Disclosures:
My most advanced character is level 13. I have created 1 other character and helped my friends and family create 3 other ones that were all played up to about level 4 or so.
City of Heroes is a massively multiplayer online game that takes place in a fictional Paragon City. Every player uses a super hero creation tool to design his/her own character. Once you enter the city, you are given a series of very specific missions tailored to your level (or that of your team at the start of your mission). There is no crafting system and virtually no item system. You can't buy armor or weapons or anything, and although there is a form of currency called "influence," it's something that's generally used to trade with other players. In fact, the only time I trade with other players is when I'm giving something away that they need, because every "item" is avaiable from NPC stores and the only time you really need to trade is when you're out fighting and someone runs out.
The point of the game is to do a bunch of missions, build up your super hero by fighting enemies, join groups, and just have fun doing those activities. There is a storyline and you can always find out more by talking to NPCs or reading your mission briefings, clues, etc., but it's not really a big part of the game. Basically, there are a dozen or so warring gang factions that all have specific goals that you and your team are trying to thwart.
Enough background, is the game fun?
Character creation itself rocks. Their super hero generator literally allows millions of combinations, and I have never run into super heroes that look similar (unless they either TRIED to do it or they were mimicking an already-famous hero like the Hulk - in which case it's against the rules anyway, but I haven't seen it enforced). You can pick dual colors for every part of your character, plus there are things like hats, masks, scarves, glasses, breathers, head gear, gloves, boots, robotic arms, etc. You have to see it to believe it.
When you're done choosing the look of your hero, you pick their primary power set and their secondary power set. There is a very wide range of powers. The offensive powers I've played have all been very cool. The defensive ones are a mixed bag. Some powers surround you in a shroud of electricity, fire, dark energy, etc. This is okay, except they are very distracting and they make horribly annoying sounds. I would definitely recommend you do some research before picking your defensive power. There are some that are not annoying (regeneration and invulnerability come to mind). Apparently there is a mission when you become level 17 or so that allows you to completely change your powers, so if you do get stuck with an annoying power set, you have ONE CHANCE to fix your error.
Combat takes place by targetting an enemy and clicking on a power. The power then takes hit points. There are many types of damage and you have defensive powers that allow you to defend against certain ones. Combat in this game is fun. Moreso than any other MMORPG I have played (Asheron's Call and Horizons). When you increase in level and get more powers, it becomes even more fun, because most of the powers have really cool animations and effects. Team combat is even better, with up to 8 heroes all attacking huge groups of enemies hell-bent on crime. Once your enemy dies, you get rewarded with experience points, influence (money), and possibly enhancements or inspirations.
Inspirations are short-term powerups that you click to give you a boost in attack, defense, luck, endurance, whatever. They last about a minute and help in combat.
Enhancements are items you apply to your powers (on an individual basis) that allow you to increase your powers' effectiveness by a certain percentage. I guess the percentage increase is about 8-12% per enhancement. As you level up your character, every other level allows you a new power and every other other level allows you to add enhancement slots to your existing powers. So you can have powers with up to 8 (I think 8) enhancement slots. So far my most-buffed one has 4 slots. You can also buy these two types of items from NPCs.
The more interesting missions take place in warehouses, office buildings, sewers, caves, etc. Generally, you have to save some hostages, kill all the enemies, kill a boss, or collect a clue. These missions are "instance missions" meaning that once you enter it, you will be alone, or perhaps your team will be with you. But you won't run into any other players while you are in a mission. If they enter the same mission, they will have their own instance of it that won't conflict with yours.
My reaction to this is mixed. Every mission is specifically tailored to your level and you can't enter missions unless you were specifically tasked to do so by one of your NPC "contacts" (the guys who give you missions). This limits severely the exploration aspect of the game, at least when it comes to warehouses, buildings, caves, etc. You can still explore the overworld, however.
Speaking of the overworld, you are in a giant city consisting of a number of zones. There is a loading/transition screen between zones. Most of the time, you can take a train or walk directly to a zone, but some zones are "hazard areas" which require a certain level to enter. The hazard areas are by far the most interesting. So far I have visited Perez Park which is a nice outdoor/forest/lake area with tons of interesting enemies, and "Boomtown" which is a half-demolished city with tons of villians and ruined buildings laying everywhere. My descriptions don't do Boomtown justice, but it's very cool.
There are always other heroes looking for teammates in these hazard areas (and in the other areas, too). Finding a team is as simple as clicking the "seek team" button, which adds you to a list that those creating teams can see. I have been picked up within minutes every time I click the seek team button. If you want to create a team but don't have any friends online, you can click the "create team" button and then use the "find members" tool which allows you to see people seeking a team. You can tell at a glance what their hero type is (ranged blaster, melee tanker or scrapper, defender, controller, etc.), so it allows you to easily build a balanced team.
The city is literally teeming with life. There are cars driving on all the roads and freeways, there are ships in the harbor, trains on the tracks, and super heroes flying, jumping, teleporting, speeding, and running all over the place. There are thousands of pedestrians on the busy streets and only a few unfortunate ones in the back alleys with the thugs and gang members.
The atmosphere is incredible. Every enemy in the overworld map is DOING SOMETHING. The thugs are out prowling the streets stealing purses from pedestrians, beating up poor passers-by, having gang fights with rival factions, recruiting people to their gangs, vandalizing public property, scavanging metal and wood to further their plan, sacrificing innocents on the rooftops, and many other activities. Rarely is a an enemy NPC just sitting there waiting to be slaughtered.
Another impressive feat is the fact that I have experienced virtually NO LAG. Even when the server is at max capacity and there are hundreds of super heroes and thousands of NPCs in my immediate area. Mangore Kiramin, a former JK level editor and staff member here at Massassi, plays on a 56k modem and tells me that he has no lag either. He is a massively multiplayer fanatic and has played virtually every released MMORPG (and some unreleased ones), he knows what he is talking about. There are also surprisingly few bugs. The game feels ultra-polished.
Although I am really enjoying the game, I have doubts as to its long-term feasibility. There is no crafting system and not much to work for other than to level your character and get more powers. Fortunately, the powers are cool, the battles rock, and levelling is fun. I really like this game, and while there are certainly drawbacks that might cause those looking for a more in-depth RPG to pause, I would certainly recommend it, especially if you are looking to get into your first MMORPG and want something with fairly simple game mechanics.
I will upload some screenshots to this thread later tonight when I'm off work.
------------------
EvilMagic.net: Brian's Web Log
My most advanced character is level 13. I have created 1 other character and helped my friends and family create 3 other ones that were all played up to about level 4 or so.
City of Heroes is a massively multiplayer online game that takes place in a fictional Paragon City. Every player uses a super hero creation tool to design his/her own character. Once you enter the city, you are given a series of very specific missions tailored to your level (or that of your team at the start of your mission). There is no crafting system and virtually no item system. You can't buy armor or weapons or anything, and although there is a form of currency called "influence," it's something that's generally used to trade with other players. In fact, the only time I trade with other players is when I'm giving something away that they need, because every "item" is avaiable from NPC stores and the only time you really need to trade is when you're out fighting and someone runs out.
The point of the game is to do a bunch of missions, build up your super hero by fighting enemies, join groups, and just have fun doing those activities. There is a storyline and you can always find out more by talking to NPCs or reading your mission briefings, clues, etc., but it's not really a big part of the game. Basically, there are a dozen or so warring gang factions that all have specific goals that you and your team are trying to thwart.
Enough background, is the game fun?
Character creation itself rocks. Their super hero generator literally allows millions of combinations, and I have never run into super heroes that look similar (unless they either TRIED to do it or they were mimicking an already-famous hero like the Hulk - in which case it's against the rules anyway, but I haven't seen it enforced). You can pick dual colors for every part of your character, plus there are things like hats, masks, scarves, glasses, breathers, head gear, gloves, boots, robotic arms, etc. You have to see it to believe it.
When you're done choosing the look of your hero, you pick their primary power set and their secondary power set. There is a very wide range of powers. The offensive powers I've played have all been very cool. The defensive ones are a mixed bag. Some powers surround you in a shroud of electricity, fire, dark energy, etc. This is okay, except they are very distracting and they make horribly annoying sounds. I would definitely recommend you do some research before picking your defensive power. There are some that are not annoying (regeneration and invulnerability come to mind). Apparently there is a mission when you become level 17 or so that allows you to completely change your powers, so if you do get stuck with an annoying power set, you have ONE CHANCE to fix your error.
