DoctorFinger
10-06-2008, 07:31 AM
DC Universe Online presents a bit of a conundrum for me. On the one hand I'm a hardcore comic nerd, with a deep and abiding love of the DC Universe. On the other, I'm not really an MMO player, for a variety of reasons. Having comic veterans Jim Lee and Geoff Johns working on the title is a point in it's favor, but it's really the early previews and beta evaluations that will make or break my entry into the game.
Edge-Online got some quality time with the 'Kandor' build of the game, and rather than plopping them down in character creation or a heavily scripted dungeon, they began with a massive live event.Using a surprisingly large area of downtown Metropolis (one of several shared locations in the final game), the stage is set for an invasion from Brainiac, a Superman foe, who has infected ordinary citizens, turning them into zombies. Playing as a hero, we are tasked with knocking out the infected (there’s no death in DCUO), and then removing Brainiac’s nanotechnology before they get back up again, by means of a sweaty-fingered QTE. The pace is ferocious, with the infected attacking en masse, and provides a showcase for teamwork as well as the wide range of direct and area attacks.It's pretty clear that SOE is trying to go for a more action flavored RPG. The physics in particular seem to play a big part: the whole environment, as well as the other players, can be used as both cover and to bludgeon opponents into submission. While you won't be able to play as any of DC's iconic heroes or villains, you'll get the chance to fight alongside them, as Superman, Supergirl and Brainiac all show up in the aforementioned live event. There's another unsual aspect to this MMO: it's being built from the ground up for both the PC and the PS3. In fact the demo described above used the PS3 controller.
Source - Edge-Online (http://www.edge-online.com/magazine/playing-hero-dc-style).
Edge-Online got some quality time with the 'Kandor' build of the game, and rather than plopping them down in character creation or a heavily scripted dungeon, they began with a massive live event.Using a surprisingly large area of downtown Metropolis (one of several shared locations in the final game), the stage is set for an invasion from Brainiac, a Superman foe, who has infected ordinary citizens, turning them into zombies. Playing as a hero, we are tasked with knocking out the infected (there’s no death in DCUO), and then removing Brainiac’s nanotechnology before they get back up again, by means of a sweaty-fingered QTE. The pace is ferocious, with the infected attacking en masse, and provides a showcase for teamwork as well as the wide range of direct and area attacks.It's pretty clear that SOE is trying to go for a more action flavored RPG. The physics in particular seem to play a big part: the whole environment, as well as the other players, can be used as both cover and to bludgeon opponents into submission. While you won't be able to play as any of DC's iconic heroes or villains, you'll get the chance to fight alongside them, as Superman, Supergirl and Brainiac all show up in the aforementioned live event. There's another unsual aspect to this MMO: it's being built from the ground up for both the PC and the PS3. In fact the demo described above used the PS3 controller.
Source - Edge-Online (http://www.edge-online.com/magazine/playing-hero-dc-style).