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Exclusive: Champions Online challenges players to take on the Forum Malvanum
Champions Online players have just braved a full-scale invasion in the appropriately named Lemurian Invasion event. So now the superheroes of Millennium City get to take a long weekend and possibly head to the beach, right? Hardly. A new challenge approaches in the form of the upcoming Forum Malvanum event, throwing heroes into a pitched arena battle run by a mysterious alien race. But it's not quite what you might think. The aliens behind these gladiatorial games have been running challenges across the galaxy for quite some time, and they've now invited Earth's champions to participate. Should the heroes emerge victorious, they'll reap the rewards of galaxy-spanning wealth and power. Not that you can expect the games of an intergalactic race obsessed with bloodsports to be particularly fair... Leaving aside the perpetual nightmare that is a superhero's life, this even promises to offer several additions for players. Aside from the almost mandatory new lockbox, the event will contain new content including an arena showdown and a mission focused around a high-speed race. We also had a chance to sit down and ask producer Tom Edwards a few more questions about the upcoming event. Read on! %Gallery-17946%
Champions Online dev blog goes behind-the-scenes of the Lemurian Invasion
Last week, Champions Online's Lemurian Invasion event hit the live servers, and since then players have been valiantly fighting to defend the world against the alien forces. But as the latest Champions devblog notes, "an invasion force like the Lemurians doesn't come out of nowhere." With that in mind, Cryptic has released a brand-new devblog that takes players behind the curtain for a look at the making of the Lemurian invasion. In the post, Champions Online's new Live Producer, Tom "Lord Gar" Edwards, takes players on a brief tour of the process behind creating a live event. Edwards details all of the hard work that went into the Lemurian Invasion, from the event's initial conception to 3-D models, animations, and playtesting. But perhaps more importantly, he takes a few paragraphs to talk about the future: "[In] the first half 2013, [Cryptic's] plan is to release several story arcs of a similar scale to the Lemurian invasion." He adds that "each arc will have a lockbox, some smaller missions, and then a larger mission at the end." According to Edwards, each mission will " have its own themed rewards and new items [that will] sometimes focus on character improvements, and some on vehicles." Champions' next arc will involve "gladiatorial combat" and will focus on the aforementioned character improvements. Edwards promises that more info is coming soon. Until then, how about heading over to the Champions Online devblog for all the tasty Lemurian Invasion details? [Thanks to Matixzun for the tip!]
Ask Cryptic and ye shall receive -- Champions Online answers, that is
At the end of February, Champions Online posted an "Ask Cryptic" thread, inviting players to query devs about anything on their minds. And plenty did, filling 14 pages with burning questions such as will past events like Nighthawk ever return, can we get vehicle vs. vehicle battlegrounds, and have you tried bacon jerky? Producer Tom Edwards and the Champion's dev team answered these -- yes, good idea, and "Why would you do this to me?" respectively -- along with many others. Although not all questions could be individually addressed, Edwards touched on as many as possible. Want to hear about land vehicles (yes, they are coming), adjusted lockbox drop rates, or the plans for a story arc throughout 2013? Then check out the full answer session on the official site.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Champions Online, Lemurian events, and you
Every so often, I'm told that I don't understand an issue under discussion, and it's entirely true. There are a lot of issues out there, and the best I can do is get some of the information, form an opinion, and then change that opinion based upon new information. So I do my best, but I'm going to be wrong sometimes. Other times I'm told I don't understand an issue when I actually do, and the problem is that the issue under discussion is not the most relevant issue. So let's talk a little bit more about Champions Online and the Lemurian Invasion. If you haven't been paying attention, this spawned a little bit of controversy among the playerbase and more when I said that the people raising a stink were wrong. They still are, even if they're also right about an unconnected issue I only brushed against before.
