At the very first time I won the VIP beta key in the Unlimited Forums, I was so pumped to finally get a shot at playing the game. At that time, there was nothing going on except the rumors of Beta for the VIP people to start. This was back in August when they pushed beta back due to more polishing withing the Friends and Family beta. It wasn't until sometime after October when I finally got in and began my testing. I will break things down a bit on my overall experience with the game in little bits.
Costume Creation
Of course after the awesome CG movie that we all saw at SDCC, there was a second portion of the CG movie that wasn't shown to us. Then came the portion of the character creation. When I first got in, it was VERY limited selections. I for one am spoiled though with the costume creations of both City of Heroes/Villains and Champions Online. There were lots of bugs and clipping issues in alot of the options in the creation and there were different names to each selection. I was slightly worried about the game already especially since I've been hyped with it along with the rest of the Unlimited Podcast Crew. I was already thinking the worst since there were limitations.
Now after two large patches, they have made changes to the character creations as far as names and looks. They also added a little more options to selections. I still think it's limited even though there are lots of things to unlock in the world itself. Not saying that's a bad thing, but I would wish we had more selections. As far as the color pallets go, 3 max options to me is a no go. I like atleast 4 to be the max. And if not that..then give us more options withing the costume piece itself to change the colors. I know there's an option to customize colors on the individual gear and I've messed with it..but the issue I have is the color placement on the piece itself. That's what I mean.
Now I managed to put good costumes together..and colors and such as best as I could, BUT here's the bigger problem that I'm having now. After you unlock another costume piece, you do NOT have the option to switch around the colors. That right there is a dangerous no go and am totally making a big suggestion to fix that issue. Because the pieces wouldn't be worth it on the style end if you aren't able to change the color. I'm big on Costume creation variety. I know they have a hair dresser out in the JLA Watchtower and the H.O.D., but they should have that option for the rest of the beginning gear that have in the beginning of the costume create too to buy if that's the case.
Also there still needs to be a body height and mass slider. I'm one to always make characters of different sizes and shapes. This is crucial to have in a character creator because not only it will distinct other players from each other, but it will give more options for players in creating more characters that they may have anted to create. I've seen tall / lanky characters and very short / stocky ones running around in the comic book universes. Adding a body slider for height and mass would be a great addition to the creator. Trust me, add it and many will appreciate the creator a little better. I know I would.
A positive thing in all of this too, is the Iconic Armors. You'd be able to unlock those later on (with doing certain missions) and you can totally add it to your style. Hopefully in the future they add these little tidbits to the game, I'm sure there are lots of other this I have in my mind but I am not gonna list them all here.
Powers and Skills
This game as great powers and skills over all. Each Skills set has two trees to work on. Weapons and Movement. I've had the privilege to play with alot of the skills sets but not all the powers. My favorite skills as a whole are three in general.
Staff , Hand Blast, and as of late Rifle. Rifle to me hits home because hey..I was an ex Army infantryman and to see rifles in MMO's are just totally bad ass. I love DCUO's take on the rifle. The fact that I can do melee combo's with not just the buttstroke..but also leap in the air and smash someone with the rifle itself is just uber. Of course rifle wouldn't be rifle if you didn't have the range capacity of it. I love the fact they added the grenade launcher on it as a move considering I used to have an M16A4 / M203 attachment. I will say along with the staff and handblast..I'm having hella fun with the rifle so much. I actually will pick it as my most funnest skill set.
Power wise I've loved the Mental powerset. It's just awesome. Each power set has two trees and an Iconic Power set. The Mental one has Telekinesis and Illusions. I've played the Sorcery set as well as Gadgets and now am also playing with the Nature set. I haven't messed with Ice nor Fire because I'd like to try the non tanking powers first and get a feel for the challenging powers rather than the easy tanking ones. That will change come live since well, I'll have more of a chance. But Mental has been my fave. The supercharger powers in that set are just sick. Especially the flurry of mind bullets that can charge up at 50% which would give you a chance to work to 100% and have two superchargers ready for an opponent or mobs. That can clear a room within seconds. I also love the very first power it gives to you in the Telekinesis tree, which is aptly named Telekinesis. That power is magnificent in itself, mainly because not only you raise your target in mid air, BUT if you're near an object itself..it will pick up that object and toss it to the opponent and act as an AOE attack to any nearby opponent.
Then there are the Iconic Powers themselves. I don't use the powers ever since the new patch because they now have defensive statuses on them that help build your character pretty good. The only iconic power that I use is the super strength one because lets face it..I like picking up buses and tossing them almost a quarter mile out. But you can get iconic powers as early as level 10. The defensive status ones you'd have to be atleast lvl 22 to unlock them. But they are all sweet looking.
