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SDCC 2010: Part two of our DCUO panel report
Today we have more from the question-and-answer portion of the DC Universe Online panel at the San Diego Comic-Con last week. (Part one of the panel was posted earlier this week.) Panelists included Creative Director Jens Andersen, Game Director Chris Cao, legendary comic book writer Marv Wolfman, Jim Lee, and the voice of the Joker, Mark Hamill. Will there be a mechanic for switching from hero to villain or vice versa? No. You make the choice of hero or villain at character creation, and it can't be changed after that. This is so it is clear to other players in PvP who is on what team. Will current storylines in the DC comic universe affect the MMO? The game will launch "pristine"; that is, the DC Universe in the game will be the popular, well-known one. Wonder Woman will be in her classic costume; Bruce Wayne will be Batman; etc. From there, storylines from the comics may start altering the MMO universe, but at least from the get-go, the game will start with a clean slate. DCUO will be getting its own bi-weekly comic as well.
A look at the new WoW figures at SDCC 2010
Last weekend saw one of the greatest comic book conventions in North America, the San Diego Comic Con, come and go. One of our own WoW.com crew attended the great event and came back with photos of DC Unlimited's newest (and some older) World of Warcraft action figures. These displays featured many from the Premium Series 2 and 3, along with the regular series 6 and 7. I personally have a few of these around my apartment. They're of superb quality, and the regular series usually costs around or under $20. The larger premium series goes for quite a bit more (usually hovering around the $50 mark) but is undoubtedly worth it. You can actually preorder some of these (including those not show, like the Lich King) right from DC Unlimited's website. Check out the full gallery below! %Gallery-98354%
SDCC 2010: You can play as iconic characters: Massively's interview with DC Universe Online
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/DC_Universe_Online_You_can_play_as_iconic_DC_characters'; Last week we had a chat with Sony Online Entertainment's President John Smedley about preorders and beta for DC Universe Online. We talked quite a bit about the ability to play as Batman via a preorder bonus, and one of the questions we asked was "Will there be more opportunities in the future to play as familiar DC Universe villains or heroes?" John replied that they were thinking about it, but it sounds like the DCUO team has been doing a lot more than just thinking about it. We caught up with DCUO Studio Art Director Mike Daubert at Comic-Con this weekend, and he had some pretty exciting news for us. Follow along after the jump to see what he had to say!
SDCC 2010: Our interview with Guild Wars 2's Jeff Grubb
The hype for Guild Wars 2 seems to get bigger every week, so it was a natural choice for the Massively staff at Comic-Con to seek out some time with Guild Wars 2 designer and Ghosts of Ascalon author Jeff Grubb. If you're relatively new to the Guild Wars world, Jeff provides a nicely detailed overview of what's been happening with Guild Wars, Guild Wars 2, and the first tie-in novel. If you're a firmly established citizen of Tyria, you'll enjoy the look back, and you'll certainly enjoy the hints he drops here and there for upcoming events and reveals. Follow along after the jump to see what Jeff had to say.
SDCC 2010: Massively's interview with Aion producer Lani Blazier
San Diego has been the place to be for the past few days, with developers bringing out all the latest and greatest to show off at Comic-Con 2010. We at Massively have been pretty busy, in part with Aion's web producer Lani Blazier. Aion's free expansion Assault on Balaurea is just over a month away, so Lani had plenty to talk about. She gave us a look at what we can expect with 2.0, and spent a bit of time answering our questions afterward. Follow along after the jump to see what she had to say.
Dragon Quest IX map, Metroid: Other M demo available at Comic-Con
Yes, there will be lots of interesting panels, swag, premieres, celebrities and other stuff at Comic-Con. Whatever. Nintendo just gave us the real reason the July 22-25 event is worth attending: a new Dragon Quest IX map. If you bring your DS to Nintendo's booth, with the game running in Tag Mode, you'll automatically pick up the "Mortamor" treasure map, being offered for the first time in North America. Presumably, other people will be there doing the same thing, making it your best chance at multiplayer. If you aren't playing DQIX yet, you'll be able to spend some demo time with it at the booth (#2944). You'll also get the opportunity to play Metroid: Other M, over a month before its August 31 release. Now that's an opportunity worth fighting the cosplaying crowd for.
Two great Okami convention collectibles coming soon
There are not one but two brilliant Okami-related items in this post, and we tossed and turned all last night about which one we should put pre-break, and which one we should put after. In the end, we flipped a coin, and this amazing Okami polystone statue won. It features a terrific sculpture of everyone's favorite Shinto deity, Amaterasu, and will be available starting at the 2010 International Tokyo Toy Show for 15,540 yen. That's about US$176, so it's not cheap -- but at about 8" across and about 5" tall, it's a nice chunk of sculpted form. We're still not sure we made the right decision though -- the second piece of collectible Okami gear will be found at the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con, and also after the break.
38 Studios' Project Mercury to debut at San Diego Comic-Con
It seems that 38 Studios' plan to detail its upcoming MMO in 2010 isn't happening just yet, but 38 Studios-owned Big Huge Games will apparently show off its EA Partners-published RPG – codenamed "Project Mercury" – at this year's San Diego Comic-Con. A listing among the legions of other presenters at Comic-Con was recently spotted by Big Download with the description, "World premiere of the first game from 38 Studios!" The listing goes on to say that folks in attendance will "be among the first in the world to see the video game debut from Curt Schilling's 38 Studios," more specifically adding that Todd McFarlane, executive creator of worlds R. A. Salvatore, lead designer Ken Rolston, and founder and chairman Curt Schilling will be debuting the game for folks. Further, Comic-Con's site claims the panel will unveil more than just the first trailer, but also the project's actual name. And hey, if that's not enough, apparently you'll get a "limited-edition poster" just for showing up. Huzzah! The panel takes place at 1:15PM on Thursday, July 22, but we wouldn't suggest you start lining up just yet.
New Gears, BioShock 2 toys coming exclusively to Comic-Con
Worried you'd never get a collectible based on Gears of War comic character Jace Stratton, a gentleman who has yet to put any face time into an actual Gears of War game series? Well quit it, worrywort! (You're only hurting yourself.) NECA recently told Toy News International that it'll be bringing Stratton -- and several BioShock 2 figures -- to the upcoming 2010 San Diego Comic-Con International for sale in limited quantities. We'd love to tell you more about the BioShock 2 figures, but we're not trying to ruin the end of the game for those of you who might still be wary of spoilers. You can have a look for yourself right here. [Via Kotaku]
ELAN Awards heading to San Diego next July
The traditionally Canada-based ELAN Awards today announced intentions to bring the show to San Diego next July 17–19, ending just before the San Diego Comic Con kicks off. Celebrating "video games, animation and visual effects," the fourth year's show makes it's US debut with two days of lavish events before culminating in the actual awards ceremony on the 19th. Though the event's promoters promise everything from a welcome pool party to a red carpet engagement, we're most excited about something called the "sexiest party ever thrown for video games." Aside from knowing that it's a "street party" taking place in the "historic gaslamp quarter" of San Diego, we're just as flummoxed as you are as to what a sexy party for game industry folks could possibly be. With all those nerds in one place, though, it's assured that iPhones will capture the whole thing in all its confusing, clumsy, awkward glory.
