North Korea? Don't make me laugh.

[Altorin]

So by know most of us should know that Homefront tells the story of an America invaded by the North Koreans in the near future, and I just read an article on IGN that told how a remake of Red Dawn has been sitting on the shelf for two years because no one wanted to have the Chinese as the villains so now they're being changed to North Koreans. Sigh.
Am I the only one who finds the very idea of North Korea successfully invading the States laughable? There's just a lot of problems with it:
First off, they don't have nuclear deterrents. While the Americans would be admittedly hesitant to actually use them, you can't honestly tell me that in the event of a full scale invasion of the states, the government wouldn't at least have those fuckers about and remind the North Koreans why the Cold War never broke into open conflict.
Secondly, the armed forces are vastly mismatched. The US Army might not be really popular with folks right now but they're still the largest and most well equipped army on the planet [sub](Not counting the sinister army of Molemen that lies just below the surface of the Earth, waiting, biding their time.)[/sub] whereas the North Koreans are primarily known for having cartoonishly large hats and generally being silly.
Third, giving the Americans an enemy as outright "bad" as the North Koreans would lead to the most viciously one-sided war this side of Charlie Sheen VS the Villainous Cocaine Man Army (Hi-oh!) Americans have been waiting years for an enemy that they can royally kick the shit out of in clean conscience.

So with that little rant out of the way do you agree? Is North Korean really a viable threat to the Yankees, even in fiction? Were you aware that they've been sitting on a Red Dawn sequel for two years?

they have a nuclear deterrent.

China, and Russia.

If you factor in China and Russia, then something like "North Korea starting world war 3 by attacking the united states" is very possible, and while the US has the largest army in the world, it's also fighting 2 wars right now which it will probably never be able to finish. North Korea is a joke in every respect EXCEPT it's military. It spends every single bit of its resources on having a ridiculously powerful army considering what it's protecting.

If NoKo just went off the loop and started to attack the US then maybe China and Russia, not wanting world war 3 would help bring it under order, but I doubt it. They'd more then likely assist NoKo in destroying both SoKo and the US

 

[DefunctTheory]

The US Army might not be really popular with folks right now but they're still the largest and most well equipped army on the planet

Untrue. We have the best equipped Army in the world, but not the largest. We're something around 3rd in active troops, and below the top 10 if you count reserves.

Am I the only one who finds the very idea of North Korea successfully invading the States laughable?

Well, China does have NK's back, and the Chinese really do have America by a choke chain financially at the moment.

Actually, China backs the NK as long as they behave. In the event of open hostility, China would smack down NK before they could claim even an inch of foreign territory.

 

[Mirror Cage]

Guess we're going to have to start using aliens again.

 

[MetroidNut]

It's absurd to imagine North Korea coming over here to America and kicking our ass because North Korea is a vessel for transporting poverty and starvation.

However, with regards to Homefront specifically, I myself have noticed far more absurd events in its timeline. North Korea sabotages a Japanese nuclear reactor (Homefront's developer obviously didn't time that very well...) and Japan instantly surrenders.

Japan has a massive military, even if it's technically called a "defense force". In annual military spending, Japan ranks seventh in the world. And with Japan facing threats from China and, well, North Korea, that defense force is only going to expand. One could make the argument, I suppose, that if everything went exactly right, the Glorious Army of Super Korea could someday conquer the Japanese, but NOT without a fight.

We shouldn't be so violently opposed to portraying China as a future enemy of the US. There's a very good chance they won't be, but there's a good chance Russia won't be our enemy, either, and that's hardly stopped games from using the Russians as antagonists. Admittedly, putting China as the enemy will probably get it banned from Chinese shelves, but putting Super Korea as Homefront's enemy got it banned from South Korea....

 

[Souplex]

They have the fourth largest army on earth, and do nothing but train their soldiers for fun.

 

[Agayek]

No, you're not.

Of course if the gameplay had been stunning, the stupid backstory wouldn't have mattered as much. I thought it was a bad sign that the marketing for Homefront tried so hard to sell the North Korean invasion as "realistic;" and associated marketing stunts like holding anti-North Korea demonstrations just stank of desperation. Sure enough, the game is out and drawing mediocre reviews based on mediocre gameplay, and THQ's stock has already taken a twenty-point hit.

To be fair, the actual gameplay is just fine. The mechanics are all well done, and the game plays perfectly well.

The problem is purely that the single player campaign is disjointed garbage. Gunfights in the campaign are incredibly poorly executed and the general pacing and feel of the game is atrocious.

