Champions Online

[Cwicseolfor]

It will rock your world. Take a look at the aesthetic character customisation available:

 

http://www.champions-online.com/rate_my_champion/296664

 

And this quote is delicious: "The game will feature a robust character creation like City of Heroes, including the ability to edit a hero's movement; for instance, a wolf-like hero may opt to leap on all fours rather than on two, a robot may select robotic, jerky movement rather than humanoid, and a mentalist may opt to float inches above the ground rather than walk."

 

Edit: Due out before the end of the year.

Edited July 4, 2009 by Cwicseolfor

[Purkake]

So it's like City of Heroes Plus?

 

Also when I see CoH, I think Company of Heroes...

 

I'll stick with Freedom Force.

Edited July 4, 2009 by Purkake

[Aristes]

City of Heroes is an excellent game. In a lot of ways, I much prefer it to WoW.

[Calax]

So it's like City of Heroes Plus?

 

Also when I see CoH, I think Company of Heroes...

 

I'll stick with Freedom Force.

It's basically City of Heroes 2. THe developers of City of Heroes have actually learned quite a bit about the experiance, and are making almost everything customizable (which may end up being pretty hard given balance issues) but most things are going to take place outside of instances (a change from City), and you'll also be able to create your own nemesis.

 

I liked City of Heroes and might pick this up for the 1 month trial, and if it captures me I might drop WoW altogether. It'll be interesting to see if they've gotten around their problem with Endgame content (nothing similar to raids for City of, so when you finished all the missions it just... ended). and if they've made it scale better.

 

City of Heroes and WoW both took the same concept and ran in WAY The opposite direction. Where WoW is a complicated stat land, with specific roles and gearing for each playstyle, and minmaxing up the wazoo, City of took it the other way, making everything more simple (and customizable). Where WoW has something like 60 odd abilities for various characters, COH has a total of about 28, not including power pools. Also WoW subscribes to the specific roles (tank, damage, and healing) while City of makes things generic enough that you can really play any team and get away with it if you play smart (once saw a team of 7 scrappers and a blaster... that was... interesting).

 

Honestly, if City Of's player base hadn't died off due to nerfs, bad gameplay decisions, and simple lack of things to do, I'd probably still be playing it rather than WoW. Mainly because the community for City of wasn't so based around "I'm Da Bestest!" because they didn't have things like damage meters, or a pvp set up (that was added later, but didn't really catch on).

 

Basically City is a VERY simple and very forgiving MMO (instead of repair bills after each death, you get debt on experiance, halfing your intake (which you can get out of within one or two pulls).

 

One of the funnest things I've ever done as a blaster was watch a tank herd an ENTIRE instance into one dumpster (to line of sight kite them into there) then fly myself right above this mob of 50-200 guys (depending on group size) and fire my nuke... killing EVERY SINGLE ONE in one shot... needless to say this ability was nerfed and the mobs ended up getting tied to certain spots to prevent this.

 

Also the achievement system that showed up in WoW appeared first in City of Heroes as Badges.

 

Just sayin.

[Kaftan Barlast]

I played City of Villains for two weeks and its without a doubt the most boring and repetitive MMO Ive tried thus far. Customizing the character was lots of fun, but playing the game was about as exciting as doing the dishes (a huge neverending pile of exactly similar plates). It was more of a character creator with a small excuse of a game attached to it.

[Humodour]

I played City of Villains for two weeks and its without a doubt the most boring and repetitive MMO Ive tried thus far. Customizing the character was lots of fun, but playing the game was about as exciting as doing the dishes (a huge neverending pile of exactly similar plates). It was more of a character creator with a small excuse of a game attached to it.

 

I haven't played the game (CoH), but I've heard good things about it's playability and ability to captivate. I guess it's similar one of those things where you get people swearing Diablo 2 was a shell of game - obviously YMMV.

 

And unlike other MMOs, except arguably D2/D3, CoH and Champions are pay-once, not pay per month, which is a massive selling point for me (assuming the game itself holds up to expectations).

[LostStraw]

CoH and Champions are pay-once, not pay per month, which is a massive selling point for me (assuming the game itself holds up to expectations).

Not sure if you're thinking of a different game (Guild Wars?) but CoH has a monthly fee and Champions Online will too.

[Humodour]

CoH and Champions are pay-once, not pay per month, which is a massive selling point for me (assuming the game itself holds up to expectations).

Not sure if you're thinking of a different game (Guild Wars?) but CoH has a monthly fee and Champions Online will too.

 

****, I just lost interest in this game.

 

SAD PANDA.

 

Edit: Oh well, I'll just go buy Guild Wars. It looks fun and is still supported.

Edited July 6, 2009 by Krezack

[Calax]

CoH and Champions are pay-once, not pay per month, which is a massive selling point for me (assuming the game itself holds up to expectations).

Not sure if you're thinking of a different game (Guild Wars?) but CoH has a monthly fee and Champions Online will too.

