DCUO- will be out November 2. Can apply for beta on main site now.

[DayDream]

I think it'll be interesting to see how the "create your own missions" aspect of CoX will play out.  That seems like the largest difference in design when these go live.  Will it be enough to keep CoX alive?  Or maybe CoX will be just fine, and the new kids will have too many launch issues.

I agree with you lantyssa, ChampO's power selection does intrigue me.  I'm really skeptical they'll pull it off with good balance though.  If they don't blow it with plain number imbalance I expect them to slip it in soft factors like avatar control or attack ranges.  And I forget whether PvP is slated to be included at launch.

[DLRiley]

I really wonder if the market is large enough to support three superhero games.

There is probably enough room for 5 superhero games.

[Venkman]

For me the question is:

Is there room for multiple generic-IP MMOs when the comic book IP worlds arrive (the first being DC and the next eventually being Marvel).

[UnSub]

Pretty sure it's been announced that PvP is in ChampO for launch - Emmert has said he's aware of what happens when you launch without it.

As for IPs: DCUO is going to get a hell of a boost from people wanting to play in a version of the DC universe. On top of that, SOE and Warner Bros are going to get behind marketing this title like its a cure for cancer. Now, whether it keeps those players depends on the quality of the game play and some of the design decisions (the 'optional' open world PvP that opens up depending on the missions you do is one of them).

[eldaec]

I really wonder if the market is large enough to support three superhero games.

Sorry, how many games is it currently supporting that have elves?

This post demonstrates beyond doubt that there really is such a thing as a stupid question.

[Sunbury]

But are these really "superhero" games, but just normal 'ol fantasy MMORPG's with superhero skins?

Is it a superhero game where there are 3000+ superhero's running around the same city?

What are they trying to model?

Also what superhero chooses their powerset?  (Batman?)  Isn't it mostly some accident?

[UnSub]

But are these really "superhero" games, but just normal 'ol fantasy MMORPG's with superhero skins?

Is it a superhero game where there are 3000+ superhero's running around the same city?

What are they trying to model?

Also what superhero chooses their powerset?  (Batman?)  Isn't it mostly some accident?

I will start hitting people if we have a fiction vs. function argument here too - I've seen too many "but Superman can do it, so we should be able to do it in-game" discussions in my time to cover the same ground again. It will require an expensive plane ticket and a very long flight, but I will show up and get Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back on people. 

The key difference in comics is that the writers can generally pass the criminals around so that everyone gets a shot and the 'accidental' powers nicely fit with a character theme. A lot of comic book tropes are writer's vanities and then driven into the ground over 40 years of monthly issues.

What makes the superhero genre? Funny costumes and property destruction. If the title has lots of costume options and the ability to break lots of things, then yes, it's a superhero title.

[HaemishM]

I really wonder if the market is large enough to support three superhero games.

The market is big enough to support however superhero games as can be built... provided those games can actually differentiate between themselves. From what I've seen so far, that won't happen with the 3 superhero MMOG's out. DCUO, ChampO and COH all appear way too similar to each other.

[Draegan]

ChampO and COH are the exact same game, mechanically.  DCUO is played like an arcade game so at least it plays different.

[Trippy]

ChampO and COH are the exact same game, mechanically.

No, they aren't.

[UnSub]

ChampO and COH are the exact same game, mechanically.

No, they aren't.

This.

[Velorath]

I really wonder if the market is large enough to support three superhero games.

Let's wait and see if ChampO and DCUO even end up being good games before we start worrying whether or not the market can support them all.  If they both end up being complete ass, I don't really give a shit whether the market is big enoungh to support them or not.

[Draegan]

ChampO and COH are the exact same game, mechanically.

No, they aren't.

When I got to play ChampO it played almost exactly like CoH but more DIKU.  There was just different bars to drain for abilities I believe.

[eldaec]

ChampO and COH are the exact same game, mechanically.

No, they aren't.

This.

That.

[Trippy]

ChampO and COH are the exact same game, mechanically.

No, they aren't.

When I got to play ChampO it played almost exactly like CoH but more DIKU.  There was just different bars to drain for abilities I believe.

You didn't play CoH much then. CO has no refresh timers and instead your spammable (as in button mashable) basic attacks charge up your "special attack" meter. Gives combat a totally different feel than CoH.

