Game Review - Homefront

Game Review - Homefront (or why you should never buy a game which advertises its best review coming from a lad/softcore porn mag)

Homefront, for those of you who don't know is an FPS set around the American Underground resistance in a North Korean Occupied United States. Its story was written by the same guy who wrote the movies "Red Dawn" and "Apocolypse Now". So as far as stories go, it should be promising.I'm a guy that loves a strong narative in a game, which is why Bioshock is so highly held in my eyes, as it the overarching Gears of War and Halo series are.

And it is good...sort of. Without giving too much away it features some grand set ups, some good developments, but at the same time some "twists" that are so obvious if you didn't see them coming the Korean Propaganda has obviously worked,

Never the less the single player is a good well rounded game, with some huge problems.

1) Its way too short - I played through normal in under 3 hours because i couldn't find how to change the difficulty (its hidden in the options menu, only accessable from the front menu)

2)Ordered Sequences - There are some times in the game where you need to climb down a ladder, or crawl through a hole. So you try to. Only problem is your teammates need to go through first. So you're left standing next to the hole you want to crawl through, while your teammates slowly wander over and climb through. Even worse is, if you stand in front of the door your supposed to walk through, even if guy number 1 has gone through, if you block guy number 2 he can't go through so you can't go through. It just heavily breaks the feeling of immersion

3)Special Grenades. In single player (we'll get to multi in abit) it introduces you to special greandes in the first mission. Here its C4 you throw through a window and blow up an APC. Great. You never find any or use it ever again. Or any other special greande. Kinda wonder what the point in that was.

4) Walking/Dialogue sections - In the early game there are sections of long dialogue where you slowly walk around the village, or ride a bus. These take about 5 minutes and are unskippable. If you want all the achievements in the game, you'll probably need to play each mission at least twice (unless you're a gaming god and can complete each mission on the hardest setting without dying once). They just take forever and break it up even more.

5) The Ending. Through out the early game you have control of "Goliath" a drone APC that fires it machine guns at enemies automatically and you fire its missiles at targets you designate. Eventually goliath bites it. At the very end of the game, the last 2 things you do are - Fire a Predator UAV at some white blobs in a unchallenging boring version of the C130 bits from CoD. And then you become the gunner on an APC and have to blow up the enemy Goliath. So basically the last great firefight moment is an onrails shooter, with a infinite ammo machine gun and pressed the button to activate missile countermeasures (on a Humvee? Really?) every 10 seconds or so. And then the highly cliched predicatable ending rolls.

They (the developers) have said there will be 2 single player DLC content packs, with 3 new missions each. So in 2 packs, you get the same number of missions as the game itself has.

Multiplayer

The Multiplayer isn't bad. Could have used a bit more testing, and the menus are annoying (pressing B doesn't drop you out, you have to go and select the option...just irritating).

Also it can't seem to decide if it wants to be a realistic military shooter (like GRAW, or Operation Flashpoint) or a more arcadey style (like CoD). Guns are better set at their ranges, so SMG win at short range, assault at mid, snipers at long (I'll get to snipers in a minute) and going prone helps aim and chances, but at the same time a guy running round with a pistol has a good chance of beating you at long range and runing, jumping and circle strafing work just as well

Snipers...are another problem. They're strong (1 headshot, or 2 torsoshots), they have virtually no recoil, aiming down the sights has little to no movement for "breathing" and are semi automatic. Brilliant for people who snipe. I call those people...something I can't repeat. Yes accurate that snipers rule open areas, but with no drawbacks they seem to rule anything they want.

A good idea in the game is "BP". Working like XP you earn points for every kill you make, objective you capture etc. Each class comes with 2 special purchase slots, which range from UAV sweeps and extra armour, to bombing runs and gun drones. This is a really good system for rewarding good gameplay, as even if you don't get a high killstreak, you still earn points towards goodies, meaning people who win the matches just by claiming objectives get rewards as well as those who run in crazy and get kills.

These BP can also be spent on vehicles in some matches. From the humble humvee (which seems to be missing the missile countermeasures suddenly) to APC's, Tanks and 2 types of helicopters. The game also offers a brilliant option of spawning in the secondary gun seat in someones vehicle, so if you buy a chopper you donj't need to waste time on the ground waiting for someone else to get in.

However the vehicles (particularly the choppers, especially the missile spewing AT chopper) don't seem balenced. Almost impervious to small arms fire thanks to height and armour they have only 2 weaknesses...proximity rockets (rockets that fire in straight lines, but explode if they sense they're close to something) and AT drones, which have lock on missiles. However the neither of these purchaseables are unlockable until about Level 30. The AT drone isn't in any of the premade selections, and the proximity launcher in one of them. Oh and the chopper does have counter measures, which recharge faster than the rockets on the drone do. Also at a high enough level you can have a perk which means you vehicle automatically repairs itself. I understand that the chopper is a significant BP investment (about 2000 points, when you get 130 for a kill) but its just doen'st seem to die. At least drones have a battery life before they fail.

