Out This Week – 18/03/11
Shogun 2! Homefront! Yakuza 4!
You can tell we're getting close to April because there are loads of games coming out. This Friday and next marks the last opportunity for many publishers to lift that bottom line out of the red and into the black just before the end of the financial year – and hopefully put a smile on shareholders as a result.
So, we've got plenty out this week. THQ's oft talked about first-person shooter Homefront is perhaps the biggest release. It's the most pre-ordered game in THQ's history – in the US. But how will it fare in the UK?
PC gamers are sure to be delighted by the strategic wonderment provided by The Creative Assembly's Total War: Shogun 2. The series has commanded a loyal following in the past. But does it still?
And SEGA's Yakuza 4 adds to the PlayStation 3 exclusive fun. The gangster adventure finally hits the UK after thousands of years on sale in Japan. The question is: do you still care?
This Week in Shops!
Homefront
- Developer: Kaos Studios
- Publisher: THQ
- Formats: PC, PS3, Xbox 360
What is it? Near-future FPS in which players join a resistance force that battles against a fictional occupation of the US by Korean forces. What does Eurogamer think? Our review goes live at 4pm UK time tomorrow.
Yakuza 4
- Developer: SEGA
- Publisher: SEGA
- Formats: PS3
What is it? Tokyo gangster action game with over six hours of cutscenes. What does Eurogamer think? Keza MacDonald awarded Yakuza 4 8/10 in her import review.
Total War: Shogun 2
- Developer: The Creative Assembly
- Publisher: SEGA
- Formats: PC
What is it? Samurai themed strategy game on an epic scale. What does Eurogamer think? Tim Stone reviewed for Eurogamer, turning up a superb 9/10. "This is a corker," he said.
What Else?
- Top Spin 4 (PS3, Wii, Xbox 360)
- Halo: Reach Defiant Map Pack (XBLA)
- Hard Corps: Uprising (PSN)
- Full House Poker (XBLA)
- Slam Bolt Scrappers (PSN)
- Gods Eater Burst (PSP)
- Alien Breed Trilogy (Xbox 360)
- Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (PC)
- MotoGP 10/11 (PS3, Xbox 360)
- Okamiden (DS)
- Arcania: Gothic 4 (Xbox 360)
- Warriors: Legend of Troy (PS3, Xbox 360)
- Monster Jam: Path of Destruction (PS3)
- Final Fantasy III (Wii Virtual Console)
Chart Predictions!
Each week one of the team will step up to predict the UK all-formats chart. The following predicts the outcome for the week beginning Friday 18th March (to be reported on Monday 21st March).
Fred Dutton, US News Editor, Eurogamer.net
"It's THQ's big week. Will its ambitious Homefront FPS prove itself COD-challenging franchise material or mere bargain bin fodder? My guess: somewhere in between. It could be tight but I'm predicting a return to the top for Nintendo's long-legged Pokémon series, with Homefront falling in closely behind. Dragon Age II should stick around in its second week, with Ubisoft's evergreen Just Dance 2 continuing to camp out at number five. MotorStorm: Apocalypse should do better than Pacific Rift's #29 debut in 2008 but a top five finish is a long shot."
- Pokémon White
- Pokémon Black
- Homefront
- Dragon Age II
- Just Dance 2
Eurogamer News Editor Wesley Yin-Poole peered into his crystal ball last week. We've made a fancy table to show how he did.
| Position | The Truth | The Prediction | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dragon Age II | Dragon Age II | YES! |
| 2 | Pokemon White | Pokémon Black | NO! |
| 3 | Fight Night Champion | Pokemon White | NO! |
| 4 | Pokémon Black | Bulletstorm | NO! |
| 5 | Just Dance 2 | Killzone 3 | NO! |