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Stock for Homefront publisher THQ dropped almost 25% per share Tuesday afternoon, shortly after various gaming websites published their reviews of the game.
The aggregate review score for Homefront, as compiled by Metacritic, was 72 on Homefront's release day. That same afternoon, THQ's stock fell from around $6/share to around $4.75/share.
According to Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter, the stock's descent was a direct result of low review scores.
"[THQ] had very high hopes for the game, promoted it a lot over the last few months, and most expected a score in the mid- to high 80s," Pachter said in an e-mail to Wired.com. "Low 70s is only average, and typically means sales of 2 million or fewer for a new intellectual property. It could sell more with marketing support, but I think 2 million is a fair guess."
This could be bad news for THQ, as the company's chief financial officer has acknowledged that it needs to sell at least 2 million copies of Homefront to break even.
The news may have also affected Homefront's retail price. Retailers like Amazon and Walmart are currently selling versions of the game for $421. Homefront's suggested retail price is $60.
"[It's] hard to know what the discounts mean," Pachter said. "Perhaps retailers ordered large quantities expecting high scores, and hope to clear out excess inventory."
Before Tuesday, Homefront's Metacritic rating reportedly hovered around an 88. Tuesday was THQ's official review embargo date, meaning reviewers were not officially allowed to publish their reviews until then.
According to a press release, THQ sold around 375,000 copies of Homefront during its first day in stores.
As of press time, THQ has not responded to Wired.com's requests for comment.
1Editor's note: The price of the game at both online stores has risen back to about $55 as of Thursday.
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