Homefront 2 preview: It's open world baby!
Homefront 2 is Crytek's entry into the world of open-world games. So, it's not surprising to see them being cagey about it apart from the gameplay footage. This article is all about exploring in depth what this game is all about.
Introduction
Just when you thought that you are never going to see a sequel to Homefront, Crytek has finally revealed what's been in making back at E3. While Homefront wasn't really exciting to be honest, it at least had some unique things going for the game that set it apart from the rest of cliché First person shooters.
So, it's not surprising to see Crytek buying all of the assets from the Homefront and actually build upon the premise. And what they have finally come out with is really surprising to say the least. It really looks and play impressive. Given the penchant they have for building low-quality free to play games and resorting to mostly Asian market, it's really pleasantly surprising to see them come up with a big budget full-fledged game like this one.Crytek is not very good at open-world stuff
Apparently, they are not very good at creating open-world games. Yes, Crisis 3 was kind of an open-world shooter, but it was really not that impressive barring the gunplay. So they really need to bring their A gamer here if they want to get gamer's attention as their past has not been a good one. They need to improve upon a lot of things apparently including the gameplay mechanics and other stuff.
The last game which included shield's mech gameplay was really not that innovative at all. While they can go on and boast about how pretty their Crytek Engine looks, a pretty game alone is not going to help you make more sales. If you want to sell more copies and appeal to a wider audience the game needs to encompass some enthusiasm and atheistically pleasing characters and settings. If the game world is anything like GTA V or Watch Dogs, it's going to sell like crazy, but I suspect that it's going to happen. Only time will tell what they are going to come up with in 2015, but I hope that it's going to be worth our time. No Far Cry 3
You may have heard a lot of times that they were the developers behind the Far Cry series. Yes, it's true that they have developed the first game of the series but the next ones were developed and published by Ubisoft from thereon. So, all the awesomeness that Far Cry 3 had to offer was because of the fact that Ubisoft was involved in it. As we all know, Far Cry 3 was an open-world game that was really pleasing to play from the inception till the end.
Since Crytek's name is involved with the Far Cry game, you'd be forgiven to think that they also developed this game and they are developing Far Cry 4 as well. No, they are not. So, Homefront 2 is going to be Crytek's first major open-world project. The future of the series depends upon how this is going to turn out and perform in terms of number of copies sold.The last SP game
As saddening as it may be, it might as well be Crytek's very last single player game they are going to make. They have never been shy about admitting that they are inclining more towards free-to-play business leaving the traditional console gaming model behind. Apparently, they see the potential to make a ton of money from free-to-play market. So, they are going where everyone else is going. I wonder if anyone is actually going to find the treasure they all have been looking for. While they may or may not find the success in the new market they are venturing into, the fact of the matter is that they are never going to make a single player game from now on. So this might as well be the last SP game out from their factory.
However, the proposition may change if they actually sell more than a couple million to justify making a sequel to this game. To make it happen, though, we will all have to stand united and contribute to this game's success in whatever way we can. It might look like such a trivial thing to do, but things like this shape the future of our industry. I am one of those many people who hate free-to-play games, so I am going to root for the success of this game without a hitch. If this sells well, we will have more in or hand.The Crytek trademark weapons
Loathe Crytek as much as you want for resorting and favoring free to play games in favor of AAA games as much as you want, but you can't deny the fact their gun combat has always been top-notch. If I were to name two developers that are best at combat stuff, I would say they are Bungie and Crytek. These guys know how to create a realistic weapon that feels and shoots bullets as if it was in your hands.
Read Best upcoming open world games for 2014-15: a glimpse into the future