It also seems to favour the higher ranked more than other FPS games do. At higher ranks you unlock better things, like better airstrikes, perks and customised vehicle slots. These just make it easier to dominate the lesser being who are just starting. Example? When you start you have the option of a hell strike purchasable. 2 single shot missiles that damage light armour (kill a humvee in one though)and kill infantry if you hit them directly. At rank 17 you get a white phosphorus mortar round. large area, kills lot of infantry (rarely do I see one of these that doesn't kill at least 2 people) but doesn't do much against vehicles. At rank 40ish you get cluster bombs. Large area, kills anything under it, infantry or vehicles included. Now I understand you need to reawrd hgiher ranking players, but it just feels like a newcomer to this game in say, a month is going to have a serious uphill struggle to get into the game.

Also some of the capture and control maps seem a little one sided. In all the game i've played on most of them one team always wins that round. But maybe thats just fluke.

Anyway in review Homefront isn't a bad game. Its just short, with some good multiplayer innovations, but could use a few tweaks.

And its arbitary grade out of 10? 7.5. Rent it, borrow it, see what you think, then if you like the multiplayer buy it. But do it quick before every online is ranked Lv50.

Absenteeism

There is a reason!

Figured i should get a 2nd update in this month. There WILL be more this weekend, as my fioncee is away so planning on doing something i've never done before and lay the whole of my entire army out for big "team" photos. All of my armies aren't complete but the hearts there.

As for my reason it's been a whil;e since my post. Been playing games and painting a lot. So just not posting anything. Got 10 warriors, 10 wyches, Lelith, 3 reavers and 1 raider done in the last few weeks. Been busy! They look good, individual pictures will come soon, weather dependanant.

As for gaming...been playing Bulletstorm, Game is awesome. Everyones putting it down cos of the load of bad language. Personally i don't think its particularly over the top. Doesn't affect the game at all. Duke Nukem Forever in a few months is going be a ton worse for it...

Brighton Warlords Super Heavy Tournement Army!

Hey all...must post more...

Brighton Warlords excellent tournements continued this week with a "2000pt including a super heavy or gargantuan creature tournement" (Could use a shorter name)this weekend just gone. Was great fun with a proper review and maybe even a battlereport or 2 (maybe...it'll be words only though) to come soon... but for the time being my army!



1 cobra and 2 nightwings formed the backbone of the army...

Archon of the Twinned Blades

*Warning* Crappy picture alert *Warning*

So being winter here in England its pretty much dark all day. yes the suns up and its theres plenty of light....but its not very much. So pictures are going to be of low quality!



First of 2 archons i have assembled already. Fluff behind my Kabal uses a pair of twin sisters as kabal rulers. Working on getting it all tidied up, so will share soon. Loved this model to paint, its just so detailed, and i'm reasonably happy with the finish. Agoniser could maybe use a touch or two. Also finished the "hangers" for the raider. Used them as test schemes for the armour before touching the archon,did find one major problem....the Warriors are too detailed! One of them took me 2 hours to finish one soldier...Going to do their raider next, before moving onto other things.


In other news have my Cobra (and a Hornet) ordered so hoping i'll see them soon. Have another comp in February, so need my superheavy finished, and need to finish my 2 Nightwings as well. Now i've started on my Kabal i'll be moving over to them soon

Week off, what to do....

Yay week off work until christmas, then few days off the other side.

Now what to do...guess i could always embark in an epic painting few days

For those of you who don't frequent the BoLS lounge i've scratch built a Cronos pain engine, so he'll being seeing the brush



My Dark Eldar plans for paint are simple....green for Hemo constructs, blue/purple for Kabals, Grey for Wych cults and Red/orange for street gangers. That way they show clearly that each "faction" is seperate, but fight together. So this guys going to be seeing some green!

In other painting bits, got Lelith, Urien, 2 Archons, 1 raider and 20 of both wyches and warriors to do...and a Talos to build/convert. So plenty to keep me busy!

In addition...i've decided to use my newest pay packet (its lovely) and early christmas money to buy a FW Eldar cobra. Got a healthy air force already...need a super heavy. And seeing as the Phantom titan is still in the distance the Cobra will win for time being. I think. Need to balence cobra and scorpion against each other

Brighton Warlords Doubles Tournie

Had my first tournement this weekend just gone. Left a really good impression with me as we had loads of fun, did pretty well and met a whole bunch of new folk...even if it did mean a 2 hour drive to get there.

Was a well done tournement, with FO charts restricted to all slots having to balence (must have 1 FA, Elites and Heavy before you can get a 2nd in one of those...) so no lists of too overpoweredness...althgouh still a few slightly cheeky lists in there...:p. We played with Tau and Armoured Imperial Guard forces. Our list composed of;

Tau Commander, 2 Crisis Suits, 2 unit of Firewarriors, 3 Broadsides with Shield droness, allied with 1 Leman Russ Vanquisher, 2 regular Russes, an armoured sentinel and a chimera with a small guard squad inside. So good strong gunline, with a hellof a punch, but not so good in combat...

