Homefront (2011) (PC) (Kaos Studios)
3Homefront is a rather crappy shooter which onlu gets less memorable during the course of its extremely short campaign, but this cleverly edited intro is something I can watch over and over again (being the politics buff that I am). Also, despite truly dreadful shooting mechanics the first few levels include some really well-executed semi-scripted sequences which - while so lacking in subtlety that they border on the downright exploitative - effectively establish a more realistic wartime setting than most other shooters. Apart from the executions, concentration camps and mass graves there are a few individual scenes which are more effective and subversive than that; such as standing inside a house that is under attack by North Korean soldiers and hearing screams of frightened children coming from the other room. This is the kind of small-scale but still unsettling war drama stuff that Call of Duty and similar series normally wouldn't dare to approach, and for all the Homefront's undeniable flaws I believe Kaos Studios was onto something with this game. Only time will tell if Crytek can do something meaningful with the series now that Kaos has been shut down...