Timeline (Homefront)

This is a Timeline of Events, chronicling the events of Homefront and the events preceding it. Many of the events are sourced from Newspapers found in the game.

Pre-2000

1990's

• The Utah survivalists, fearing the effects of the Y2K bug, begin acquiring weapons and prepare for an apocalyptic scenario.

2000s

2006

July 6th

• Despite ongoing talks to convince North Korea to give up its nuclear program, North Korea stages a series of missile tests that began at 3:30 am local time (2:30 pm ET) and lasted for five hours. According to Pentagon officials, Taepodong 2 missile (a variant of the Soviet-era Scud) failed 40 seconds into its launch. The U.S., Japan and the U.N. strongly condemned the tests, which they say violated a commitment on the part of Pyongyang to a long-standing moratorium on missile tests. The moratorium went into effect after the failed launch of Taepodong 1 missile over Japan in 1998.

2009

June 29th

• Kim Jong-il, the eccentric and brutal leader of North Korea, officially appoints his son, Kim Jong-un, as his intended successor.

2010s

2010

• A North Korean submarine sank the South Korean naval ship Cheonan, killing 46 South Korean sailors as a result.

2011

• North Korea conducts a nuclear missile test as a "rightful" response to "Western aggression", resulting in another round of U.N. sanctions. (Actual event, late by one year)

2012

January 2nd

• Kim Jong-il dies and is succeeded by his son, Kim Jong-un, who declares his intention to reunite the two Koreas. 

March 18th

• Appointed by the United Nations and resulting of intense suspicion on the part of the U.S. State Department, Hans Blix and his investigation team are unable to locate weapons of mass destruction anywhere in the country of North Korea. Kim Jong-un has publicly stated on numerous occasions his intent to re-engage with the rest of the world through openness and transparency, surprising the international community.

May 18th

• In the wake of falling demand for Chinese-made goods, workers at a Taiwanese facility near Beijing clashed with authorities after a wave of firings. The year has seen a loss of 15% of jobs in the manufacturing sector in China and many experts suspect that the trend will continue as the recent crash in the housing market continues to ravage the American economy.

October 5th

• In a joint press conference with his British counterpart, the President of the United States announced that both governments will begin withdrawing troops from Iraq and transitioning military control to the U.S.-trained Iraqi military.  

2013

February 19th

• Kim Jong-un achieves in negotiating peace between North and South Korea, forming the foundation for the Greater Korean Republic. He also receives the Nobel Peace Prize for his accomplishment of Korean reunification.

April 24th

• Saudi Arabia and Iran have since filled the void of the United States' former presence in the Middle East, and emerging as superpowers as they begin in expanding their respective militaries. The Iraqi government is left on shaky ground as the Middle Eastern superpowers are scrambling for control in Iraq.

August 27th

• The U.S. military begins withdrawal from South Korea, planning to be completely out in five years.

November 17th

• South Korea sweeps in a new wave of nationalism resulting from the global economic downturn in which the newly elected South Korean government blames the U.S. for the financial crisis. Critics in the U.S. rebutted on South Korea's claims and clarifying the Korean economic problems stemming from re-integrating millions of poor, unskilled North Koreans into the regional economy. Many South Koreans believes the U.S./South Korea military alliance has lost its value, and that the U.S. military presence in the country is no longer needed.

December 3rd

• A series of reforms aimed at stomping speculation in the sector, enacted after the wild price spikes in 2008, temporarily appeared to smooth out fluctuations in the market. However, a cascade of unforeseen events (including a strike in Venezuela and ongoing political instability in Nigeria) cause analysts to question the global market's ability to keep pace with demand, and result in oil prices as low as $70 a barrel and as high as $200, making it difficult to say how a market as essential to global economic health will weather any additional instability. Analysts also fear that as demand returns and supply cannot be met, prices will skyrocket out of control, further depressing the global economy, and major American automobile manufacturers are feeling the crunch as demand for personal vehicles has bottomed out, possibly affecting other petroleum dependent sectors.

2014

U.S. Military forces finish their withdrawal from South Korea in a short but moving flag-lowering ceremony at the Yongsan Garrison.

March 16th

• Kim Jong-un continues to reverse his father's policies, including an audit of the prisoners in North Korea's notorious labor camps, calling for a dismantling of the Demilitarized Zone, and begins the first steps toward integrating the economies and militaries of the two Koreas.

