DC Universe

"Finally a MMORPG that isn't trying to be the "WoW killer" but a whole new idea for the genre"

I've been playing DC Universe Online since the beta and I've following the game since I first heard about it. What really drew me in was of course that fact that it's an MMO based on DC Comics but also that it really sticks out among all of the MMORPGs out there. It seems like everyone just wants to make the MMORPG that will make WoW obsolete and after all the smoke clears the new game is just WoW Lite. DCU on the other hand took the MMO formula and created a massive multiplayer online action RPG. There's no auto attack in this game, you're doing combos and big super powered attacks from the training area. I can see this as being a game that I'll be playing for years, just like WoW.

Graphics 8/10

This is an MMO game so don't expect it to blow your mind because they do need to keep it looking good but it's more about creating a game world that will run stable when the servers are at maximum capacity. It does look like a Playstation 3 game and it does have HD graphics (720p supported.) I would say that PS3 would be the version to get since it runs perfect while on the PC you would want a good quality gaming computer to run the same visual settings the PS3 runs by default. The characters are very detailed, mainly the player creations since everyone is getting new gear through shops, quests, drops, and so on. If you want to be a throwback to the colorful silver age of comics then you can look the part, if you want to be a dark brooding antihero then you can do it in plenty of ways, or if you want to fight in street clothes like inFamous or Prototype then you can look as awesome as you want. The DC characters all look just like you would expect them to down to the last detail.

The powers are probably one of the cooler aspects of the visuals of the game. No matter what weapon you're using, your power will show in your attacks. If you have a two handed weapon and nature then you'll see a green streak effect to the strikes and the enemy will have vines and thorns crawl on their body. Rifle and fire is a match made in heaven too with fiery bullets and cool power attacks that use the weapon like a fireball will appear to be shot out of your rifle while for a melee weapon it's usually like your throwing the fire from your hands. Also speaking of weapons, there is a great variety to pick from and they all have their own unique animations to go along with them. Everything you do will look very awesome from your movement power to your weapons. Also one of the smartest features as far as looks go is that there is a menu where you can browse all of the different costume styles you've gotten and switch off what looks the best but you keep the stats of what is already equipped. So if you get better stats from a full mask like Bane but you'd rather be wearing a hood then you can just change to the hood but keep the stats of the mask and even if you sell the item, you always keep the style.

Sound 9/10

There aren't isn't a lot of voice work in the MMORPG genre but DCU does have everything voice over. They managed to beat Star Wars: The Old Republic to the punch there. Every quest is voiced by your mentor, Oracle/Calculator (depending on hero or villain alignment,) or an NPC giving you the quest. Also the enemies, civilians, and other NPC's do talk too. There's also plenty of action sound effects in the battles depending on weapons and powers. The music itself does have a good superhero vibe to it. All around it does have better sound than most MMORPGs have.

Controls 9/10

They really had the right idea for creating a control scheme that feels natural on a PS3 controller. I would even assume that it feels better on a controller than a keyboard and mouse. Because the fighting is all real time, you will hit the square and triangle buttons a lot for your weapon attacks. To use your powers you just hold L2 and hit the face button that is displayed on your action bar. To heal or use various items just hold R2 and whichever button the item is mapped to. If you push up on the d-pad you get a brief menu where you can activate your role (tank, controller, or healer depending on the power you chose,) toggle PvP, and other quick changes. Start will bring up the larger selection of menus like inventory, alerts, redeeming DLC content, and so on. Everything feels nice and works well which you wouldn't expect from an MMO on a console. I'd say it does feel natural for anyone who's played plenty of modern action games like Marvel Ultimate Alliance.

