Playing through Darksiders from the first time right now, on my 1080p TV with a controller on my PC, has really reminded me how good to me THQ has been these past few years. Between all the Warhammer games from Relic, Metro 2033, Darksiders, Red Faction: Guerrilla, Darksiders, and Saints Row: The Third they have been putting out some of my favorite games of this generation. Not only that but, as a PC gamer primarily, their PC versions have never given me any trouble. I've always been able to play silky smooth 60 fps stuff with a controller if I want and it works flawlessly.

Now, their output is as spotty as any big publisher (and they've had more than a few clunkers even these past few years) and their financial state is more of a headline than anything else these days. However, compared to Activision, EA, and Ubisoft, I have to give it up to THQ for really putting out a lot of good product for me to enjoy and fell good about. Anyone else out there feel the same as I do? In terms of big game publishers anyway?

Edit: Okay I have to say Take-Two/2K has also been hot lately but I still would rank them second below THQ for me.

Playing through Darksiders from the first time right now, on my 1080p TV with a controller on my PC, has really reminded me how good to me THQ has been these past few years. Between all the Warhammer games from Relic, Metro 2033, Darksiders, Red Faction: Guerrilla, Darksiders, and Saints Row: The Third they have been putting out some of my favorite games of this generation. Not only that but, as a PC gamer primarily, their PC versions have never given me any trouble. I've always been able to play silky smooth 60 fps stuff with a controller if I want and it works flawlessly.

Now, their output is as spotty as any big publisher (and they've had more than a few clunkers even these past few years) and their financial state is more of a headline than anything else these days. However, compared to Activision, EA, and Ubisoft, I have to give it up to THQ for really putting out a lot of good product for me to enjoy and fell good about. Anyone else out there feel the same as I do? In terms of big game publishers anyway?

Edit: Okay I have to say Take-Two/2K has also been hot lately but I still would rank them second below THQ for me.

Yep. I pretty much love everything THQ has put out recently. Darksiders 2 and Company of Heroes 2 will probably be fantastic as well. Really hope they pull through the financial problems they are going through right now.

Edit: oh besides Red faction Armageddon. What the hell were they thinking with that one?

Don't forget that they published Company of Heroes because frankly it's one the best RTSs out there. Furthermore they're still publishing CoH2 so there's more reason to support them. Obviously, Relic developed it and they should get the most credit but that's beside the point. While I haven't played all of the games THQ have published recently I do have to have to hand it to them in not what they've done but rather what haven't they done. More specifically all of the silly decisions made by EA, Activision, Ubisoft and the like.

@eroticfishcake said:

Don't forget that they published Company of Heroes because frankly it's one the best RTSs out there. Furthermore they're still publishing CoH2 so there's more reason to support them. Obviously, Relic developed it and they should get the most credit but that's beside the point. While I haven't played all of the games THQ have published recently I do have to have to hand it to them in not what they've done but rather what haven't they done. More specifically all of the silly decisions made by EA, Activision, Ubisoft and the like.

I didn't include that because I'm not a fan but definitely one of the best received games in the last 10 years. I feel like we have to be fair in saying THQ has been known to sack a few devs more than one would like but I think that's as much to do with their weird financial state than anything.

With that said I feel that exactly nails it. THQ, excepting being a big AAA publisher with all those issues and trappings, don't really have anything to sully their name as a person who likes to play games. They're doing it better than any other out there right now I think.

Despite some questionable aspects of THQ, like the online pass or pouring all those resources into a friggin drawing tablet, I view them as one of the best publishers in this industry. Saints Row is amazing, Darksiders 2 looks amazing, and I almost always liked their Smackdown games. I hope they can recover with some big time sales for their upcoming releases, if they're very good of course.

@BaconGames: That's quite surprising given the high popularity of CoH. A lot of people still play online actually and I personally consider it to be much better then Starcraft 2 but that's not what I'm here to discuss. But yeah, no company is perfect and neither is THQ but comparison the other developers I've mentioned (why not add Square-Enix to the list) they have been rather generous to their developers in terms of liberty. No annual franchising. No annoying DRM. No greedy money-grabbing tactics. Just...make a good game and be done with it.

I like Volition, Vigil and Relic, so I suppose I like THQ.

But I also like BioWare(s), Visceral and Criterion so I guess I like EA (plus they've released games by Grasshopper, Spicy Horse, People Can Fly and Starbreeze).

Ubisoft pretty much is Montreal do there's that. They did put out Outland by Housemarque, though. So there's that.

Square Eidos, they got Crystal D and their own Montreal studio that put out Deus Ex. So there's that.

Bethesda... cancelled Prey 2. So they can die in a fire.

Sega sucks but they put out a couple games by Platinum so maybe they're not total fuckups?

Sony's got Naughty Dog, Sucker Punch and Santa Monica. Japan Studio used to be good but forget that.

Activision has Treyarch, who I still respect, those guys are trying to make good stuff. And Raven, until they eventually ruin that. Singularity, the forgotten soldier.

Microsoft has... Twisted Pixel. And they did publish Trenched, so hey. And Shadow Complex, too right?

I have no problem with THQ but I think praising them for not annualizing their franchises is a bit silly. If they had any franchises that sell as well as call of duty, madden, or battlefield I can assure you we would see one every year. I guess the wrestling games are there biggest seller and I'm pretty sure they are annual.

I like me some THQ games. Only place for my 40k fix. Saints Row is obviously awesome and Metro 2033 became one of my favorite games of all time.

@TheSouthernDandy said:

I like me some THQ games. Only place for my 40k fix. Saints Row is obviously awesome and Metro 2033 became one of my favorite games of all time.

/accent

I wish to frolic through post apocalyptic Russia with you, Dandy. Preferably while skipping and holding hands with a-bomb explosion in background.

@TheSouthernDandy said:

I like me some THQ games. Only place for my 40k fix. Saints Row is obviously awesome and Metro 2033 became one of my favorite games of all time.

/accent

I wish to frolic through post apocalyptic Russia with you, Dandy. Preferably while skipping and holding hands with a-bomb explosion in background.

I get to be the party pooper, asshole, and hipster all in one and make an announcement on how I didn't think Saints Row the Third or Red Faction Guerilla really deserve a lot of the praise they get.

But that's just the corn cob up my ass. And, hey, Darksiders is fucking great and Darksiders 2 looks like it's going to be fucking greater. And Metro 2033 was pretty good at building atmosphere.

Company of Heroes anyone? Yea, THQ is one of my favorites really am banking on Darksiders 2, and Metro last Light to put them back in elite status.

If we hold "big publisher bullshit" a constant for all these big 3rd party publishers (EA, Activision, Take-Two, Square-Enix, Ubisoft), I feel like THQ is quietly releasing a lot of my favorite games of the past 5 years and making them run well on the PC to boot which is why I feel like I want to give them some propers. Thanks THQ for making games I like and not being annoying about it.

Company of Heroes Anthology should be in my mailbox today. Just played through all of Dawn of War 1 & 2 & addons - and loved it. Space Marine is spectacularly awesome in what it does. I love Darksiders, and Darksiders 2 is going to be my next full price purchase.

Hell yeah - I love THQ and their developers. Relic would make my top 5 favorites, I'm sure - if that's something you're asking.

Now if only Volition comes around to do another Summoner game, or something else along the lines of a RPG - that'd be even better. They once were pretty good at doing those.

Also - who doesn't love Warboss Bluddflagg? Should be THQ's mascot really.

THQ is easily one of the better publishers out there.

It sucks to see them fall on hard times, though I am hopeful they will clean things up over time.

@Brodehouse: Last I heard Prey 2 was delayed and not cancelled.