April 3rd

• The Korean governments plan on including the large majority of 4 million strong North Korean soldiers into existing South Korean military structure.

May 4th

• The United States and Japan broke off talks to extend America's presence on the Island of Okinawa. Citizens both in Japan and the US see the massive economic costs resulting from the forces in the area as wasteful and not particularly valuable in an age of pronounced economic decline.

July 21st

• Facing increased pressure from policy makers, the Pentagon has announced its plan to re-scope the U.S. military's procurement priorities and focusing more on Special Operations teams and the use of unmanned vehicles. (Actual declaration; late by about 5 months).

August 27th

• The global economy continues to decline, with palpable effects all over the United States, with Americans waiting for hours in line to receive supplies and simple goods (such as asthma medicine) that were once easy to come by.

November 1st

• General Motors declares bankruptcy for the second time. Gas is priced at $9 a gallon, as American consumers are beginning to value cars that are less status symbols and more machines of a specific quality and function.

November 14th

• Due to the arms race between Iran and Saudi Arabia, both Middle Eastern nations have successfully achieved in testing and gaining nuclear weapons.

2015

Gas prices rise up to $20 a gallon, partly due to increasing instability in the Middle East. Survivalist books like Jon Irving's "The American Survivalist" become bestsellers in the United States. United States unemployment rate is at 30%.

February 28th

• Kim Jong-un becomes the first president of the established Greater Korean Republic in the first democratic elections held in the newly reunited country. More than 70% of the country's combined population turned out to give him an overwhelming majority in the popular vote.

July

The Iraqi government collapses after 3 years of ethnic unrest.

August 5th

• As the economies of China and the United States continue to simultaneously collapse, Russia signs a "mutual interest" pact with Ukraine, keeping their oil between the two countries, and cutting off all oil and natural gas trade with the rest of Europe. American commentaries note that this action will inevitably have brutal consequences for Western Europe, but Russia and Ukraine continue to have great relations with the United States and the European Union, as well as Canada.

August 17th

• The Korean People's Army has become the backbone of the Korean military and are militarily modernized under Kim Jong-un.

August 18th

• Following Iran's incursion into the northern provinces of Iraq last year, Saudi Arabia moved into Iraq's southern provinces with the goal of protecting the Sunni Muslim refugees in the area.

September 2nd

• The aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis joined the USS Theodore Roosevelt as being the second ship of its type to be decommissioned as part of the U.S. military's downsizing efforts, as large capital ships have become to be regarded as redundant, expensive and inflexible.

2016

The U.S. Army withdraws from Japan and other countries overseas, focusing on its instability back home. Texas begins closing its borders to refugees through bloodshed. Due to an extremely cold winter and the inability to heat homes, the U.S. states of New York, Minnesota and Delaware have each reported over 10,000 deaths from hypothermia and cold related illnesses. To combat this the Government sets up "national heating centers", large facilities to heat over 20,000 high-risk individuals across the northern states.

February 13th

• American professors and students in the reunited Korea are critical of the new regime, indicating that Kim Jong-Un's government is far from a democracy and made measures to quash all opposition to his "New Chosun Party", the dominating political party of the Korean government.

May 21st

• The U.S. pacific fleet is consolidated to Pearl Harbor for the first time since World War II, as a result of funding reductions. The Navy refocuses its mission on the rampant piracy and drug smuggling that plagues the west coast of North America.

June 8th

• Saudi Arabia, along with Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Turkey, declared a coalition to stabilize and guide the shaky nation of Iraq with support from the United States. Iran belligerently called the coalition an "unacceptable Saudi intervention," and declared its intent to defend Iraq from Saudi Arabia turning the country into a "client state." With support from the Kurds and the resurgent Afghani Taliban, Iran launched its first incursions into Iraq.

September 18th

• Rising demand from across the globe, coupled with instability in the Persian Gulf region, have caused gas prices in the U.S. to skyrocket. The Californian state government reacted to the fuel crisis in its state by implementing a rationing system, focusing on interstate shipping with an emphasis on food and medicine, and to discourage using gasoline for personal transportation.

November 26th

• California joined Texas and Florida in enacting strict border control policies with the states along their northern borders. Meant to curb the influx of starving, freezing Americans from the north, the policies have been met with controversy and outrage.