The Lemurian Invasion of Champions Online is going out with a splash
Invaders from the deep have threatened Champions Online players for a while now, but it's time to deep-six the Lemurian threat for good. The latest patch to the game is giving players a chance to do just that with a new queued event capping off the multi-week invasion, providing a fight against evil for fabulous new toys. Or you can buy new toys, if that's more your speed. The Lemurian forces are trying to summon something enormous to overtake Millennium City, and high-level players will be pitted against the bulk of this army and its ominiously named Bleak Harbinger. Fail, and Millennium City falls. Succeed, and you might be able to pick up a Lemurian hovertank. Oh, and the city won't be destroyed. There are also new hoverbikes available from both the Drifter and the C-Store, helping ensure that heroes who want to take on the invasion will have good equipment to do so before it ends on March 27th. [Thanks to matixzun for the tip!]
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: News from around the superheroic world
I've been talking about superhero games in the conceptual state over the past few weeks, which has been great for those of us who really enjoy that sort of thing. (I also got some very nice feedback from the folks at Missing Worlds Media regarding last week's article, so that's also keen.) But there are two titles in the genre already out, plus one that's not yet out but is rapidly approaching launch. So rather than speak in the abstract, let's talk about the news in review, yes? Marvel Heroes has been making the biggest waves recently with a major beta update that trimmed up systems, changed statistics, and revamped crafting extensively. Champions Online's latest event became a point of some contention when the finale was swapped from being a high-end event to being something for everybody. And DC Universe Online waited until I had just wrapped up my month in the game to launch a big update including housing. So in no particular order, let's talk about all of this.
Neverwinter Days: Money and knowledge
If you've been following Neverwinter's development closely and combing the internet for every scrap of information about it, chances are that this week's column isn't for you. But if Cryptic's newest D&D dungeon crawler has arrested your interest as of late and you're trying to catch up with the rest of the crowd, I think we can be accommodating. Prior to a game's release, I like to bone up on the basics without crossing over into spoiler-heavy territory (especially guides and extensive video walkthroughs, but that's just me). It's a great time to get into dedicated podcasts on the game as well; I swear that podcasts at pre-launch are always more interesting than afterward. So this week we'll go over a few essential resources that all Neverwinter fans, current and aspiring, should include in their bookmarks, as well as a brief discussion about the game's monetization plans.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Shall I play the villain?
Superheroes are defined by their villains. A lot of what makes Spider-man and Batman such celebrated characters is the fact that they've got no shortage of interesting opponents. DC Universe Online knew this when it launched and gave players a villainous option right from the beginning, something that even City of Heroes didn't manage until its first expansion. Not that this is the norm. Admittedly, calling anything the "norm" in a subgenre with only three launched games to go by is a bit complicated, but that's not the point. Champions Online doesn't let you take a walk on the villain side, and Marvel Heroes will launch without the ability to play a villain now or (presumably) ever. This seems a bit odd on some level. We like villains, we interact with villains as readers, we enjoy seeing what the villains will do. But does it diminish a game to lack the option, or does it diminish villains as a whole when you can play as one?
A Mild-Mannered Reporter Extra: Interviews with Champions Online and The Phoenix Project
I promised you that we would be doing interviews next time, but astute readers would note that I did not say "next week." So welcome to our special extra installment of the column looking at two different sides following the City of Heroes shutdown. We've already seen two projects coming from the ashes of CoH; The Phoenix Project and Heroes and Villains are both currently being assembled by passionate fans of the now-departed game. But we'd be remiss if we failed to note the impact that the game's closure has had on existing games like Champions Online and DC Universe Online. Rather than just speculating on any of this, we decided to just ask. So today you've got two interviews. One is with Brad Stokan, Executive Producer at Cryptic Studios, about how the City of Heroes shutdown has affected Champions Online and the studio that helped bring the game to life in the first place. The other is with the lead staff at Missing Worlds Media, the team behind The Phoenix Project. So let's take a look behind the scenes, yes?
