THQ halving core game slate

THQ talked generally about placing its emphasis on quality instead of quantity after a wave of studio closures last week, but today at the BMO Capital Markets Interactive Entertainment Conference, the publisher talked specific numbers.

During his half-hour presentation, THQ CEO Brian Farrell told attendees that the company's new model called for "one or two" core gamer products each year. The publisher's previous development model called for three or four such games annually.

"When we focus--as we did with Saints Row 2 and Saints Row--we win," Farrell said.

Given the publisher's current pipeline of titles, it may be a year or two before the new model is fully implemented. The 2009 slate already has a handful of core gamer projects scheduled, including Red Faction: Guerilla, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2, Darksiders: Wrath of War, and the stand-alone PC expansion Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor.