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Alter-Ego: Nine tips for PvP in DC Universe Online
First things first: I'm going to admit openly that I'm not even close to the world's best PvPer, as anyone who has ever faced off in PvP against me can tell you. Up until recently, I tended to be the ultra-carebear player who generally avoids PvP combat altogether (outside of EVE Online). However, by ignoring PvP in DC Universe Online, one also ignores a decent chunk of the game's content. Between the open-world Green Lantern ring wars, quests to take on heroes or villains of a certain level range, Arena matches, and Legends play, there's a lot to do -- not to mention the challenge of playing on a PvP server. Worse still, PvE players will find their quest logs become cluttered messes full of PvP-related quests that can't be dropped -- an annoying prospect at best. So with this in mind, I've compiled a handful of general tips for those PvE fans who don't tend to mess with PvP in DC Universe Online as well as players who have only dabbled in it. Are there I-win-button tips behind the break? Not really. However, it's good solid advice that's helped me improve my skills from utterly noobtastic insta-death to holding my own. If that sounds interesting to you, then join me behind the break for the list!
Massively exclusive: A chat with DCUO's Chris Cao, part one
Superman. Batman. Wonder Woman. All are iconic characters, well known to fans of the DC Universe. And when it comes to DC Universe Online, Game Director Chris Cao certainly holds his own as an iconic character to fans of the game. Between Cao and DC Universe Online's Creative Director, Jens Andersen, we've had open, humorous, honest, and occasionally not-entirely-PR-cleared news of the game from the earliest days leading up through its recent launch. Even though Cao is keeping crazy long (and late-night) hours as both a passionate gamer and a developer with a freshly launched game, we had the chance to sit down with him last night for a very candid interview. Among the myriad topics covered, we spoke about his thoughts on launch, some of the team's experiences with the game, the potential differences in platforms and communities, and more. Additionally, Cao took time out to answer some of the burning questions we've heard from our readers. So without further ado, join us behind the break for part one of this superpowered interview. Also, be sure to check back tomorrow for part two -- we're sure you won't want to miss it!
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: In the case of Brutes
It's the start of a new year, and that means it's time to start getting fired up again. I have been taking a little break from being online for the new year weekend -- after all, when you're always online, it starts to wear on you just a little. But now it's time to get back in the saddle in City of Heroes and everywhere else, and I can't think of a better way to do that than to start in on the archetype overviews once again, especially since I had a friend tell me he was looking forward to his current favorite archetype. We're not on that archetype today, however. No, after having taken a look at the Scrapper to kick things off, we're going to be moving on to a character type that's just down the street. It's the second of three archetypes with an offensive melee/defensive secondary mix, it's one of the four heavily melee-oriented options available, and it's the sort of character type that just makes you start hitting until everything is broken in half. That's right, we're looking at the Brute today, for players who are new to the Brute or to the game in general.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: In the case of Scrappers
We're in a small lull for City of Heroes at the moment, and truth be told it's well-deserved. After several months of invasions, updates, previews of the upcoming issues and so forth... it's nice to finally have a chance to just lean back and breathe a little bit. Of course, said breathing will involve a fair bit of superpowered antics, but as involved as that might be for the characters, the players don't have to be constantly looking to the future. So while we technically should be working through the Incarnate System, the odds are better than even that we'll all be rolling alts over the holiday season. We play City of Heroes; alts are in our blood. So in a move that can only have been brought on by an almost criminal overdose of liquor, I've decided to start taking a look at the powersets of the archetypes, starting with the alt-friendly Scrapper. This should be of benefit to those who have never played a Scrapper, including players who are starting the game for the first time and who by definition haven't tried one before.
Champions Online previews the new Archetype system
When Champions Online first announced that it was joining the ranks of other games offering a no-subscription option, it included a mention that free members would be locked into archetypes. Archetypes were described in broad strokes as a chance for players to develop along the lines of famous heroes from comics, with a locked progression path but the same basic power level. While the development team hasn't yet expounded on what the precise archetypes will be, it has put together a short description about the differences players can expect between the normal free-form heroes and the coming archetype heroes. As it turns out, archetypes will end up with slightly fewer overall powers than freeform heroes but with the same general power level. The preview explains the split as being one of versatility -- freeform heroes will be able to take many roles, but archetype heroes will perform one role well and that's it. If you're one of the players looking forward to trying Champions Online as free-to-play, or if you're just interested in the new build system, take a look at the full rundown and keep your eyes peeled for the coming details on the archetypes themselves.
City of Heroes developer diary: Going Rogue, new powersets, new enemies, new problems
As of right now, City of Heroes is in a state of flux. Like any game with a new expansion, the superhero game boasts features that are changing and endgame structures that are being disrupted, and the changes of Issue 19 promise to introduce an actual endgame into a game that's long lacked one. But it all started with the most recent expansion, one that gave players the chance to switch sides back in August -- Going Rogue. Much like Rome, the foundation for the expansion wasn't laid in a day. We were granted an early look at a developer diary by Floyd "Castle" Grubb, longtime veteran of the Paragon Studios team and lead designer for the Powers and Entities team. Take a look past the cut for his diary, explaining the various ways in which the powersets of the expansion were developed and fine-tuned, as well as highlights the new additions for both enemies and players.
New DC Universe Online Inside the Studio video answers more questions
One of the things we love about DC Universe Online is the way Game Director Chris Cao and Creative Director Jens Andersen take time out of their undoubtedly busy schedules to answer questions that come in on the DC Universe Online Facebook page. The newest update to their Inside the Studio videos offers up another pile of questions asked by the community, with some amusing results. From starting areas (Metropolis for metahumans, Gotham for technophiles, China Town for magical-origin characters), to the availability of regular street clothes (short answer: yes), and even questions about anthropomorphic animal heads, Cao and Andersen cover some really interesting ground. Pop by the DC Universe Online Facebook page to check out the full video -- and be sure to leave your questions for the developers while you're there!
Shocking revelations in the newest City of Heroes developer diary
It's fair to say that Going Rogue is going to be a fairly big shock to the system of City of Heroes -- especially if the control-oriented archetypes have anything to say about it. The fourth powerset included with the expansion, Electrical Control, hasn't gotten quite as much press time as Kinetic Melee, Dual Pistols, or Demon Summoning. But it's got just as much spark as the others -- more, in fact -- and a new offsite developer diary by Floyd "Castle" Grubb and Keetsie Braz da Cunha focuses on both the visual and mechanical design of the powers. As Castle describes it, the powerset wasn't originally designed for player use, but as a testbed of several concepts to see how they would play out in the game engine. It was converted to a player set when Going Rogue approached, however... which required a re-design of several parts of the set. The visuals were a hurdle as well, seeing as the set had to feel visually distinct from the many other electricity-themed powers the game already possesses. Take a look at the full diary to see how the problems were solved, showing City of Heroes players another peek at how the development team is conducted.
City of Heroes shows off the upcoming Kinetic Melee set
Melee characters in City of Heroes have always lacked ranged abilities. Some of this is implied by the archetype, of course -- you wouldn't expect a character built around hand-to-hand combat to be at maximum potency outside of grabbing distance -- but it's a bit of a disadvantage at times when a tanker or brute can do very little but get shot as he moves into range. Kinetic Melee, one of the power sets coming with the Going Rogue expansion, is poised to change that a little. It might not be a blaster set, but it's more than capable of mixing things up at a longer range. Of course, that's hardly the only trick that the new powerset can pull. Kinetic Melee is full of smooth maneuvers that weaken the target with each hit -- and one of the marquee abilities, Siphon Power, strengthens the wielder with each hit. It's a steady chain of the target being worn down and the player character building up, coupled with knockback and knockdowns to keep control of the battle flow. Check out our gallery below, or take a look at the official site for more details on one of the upcoming powersets for City of Heroes. %Gallery-98440%
Third video diary for Going Rogue explores City of Heroes lore and powers
With only a short stretch of time left until the release of Going Rogue, Paragon Studios has released a new video documentary about the anticipated City of Heroes expansion. This time, the focus is split between the new characters and powers to be featured within the expansion, diving into the lore that surrounds Praetoria and the Emperor's entourage. Much like previous installments, the documentary both serves to preview some new material to existing fans and show off what's coming for new players or those long absent. Emperor Cole, naturally, gets to show off front and center, as does Calvin Scott of the Resistance. The designers stress that the intent is to create two sides of very different moral character in Praetoria, rather than a simple choice between good and evil. We also get a look at some of the Kinetic Melee and Electric Control powers in action, and of course, more of the cityscapes players can look forward to with the expansion. Check out the video embedded after the cut, which shows that City of Heroes isn't at risk of slowing down too soon.