[sam, an eggplant]

Any chance of a private forum for the champions online beta here?

[Draegan]

You didn't play CoH much then. CO has no refresh timers and instead your spammable (as in button mashable) basic attacks charge up your "special attack" meter. Gives combat a totally different feel than CoH.

I guess I really don't see it as much a difference then.

[Trippy]

You didn't play CoH much then. CO has no refresh timers and instead your spammable (as in button mashable) basic attacks charge up your "special attack" meter. Gives combat a totally different feel than CoH.

I guess I really don't see it as much a difference then.

Which doesn't bode well for CO if people are having trouble distinguishing between the two combat systems.

[schild]

Any chance of a private forum for the champions online beta here?

Not even a little.

[UnSub]

Any chance of a private forum for the champions online beta here?

Not even a little.

I count about 6 f13'ers in the ChampO beta. Might not be enough to sustain a private board, regardless on how much I'd like to discuss the title outside of official channels. (Which, for those Cryptic people who might be looking, I haven't been.)

[schild]

Oh, I suppose I should have been more clear.

It doesn't really deserve one and I'm not going to round up Cryptic people to make it worthwhile.

[UnSub]

ChampO and COH are the exact same game, mechanically.

No, they aren't.

This.

That.

If you watch videos of both games side-by-side, they have a different mechanic toolset in place. One is fixed powers that use endurance, the other is a much wider range of run-and-gun powers (little rooting in combat) that can be used to build endurance that you can then use on more powerful attacks.

[eldaec]

You didn't play CoH much then. CO has no refresh timers and instead your spammable (as in button mashable) basic attacks charge up your "special attack" meter. Gives combat a totally different feel than CoH.

I guess I really don't see it as much a difference then.

Which is fine, so long as you are one of those people who see all diku-muds as EQ in a new suit.

[Triforcer]

You didn't play CoH much then. CO has no refresh timers and instead your spammable (as in button mashable) basic attacks charge up your "special attack" meter. Gives combat a totally different feel than CoH.

I guess I really don't see it as much a difference then.

Which is fine, so long as you are one of those people who see all diku-muds as EQ in a new suit.

This.  I'm still waiting for the people who insist everything is like COH to say how they would make a superhero MMO that isn't like COH.  It obviously couldn't involve superpowers or costumes since COH had them.  I'm thinking you would login and see see presidential heads photoshopped onto turkeys debating zinc mining policy while Peyton Manning stood in the background crushing saltine crackers and pouring the crumbs onto a radish.  That is probably the only way to be sure the game isn't exactly like COH. 

[Draegan]

You guys should relax.  Better yet, fanboy it up some more for some entertainment.

[sam, an eggplant]

Beta knocks the fanboism right out of most people. Most people.

[DayDream]

I'd say a super hero game would be different from CoX if it wasn't "kill monsters and quests to get bellchimes so i can add another button on my ability bar." It certainly might still have some derivative features, like costume creator and what have you, but I think NOT having some CoX derived features would be a serious mistake in a super hero game.

Don't know where ChampO fits in for sure, but I'm guessing it's going to be fairly DIKU.

[UnSub]

I'm still waiting for the people who insist everything is like COH to say how they would make a superhero MMO that isn't like COH. 

The Matrix Online. 

[UnSub]

DCUO (and The Agency) delayed until 2010.

[eldaec]

DCUO (and The Agency) delayed until 2010.

I don't think it counts as a delay yet, as no one takes the first date announced seriously anyway.

MMOG date changes should only count as 'delays' once you get past about 2 years later than the initially announced date.

[Venkman]

Calendar year 2010 or fiscal year? And when does SOE's fiscal year 2010 begin? I could look it up but I don't have time right now.

[schild]

Calendar year 2010 or fiscal year? And when does SOE's fiscal year 2010 begin? I could look it up but I don't have time right now.

Just recently ended, they're part of SCEA now.

[Venkman]

Ok. So SCEA is in Fiscal Year 2010 as of April 1?

[schild]

Ok. So SCEA is in Fiscal Year 2010 as of April 1?

Yes, March 31st is the end of their fiscal year, I should've been more clear, sorry.

[Triforcer]

Hmm, if its already getting pushed back to 2010, I believe we will see holidays 2010 or early 2011.  It seems more complete than that now, but something will come up.