 

****, I just lost interest in this game.

 

SAD PANDA.

 

Edit: Oh well, I'll just go buy Guild Wars. It looks fun and is still supported.

honestly, if you're buying games quite a bit, and then get into an MMO you'll find you've started saving money because rather than buy 1 60 buck game a month, you're only paying the 15 bucks for the subscription and then maybe getting a game every other month (or at three month intervals).

[Purkake]

honestly, if you're buying games quite a bit, and then get into an MMO you'll find you've started saving money because rather than buy 1 60 buck game a month, you're only paying the 15 bucks for the subscription and then maybe getting a game every other month (or at three month intervals).

 

And then you wake up two years later and realize that you could have been playing awesome games instead of wasting all that time grinding levels. But ,hey, at least you saved some money!

[Hurlshort]

Eh, I never stop playing regular games and I always have at least one MMO subscription going. I just like the social aspect and the long term goals of an MMO. It's a slow and steady climb to the top, unless you are fiend who plays 80 hours a week.

[Calax]

honestly, if you're buying games quite a bit, and then get into an MMO you'll find you've started saving money because rather than buy 1 60 buck game a month, you're only paying the 15 bucks for the subscription and then maybe getting a game every other month (or at three month intervals).

 

And then you wake up two years later and realize that you could have been playing awesome games instead of wasting all that time grinding levels. But ,hey, at least you saved some money!

Well you could say the same thing about NWNII, Baldurs Gate, Mass Effect, so on and so on.

 

Like hurlie said, the big thing about MMO's is the social aspect.

[Humodour]

CoH and Champions are pay-once, not pay per month, which is a massive selling point for me (assuming the game itself holds up to expectations).

Not sure if you're thinking of a different game (Guild Wars?) but CoH has a monthly fee and Champions Online will too.

 

****, I just lost interest in this game.

 

SAD PANDA.

 

Edit: Oh well, I'll just go buy Guild Wars. It looks fun and is still supported.

honestly, if you're buying games quite a bit, and then get into an MMO you'll find you've started saving money because rather than buy 1 60 buck game a month, you're only paying the 15 bucks for the subscription and then maybe getting a game every other month (or at three month intervals).

 

Nah. I'm sorry but that just doesn't really make sense.

 

There's valid reasons to play MMOs (if you're a rich enough bastard) but replacing existing games isn't one of them. The main attraction of Diablo 2 was pretty much what Hurlshot said, and it'd be the main reason I'd play an MMO. I'd certainly still buy other games. It sort of comes down to art again. Something like an MMO isn't really 'art' to me, it's just mindless fun. But something like Planescape: Torment or perhaps Beyond Good & Evil 2 (when it comes out) is far closer to art and something that satisfies me on a higher and deeper level. I wouldn't suddenyl forsake that just because I'm subscribed to an MMO.

 

You also can't own an MMO, or replay an MMO 10 years later. So instead of buying the game you're really just renting it.

[Oner]

You also can't own an MMO, or replay an MMO 10 years later. So instead of buying the game you're really just renting it.

And there's no server to get hacked or go down in a single player.

[Oerwinde]

It will rock your world. Take a look at the aesthetic character customisation available:

 

http://www.champions-online.com/rate_my_champion/296664

 

And this quote is delicious: "The game will feature a robust character creation like City of Heroes, including the ability to edit a hero's movement; for instance, a wolf-like hero may opt to leap on all fours rather than on two, a robot may select robotic, jerky movement rather than humanoid, and a mentalist may opt to float inches above the ground rather than walk."

 

Edit: Due out before the end of the year.

 

The movement editing isn't in the beta. There are 4 stance selections available that determine your movement. Regular, Heroic, Bestial, and I can't remember the last. Regular is just a regular stance, with normal movement. Heroic gives you the superman chest foreward stance and you run like a brute, bestial is the all fours, and the 4th if I remember right is a variation of bestial. I haven't made a character recently. The lag was so bad the game was unplayable for the last 2 weeks, and when it was finally fixed for friday's playtest I spent the whole time doing quests.

 

Whats awesome is the ability to choose any power when you get a power point to spend. If you want to do a character that uses ice and fire? Doable. How about a martial arts expert who dabbles in the arcane? Sure. A gun wielding telekinetic, yup. Also there is like 12 different travel powers, including your standard flight, jumping, super speed, and teleportation from CoH, you also have flying discs, ice sled(like iceman), rocket boots, fire flight(like human torch, you're engulfed in flames when you fly), etc.

 

Overall, it feels exactly like City of Heroes, except that the world reacts somewhat to your actions. The tutorial level is an alien invasion of Millenium City, once you beat that the invasion is over and millenium city is normal. I then went to Canada, and defeated some sorceror who was calling down storms, and the storms of the level stopped. I just beat a zombie lord who was sposed to be summoning all the zombies, not sure if that made the zombies stop spawning or not. Gameplay is exactly the same as CoH, but missions have a lot more depth and once you finish major ones you get actual tangible evidence of your actions in the world. I haven't gotten far enough to get my nemesis yet.