June 8th

• In a joint statement issued in Niagara Falls, representatives from the US Immigration and Naturalization Service, standing alongside their counterparts from Citizenship and Immigration Canada, announce an end to the longstanding "Open Borders" policy that has defined the relationship between the United States and its sister nation to the north. Already required to present a passport at any border crossing, citizens of both nations now have to apply for Visas at least a month in advance to travel across the border. Representatives stress that special permits will continue to be issued for vehicles carrying critical supplies, including oil and building materials, as well as food and medicine.

2017

The EMP grenade is developed.

February 23rd

• The military of the newly reunified Korea strives for focus and relentless perfectionism, training on technologies imported from all over the world, including from the United States.

July 2nd

• Due to the changes brought about by the Great Arab War's disruption of global energy supplies, many in New York embrace an old-fashioned way of life, with more and more rooftops and balconies bearing patches of green bearing fruit and vegetables.

July 7th

• Following an alleged assassination attempt by Korean agents on the Japanese royal family, violent protests and riots erupted as ethnic Koreans in Japan are attacked by Japanese demonstrators and nationalists.

August 2nd

• Gasoline in the U.S. has become increasingly scarce in recent months, which many blame on the ongoing unrest in the Middle East. Illegal black market gas dealerships are becoming widespread in America.

August 23rd

• In response to the violent attacks on ethnic Koreans in Japan, on Korean television President Kim Jong-un promises to protect Korean countrymen overseas.

September 18th

• A school bus driver was killed attempting to steal petrol by two State Troopers at an Atlanta gas station.

September 23rd

• Korea speaks out against Japan at a UN meeting in Brussels, providing compelling photographic evidences that Japanese police are involved in systematic attacks against ethnic Koreans. As tension in Japan escalates, Korean nationals are returning to the mainland while others fell victims to Japanese nationalists.

October 29th

• Martial law is declared in the U.S. due to an outbreak of riots after the financial crash and the crumbling of U.S. infrastructure.

2018

The XM10, a U.S. weapons prototype project loses its funding due to the economic struggles of the country. Government agricultural subsidies dry up this year, forcing many farmers to find jobs in the cities.

April 1st

• Korea declares war on Japan, as Kim Jong-un declared that Korea had a "heavenly mandate" to protect ethnic Koreans being murdered in Japan.

April 7th

• In a losing war against the Korean People's Army and after the destruction of one of its nuclear facilities by Korean special forces, Japan surrenders and is capitalized into a vassal state.

October 5th

• The U.N., led by the United States, passed a resolution condemning Korea for the destruction of a Japanese nuclear power plant as a human rights violation. However, the U.N. is helpless to act.

2019

The U.N. (at least temporarily) goes out of commission.

February 2nd

• French authorities presented evidences that the GKR is creating nuclear weapons within Japan. The Korean military was found in a major nuclear facility working on fuel for missiles. Said missiles are based on an American-made Peacekeeper ICBM.

July 7th

• Faced with a lack of food and a looming winter, many Americans have decided to take matters into their own hands and coming into direct conflict with an ineffective National Guard. The U.S. government decides in deploying the U.S. military into the hardest-hit cities.

December 12th

• Civilians riot over MRE rations being distributed by Maryland National Guardsmen.

2020s

2020

Canada closes its borders to the United States.

August 8th

• The Greater Korean Republic has overtaken all other nations as the number one supplier of enterprise and military-grade electronics.

October 18th

• Korean Special Forces and the Iranian Coalition work together in joint operations in northern Iraq to help restore order. In Farah province, Koreans detained a group of suspected insurgents based on information provided by the ISS. The force manages to locate a cache of mortar shells and a large quantity of bomb making components, as well as capturing two Iraqi insurgent commanders; Korean forces also conduct several precision air strike operations, targeting an arms dealer who was supplying the insurgency with rockets and bomb-making materials.

November 18th

• The U.S. military takes over the functions of many emergency services, as well as the distribution of basic goods. Due to this, Americans withdraw from the suburbs in favor of life in the U.S. military-managed urban centers.

2021

GKR successfully annexes most of the nations in Southeast Asia. A new pandemic known as the "Knoxville Cough" breaks out in America. The American isolationist movement grows. The H5N1 virus, after causing almost 100,000 deaths worldwide is labeled a pandemic by the World Health Organization.

April 7th

• On Tuesday, Malaysia became the fifth country to join Kim Jong-Un's Greater Korean Republic, doing so willingly; Vietnam and Cambodia become additional candidates for membership.