Cryptic prepping new Champions 'mega-event'
Cryptic has tweaked its Champions Online website with news of a forthcoming in-game event. First up is a rather mysterious in-character blurb and an associated discussion thread. The shenanigans are scheduled to begin on January 11th, and Cryptic will be giving away free costume pieces to celebrate. The "mega-event" will feature new adventures released every couple of weeks that include new missions and new items, and the festivities will eventually culminate in a custom alert. Cryptic is also touting its Grav Bike Arsenal lockbox. You'll find more info on that at the official Champions website.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Farewell for now, Champions Online
So I've spent a month in Champions Online, and I've taken enough time to understand most of how the game fits together on a conceptual level. This is from equal parts playing and reading about the game in various places because I just do that for fun. Those of you who were here for my first outing will remember that I was pleased with the game as a whole. Upon further play, though, my impression has... well, remained pretty darn positive. This is not one of those twist endings. Of course, I can also see why the game never quite hit the level of widespread popularity that City of Heroes managed, and some of the problems that plague it are a direct result of what I like about it. So with my first outing in the game out of the way, I'm going to offer a more complete look at the game, starting with the bad and ending with the good.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Tips for City of Heroes refugees in Champions Online
Champions Online has been a breath of fresh air for the past couple of weeks. It's not a perfect game, nor is it a perfect substitute for City of Heroes, but it's a remarkably good approximation. I would imagine that most players familiar with the latter will feel fairly comfortable in the former, once they get over the obvious differences between the two. Not that the hurdles are exactly minor. For all that I've grown fond of Champions Online, it still has a lot of strange fiddly bits, doing with six different systems what most games do with two or three. Just jumping in cold, as I did, can leave you looking around aimlessly and quite possibly result in your making some choices regarding character builds that you swiftly regret. As I also did. So here are a few tips for players new to the game, tilted in no small part to anyone coming over from our dearly departed CoH. I can't keep you from making every mistake, but I can at least help you get a feel for the game's systems in some small part.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: A new start in Champions Online
Apparently, my phrasing in last week's poll was unclear, so let me make myself totally clear right now: Starting this week and with every subsequent week, A Mild-Mannered Reporter will be focusing on the whole genre of superheroic MMOs. Last week's poll was meant to be a place to start, not a place to end up. With that in mind, it's time to jump into Champions Online, a game that I haven't played since it was in beta... which was enough to convince me to cancel my pre-order after months of being excited. Let me step back. It's not that the game was terribly bad back then; it's that I could tell the designers loved active combat, and as it turns out my computer at the time could run the game in only the most cursory sense of the word. Trying to take part in semi-active combat when every action has about a half-second of delay attached is not what I'd call fun or smart. But that was ages ago, so it's time to give it the old college try once again. I loaded it up on Steam and got started anew, and after some frustration with login verifications and getting the subscription working, I filled in a month of subscription time and went to make my first character.
The Perfect Ten: Absolutely ridiculous cash shop selections
This past week, the Money Gnomes at Turbine tested the waters with the idea of selling a $50 horse in Lord of the Rings Online. Oh, not just any horse, mind you: It's a toy hobby horse. For $50. The representative who asked for feedback on the item and price-point probably caused herself internal hemorrhaging by stating, "This is not a joke." The fans responded, "Of course, and the sky is made out of blue cheese." At the very least, it allowed the more creative players to come up with humorous expressions of incredulity. The fun finally came to an end when the studio announced that the "experimental" price point was a failure. Of course, this is by far not the first time a game studio's attempted to sell a ridiculous item, an item with a ridiculous price point, or both combined. If you sell it, after all, the rubes will come. So in the spirit of a $50 hobby horse that costs something like $20 in real life to acquire, here are 10 completely ridiculous items that we've seen in MMO cash shops.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Moving forward after City of Heroes
Last week was painful, not just for me but for a lot of you was well. I'm touched by the number of comments I received on last week's article, and I can understand why a lot of you thought that this was curtains for the column as well as for the game. It was a sad ending, with a note of hope almost buried by all of the crushing emotion. You and I lost a friend that's been with us for more than eight years; it's hard to be optimistic. But I'm still here. And I'm still the same person I was a week ago, if somewhat diminished by loss. And now it's time to move along. I've written the last word there is for me to write on the subject of City of Heroes, but as it turns out, I still have a lot more to say about the genre. This probably doesn't come as much of a surprise to regular readers. I'm a guy who loves superheroes, and losing a home hurts, but it doesn't mean I'm hanging up my cape. It means that I need to find a new home. And I'd be remiss in not asking anyone else along for the ride.
The Daily Grind: Which MMO do you use as a substitution for a dead one?
