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Early Freedom for City of Heroes VIPs [Updated]
City of Heroes' F2P Freedom conversion is still launching "this year," but if you're a current subscriber, you can check it out ahead of the pack. Beginning on September 13th, existing players can participate in a headstart program that enables access to the Paragon Market cash shop as well as the brand-new First Ward co-operative zone. Paragon Studios is also promising official costume contests with prizes, dev-led groups in brand-new Incarnate trials, and live open-world invasion events on every server in addition to headstart-only "exclusive sales bundles and promotions." Current subscribers are all set for the headstart; former players can still get in on the fun by reactivating and gaining VIP status now. [Update: The official site now features a post on the headstart program, including details on the special sales and promotions.]
The baddies of City of Heroes' First Ward
City of Heroes' villains are some of the most memorable across the genre, so it's no wonder superhero fans are anxious to see whom (or what) they'll be fighting once CoH goes free-to-play later this year. To that end, Paragon Studios' art lead, Gilbert Martinez, has penned a dev diary over on PC Gamer that details four of the villain groups players will encounter in the upcoming First Ward zone. First up are the mystics of the Carnival of Light, the perfect counterpoint to the existing Carnival of Shadows. These new Carnies are much better dressed and seek to "restore the balance of good and evil" in Praetoria. They're followed by the Direct Urban Strike Team (D.U.S.T.) units, elite PPD members with rugged armor and enormous plasma rifles that are surely not compensating for anything. If you're into tentacles, you'll love the failed Seer experiments known as the Awakened. And finally, the dreadful, harpy-like Talons of Vengeance embrace "themes of vengeance, magic, and the embodiment of the apocalypse." Enjoy the new enemies (and their awesome high-detail graphics) at PC Gamer.
