THQ remains optimistic about its controversial new shooter, and maybe it has to be after its stock plummeted 21% to $4.69 during the first day of Homefront’s release. Things haven’t improved much since, with THQ’s stock closing at $4.54 – down another 15 cents overall – since Tuesday’s close.

THQ’s most recent bout of optimism came regarding the price drop yesterday. Many perceived that drop as a sign that the title was going to perform weakly in the long haul, with retailers trying to dump copies of the game while they still could. THQ wanted to make it clear that this was not the case, and that the one day sale was not their doing.

Biggest title in the industry right now might be perceived as reaching, but if THQ is only looking at this week, then they don’t really need to reach that far. Not at all deterred by the drop in the value of its stock, THQ was proud to announce that the total launch day sales of Homefront in North America totalled 375,000 units. With this strong start, and the additional sales caused by the temporary price drop, maybe word of mouth will be enough to carry the title on to its minimum target of 2 million copies sold.

THQ isn’t alone in its faith that it will be able to reach its target. Colin Sebastian, an analyst for Lazard Capital Markets, expressed a great deal of support for THQ.

International sales should help propel the game’s sales numbers further, but whether or not foreign gamers are going to be interested in Homefront still remains to be seen. The game’s campaign relies so heavily on feelings of patriotism for one’s country that it’s not a stretch to imagine that international gamers will take little interest in feeling patriotic for a country that is not their own. For this international launch, the multiplayer component will be a much more important factor, and so far that component of the gameplay has been met with the least criticism.

“Looking ahead, word of mouth will become more important as gamers explore the online multi-player levels of the title. We note that Homefront also launches internationally this weekend.”

Do you think that Homefront can sustain sales long enough to break even at 2 million copies, or will it flounder and fade into the past like so many other shooters before it?

Homefront was released earlier this week in North America for the PC, PS3, Xbox 360, and OnLive, and today in Europe.

Source: Industry Gamers, Metacritic