Hands-on: Homefront could be the top FPS this year

As most of you know already, I’m not the best player of FPS games. Mostly because they either have the same recycled storyline, or are overly complicated. So when I settled down to play THQ’s Homefront, I wasn’t expecting much from the game. But I was pleasantly surprised that the game not only impressed me with its compelling storyline and singleplayer, but also served up an extremely frantic multiplayer session.

My hands-on with Homefront was split into a demo level of the single player campaign and a couple of matches in multiplayer. The premise of the game’s storyline is that Korea has invaded and occupied most of the United States. This is definite first, as it’s usually the U.S that’s jumping into international territory to wage war. You play as a civilian turned freedom fighter, and your one goal is to survive – you’re not looking to take out an enemy base, activate a nuclear bomb, or get to an underground bunker. You just want your country back and stay alive in the process.

THQ mentioned in their presentation that the game needed to have a ‘familiar but alien’ feeling to it, and that was clearly evident as I explored the level. Parking lots strewn with burnt out cars and makeshift bunkers, shoot-outs in petrol stations, and even ambushes in a White Castle all helped to deliver this theme. American brand names are scattered throughout the game, and this again was done to make the game feel more realistic and ‘close to home’.

Without giving away details about the single-player story, what I can report is that the decisions you make in the game can make quite an impression on you. Rather than being just another soldier in an army, you begin to relate to your character and consequently feel what he goes through at critical moments in the game.  It’s not something we’ve seen in many FPS games, and it’s a welcome change to a somewhat tired genre.

The most fun of course was waiting for me in multiplayer – 32 of us split into two teams duked it out with some truly fantastic multiplayer action. Multiplayer here is played a bit differently – each action you perform in the game that benefits your team will award you with Battle Points. You can then use these Battle Points to acquire better weapons and ammo, or save up for larger items such as controllable drones,  air strikes, and much more.

This changes the battle constantly, and ensures that both sides have a fair shot at winning the match. Also included in multiplayer is the Battle Commander, an AI controlled unit who monitors the match and issues certain team members with unique objectives and rewards. For example, you might be on a sniping spree, and if you snipe five enemies in a row, you could be awarded with a temporary speed boost or additional armor, thus marking you as an elite member of your team. At the same time, the enemy Battle Commander will issue commands to the other team to take you out if it sees you as a threat. The combination of Battle Points and Battle Commander ensures that no two matches are ever the same, and it’s a concept that works very well.

From a first impression, Homefront looks to be a comfortable contender to rise to the top of the FPS genre. The game’s unique storyline, excellent presentation, and competitive multiplayer make it a hotly anticipated release for 2011.

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