Difficulty sliders and grind reduction due for Champions Online
With additions like the melee review patch and the first adventure pack either out or coming on fast, the obvious question about Champions Online is also the simplest to ask: what now? The latest installment of Ask Cryptic certainly does answer the question; unfortunately, said response includes saying "no" to some things that players want. The addition of a base construction feature is a prime example and the biggest negative -- while it's acknowledged to be frequently requested, the development team apparently lacks the time to add it in a fashion that they find interesting. On the other hand, there are features which almost any player can welcome, such as the difficulty slider seen in Star Trek Online, currently slated for release along with the first adventure pack. There's also a promise that the development team will look into grinding as being the most "rewarding" activity in the game via adjusting drop rates and overall rewards. In the somewhat more mixed news category, the team plans to do another review of powers after the adventure pack goes live, although they're not yet certain which sets and mechanics will be undergoing examination. Read the full list of questions and answers at the official Champions Online site.
Champions Online dev diary brings good tidings to meleers
In a world of guns, atomic blasters, telekinetic blows and eye lasers, the superhero who relies on getting up close and personal with fists or weapons becomes the underdog. Ever since launch, melee heroes in Champions Online have struggled with the disadvantage -- perceived or real -- of having to close the gap to an enemy and wail away, as well as generally feeling Superman-levels of powerful while doing it. Enter Matt "Akinos" Danuser, who jumps on the stage for the latest Champions Dev Diary. Six months after launch, Matt and the team spent a lot of time reworking the melee power set, with the simple yet encouraging motto of "Make it fun, make it competitive, and make it fun."
Champions devs looking for player feedback on melee powers
Cryptic is looking for constructive player feedback on the melee powers in Champions Online. You can post your thoughts over on this thread created by Daeke on the official forums. With power sets being such an integral part of what makes this game tick the way it does, this is a prime opportunity to have your voices heard. You'll need a forum account, but besides that it's open to anyone looking to respond. Now, we know some of you harbor an unfettered distaste for the brand of MMO superherodom found in Champions Online, and that's wholly your prerogative. If you find yourself wanting to let the developers have a piece of your mind, just make sure you do it in a manner that's both organized and constructive. Red-faced yelling -- or its online equivalent -- won't get your feedback taken seriously by anyone with the authority to actually do something about it.
Champedia launches for Champions Online
As MMOs become more and more complex, there's an increasing need for information regarding the game at a player's fingertips. Especially since most of them are being played while on the computer, so a quick search of information is just an alt-tab away, no matter what the situation. Champions Online has stepped up to the plate with their own official offering: the Champedia, a database of every superpower, mission, super group, and character currently in the game. It's fully searchable at this point, although it's still in beta. There have been debates in the community about adding on currently-played characters into a publicly accessible database, but Champions Online also includes the feature for guild masters to manage their organization directly from the site. A quick log-in allows the group leader to do everything from changing the message of the day to handling promotions without ever having to enter the game. It's not perfect yet, of course -- the Mission section, for instance, includes nothing but the basic mission text -- but if properly managed it could be a great asset to the community looking for information straight from the official source. Now if only it included wiki functionality...