The movement skill set bar-none is the best movement set in any MMO I've played. Flight, Super Speed, and Acrobatics have never been so smooth ANYWHERE. Best controls ever. But that's not all, each of them has it's own tree for power usage that become a part of your arsenal of powers and skills alone. I mean really, Swoop Attack...who doesn't wanna swoop towards their enemies in a "Rogue-esque" style? All the game needs is a wall busting physics to where if you Swoop Attack them and they are near a wall,..they both bust through it (but that's asking alot lol.). But there are other attacks that are just magnificent with each skill movement. You also get a "boost" in your movements at level 9. For example, Flight has Supersonic which enables you to go...well, Mach 1 maybe? But it'll get you where you need to go alot faster than just flying regularly. One gripe I DO have with this is...if you're on Super Sonic, planes and helicopters shouldn't still pass you at all, unless you're pulling of the "Hammy" routine, which is, you're so fast that everything's slow lol.
Gameplay
Along with the Powers and Skills sets, you have a magnificent display of the game play itself. This game has been said to be an MMO and Action game rolled into one. The staff calls it DCUO. I call it a combination of all those genre's but add one more.. the Fighting game genre. To me, this game on the gameplay itself when it comes to combat reminds me of Marvel Vs Capcom. Reason I say that? Oh..well the juggling of characters up in the air as well as pulling off devastating combos (possible 100 hit)in an instant should give it away. I mean, really..juggle, combo, juggle opponent while he's still in mid air and combo again. It's fantastic. I never laugh so hard when I pull those moves off than in this game. To me this game's forte is the gameplay itself. You will really have fun with it I assure you. The SOE gang weren't kidding when they said that anyone can pick up a controller (or keyboard and mouse) and can play this game. At first you'll have to get used to the mechanics as well as the combo system..but once you do, you're in heaven. You have never felt like a superhero or villain anywhere else. You are a bad ass from beginning to max level (which is 30). Oh and don't worry, there is a tutorial (which is a mission in itself) that is pretty noticeable and can teach you alot.
Once you're about 10 levels in, you will already have got used to the combo system on here and are almost an expert on how the mechanics work (if you've been an mmo gamer for years). If you're relatively new to the MMO scene and this is your first, you're going to get used to this game very quickly as well if you've played any other action or fighting based genre games. So for me the gameplay itself is one of the reasons I'm shelling out $15 a month. There is still more room for improvement, but I'm sure they'll pull it off with each update.
The Ambiance
One word, Beautiful. That right there should say alot when it comes to the ambiance of the game. Metropolis, very bright futuristic style of city, just like any real life city, it's bustling with people and traffic. It Chinatown has got to be one of my fave places to be in in the whole Metropolis seeing that it reminds me of the real life Chinatown in Cali. The Manheim Theater itself is just amazing.
Gotham City, a very dark, gloomy place matching the mood of the Dark Knight as well as the psychotic criminals that everyone knows and loves of the DC. The architectures of the Skyscrapers are the most accurate and most gorgeous I've ever seen anywhere. The dev team and Jim did a fantastic job on making Gotham look and feel like Gotham.
Both places have their signature places that comic book lovers read and seen in their comic books. Very well done with some remodeling but great overall. One gripe I have with this is..there isn't a day and night cycle. Granted I understand they wanted to capture the essence of Metropolis and Gotham...but you can still pull it off with the cycles. I mean Metropolis can still be a bright night, with a bright moon a lighter night sky and many city lights that can make Las Vegas and New York weep. Gotham can be just as creepy at day time as it is at night. I mean..lighten up the sky to where at day time it just has an overcast everyday. It can still be a gloomy city, trust me. But other than that..the scenery is just plain awesome. They both are humongous cities. About 200 blocks to cover in each place and it takes you a while to get to the other side of the city..even if you have Super Sonic. I will say as an RPer, each place has humongous RP potential.
The Watchtower and the Hall of Doom themselves are just wonderfully huge. I'm sure these will be hangout spots for people when Live hits. So I'll expect lots of lag in them lol. As for the Alerts, i have got to pick the Hive Moonbase as my face one in terms of scenery. I mean..you're on the MOON for jeebus' sakes! All they need now is to add Atlantis on earth and its' complete..I wish you could swim underwater though..I do miss that. I'm sure with lots of updates we'll be treated with other places like, Atlantis, Themysciara and even OA in the future.
Storyline
Another of DCUO's strong points. This game will have 75 years worth of cannon given to us on a plate. There is already an extensive amount of storyline in them. I don't remember the exact mission count that we'll all get at launch..but it's..just..alot. They will for sure give us more with updates. The main story of course is just awesome. Very well written by great writers in the likes of Geoff Johns and Marv Wolfman. The earth is in the brink of disaster as Lex had traveled back from his alternate future to warn the trinity about a possible doom that awaits them, IF they continue to off one another. So Lex basically plays temporary god and hands Earth the Exobyte that Braniac had stole in future Lex's time era. "In the begining, Lex created Superpowered beings" lol I know..I just had to. For us RP freaks, we'll find a way to rp along or add this to our saga of our long existing characters (if any of you have pre existing characters that' you've taken from MMO to MMO).
