Homefront (video game): Difference between revisions

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Homefront is a game set in an occupied USA in [[Twenty Minutes Into the Future|2027]]. The entire free-market world has more-or-less gone to shit. The USA and China have collapsed in on themselves [[Eddie Izzard|like disused flans in cupboards]] in the years after 2012. In the USA, the economic collapse served to promote great social unrest verging on but never quite spilling over into civil war<ref> think the 1920s, but bigger and worse</ref>. A rejuvenated Peoples' Democratic Republic of Korea under the leadership of Kim Jong-un (son of Kim Jong-Il) quickly seized the day. Within the space of two decades of annexation and gunboat diplomacy, all of Asia except subcontinental India and China answers to the Government of the Greater Korean Republic.

You are put in the shoes of former Marine pilot Robert Jacobs, a man the occupying power is very interested in employing, forcefully if necessary. Fortunately for Jacobs, he is liberated when his prisoner convoy is hit by the [[La Résistance|local resistance chapter]], who needs his piloting skills for a dangerous mission, that, if successful, could help the struggling remnants of the American military retake San Francisco.

 

 

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* [[Action Girl]]: Rianna.

* [[AKA-47]]: For the QBZ-03, known as the '''T3AK'''. The Panzerfaust 3 is simply called RPG launcher. Averted with almost everything else since they have their proper names.

* [[Anti-Hero]]: Conner is this in spades.

'''Conner:''' Yeah. I am. }}

* [[Artificial Stupidity]]: Partially averted. Your fellow members of [[La Résistance]] can easily take on small to medium pockets of enemies by themselves (helps that there are at least 2 of them with you always) and are invincible (in normal gameplay).

** Another anachronistic one is the aforementioned White Castle appearing in the opening cutscene, which there isn't even a White Castle ''in the entire state of Colorado''. Maybe both Randy's and White Castle become franchise operations by 2025.

* [[Car Fu]]: In Multiplayer, vehicles can be used this way, including unique kill icons for kills done this way. The game even keep a counter on the roadkills you made for each vehicles.

* [[The Chick]]: Rianna. She may be able to kick ass like everyone else but she has her heart on her sleeve more than the others.

* [[Companion Cube]]: A minor example; Hopper seems unusually fond of the remote-operated Goliath, and he's pretty crestfallen when Conner uses it as a rolling bomb after it's damaged beyond repair, even treating its destruction as a kind of [[Heroic Sacrifice]].

* [[Cool Car]]: Goliath, a self-navigating semi-autonomous combat vehicle with a Gatling gun and rockets launchers. {{spoiler|Only while it's on your side though. The climactic battle involves you having to take down an enemy Goliath and experiencing exactly what it feels like to be on the other end of the gun.}}

* [[Crapsack World]]: Let's see now. Korea being unified under the North Korean rule under Kim Jong-un's leadership (''[[Take That|and the Nobel committee gave him the Peace Prize for that]]''), ''more'' Middle Eastern wars cause the belligerents to torch the oil fields indiscriminately, making oil resources scarce, the United States economic and governmental structure collapses and enters a permanent economic depression, the United Nations gets disbanded, an epidemic breaks out in the United States, The Great Korean Republic [[Ironic Echo|invades their neighboring countries from Japan to Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines]] ''[[History Repeats|while the entire world doesn't give a damn about this]]''. And when North Korea invades United States with an EMP blast and their military, [[It Got Worse|it gets worse from there]].

** Though the reason for this was given as the fact that Kaos is run in New York, and it's just too expensive to run a studio there. It was a sad news piece indeed.

*** Although didn't kill it, it was one of the factors in THQ's money problems.

* [[Crushing the Populace]]: The first action we see the Greater Korean Republic take is shooting several parents in front of their children before they get sent to labor camps/breeding pens. It gets worse from there.

* [[Determinator]]: The PC gets blown up in cutscenes several times, but always gets better. It's Lampshaded at one point.

* [[Did Not Do the Research]]: In an old newspaper article, the Prime Minister of Malaysia is said to be Mahathir Mohamad. Although it's possible he could have been re-elected in Homefront's timeline, he would be 93 by the date of the article in which he's mentioned (September 13, 2018)--which makes it unlikely.

* [[Dirty Communist]]: Well, the storyline ''is'' made by the same guy who made ''[[Red Dawn]]''. See [[Author Appeal]] above.

* [[Final Boss]]: {{spoiler|An enemy Goliath serves as the last confrontation. Even though the fight is [[Anticlimax Boss|unusually easy for a final boss battle]], [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|it is epic as hell.]]}}

* [[For Want of a Nail]]: The idea of North Korea invading the United States is considered highly unrealistic by many people, considering that the North Korean army, industry, and economy are in poverty, with Kim Jong blackmailing for food. However, a country or a regime thought to be harmless or pathetic in the ''present'' can become a threat in the near ''future'', if they take the right steps (and if unfortunate events weaken the major powers). This is why the game is set [[Twenty Minutes Into the Future]]--and, [http://www.gamereactor.eu/articles/3995/Interview:+Kaos+Studios%27+Tae+Kim+on+Homefront/ as mentioned by the Korean-American former CIA field agent]:

* [[Genghis Gambit]]: The collectible news articles reveal that Kim Jong-un was able to reunify Korea peacefully by making Japan their shared enemy, largely by taking advantage of the fact that South Koreans hate the Japanese much more than they hate North Koreans (in fact he was able to incorporate most of the smaller Southeast Asian nations in the GKR in large part due to their shared grievances against the Japanese stemming from [[WW 2]]). It's strongly implied that quite a lot of the Korea military forces are actually South Koreans who are willingly and happily taking part in the process of bringing America down a peg.