Don't have the memory to give full battle reports, but i'll give an overview on the highlights.

GAME 1-Dawn of War, Annihaltion.

Drew a Eldar/Eldar list with a jetbike council and pathfinders. Few questionable calls on rules were let slip (can you fortune before they move on the board? And can you claim the jetbike free move in the assault phase if you turboboost?) but end result was a loss for us.

GAME 2-Pitched Battle, Seize Ground, 5 objectives.

Against a combined Marine/Mech guard list. Were agains the guys who overall came last, but thanks to some awful shooting and deepstriking mishaps we were close to a draw. They were very slow in deployment and movement, so the game ended on turn 4. Highlights include a 10 man assault squad deepstriking in, rolling a 1 to run, not spreading out at all and taking 90% casulties from a battlecannon next turn... We win!

GAME 3-Spearhead, Capture and Control.

Against another Tau, allied with Blood Angels. Highlights include....my broadsides actually managing to kill something! They'd gone 2 games so far and had survived both of them, but had only imobilised a Wave Serpent, a Drednaught and a Land Raider so far...so them blowing a Death Company drednaught apart was very welcome! Other highlights were 1 lone firewarrior sitting in a bunker and survivning an auto cannon + heavy bolters from a stormraven, devilfish fire and a battlecannon shot that scattered 9 inches onto him to hold our objective on the last turn! Result - We win!

GAME 4-Pitched Battle, Capture and Control.

Played a Chaos Marines List with 2 defilers, and a few demon princes, including the beautiful FW one. These guys took best painted army in the end and definently deserve it. Firewarriors were especially useless this game, as were the broadsides again, only managing to wound a DP once, and blow a rhino up...Highlights include the sentinel holding up a squad of CSM armed with krak grenades and 1 power fist for 4 full turns before exploding, a defiler falling 1 inch short of assaulting the Vanquisher Russ, which then blew him apart the following turn and a squad of firewarriors rapid firing a squad of CSM on an objective, causing 14 wounds, and having all of them saved (grrrr). Result - We lose :(

GAME 5-Spearhead, Annihaltion.

Against an ork list, with over 100 bodies on the table...only made it to the end of turn 4 cos of sheer volume and time of moving. 2 huge boyz units and 2 huge grot units charging under a landing pad gave the battle cannnons plenty to shoot...if it weren't for their massive scatter everyturn. Again my broadsides proved their worth, and took 4 turns to immobilise 1 KillaKan...*sigh*...would say they weren't worth their points but they absorbed so much loota firepower...Highlights including the sentinel holding 2 seperate units of deffkoptas in combat from turn 2 till end of game...and on turn 3 having a boyz unit try to kill it (cos the Koptas couldn't hurt AV12)...only for them to fail to damage with their furious charge, and then them be stuck in combat with it as well, a shokkgun going double 1 and taking himself and a unit of lootas to the grave for 2 nice killpoints, and a unit of grots with a big mek assaulting the broadsides, who's frisbee shield drones killed 2, killed 3 more with their own attacks, forced a retreat, ran them down and killed them for another 2 points...End Result - We Win!

GAME 6-Dawn of War, sieze ground, 3 objectives.


Urgh...our only game against a power list. Least fun game as well. Nob bikers and traitor airborne guard. On the deployment that suited them best really. If we'd had them on spearhead might have had a chance...but when they deploy on the centre line...with first turn...nope. Highlights include a turn 2 charge from the bikers killing 2 tanks and the sentinel with one squad, in one round of combat, firewarriors holding one bike in combat for 2 turns and my broadsides finally managing to earn their points back. The lone suit had 1 drone killed in turn 2 so ran away (stupid really), so the other 2 managed to kill 3 Vendettas and 1 Vulture, survived an amazing amount of firepower and manged to clear one objective of guardsmen in the last turn. 1 nob biker squadron hold centre 2 objectives so we lose

Good fun this weekend, did a lot better than we expected to (11 out of 28). We were a mere 56 victory points behind 10th place...and if we'd got our WYSIWYG points (2 of the guardsmen didn't have grenades) we'd have come 7th. Still it was amazing fun and i can't wait for next one in April...but by then people had better look out...

The Dark Eldar are on their way :D

And away!

Right i'm off to the In Laws for a week (joys). so thought i'd leave you with 3 things...

1) CoD Black Ops is ace, and if you don't play single player on Veteran you're a pussy

2) DE codex is amazing. The fluff is deep and rich, exactly what was needed, the models are wonderful and the rules are a perfect balence, nearly every unit is competitive (nearly...Quins are the poor CC choice in Elites, i'm still not sold on scourges, and hellions don't do it for me)

3) My double tourny army is done...heres a poor picture of the Battlesuits on the shelf