Either way..the storyline immerses you into the world and you really do feel like it's your duty to help out or destroy it. You get to have six origins which means six different point of views on where you hero or villain can go. Of course in the beginning you will be mentored by whoever you have picked to be mentored by, but again, you will be seeing different angles in missions and such. The SOE gang also wasn't kidding about having an invisible rank (which I like to call it) since you will come from being a newbie in the world, to a legend status. At first you'll be doing small jobs while the big guns handle things, but then when you're at your most powerful, the very same mentors turn to you for help. Instead of being a sidekick to Bat's, you would be along side Bat's as an equal rather than a newbie lol. It's a fun thrill ride so to speak. I haven't even mentioned the plethora of side missions along with having to find investigation clues. Oh man those are fun as heck. You would actually feel like a detective trying to figure out where the next one would be.
As I mentioned above, getting to be a legend is even amplified with the journey to attain the Iconic Armors. It's a grind..and you'd have to go through lots of missions to attain each piece, but, it's worth it. Not only you have the main six mentors with their armor, but you have an additional six other style of armors from different Iconic characters on each faction. Flash, Capt. Marvel, Dr. Fate, Trigon, Black Adam, Deathstroke just to name a few. They all look amazing. It can also add to the story as the final piece of becoming an Icon yourself. The grind is worth it and I'll be doing alot of Raids and Duo's to attain a few for myself lol.
PVP
My impression of the PVP in this game was a very big surprise. I thought of course there will be an unbalanced thing with whoever's the highest level wins. That's not the case. This game sets on skill. It's built in a Rock, Paper, Scissors system. If you don't know what that is..I'll explain briefly. There are three styles that can out do one another.
Block can overtake a Melee Charge power, meaning if the opponent lunges at you with melee hold attack and you're blocking, then the opponent not only receives damage, but will be knocked up in the air for a short time giving you the advantage of capitalizing.
Block Breaker can overtake Blocks. This would be the Range hold attacks. The minute the person blocks, you can charge your range and break their defense, it will also stun them for a short time (Though there is an exploit right now that says otherwise on some skill sets which will hopefully get fixed) giving you the chance to again capitalize your counter attack.
Interrupt can overtake Block Breaker. Meaning If you're able to dodge the BB attack, you're able to Melee Lunge forward to the opponent, and stun as well as juggle them in the air at times, giving you yet another chance to capitalize on your next series of attacks.
Believe me, skill is needed in this game. You can be 10 lvl's lower than your opponent and still hand them their butts if you know what you're doing.
The only drawback to this is the ganking, BUT that isn't the game mechanics fault. If you're a veteran PVPer and have been either in open world PVP games or have been in PVP zones, you KNOW right off the bat, you will be ganged up on. So expect that if you're a new player. Now the drawback I was mentioning is, high levels picking on the very VERY low leveled characters (most of the victims being newbies to the PVP thing and curious PVEr's that want to try it out). I have a sore spot for people like that..but there's always their types in every game you go on. On the positive side again, the server is actually fun and you really don't have to partake in PVPing all the time.
Most of the missions do lead you away from the HOT zones, but be at the ready at all times, because you will get attacked once you've been spotted in their map. It's a learning experience to get really good and it will be taking you a bit to get used to how the mechanics work in the PVP servers as well as the player opponent themselves. But one thing I will have to say is..please be a good sport to others no matter if you win or lose. Don't be a "sore" anything. Take the defeats with a grain of salt, and get back on the saddle. If you DO win, respect the person you did defeat. PVP will last longer if people were to get along very well and for cripes sakes people..show the newbies how to play eh? PVP can be fun all around if its enjoyed by both parties. I have more gripes about a few behavior issues..but I won't get into details.
Overall on the PVP server, it's the best system I've ever messed with in years. It's really awesome. I never had so much enjoyment playing in a PVP server as much as I have on this game.
Overall Experience
Overall Beta experience has been a great one. I was so happy to get into it and will have a pleasure in being in future ones. I had so much fun not only testing for bugs, but enjoying every single aspect of the game that I was able to achieve in the time I've played. This game for its Beta stage already blew many of the MMO's that are currently out on shelves clear right out of the water. I can only imagine how live will be like. I know laggy as typical MMO's are, but its worth it. Now speaking not only from the PC gamer side, but a console gamer too, this game will blow you away. It has all the tools that an console action game has, and it has all the good aspects of a great MMO. For comic book lovers, you will be overly immersed in the game's environment itself because of what you've read in the comics. I love it, if I had to review this thing now, I'd rate it a 9 / 10. But that's beta...I know it will go up to a full 10 when it hits launch. I am looking forward for all of the updates as well as trying to get my character Abigail into the DCUO Legends comic series that DC's working on...this game is worth every penny. But.. don't only take my word for it (Gotta love the Reading Rainbow reference.). I will close with, this game is a keeper..go get it, preorder it, it's worth owning.
This is Mr. Abi representing DCUO Unlimited signing off! Take care peeps! :P
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