May 28th

• Due to the GKR's dominance of the microchip industry, many throughout the world, including the U.S. military, make use of Korean products. It is discovered that every Korean-made microchip has a massive backdoor exploit waiting to be activated, resulting in caution and skepticism.

July 14th

• The CDC issues a no-travel warning to Minnesota and Ohio due to cases of Knoxville cough being identified in St. Paul and Akron.

2022

Mexico closes its borders to America, in order to prevent the contagion of the Knoxville Cough. Hyperinflation pushes the U.S. dollar to the edge of collapse.

June 9th

• Cargo carriers, having since abandoned from use due to the economic slide, are retrofitted by the GKR military for a flexible means of transportation. The first converted cargo carrier left from the Port of Busan, carrying a contingent of Korean troops to Japan to help quell the rebellious Northern Prefectures.

August 19th

• Federal officials allow the Congressional "Declaration of a Public Health Emergency" to expire, signaling an official end to the Knoxville Cough that has rocked the Midwest, with at least 18 million casualties resulting from the pandemic. The World Health Organization stated that peak H5N1 activity had likely passed for most of the world, but the virus was still circulating in some regions.

2023

The Korean People's Army reaches 25 million total personnel and because of this, the KPA is now the largest standing military in the world.

October 3rd

• Nations around the world lauded the GKR for its recent "peacekeeping" intervention in a civil war in Nigeria, as international suspicion of the Greater Korean Republic appears to be transforming into a more positive opinion.

2024

May 6th

• The GKR launches its own fleet of satellites based on the captured M-V rockets at the Uchinoura Space Center to "support" America's failing GPS system, which America could no longer afford to maintain.

2025

The first year of the GKR's invasion and occupation of the continental United States.

January 16th

• Thursday - The Greater Korean Republic, using a military satellite disguised as a GPS satellite, launches an EMP over the United States, shutting down all electronic devices throughout the country and wiping out much of North America's power grid.

January 18th-20th

• KPA forces seize Hawaii.

January 21st

• The current President of the United States, who has served for two terms, gives a farewell address noting the massive changes the Union has endured, and leaves the office to his successor.

January 25th

• KPA forces begin landing in the continental United States, landing in San Francisco and dropping paratroopers in the Midwest beginning the occupation.

2026

In 2026 the KPA has occupied the United States for one year. Contact with the U.S. east of the Mississippi is lost to the occupied west. The KPA launches Operation Water Snake to irradiate the Mississippi River and the surrounding area, effectively creating a border between the occupied west and free east. A mass grave is created in St. Louis.

January 12-22

• The first resistance cells spring up across the NKFOA.

January 24th

• Las Vegas is lost.

March 16th

• Salt Lake City is destroyed.

November 24th

Hoover Dam re-naming ceremony, in honor of the Glorious Leader Kim Jong-un. Las Vegas, NV. November 24, 2026.

• Hoover Dam is re-named in honor of Kim Jong-un.

2027

2027 is the third year of the Korean Occupation. The events of Homefront take place in this year. The population of the United States is down to 275 million from 310 million in 2010.

September 1st

• The events of Why We Fight begin with the forceful removal of Robert Jacobs from his apartment in Montrose by the KPA and his subseguent escape thanks to the American Resistance.

September 2nd

• The Montrose Resistance infiltrates the Montrose labor camp, steals GPS locater becons, and kills dozens of KPA soldiers.

September 3rd

• The Montrose and Gunnison Resistance assault a KPA fuel depot in Montrose. Later, the KPA firebomb half of Montrose including the Oasis safehouse. The Montrose Resistance escapes from the town.

After September 3rd

• The Montrose Resistance assaults a Survivalist encampment in Utah and secure a Scout Helicopter. The group then hijacks three KPA fuel tankers. They then join with U.S. forces for the Battle of San Francisco, ending in a major U.S. victory, leading to the European Union convening to debate support for America at long last.

September 8th

• Montrose Elementary School opens for the new year. It is doubtful that many children attend due to the suppression of the September 3rd uprising.

2029

• The GKR has shifted its control to the eastern part of the country after the Battle of San Francisco, setting up its capital in Philadelphia.

Trivia

• May it be noted that the backstories of games produced by Kaos studios somehow coincidentally, yet rarely predict future events.
  • The actual death of Kim Jong-il occured only a month before the prediction in the game's backstory.