The Digital Continuum: Champions Online needs...
Champions Online is a fun game, but it still needs work like any recently released MMO. Some of these needs are purely subjective on my part, but others are definitely a necessity. The way I see it, if Cryptic can work these changes in before the end of the year they're well on their way to keeping my subscription into the far, far future.
First new framework in Champions Online to be the celestial framework
Remember that framework we mentioned yesterday? The new one that Champions Online was adding, but we didn't know what it was? The one that we mentioned was made of light but wasn't the power of light? Yes, well, thanks to an educated guess, combined with luck, combined with twitter, we've gotten the confirmation that this is, indeed, an update to the current celestial sorcery framework.Celestial sorcery is the power of the angels and heaven, so a certain writer on a certain MMO news staff is currently running around screaming in her apartment like a crazy person. This writer may or may not work for us, but odds are that she does and that she's rubbing it in Kyle Horner's face. Booyah.
An update on revealed power sets at the Champions Online site
When the Champions Online official site unveiled the full Electricity power set a week ago, they promised that further sets would be revealed over the coming days. They made true with that promise and we're here to round up what's been shown thus far: The Electricity set, where the revealing-spree began The Fire set, which excels at damage-over-time and area-of-effect damage Power Armor, a set that centers on toggling the various weapons on your suit of armor -- check out the Power Armor trailer to get an idea of how it works The Force power set, which allows for powerful knockbacks and protective force fields In addition to previewing the abilities for these sets, Cryptic and IGN also put out a trailer that looks at a bunch of melee powers (and as a bonus, Teleporting) in action. There should be more reveals on the way and we'll probably do another round-up when there's a decent swag of new ones. In the meantime, you can see all the outed powers at the new Power Sets section of the Champions Online site.
Electricity power set detailed on Champions Online site; other sets coming soon
The Champions Online site has just launched a brand new section devoted to the various power sets that will be an integral part of character creation and gameplay. Right now only the Electricity power set is on show but the other powers will be revealed "over the next few days". The Electricity page contains twelve different powers, with full information on their requirements and effects. Positively shocking stuff.Once the rest of the power sets are detailed, it will be time for fans to flip through the pages, meticulously weighing up the advantages of each particular power. Or, they could just choose whichever seems coolest. Or, they could hit up the open beta (which really isn't too far away now) and go nuts trying them all.
Five action packed Champions Online screens
Dual-wielding guns at pointblank, screen distorting spells and clawed uppercuts are all in supply this week in Champions Online land. Either Cryptic put someone new in charge of grabbing screens, or these powers were just finally ready for their Hollywood closeup -- either way, we're happy to have them.If you're curious about all of these powers, Cryptic's been doing quite a few mini-guides discussing each of the groups like energy or martial powers. Something tells us that these screens are only making those of you not in beta all the more impatient, but since open beta is literally two months away now, at least you won't have to wait much longer.%Gallery-17946%
Champions Online dev Brian Urbanek discusses combat mechanics
The folks at Champions Online Daily News recently interviewed Brian Urbanek, who works with combat and related systems on Champions Online. The interview is full of juicy information regarding various aspects of the game's combat mechanics, and how the developers have sought to make Champions different from other MMOs in this particular area. The idea of a long fight meaning increasingly diminished resources was thrown out in the early stages of development, before Urbanek had arrived at the team. There will be a lot of strategy in using build-up attacks "that create energy so that during the combat players can moderate their own actions to their own advantage."As well as this, each power set will have a unique secondary mechanic that advanced players will be able to use to gain an edge in combat. Using the fire set as an example, Urbanek explained that ambient heat sources could be absorbed by this type of character, providing self-heals and a constant feeding of energy for bigger attacks. The heat sources will be made by the player themselves, by lighting up an enemy or the environment. Urbanek also gave a detailed description of how an electricity character's secondary mechanic would work. For that and more, be sure to check out the rest of the interview.
