THQ: New Metro can "compete with the Call of Dutys"

THQ's VP of core games, Danny Bilson, has gone on record with his belief that forthcoming shooter Metro 2034 has the ability to compete with "the Call of Dutys", as some of the key game elements are now "better polished" then its predecessor, Metro 2033.

Talking in an interview with IGN PC, Bilson also revealed that the game will see a greater marketing spend than the original title.

"The sequel's even more advanced in terms of the technology," he said. "The sequel's going to get a lot more support than the first one got both from product development at THQ and marketing.

"There were certain things in [Metro 2033], even though it looked sensational, some of the shooting mechanics need to be better polished to compete with the Call of Dutys. They are this time. For marketing it'll get a much more respectful push."

Bilson added that the franchise, Russian in origin and developed by Kiev-based 4A Games, would not be compromised in style or tone to make it more Westernised.

"I'm a big supporter of that team in Kiev," he said. "It's an original Russian franchise. We don't want to mess with it and Americanise it. It's got its own point of view. Even though our guys in Agoura did a lot of the work on the fiction, this time it's still that vision.

"You're going to see a more polished game, you're going to see some crazy technology. We green-lit it before the other one shipped and you're going to see some of it at E3."

When it was released last March the game received solid critical acclaim, with a Metacritic of 81 for the PC edition, but only 77 for the Xbox 360 version.