Combat takes place by targetting an enemy and clicking on a power. The power then takes hit points. There are many types of damage and you have defensive powers that allow you to defend against certain ones. Combat in this game is fun. Moreso than any other MMORPG I have played (Asheron's Call and Horizons). When you increase in level and get more powers, it becomes even more fun, because most of the powers have really cool animations and effects. Team combat is even better, with up to 8 heroes all attacking huge groups of enemies hell-bent on crime. Once your enemy dies, you get rewarded with experience points, influence (money), and possibly enhancements or inspirations.
Inspirations are short-term powerups that you click to give you a boost in attack, defense, luck, endurance, whatever. They last about a minute and help in combat.
Enhancements are items you apply to your powers (on an individual basis) that allow you to increase your powers' effectiveness by a certain percentage. I guess the percentage increase is about 8-12% per enhancement. As you level up your character, every other level allows you a new power and every other other level allows you to add enhancement slots to your existing powers. So you can have powers with up to 8 (I think 8) enhancement slots. So far my most-buffed one has 4 slots. You can also buy these two types of items from NPCs.
The more interesting missions take place in warehouses, office buildings, sewers, caves, etc. Generally, you have to save some hostages, kill all the enemies, kill a boss, or collect a clue. These missions are "instance missions" meaning that once you enter it, you will be alone, or perhaps your team will be with you. But you won't run into any other players while you are in a mission. If they enter the same mission, they will have their own instance of it that won't conflict with yours.
My reaction to this is mixed. Every mission is specifically tailored to your level and you can't enter missions unless you were specifically tasked to do so by one of your NPC "contacts" (the guys who give you missions). This limits severely the exploration aspect of the game, at least when it comes to warehouses, buildings, caves, etc. You can still explore the overworld, however.
Speaking of the overworld, you are in a giant city consisting of a number of zones. There is a loading/transition screen between zones. Most of the time, you can take a train or walk directly to a zone, but some zones are "hazard areas" which require a certain level to enter. The hazard areas are by far the most interesting. So far I have visited Perez Park which is a nice outdoor/forest/lake area with tons of interesting enemies, and "Boomtown" which is a half-demolished city with tons of villians and ruined buildings laying everywhere. My descriptions don't do Boomtown justice, but it's very cool.
There are always other heroes looking for teammates in these hazard areas (and in the other areas, too). Finding a team is as simple as clicking the "seek team" button, which adds you to a list that those creating teams can see. I have been picked up within minutes every time I click the seek team button. If you want to create a team but don't have any friends online, you can click the "create team" button and then use the "find members" tool which allows you to see people seeking a team. You can tell at a glance what their hero type is (ranged blaster, melee tanker or scrapper, defender, controller, etc.), so it allows you to easily build a balanced team.
The city is literally teeming with life. There are cars driving on all the roads and freeways, there are ships in the harbor, trains on the tracks, and super heroes flying, jumping, teleporting, speeding, and running all over the place. There are thousands of pedestrians on the busy streets and only a few unfortunate ones in the back alleys with the thugs and gang members.
The atmosphere is incredible. Every enemy in the overworld map is DOING SOMETHING. The thugs are out prowling the streets stealing purses from pedestrians, beating up poor passers-by, having gang fights with rival factions, recruiting people to their gangs, vandalizing public property, scavanging metal and wood to further their plan, sacrificing innocents on the rooftops, and many other activities. Rarely is a an enemy NPC just sitting there waiting to be slaughtered.
Another impressive feat is the fact that I have experienced virtually NO LAG. Even when the server is at max capacity and there are hundreds of super heroes and thousands of NPCs in my immediate area. Mangore Kiramin, a former JK level editor and staff member here at Massassi, plays on a 56k modem and tells me that he has no lag either. He is a massively multiplayer fanatic and has played virtually every released MMORPG (and some unreleased ones), he knows what he is talking about. There are also surprisingly few bugs. The game feels ultra-polished.
Although I am really enjoying the game, I have doubts as to its long-term feasibility. There is no crafting system and not much to work for other than to level your character and get more powers. Fortunately, the powers are cool, the battles rock, and levelling is fun. I really like this game, and while there are certainly drawbacks that might cause those looking for a more in-depth RPG to pause, I would certainly recommend it, especially if you are looking to get into your first MMORPG and want something with fairly simple game mechanics.
I will upload some screenshots to this thread later tonight when I'm off work.
------------------
EvilMagic.net: Brian's Web Log
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