You have probably heard about the trainwreck that was this game. Originally, it started as a Crytek (more precisely Crytek UK) project under the umbrella of Deep Silver. Well, the studio died and was resurrected as Dambuster Studios to continue work on this dumpster fire of a game.
So, now you are up to speed with the development of this game. So, why were people excited about it? The demo. Homefront looked like it would be a game in the style of Far Cry 3, but set in Philadelphia which is under martial law, set up by the Korean Army in the future. From here we aslo have the set-up: you are a resistance member who tries to push back the 'norks', as they are called in game, with the aid of his Resistance buddies, by conquering Korean installations and inciting the masses to revolt. Sounds good, right?
Something else that sounds good, or, in this case looks good, is the engine. The game is running on Cryengine 3, but somehow it manages to look bland,with textures that are not really that impressive and effects that could have been more of a spectacle, given the advanced engine.
Now, let's look at the game we received. The game is not seamlessly open world, which is a disappointment, but instead it is divided into zones, which are, coversely, color coded as red (combat zones) and yellow (the places where people live). Now, do not think you can walk freely in the yellow zones, because any KPA troop will start to detect you as if you have a bright red arrow above your head, and combat is not an option, because the game will spawn enemies from around every corner, lamp post and abandoned shopping trolley, and your health drops faster than my interest in the game.
Speaking of combat, the most interesting part of the game is the arsenal. Each weapon is in fact a modular device. For example, take the assault rifle, which turns into an LMG and also a mine launcher, mods you need to purchase in the upgrade shops. This concept makes the small roster of weapons feel a lot bigger and a lot more diverse, and I hope that it will appear in other games down the line. Also, I am quite the fan of the shotgun in the game, because it has a scary, booming sound and it tears right through the Korean soldiers. The other side of combat, the AI, aka the dummies that smile, run around and have a diet of bullets, is incredibly stupid. But there is a lot of them, and they will get you by overwhelming you. Your only chance of survival is to employ guerilla tactics, like hit and runs, stealth attacks and blowing shit up from a distance, else they will tear you a new one. If you are detected, tough luck amigo.
The story is... I don't know. I gave up on the game after I finished the first yellow zone. Maybe it is the most amazing story ever told, but I can't be arsed to plough through the game to find out.
The co-op, oh boy, the co-op. When they showed the demo, everyone thought it would be integrated integrated into the story mode. Oh, how wrong we were. It works exactly like the Far Cry 3 version of co-op. You go into the multiplayer menu, you select a mission and you hope somebody is online, trying to find another pisspot who plays the game. The kicker is the fact that the co-op missions are more fun to go through than the main ones, because they are simply better designed and they are not placed in the open world. Sadly, the almost compelling co-op mode isn't worth buying the game.
All in all, this is not the worst game that exists, but it is painfully run of the mill, without any ambition or passion put into it, and it shows at every possible opportunity.