THQ Hammered by Sub-Par Homefront Scores

[SilkySkyKitten]

I find it amusing that 73 is considered mediocre...

Same here. Last time I checked, that actually is a pretty decent score.

But then again, for whatever reason video games have to abide by a 3/30-point score system instead of actually using those 10/100 points to their full worth. One reason why I hate review scoring systems...

 

[fire-exit-man]

Hang on, Homefront hasn't even been released in the UK yet and people are already saying it's a flop? (This seems to be the general consensus anyway) Shouldn't we give it a bit more time to see how many units it actually sells globally?

Also, CoD got brought into this pretty quickly (as expected), sure it's the best selling FPS out there but surely, considering this is a new IP in a fairly saturated market shouldn't we give them at least a bit of a chance?

 

[Armyguy0]

i dont see why its going up vs COD it was going up vs

for me

 

[ThatDaveDude1]

Well that sucks for THQ.

There is only one single reason why this game was hit bad.

It didn't have "Call of Duty" in the name, so the fanboys didn't buy it and instead bombed it because it could have been what Modern Warfare 2 and BlackOps will never be.

Sure blame it on the fans

*gasp* blaming it on the fans? You mean he people who pay for the game and are directly responsible for how commercially successful it is? Why would somebody blame a commercial failure on them? Homefront is a generic shooter primarily identical to other, more successful games, such as Call of Honor: Modern Killshit and Metal of Duty: Pacific Rimming, yet they make millions? Why would people look to the one variable separating these games from Homefront and blame that?

 

[Korten12]

The sad truth

http://www.halolz.com/2011/01/16/how-gamers-interpret-review-scores/

Its sooo true... I really wonder why this happened? Probably becuase reviewers know they can sway the masses?

 

[theultimateend]

Please don't let this drive THQ down. I don't want to see Relic without a publisher. Shame about Kaos Studios as well, they tried to do something and it didn't pan out the way they hoped.

After Dawn of War II shattered my dreams I frankly couldn't care less.

I'd be sad if good people lost jobs but the company as a faceless beast is something I could watch die without a whimper.

I realize the INSANE level of cognitive dissonance required for that to be acceptable and unfortunately my brain is cool with making it happen.

 

[NiPah]

Lol this reminds me of the "cut-scenes are bad for games" and yet THQ can't figure out how to make a good game in the first place.

 

[Ironman126]

I forgive you THQ. I do this because Dawn of War 2: Retribution (at least the beta, don't have the whole thing yet) was amazing. Kaos Studios hasn't ever released an above average game. I'm talking to you, Frontlines.

Which brings up the point that devs seem to end up focusing on one aspect of a game, singleplayer or multiplayer. Good examples include: Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and Homefront for multipayer focus and every Bioware game ever and Metro 2033 for singleplayer focus.

 

[FollowUp]

To be fully honest, I hoped the game would be something new and fun, but I wasn't entirely surprised by the headline. It's another realistic wartime FPS. You have to do something pretty spectacular to get noticed in that market.

 

[Gindil]

Is it just me, or is this a signal that perhaps the market is overloaded with similar FPS games?

 

[FollowUp]

or... the programmers will have to work for ea... or open a d&d & magic the gathering store (happened in my town)

I'd go to that store.

 

[ZombieGenesis]

Wait- hold up.

Last time I saw the listed reviews they were ALL 8-9. Either I'm missing something or THQ had some very, very unreasonable expectations for this game.

 

[Baldr]

I'm not a fps gamer but this game just peaked my interest because of the story, so I went and watched the Arena game on OnLive.

The game is not really bad from what I saw, the muliplayer looked like it could be fun. If I really was a FPS game, it would definitely be on my list.

 

[dkcecil]

Video games are in a sad state if an average score of 73 is bad whilst an average score of 80 is good.

Apparently we went from the 1-100 scale, to the 50-100 scale and now we used the 70-100 scale. Sooner or later reviews are going to split like stock in a good company, otherwise we are going to be using the 97-100 scale come 2015.

This.

It's sad when a game is looked at as a complete failure for scoring less than a 95. I was under the impression that 50% was average and less than that was bad. Some of my favorite games of the past few years scored in the 70s. On the same note some games that scored in the 90s I thought were boring retreads.

 

[Tdc2182]

Well that sucks for THQ.

There is only one single reason why this game was hit bad.

It didn't have "Call of Duty" in the name, so the fanboys didn't buy it and instead bombed it because it could have been what Modern Warfare 2 and BlackOps will never be.

Not really, but keep going.

You probably think you're on a role.

 

[Itsthatguy]

I'm not a fps gamer but this game just peaked my interest because of the story, so I went and watched the Arena game on OnLive.

The game is not really bad from what I saw, the muliplayer looked like it could be fun. If I really was a FPS game, it would definitely be on my list.

If you were an fps gamer you would realise that this game is almost identical to 20 others

Then you would understand our irritation

 

[C2Ultima]

Strange that MW2 made the Call of Duty formula: Good Multiplayer and mediocre multiplayer, with an extra bonus mode, because Call of Duty: Black Ops did the opposite. Homefront apparently has a mediocre story, but with good atmosphere, a solid multiplayer mode, but no bonus mode. Then again, at least it has decent servers....

 

[DaHero]

Well that sucks for THQ.

There is only one single reason why this game was hit bad.

It didn't have "Call of Duty" in the name, so the fanboys didn't buy it and instead bombed it because it could have been what Modern Warfare 2 and BlackOps will never be.

Not really, but keep going.

You probably think you're on a role.

First off, it's roll.

Secondly, show me where CoD and Homefront are different, I looked at gameplay from both games and saw little to no difference. Yet, because it's not Call of Duty, it's not going to get high ratings.

Proof now, don't be going the Fox News route with supposition, I don't play to that tune.

 

[constantcompile]

I agree with those who say that sales of Homefront will matter more than the reviews.

If you promise quality and deliver mediocrity, the market should punish you. That hasn't happened to CoD because its sales have been stellar.

Franchises are powerful, and I have no doubt that CoD's strength as a franchise has helped it - so far. However, its single-player was - according to reviews - very well paced, with many climactic moments and modes of play to break up the monotony of take cover, shoot, repeat. According to Russ Pitts, pacing was Homefront's major failure; it was simply more of the same all the way through, and nothing ever felt like it really mattered; you were simply grabbing fuel trucks for the resistance - contrast to CoD, where you're retaking the White House.

As for the score, I agree that 73 should be "good," but in the language of the industry, it is mediocre. That's the way it is. Hell, percentages in school work the same way; you should be used to it by now.

 

[GiantRaven]

If you were an fps gamer you would realise that this game is almost identical to 20 others

Then you would understand our irritation

20? Somehow I don't see it.

Get listing!