[Purkake]

honestly, if you're buying games quite a bit, and then get into an MMO you'll find you've started saving money because rather than buy 1 60 buck game a month, you're only paying the 15 bucks for the subscription and then maybe getting a game every other month (or at three month intervals).

 

And then you wake up two years later and realize that you could have been playing awesome games instead of wasting all that time grinding levels. But ,hey, at least you saved some money!

Well you could say the same thing about NWNII, Baldurs Gate, Mass Effect, so on and so on.

 

Like hurlie said, the big thing about MMO's is the social aspect.

 

The difference is that those games actually end, while MMOs don't.

 

I can see the social aspect.

[Calax]

honestly, if you're buying games quite a bit, and then get into an MMO you'll find you've started saving money because rather than buy 1 60 buck game a month, you're only paying the 15 bucks for the subscription and then maybe getting a game every other month (or at three month intervals).

 

And then you wake up two years later and realize that you could have been playing awesome games instead of wasting all that time grinding levels. But ,hey, at least you saved some money!

Well you could say the same thing about NWNII, Baldurs Gate, Mass Effect, so on and so on.

 

Like hurlie said, the big thing about MMO's is the social aspect.

 

The difference is that those games actually end, while MMOs don't.

 

I can see the social aspect.

True, but how many times do you go back through and keep replaying them?

 

And what I said about the "game per month" thing you'll find is pretty true. Of course it's mainly aimed at those people who get bored at some point, and go out to buy a new game simply because its' new. It's not true for everyone (particularly those on this board, given repeat play throughs are a major thing) but it's true for most of my customers at gamestop and myself.

 

BTW system requirements are up

 

http://kotaku.com/5309166/champions-online...s-your-computer

Edited July 7, 2009 by Calax

[Purkake]

True, but how many times do you go back through and keep replaying them?

 

And what I said about the "game per month" thing you'll find is pretty true. Of course it's mainly aimed at those people who get bored at some point, and go out to buy a new game simply because its' new. It's not true for everyone (particularly those on this board, given repeat play throughs are a major thing) but it's true for most of my customers at gamestop and myself.

 

Me? I usually go through a game once and that's it. The only games that I have replayed in the last ~5 years are HL2, the episodes and Portal. And that's mostly because of the commentary mode. I'm a go-through-a-game-once guy, it's all about the experience.

Edited July 7, 2009 by Purkake

[Aristes]

I don't have time to play a second MMORPG, otherwise it would be LotRO. However, I really did enjoy CoH. I'm starting to grow weary of WoW, but I just don't see being able to switch any time soon.

[Purkake]

I don't have time to play a second MMORPG, otherwise it would be LotRO. However, I really did enjoy CoH. I'm starting to grow weary of WoW, but I just don't see being able to switch any time soon.

 

Try EVE, it's pretty tyte...

[Calax]

I don't have time to play a second MMORPG, otherwise it would be LotRO. However, I really did enjoy CoH. I'm starting to grow weary of WoW, but I just don't see being able to switch any time soon.

Yeah, I'm getting there on WoW too... Like I said, Champions would be the only one to drag me away from WoW at this point.

[Calax]

I do wonder if the Cryptic guys are still that involved in their creations as they were in City of Heroes/Villains.

 

By this I mean that the lead designer actually created City of Heroes and it's signature heroes/villains after his own pen-and-paper crew. And then each of the developers took one of those signature heroes as a handle on the forums.

 

This all created an interesting end-of-beta event (in villains) where the developers actually put on the "suit" of the hero they were using on the forums to attack the rogue isles (the Villain home base). every player in the beta was able to fight against the devs in an all out brawl (and even talk to them if they had cross faction chat enabled). It was REALLY awesome to see 200 heroes converge on Statesman (the lead developer) then him fire off a single ability and send them flying like Sauron does in the lord of the rings flashback.

 

Similarly in the end-of-beta event for Heroes, the developers all played as Rikti (the alien menace that attacked Paragon City that was the crux of the Heroes storyline) commanders during the attack that kicked off the storyline.

 

Other interesting things were stuff like a villain getting a bug where he ended up on the heroes side of the "tracks" (in Paragon instead of the Isles) and the GM team decided to handle it by having a GM play one of the signature villains sent to drag the player back to the isles by killing him in the main city square. Also there have been cases where the developers hop onto their heroes/villains and just group with players within the game for relaxation (it's REALLY odd to see the developer statesman saving HIMSELF in a mission environment by fighting against an evil version of HIMSELF).

[Calax]

Yay! got into the beta because work gave all the managers codes and my boss doesn't care about the game :D!

[Oerwinde]

I find the lag is so bad 75% of the time that its unplayable.

[Calax]

I find the lag is so bad 75% of the time that its unplayable.

I didn't have trouble on the 10th, of course I was playing well after the standard "bedtime".

 

I didn't play much (only about an hour) but I started to feel underpowered as melee.