In an interview with THQ's disarmingly honest VP of Core Games, Danny Bilson, CVG discussed the company's plans for Red Faction 4, stating that it is set to hit retail this year, and that several key game features are receiving "insane upgrades".

"It's different from the last one but similar... It's sort of a combo of the old one and the new one, so it's... I don't want my marketing guy to be pissed at me for giving away too much, but it goes back underground and it's really cool."

Although hardly earth-shattering, this does dovetail nicely with some comments Bilson made earlier in the year, speaking to the mix of surface and underground environments they were implementing to counteract the endless expanses of dull, red dusty environments that plagued Red Faction: Guerrilla and turned many potential players away.  To reinforce that, he went on to say:

"The things that I think were the problem with Guerrilla were not the game play but the IP. Being in a dusty environment for a long period of time could get a little monotonous. It's almost simple things like that.

I think the story [in Red Faction 4] is way more intense this time and I think the story was way secondary to the  game play last time. It's more integrated this time and it's a cooler story, it's cooler environments and there are elements in it that have never been in a Red Faction before as far as enemies go and... ahh (laughs)."

THQ now has a serious arsenal of titles, with the Red Faction franchise at the tip of the spear.  Turning out a sequel in under 2 years shows that THQ are committing heavily to its development.

How do you feel about the mix of surface and underground locations?  Is it the key improvement you are looking for in a new Red Faction?

Source: CVG