Gameplay 9/10

What really impressed me from when I first played DCU was how polished the gameplay was and how much fun everything was for a brand new MMO. It didn't feel like any MMORPG I've ever played. Really the closest game you could compare it to would be Marvel Ultimate Alliance but on steroids. It's all based around how superheroes and villains fight, they don't take turns. You can go from swinging fists around like a beat 'em up game to being a skilled martial artist kind of like the Yakuza games, to dual wielding blades, one handed blade, massive two handed weapons, dual wielding guns for a more fast paced ranged/melee style, riffles for more medium range damage with great power, hand blasts for quick melee/range, and I'm probably leaving a few out. These styles really feel very different it's like using a riffle feels a lot different from dual pistols, not only in damage and how you fight but with all the skills you can choose in the skill trees (kind of like Diablo 2 or WoW.) The powers act like your 2nd method of combat and they do use an energy bar so you don't want go overboard and run out of energy right away. The powers are really diverse too like there's two skill trees for each power and there is no wrong way to play it. For fire you can focus on close ranged abilities like covering your body in flames to damage everyone attacking you to dropping a meteor on someone while the other tree has more in the way of big ranged damage. Stuff like nature is more different where one tree has plenty of nature based attacks and healing while the other tree is loaded with shape shifting powers like becoming a wolf, a gorilla, and others.

Creating a character can really be time consuming to get every last detail right and while it doesn't have as many options as City Of Heroes, there is a lot to work with. You can get very creative in the game. I've made a silver age superhero of Tommy Wiseau, a living planet, a giant tiger, a character inspired by The Gentleman Ghost, Bones Jackson from the Mutant League games, Frankenstein's Monster, and others. I've seen players recreate Dr. Doom, Spawn, various X-Men, The Punisher, Invincible, The Thing, Deadpool, and plenty more popular characters from other comics. Getting into the game is great because right at level 1 you get a nice weapon and best of all you can use a movement power (flight, super speed, or acrobatics) while other MMO's make you wait at least a few days of play to get a mount and they usually have you doing small tasks. In DCU you're on a Brainiac ship with a full assault force ready to attack Earth, it's not just about escaping but you must destroy that ship. This isn't fighting level 1 wolves for meat, you're fighting an invasion force. The game always makes you feel like a strong hero or villain and less like just another peon or rookie trying to make it to greatness. Early on you get to team up with Superman or Lex Luthor, then in missions that take you inside a building (it's just you or if your with a party then they go in to) you can usually work with different characters like Catwoman, Zatanna, Killer Croc, Batwoman, The Flash, and more. It really does feel awesome being called in to save an A or B list hero from a major villain. There is plenty of variety in the game and you can do quests for other mentors of your alignment. Leveling in this game is very fast and quests really give you a lot of experience and cool items. The current level cap is 30 which is just right since it's a good fast paced action game and of course there will plenty of expansion packs in the future. There is also plenty of end game content including epic armor sets based on the mentor you chose, like a magic character could get a costume based on Captain Marvel and a few others or a tech character could get a Batman style suit a cool Joker costume, and there's usually about 3 of these per mentor. The thing is that I haven't made it to level 30 yet, I keep making lots of new characters and trying different stuff out so I've barely scratched the surface of this game.

Overall 9/10

As of typing this, the game hasn't been out for a full week and I'm still on my one month free trial. It's pretty often to see the servers very busy or even full, but I haven't really had much of a wait to get in. I can honestly say that this was worth 60 bucks and I really do want to keep playing after my free time is up. A lot of console only players have been complaining about monthly fees and since there isn't much in the way of MMORPG's on consoles, a lot people just don't get it. DCU is worth paying 15 bucks for 30 days of play. It's an amazing game and really the most creative MMO since World Of Warcraft. The game is very stable and I haven't had any serious lag or problems even when playing a full server. Plus since it does have a monthly fee it does go to keeping the servers stable and really if everyone could play the game for free then it would a lot harder to get in the game with everyone playing at once and there would be a lot of micro-transactions for in game items and that is never fun. It costs money to play because these games aren't cheap to keep running smoothly for years. If you've never played an MMO and/or aren't a big RPG fan then I'd say this would be worth the money because it's much more of an online action game than anything else. For hardcore MMORPG fanatics, I'd say this is a great alternative to everything else out there.