THQ has decided on a new studio to take over the Homefront franchise. They announced today that Crysis developer Crytek will develop the next installment in the shooter series.
"Selecting Crytek to take Homefront forward underscores our strategy of working with the industry's best talent," said Danny Bilson, EVP Core Games, THQ. "Homefront's unique setting and storyline captivated gamers the world over. With Crytek's industry leading technology and legendary experience in the FPS genre, we're supremely confident that the next Homefront will deliver that AAA-quality experience that players demand."
The first Homefront, released earlier this year, was created by THQ subsidiary Kaos Studios. THQ decided to shut down Kaos in June. They said at the time that the move was part of a "a strategic realignment within its internal studio structure." They had planned to hand off development duties on Homefront to THQ Montreal but it seems they changed their mind.
Bilson's mention of "industry leading technology" is interesting. The original Homefront was powered by Unreal Engine 3. Perhaps Crytek will use their proprietary CryEngine 3 for the sequel.
"We see Homefront as a really strong universe that has a lot of potential and that has been expertly created and marketed by THQ," said Cevat Yerli, Founder, CEO and President of Crytek. "We believe that bringing our level of quality, creativity and production values to the next Homefront title creates an opportunity for both THQ and Crytek to deliver a truly blockbuster game. It's really important to us that THQ has the faith in giving us a lot of creative freedom over one of its most important properties to allow us to bring the Homefront world to life in a new and innovative way."
The next Homefront, currently untitled, will be released during THQ's 2014 fiscal year on consoles and the PC.
