets the tone of the Korean occupation, providing a bus ride through the horrors of American citizens defeated, despondent and at their mercy. Designed to stir emotion and give the player purpose, it certainly works and means that the faceless enemies you encounter do deserve whatever punishment you can throw at them. Being a first person shooter, means the combat has to be tight, and in this regard Homefront delivers some solid gameplay. The shooting mechanics seem to mirror most modern shooters where you'll get an 'X' on your cross hair when bullets hit, the control layout is almost identical, and movement is consistently fast paced.
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8.4

gamingexcellence.com review
Graphically, Homefront is solid. Environments are well-detailed, and help set the tone of an occupied America. Some textures, like the wood grain in a hardwood floor, look absolutely stunning. But shadows sometimes look a little low res, and character models can look sketchy at times. But even if Homefront had the greatest graphics in the world, they would still pale in comparison to the phenomenal sound design. The sound effects of the guns are probably the best I've ever heard in a video game, and the explosions don't sound too bad either. The voice acting is spot-on, and the incredible soundtrack sets the mood perfectly throughout the entire campaign.
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8.0

darkstation.com review
First let me say that I hope that Kaos continues to develop more Homefront titles the years ahead. Homefront is one of the best new franchises in the past few years and if you have any connection with first person shooters this is a game you should check out. It is not without some minor freshman bumps, but the overall package is one of the more compelling so far in 2011
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7.7

gamefocus.ca review
Homefront is a solid experience even if it doesn’t quite deliver what it promised. As a FPS, it’s competent. As a story device, it does tells a tale, just not quite the way it was billed out. The issues Homefront has are not terrible individually, though some may think twice once they are all lined up side by side.
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7.2

extremegamer.ca review
The online modes include the 32 player “Ground Control," which is a hold objective progression battle. A 24 player “Team Deathmatch,” 16 player “Skirmish” which cycles both team deathmatch and ground control modes on various maps. “Battle Commander” ground control, team deathmatch and skirmish all come unlocked at level 7 (which does take long,) and yes, that means you need to pay to play those.
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7.0

armchairempire.com review
Homefront does a good job sticking to its setting and providing a coherent story arc while offering standard gunplay and the occasional booming explosion. I'm not a huge fan of classless multiplayer, even I had fun (in compressed play times) with the offensively focused multiplayer. Homefront is worth checking out.
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7.0

ign.com review
liked Homefront a lot, and yet I acknowledge that the aspects of the game I like the most aren’t the most important in determining whether the game is great or not. Homefront is certainly one of the most unique shooters I’ve ever played, driven by an ingenious and surprisingly well-fleshed out plot and a dark and dreary, realistic setting. But it also controls and feels like a typical shooter, looks like a game that’s several years old, and most importantly, has an inexcusably brief campaign. Multiplayer is Homefront’s redeeming quality, and those gamers out there who are like me and swoon for alternate/future history settings should certainly look into it. However, if what you’re seeking is an upper-echelon shooter, keep looking, because Homefront isn’t what you’re searching for.
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7.0

vgchartz.com review
At first glance, Homefront is a great new game with a brilliant speculative fiction back-story. After several hours, however, you realize it's actually just half of a great game. A four hour campaign, no split-screen, and only two multiplayer modes make Homefront literally half of other AAA FPS games that it's trying to compete with. What's there is brilliant, Kaos and THQ just forgot to give us a game worthy of $60.
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6.4

incgamers.com review
A competent shooter but one that fails to innovate, expand or better what we’ve already seen from this genre. The multiplayer is a bit of a diamond-in-the-rough but, due to its ‘me too’ similarities to the competition, it's unlikely to win over fans of the established franchises for long.
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6.0

escapistmagazine.com review
There isn't enough game in Homefront The Game to contain Homefront The Multimedia Concept. It would work great as a film, and works just fine as a game-based counter-culture argument against the complacency of modern Americans. As a game, however, it just doesn't cut it.
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6.0

telegraph.co.uk review
The world Kaos has created is ripe with possibility, a brutal stage set up for chilling, affecting tales of resistance in the face of oppression. If only Kaos had more faith, more belief, in what they could perform in this theatre of war, we could have been looking at something special. Instead, Homefront is a fun, well-constructed shooter, but one that remains in the shadow of its competition.
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6.0

g4tv.com review
Homefront is definitely a game divided. The single-player game is entertaining in bursts, but far from great. Short and full of cliché and dogged linear design, it’s mostly fun while it lasts, but not at all noteworthy. For multiplayer fans, however, Homefront offers a great alternative to Black Ops and Killzone 3, with a surprisingly polished online experience.
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5.0

joystiq.com review
As I slugged through my third Hooters, clearing a path to the nearby White Castle, I couldn't help but wonder: If, from the beginning, all the towns have been turned to video game levels and all the citizens to soldiers, why was I brought here in the first place?
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