* [[Good Guns, Bad Guns]]: Averted real hard. The Korean forces use entirely NATO or American firearms, instead of the Soviet overstock they have in real-life. Justified because of the reunification, which made former South Korean weapons accessible to the North and they have seized the American factories and armories. The German Panzerfaust 3 is justified since Japan and South Korea produces them (though still doesn't explain why they also show up in the hands of American soldiers in multiplayer). The only non-NATO firearm you'll encounter is the Chinese-made PLA-issue QBZ-03 assault rifle.

** Ironically, Rianna is the one who objects strongly to killing the Survivalists at the start. Then slowly, along with the player, she realizes that they are the biggest collection of psychos in America - and that includes the Nazi-esque North Koreans.

* [[Heroic Sacrifice]]:{{spoiler|In the final battle at the Golden Gate Bridge, a large North Korean convoy is heading towards the protagonists and their allies and the US Airforce is unable to identify who is friend and foe on the bridge. Connor, in what might be the most badass thing he has ever done, runs toward the convoy with a flare, telling the Airforce to target his position, sacrificing himself so the Airforce can destroy the convoy, killing him in process.}}

** {{spoiler|I don't know. Audie Murphy survived calling Artillery strikes on his own position multiple times.}}

** {{spoiler|What, no love for the Goliath and its C4-rific sacrifice?}}

* [[Master of Unlocking]]: There are ''a few'' doors you can open yourself, but most doors, along with file cabinets, refrigerators, and other such barricades will forever hold you back until your NPC allies can move them out of the way.

* [[Mercy Kill]]: One level has the Resistance shelling Korean troops with white phosphorus shells. You can kill them to put them out of their misery, or [[Video Game Cruelty Potential|let the bastards cook]] Both choices give you an achievement.

* [[No Endor Holocaust]]: Based on the opening cinematic, the Koreans' [[EMP]] stops right at the Great Lakes and 49th parallel, sparing Canada its effects. Mexico isn't as lucky.

** Actually, it looks like a fair bit of southern Ontario (ie. [[Toronto]]) gets hit as well, so Canada doesn't get away entirely unscathed either.

* [[No Koreans in Japan]]: Heavily averted, with an [[Ironic Echo]]. [[Inferred Holocaust|And the fate of Japanese people probably wouldn't be pretty either]] judging how [[Imperial Japan]] had occupied Korea in the past.

** There are collectables, like the newspapers that explain the backstory, and hidden weapons that are better than the typical guns found. However, you probably won't find most of 'em as your allies keep telling you to [[Continue Your Mission, Dammit!]], causing you to miss most of these unless you deliberately look for them.

* [[North Koreans With Nodongs]]: Rather, a ''unified Korea''.

* [[Nuke'Em]]: Probably what the North Koreans did in order to irradiate the ''entire Mississippi river''. Alternately, they may have set up some radioactive materials dump in or near [[wikipedia:Lake Itasca|Lake Itasca]].

* [[Oh Crap]]:

* [[One Bullet Clips]]

* [[Plot Armor]]: In cutscenes, the protagonist survives many things that are effectively impossible to survive, solely because he is the protagonist. This gets lampshaded by Hopper near the end of the final level.

** A team of Navy SEALS infiltrate [[The Rock|Alcatraz]] and they succeed in capturing it. They use green smoke grenades to signal their victory.

** Near the start, the driver of the prisoner bus says that he is taking the prisoners to facility [[Star Wars|1138]].

** The game also features the quote: "Hail to the king, baby." and several other [[Shout-Out|Shout Outs]] later in the game.

** May or may not be intentional, as he only shows up for the {{spoiler|first part of the golden gate assault}}, but there's a [[Modern Warfare|(presumably) Mexican-American soldier named Hernandez, who is responsible for doing every necessary action]] the player character does not. The squad leader even says "Hernandez, do/open/etc X" with similar voice inflection to Foley.

* [[Voice of the Resistance]]: There is the "Voice of Freedom" network for starters.

* [[War Is Hell]]: The war in the game, although necessary, is ugly, brutal, and inhumane.

* [[What Could Have Been]]: [http://kotaku.com/#!5732623/china-is-both-too-scary-and-not-scary-enough-to-be--game-villains According to this article], the developer team were originally going to have the Chinese as the bad guys. However, due to America's [[Friendly Enemy]] relationship with China, American and Chinese economic dependency on each other, and fears of pissing off China's [[Culture Police]], the team scrapped that idea and had North Koreans as the bad guys instead.

** A a news site has noted, you'll sell more video games to the Chinese if you do not present them as genocidal invaders, while the North Koreans are unlikely to buy video games period.

** Considering the note the game ends on (not at all finalizing), it's possible the devs intend for Jeong to show up again in later games. So this may end up being averted.

* [[What Have I Done]]: Hopper after {{spoiler|The mortar misfired and landed on the resistance position instead.}}

* [[Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters]]

** [[The Revolution Will Not Be Civilized|The Resistance Will Not Be Civilized]] The Montrose Resistance commits a couple of war crimes during their guerrilla war against the KPA. However, they're contrasted strongly against {{spoiler|the [[Crazy Survivalist|Crazy Survivalists]] who have done much much worse.}}

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Xbox 360]]

[[Category:Homefront]]

[[Category:Video Game]]