THQ signs deal with Random House for Homefront novel

by: Chuck - posted: 10/25/2010 1:05:00 PM

THQ really isn't screwing around with Homefront as they've got a lot of money at stake in the game and the game got a ton of great buzz coming out of E3. To help increase the depth of the world THQ has partnered with Random House to publish a book that is set in the world of the game. The book is being co-written by Raymond Benson (who you might remember from the Metal Gear Solid books) and John Milius (the bloke who wrote the game and wrote Red Dawn) and will be released in conjunction with the game in early 2011.

I don't think I've hidden my excitement for the game that well and I'm interested to see if THQ can have some of the same success that Bungie has had with their Halo books (note the use of the word some here). Let us know what you think about book/video game tie-in in the comments as I'm interested to see who buys these books.

Homefront™ Novel Written by John Milius Set to Accompany Game Launch

THQ and Random House sign publishing deal to expand the world of Homefront



AGOURA HILLS, Calif., Oct 25th , 2010 -- THQ Inc. (NASDAQ:THQI) and the Random House Publishing Group today announced that a novel set in the Homefront universe and co-written by John Milius (Red Dawn and Oscar Award-winning Apocalypse Now) and New York Times bestselling author Raymond Benson (author of two Metal Gear Solid books and multiple James Bond novels) will be published by Random House’s Del Rey imprint, and arrive in early 2011 to coincide with the release of the first Homefront game.



“We’re delighted to confirm the first element of what will become a vast transmedia strategy for Homefront,” said Danny Bilson, Executive Vice President - Core Games, THQ. “John Milius has already worked with us extensively on the Homefront game, and we’re thrilled to have him and Raymond on board as we develop our near-future world into other types of media. Random House is a great partner to help us reach an even broader audience.”



“Homefront represents a fascinating vision of the near-future,” added John Milius. “After completing my work on the game, it became clear that there were many more stories to tell, and this book will offer a chilling look at this near-future world.”



Homefront the videogame is a thrilling first person shooter set for release on the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Windows PC in March 2011. It tells the story of a stricken America, fallen to savage military occupation in the year 2027.



For more information on Homefront, visit the official site at DefendYourHomefront.com follow us at facebook.com/homefrontgame or twitter.com/homefrontgame.



About Homefront



The year is 2027. Her infrastructure shattered and military in disarray, America has fallen to a savage occupation by the nuclear armed Greater Korean Republic.



Abandoned by her former allies, the United States is a bleak landscape of walled towns and abandoned suburbs. This is a police state where high school stadiums have become detention centers, and shopping malls shelter armored attack vehicles.



Join the Resistance, stand united and fight for freedom against an overwhelming military force In Homefront’s gripping, cinematic single player campaign, and experience epic, ground breaking multiplayer action all set in a terrifyingly plausible near-future world.



About THQ



THQ Inc. is a leading worldwide developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software. The company develops its products for all popular game systems, personal computers and wireless devices. Headquartered in Los Angeles County, California, THQ sells product through its global network of offices located throughout North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. More information about THQ and its products may be found at http://www.thq.com. THQ, Homefront and the THQ logo are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of THQ Inc.



About the Random House Publishing Group



The flagship imprint of Random House, Inc., the Random House Publishing Group had its origins in 1925 when Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer, two New Yorkers in their mid-twenties, acquired a line of classics and contemporary American works called The Modern Library from publisher Horace Liveright. The company assumed the name Random House two years later, in 1927, when Cerf and Klopfer decided to publish a few books on the side, "at random." Their artist friend Rockwell Kent drew his now celebrated logo of a random house, which made its debut in February l927. Among the first titles of the new imprint were limited editions illustrated by Kent of Voltaire's Candide and Melville's Moby Dick.



Del Rey Books (http://www.delreybooks.com) was founded in 1977 as an imprint of Ballantine Books, a division of the Random House Publishing Group, under the guidance of the renowned Judy-Lynn del Rey and her husband, Lester del Rey. Del Rey publishes the best of modern fantasy, science fiction, and alternate history.



About John Milius



After winning a National Student Film Festival award while attending USC, John Milius began his studio career working for Roger Corman writing Devil’s Eight followed by Evel Knievel. John Milius wrote the screenplay of Apocalypse Now. His other credits include Dirty Harry, Magnum Force, Big Wednesday, Conan The Barbarian, Red Dawn, Clear And Present Danger, The Hunt For Red October, The Wind And The Lion, Farewell To The King, Jerimiah Johnson, Judge Roy Bean, Geronimo and Flight Of The Intruder.



Milius later wrote the teleplay, Rough Riders, through which he was instrumental in causing President Theodore Roosevelt to be posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his action on San Juan Hill.

John Milius created and produced the TV series Rome for HBO.



Currently John Milius will be directing in 2011 a feature film from an original script on the life of Genghis Khan.



He is producing a cable TV series with Canal Plus, “Pharaohs”, set during the New Kingdom, the first twelve episodes to begin production in Egypt and Syria in 2011.



In the American Film Institute’s “100 Years of Film, 100 Movie Quotes”, John Milius had two quotes cited; one from Apocalypse Now, the other from Dirty Harry. In the Writer’s Guild of America’s “101 Greatest Screenplays”, John Milius’ Apocalypse Now is honored as well.



About Raymond Benson



Among his 22 published books, Raymond Benson wrote six original James Bond novels, three film novelizations, and three short stories—all published worldwide. Three 007 titles each are collected in the recent anthologies Choice of Weapons and The Union Trilogy.



As “David Michaels” Raymond wrote the first two NY Times best-selling books in the Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell series. Raymond is also the author of two Metal Gear Solid novelizations and the upcoming pulp adventure Hunt Through Napoleon’s Web. His series of “rock ‘n’ roll thrillers” include Dark Side of the Morgue and A Hard Day’s Death.





Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, the Xbox logos, and the Xbox LIVE logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of the Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries.



"PlayStation" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.



All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are the property of their respective owners.



The statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the business of THQ Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively referred to as "THQ"), including, but not limited to, expectations and projections related to the Homefront video game, and are based upon management's current beliefs and certain assumptions made by management. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, business, competitive, economic, legal, political and technological factors affecting our industry, operations, markets, products or pricing. Readers should carefully review the risk factors and the information that could materially affect THQ's financial results, described in other documents that THQ files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal period ended March 31, 2010, and particularly the discussion of risk factors set forth therein. Unless otherwise required by law, THQ disclaims any obligation to update its view on any such risks or uncertainties or to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to these forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.