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Champions Online's FATAL ERR0R takes the fight to cyberspace
Just when the superheroes and heroines of Champions Online thought they had enough problems to deal with in the real world, it looks like there's some serious trouble brewing in cyberspace. On July 18th, Cryptic Studios will be introducing the first part of Champions Online's latest story arc, FATAL ERR0R. You see, the Champions' semi-sentient supercomputer Socrates is under siege by some sinister hackers, and it's up to players to act as a living firewall. In addition to the usual globetrotting, players are going to have to go all TRON and head into the treacherous territory of virtual reality to fend off the viruses that plague SOCRATES. The cyberspace excursion will take place in a group instance ideal for two to three players, and players of any level can get in on the action thanks to enemy level scaling. Players who successfully stand in defense of SOCRATES will be rewarded in meatspace with snazzy new virtual-reality-themed costume pieces. Part one of the FATAL ERR0R arc goes live on July 18th, but in the meantime, check out the gallery below for a sneak peek at the copious amounts of '80s neon that awaits. %Gallery-17946%
Storyboard: One of us is going down
You and your group of roleplaying companions need something new to do. You've grown tired of sitting around talking about problems in the outside world or engaging in a non-stop soap opera drama wherein someone is always sleeping with someone else inappropriately. By complete coincidence, you and your companions all appear to be heavily armed and armored, leading to an excellent suggestion -- you should go out and get involved in a conflict! A fracas of some kind! What a concept! Sarcasm aside, long-running conflicts are a lot of fun when handled right. While I've talked about them in brief before, today I want to look at a handful of common conflict types and offer some tips about how to run them without tears. If you think drama can spill over into OOC channels when it's just a matter of pretend romances being spurned, you don't even want to know what happens when the knives come out.
Know Your Lore: The final boss of Mists of Pandaria
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. We've heard various and sundry conflicting tales about Mists of Pandaria, tales of various pandaren groups, tales of faction warfare, tales of a warchief's downfall. But in and among all of the tales, one theme pervades, one thing stands out as something people point to in dismay. This thing is the lack of a final boss that is a powerhouse in Warcraft lore, something that we've had with every prior expansion. Illidan, Kil'jaeden, the Lich King, and Deathwing were all prominent figures in Warcraft lore before we rose up to defeat them. They were terrible threats to our world, threats that had to be dealt with. But in Mists of Pandaria, we don't have the reassuring face of a villain to charge after. We don't have a major lore figure to take care of. We have no idea what we're facing other than some rumblings about the warchief's downfall -- and even then, we're not sure if those rumblings are correct. For the first time in World of Warcraft's history, we don't have an easily recognizable, high-profile figure to contend with. Or perhaps we do. We have to deal with one of the greatest threats we've ever seen. We just aren't looking closely enough.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Praetoria's invasion in review
It's all over and done for Praetoria now. Well, not all done; as long as new characters can start in City of Heroes as Praetorians and later run through the relevant Incarnate Trials, it'll never really be done. And we'll have more stuff in the postscript, of course, because there's always a postscript. But this big overarching story arc that the game has been running since the launch of Going Rogue almost two years ago is finally finished. And that prompts an obvious question: How did the whole arc look in retrospect? Let's face it: This whole arc has been something new for City of Heroes, an attempt to replicate the huge multi-comic crossovers that are really fun until they make up all the comics ever. You know, like what happened to Marvel comics from the late '90s until the early '00s or what's currently happening at DC. And just like those big crossovers, this one had some big flashes of brilliance and some moments that seemed like a letdown.
What WoW's story could learn from Diablo III (and vice versa)
I like the Diablo storyline. It's complex without being incomprehensible, and unlike WoW, it doesn't have a gigantic and sometimes daunting pile of backstory to wade through. You can pretty much jump into Diablo III without having played any of the prior games and still have a pretty good idea of what's going on. The world, Sanctuary, has a fairly simple premise, but the repercussions of its creation have far-reaching effects that are more often than not a gigantic pain in the butt for those living on Sanctuary. I liked Diablo III. I liked the gameplay -- who doesn't like carving their way through hordes of demon corpses? I liked the controls, which were relatively simplistic, and I liked the talent trees, which were fun without being confusing. It's hard to compare WoW and Diablo, because the two games are so very different in concept. One's an MMO, the other is a click-fest of looting and gore. But they both have one thing in common: story. And oddly enough, it seems as though there are a few things these two games could learn from each other on that front. Please note: There are spoilers for Diablo III in this post. If you haven't finished playing through to the end and you wish to avoid spoilers, turn away!
Storyboard: Navel-gazing cardboard cutouts
When you create a character for roleplaying, most of the time your creation is something of a mess. He or she has a huge pile of issues, regrets, fears, mental blind spots, and possibly even physical ailments that should have a lasting impact on telling stories and creating drama. And your goal as a player is to take all of those flaws into account to tell stories about someone less than perfect, whose imperfections you can hopefully see even if the character can't. Unfortunately for everyone, there are two very compelling ways to do this, and neither one of them is right or wrong or even evident at a glance. It's only by roleplaying with someone for a while that you get a sense of what she's aiming for, and it often turns out to be after it's too late to do anything. You might be going for character arcs or character development, and the two are frequently incompatible over the long term.
A look behind the scenes for City of Heroes' first signature arc
The second part of the first signature arc for City of Heroes is now available for players (free for VIP and in the Paragon Market for everyone else), continuing to ask the question of who will die. It's a weighty question when you're dealing with the key NPCs of the game lore for the whole of its lifespan, one that Paragon Studios isn't addressing without a keen understanding of the consequences. A new video documentary has just been released, with the staff discussing the creation of the arc. As laid out in the video, one of the major pushes for the signature arc wasn't just to engage the players who were already committed to the game but to attract new players to City of Heroes Freedom because of the major changes being wrought upon the lore. Check out the full documentary just past the cut, with a few hints about where the arc might end up when the dust settles.
NYCC 2010: The City of Heroes Issue 19 panel
It's the end of the convention season, and City of Heroes fans on the East Coast managed to get one last treat -- another chance with the development team that had long been anchored firmly on the other side of the country. The team's panel in March at PAX East saw the revelation of several new facts about the game, including the first announcement of Kinetic Melee and Electric Control, and the panel that closes out the year at New York Comic Con contained several interesting new facts as well. Melissa Bianco, David Nakayama, and Jesse Caceres were all in attendance, with the panel overseen by community representative Tia Parurahi. With Going Rogue having been out for nearly two months, this panel focused on the upcoming Issue 19 and what the changes mean for the game, as well as how much the development team is ramping up production to improve the game all around.
City of Heroes issue 17 enters open beta
Suit up and get ready for another exciting episode of City of Heroes, as Open Beta for Issue 17: Dark Mirror is now in session. Players will experience Ultra Mode graphical upgrades, new story arcs, and additional costume options during the beta phase as well as when the new update hits the live servers. North American and European superheroes can try out the beta by logging into their respective Training Room servers, instructions for which are located here. NCSoft also encourages players to submit error reports using the in-game /bug command, as well as provide constructive feedback on the official City of Heroes forums.