That said, the multiplayer is fantastic, much better than CoD in my opinion, and it really does deserve a look for that if nothing else.

I'm pretty sure the mixed reviews are because the game tried to sell itself on its story and, to put it simply, the story just isn't good enough.

 

[SilverHammerMan]

Untrue. We have the best equipped Army in the world, but not the largest. We're something around 3rd in active troops, and below the top 10 if you count reserves.

Oh well, you guys are still pretty overpowered.

 

[Altorin]

If you factor in China and Russia, then something like "North Korea starting world war 3 by attacking the united states" is very possible

No it isn't. China for one would squash them underfoot before they were five minutes into pitching the idea. It's the American market that's been paying for all those shiny new skyscrapers in Beijing and the Pearl River Delta.

Why are people still so desperate to defend this crap backstory? It's not going to pump the review numbers any higher, you know.

Ok, for starters, you don't need a trade partner that cannot in a million years pay you back all that you've given them. China has america by the balls, not the other way around.

Secondly, what the fuck do I care about review numbers? I don't even really know what fucking game we're talking about here, I only paid attention to "noko invading the US". I don't care about fucking review scores

 

[Thespian]

Good god.

Yes, it is ridiculous that NK could invade America. That is why Homefront is
a) A work of speculative fiction
b) Set in the future after a whole plethora of extra conditions have been applied, such as the demise of the american dollar, Korea's annexation of Asia, states seceding from America, riots and food shortage nationwide, etc., that make it entirely more feasible that once all of these are in play and America is crippled by an EMP, a country with an already highly impressive military could pose a significant threat to a split America.

 

[Alphavillain]

I find this debate laughable.

it's a game.

I am rapidly coming to this conclusion myself. I think enemies in games are a kind of empty vessel which we pour our projected fears and angers into -a mcguffin, if you will.

 

[DefunctTheory]

If you factor in China and Russia, then something like "North Korea starting world war 3 by attacking the united states" is very possible

No it isn't. China for one would squash them underfoot before they were five minutes into pitching the idea. It's the American market that's been paying for all those shiny new skyscrapers in Beijing and the Pearl River Delta.

Why are people still so desperate to defend this crap backstory? It's not going to pump the review numbers any higher, you know.

Ok, for starters, you don't need a trade partner that cannot in a million years pay you back all that you've given them. China has america by the balls, not the other way around.

Secondly, what the fuck do I care about review numbers? I don't even really know what fucking game we're talking about here, I only paid attention to "noko invading the US". I don't care about fucking review scores

China and the USA, despite what you hear, are the bestest of friends. Their economies are so intertwined that neither could really survive without the other, and its actually in China's best interest that our economy not only recovers, but soars to new heights.

Simply put, China loves us WAY more then they love North Korea.

 

[Zechnophobe]

So by know most of us should know that Homefront tells the story of an America invaded by the North Koreans in the near future, and I just read an article on IGN that told how a remake of Red Dawn has been sitting on the shelf for two years because no one wanted to have the Chinese as the villains so now they're being changed to North Koreans. Sigh.
Am I the only one who finds the very idea of North Korea successfully invading the States laughable? There's just a lot of problems with it:
First off, they don't have nuclear deterrents. While the Americans would be admittedly hesitant to actually use them, you can't honestly tell me that in the event of a full scale invasion of the states, the government wouldn't at least have those fuckers about and remind the North Koreans why the Cold War never broke into open conflict.
Secondly, the armed forces are vastly mismatched. The US Army might not be really popular with folks right now but they're still the largest and most well equipped army on the planet [sub](Not counting the sinister army of Molemen that lies just below the surface of the Earth, waiting, biding their time.)[/sub] whereas the North Koreans are primarily known for having cartoonishly large hats and generally being silly.
Third, giving the Americans an enemy as outright "bad" as the North Koreans would lead to the most viciously one-sided war this side of Charlie Sheen VS the Villainous Cocaine Man Army (Hi-oh!) Americans have been waiting years for an enemy that they can royally kick the shit out of in clean conscience.

So with that little rant out of the way do you agree? Is North Korean really a viable threat to the Yankees, even in fiction? Were you aware that they've been sitting on a Red Dawn sequel for two years?

Honestly, I think it is more silly just based on body count. Consider the population of North Korea, or even Korea as a whole. Even if every man woman and child were to take up arms against the US, there wouldn't be enough. It isn't even a bravado thing, just numbers.

The thing that is even more silly about it, is that there are, right now, other nations who COULD pose a threat. Some crazy idea of a combined Middle East, or something, would be fantastical, but at least it'd have the populace and a known leveraging mechanic.