Homefront: The Revolution

[Mr.TaLaL]

Homefront: The Revolution throws players into a near [CENSORED]ure dystopia where catastrophic events have brought the United States to its knees and enabled the Korean People's Army forces to impose a brutal military occupation.

Homefront 2 The Revolution got some airtime at Gamescom 2015, and just recently it was announced that it would be released in May 2016. We round up the rumours on Homefront The Revolution UK release date and more, including screenshots, trailers and gameplay details. See also: the most anticipated games of 2015 & 2016
Latest update (28/01/2016): Updated to include the latest Homefront: The Revolution trailer named "Freedom Fighters". It gives us more of an idea of the story behind the game, while also showcasing short clips of gameplay.

I'll be honest: I'd sort of forgotten that THQ ever contracted Crytek for a Homefront sequel. I'd definitely forgotten that Crytek then purchased those rights when THQ went bankrupt just so they could finish creating said sequel.
It exists. Crytek is making Homefront 2--titled Homefront The Revolution--a reality. They're really making a sequel to a game best remembered (and not in a good way) for its infamous "Press X to hide in a mass grave" sequence.
Even more of a surprise? Homefront 2 actually looks pretty interesting.
The United States is lost. We're four years into the North Korean occupation of American soil. They've set up their base of operations in Philadelphia, squatting on the birthplace of independence.
You'll take on the role of Ethan Brady, described to us as an "average guy." The words "not militarily trained" were also thrown around. You're a resistant


When you blow the doors off that prison, North Korean troops immediately open fire on the crowd of civilians you're hidden in. No hesitation. Of course, you can't have innocent civilians getting hurt, so you fire back, and maybe unleash a few Molotov cocktails on the Koreans.
Oh no, what have you done? Homefront 2's treatment of Molotovs is perhaps the most chilling I've seen in any game. I felt uncomfortable listening to the screams of the North Korean soldiers, even if they were the "enemy."
Did I mention Homefront 2 is supposedly an open-world game? We only saw a small slice of the action in our demo, but Crytek has beautifully realized a Philadelphia under occupation. A few plywood signs announcing "Baseball @ 4pm" or designating a space as a communal garden are intriguing touches I wish we'd seen more of--how does this open world work when you're not blowing stuff to bits? Do people go about their lives?
There are a few baffling facets I hope are explained better upon release. You use your cell phone a lot: for tagging enemies, looking at a map, directing your RC car around, et cetera. I'm no dictator, but if I were, I think disabling civilian access to cell phones would be my first order of business. You're telling me our society has reached a point where all electricity is run off generators, cars are uniformly destroyed hunks of metal on the side of the road, buildings are crumbling, and people are tending to food in communal gardens, but our cell phones still work?
For that matter, where the heck is this limitless supply of RC cars coming from? Did the bombs hit all the buildings in town except the Toys 'R' Us? It's a Christmas miracle!
Despite these nitpicks (and some early-in-development frame rate issues), I'm excited. It feels weird to be excited about a sequel to Homefront, but I am. There are some decidedly game-y aspects, such as scoring "Uprising points" for disabling cameras, but all in all it seems like Crytek is exploring some interesting concepts in Homefront 2. After years and years of rah-rah-shoot-em-all military shooters, I'm curious about any game that promises to upend that formula.

Trailer (2:27):