The second that City of Heroes shut down last week, that domineering voice in my mind piped up, "I want to play City of Heroes!" I tried to say that it wasn't a possibility any more, but the voice wasn't having it. It also wanted Froot Loops with chocolate milk. Now I have a sugar high. So I began hunting around for a substitution to fill the gap in my now hurting soul. DC Universe Online was first up, but I couldn't quite get into the setting or the actiony playstyle. So I swallowed my distaste for Champions Online's free-to-play restrictions and reloaded that title onto my machine. There's enough of that old Cryptic magic to soothe the loss of CoH, I think. Have you ever done this? Have you ever used an MMO as a substitution for a title that's shut down? If so, share with us and let us know if it was a soothing balm or a weak facsimile. Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Cryptic, Riot, and more weigh in on free-to-play growing pains
Anyone adamantly wanting a return to gaming where a handful of publishers and platforms run the show might need to acquire a time-machine to do so. In a recent article, various development studios -- including Cryptic Studios, Riot Games, and EA -- discussed the growth of free-to-play and how the model is affecting the games industry as a whole. According to these publishers, there's no argument that F2P will become a major force in the industry. Cryptic Studios COO Craig Zinkievich remarked that although F2P is stigmatized as evil in the social market, the recent influx of titles has gotten the core gaming audience more excited about the model. More consumer excitement, of course, leads to higher-quality games. Sean Decker, VP of EA's Play4Free label, noted, "The good thing about so many companies moving into the free-to-play space is that it's great for the players: the quality of graphics are going up, the quality of the gameplay is going up." However, in the rush to capitalize on F2P, some are going to crash and burn. Zinkievich said, "I think there will definitely be failures within the next 12 to 24 months. Many who are entering the market right now are doing it as almost a money-grab." He added, "But subscription is dead. [Star Wars:] The Old Republic was the biggest possible swing for the fences. There is no longer any argument over whether that can be done. Free-to-play is the way of the future. It is the new world." Does that include console gaming? According to these folks, yes.
Champions Online previews the upcoming vehicle system
Being able to fly is all well and good, but why fly through the skies unaided when you could sit safely inside the chassis of a heavily armored warplane? That's the idea behind the new vehicle system coming to Champions Online later this week, which will offer players a variety of new rides and ways to enhance those same rides. After all, you deserve to give your legs a rest. Or your arms. Or whatever muscle you flex to fly with no visible means of propulsion. The vehicle system will start off by offering players just two choices -- jets and hovertanks -- but more will be available in the future. Each vehicle chassis offers a certain set of base stats, which can be further improved by slotting in vehicle equipment from the new vehicle missions. Players can also apply a variety of skins to each vehicle chassis, ensuring that you can make the ride feel unique even around your friends with a similar machine.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Potential new homes after City of Heroes
Despite what many of us might feel, the world is not ending when City of Heroes shuts down. Just our world. But the sun will continue shining, other games will continue running, and most likely your interest in video games will not evaporate. So after an appropriate period of mourning, it's going to be time to think about getting together with another game. The problem, of course, is that nothing else can ever be City of Heroes. Like Benjamin Franklin, nothing can serve as its replacement, merely as its successor. But it's worth examining some of the more reasonable and likely destinations for the community. I'm sure there are more, but the four I've listed seem to be the games that either are or will be hoovering up a large number of the game's former players, games that are close enough to what CoH represents to serve as a reasonable successor. So let's look at our potential new homes and see what they have to offer, both good and bad.
Champions Online gives a first glimpse at new vehicles
Vehicles continue to roll into Champions Online, and Cryptic has a tantalizing peek at the next stage of this invasion. The studio recently revealed two more vehicles as well as a special mission designed around superpowered rides. The first new vehicle is the hover tank. This tank is much more stable than the Hawkwing fighters players previously piloted, and offer a brute-force approach to combat. Cryptic is also working on two versions of grav bikes, which serve up support and DPS respectively. Vehicles get a lot more fun when there's a reason to use them, which is why the studio is preparing several missions based around this new technology. One of these missions is the defense of an UNTIL flying carrier, which tasks players with engaging in a dogfight while the carrier is repaired. The hover tank, grav bikes, and carrier defense mission will be coming later this year to Champions Online.
