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DC Universe Online: Weekly #2: Iconic Play and the Lure of the IP
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
In today's DC Universe Online Weekly column, MMORPG.com writer Bill Murphy takes a look at what developers call "iconic play". The thought of putting on the Bat costume and protecting the Bat Cave from the Joker truly adds a new dimension for those who have grown up loving these legendary superheroes and villains. Check out Bill's latest column, "Iconic Play and the Lure of the IP".
Who doesn’t want a chance to run around Gotham or Metropolis? What comic book fan wouldn’t like to take their own creation and fight alongside Superman against Bizarro? Or take the fight to the crazies in Arkham Asylum for that matter? While there’s an ongoing feud between Marvel and DC fans, there’s little denying that either brand has its share of “Mythos Americana”. Superman and Batman are at the top of the list when it comes to the embodiment of the superhero and an MMORPG featuring these characters even just as NPCs has the potential to give DCUO the upper hand in the battle for comic book MMORPG King.
Read DCUO Weekly #2.
Comments
I grew up with these comic book heroes. Yet I find I have little interest in any of these heroes games. Maybe because everything prior to this title was done by Cryptic. Maybe this one will be different. I just don't think there is that many people who enjoy hero games to support 3 games in this genre. Just have to wait and see I guess.
CoH and CoV still have a massive following. Batman: Arkham Asylum sold thousands of copies. On what basis do you back your claim of "lack of interest." Personally I have met hundreds of people who are dying for a non-WoW community. Seems like to us that everything of late has been about the World Of Warcraft since it's successful opening, but to be honest I find the graphics poor and the game play monotaneous. I and those like me are avidly awaiting the DCUO with anticipation.
[Mod Edit]
To be honest, I did play Wow when it came out, but soon lost interest. Never even made it to the first expansion. I did try City of Heroes and did not like it. Avoided Champions, because I knew it was a Cryptic title. Might give this game a try, although I don't have much respect for what SOE has done lately.
Ronisan2 missed the text Ozmodan wrote " Maybe this one will be different", kinda a common mistake many people on these forums seem to undertake for not actually reading to what they reply to
On topic, I feel the same way as Ozmodan, so far nothing great about the current released superhero MMORPG for MY PERSONAL taste of wants/needs out of a superhero MMORPG, doubt DCU will change my mind but overall it looks atleast allot more intresting then CoH/V or Champions, even feel I might give it more of a change me playing it then what I have played of Champions and Coh, again in my opinion which does not make those games bad games, but merly games that didn't atract me even though I love superhero's, can't wait for Batman DAA2, but then again also feel Batman AA was the first pc game that truly captured that true batman feel into a game.
Looking Forward To It But Not Going To Get My Hopes Up Or Excited. Too Many Fail MMOs Pumped Out For Profit.
If game companies can screw up major IP like Star Wars (SWG), The Matrix, they can certainly do the same with DC IP's. Dont get all hyped up until the game release.
I think having a game universe and NPC's that are very familiar can make a huge difference, I have played both CoH and CO, and they feel hollow to me. Now dont get me wrong, I appreciate the fact that Cryptic writers created a decent world for both games but they dont come close to the history the DC Universe has.
The term iconic has been a bit over-used in some of these articles but that does describe the heroes we are talking about.
Regardless I am looking forward to the games release and keeping my fingers crossed that SOE doenst blow this game as they have others, or so I have heard, only SOE game I have played is Pirates of the Burning Sea and that was OK.
SOE knows how to put the massive into MMORG. As much as the game premise may be cheesy I am sure the game will allow the players to feel they are in a persistent virtual world as opposed to a bunch of instances linked by public lobbies ala Cryptic.
As Mr Murphy points out, there really are not enough details for me to make a decision yet. I am cautiously optimistic. As more info is released, if I find nothing too objectionable, I will play. Frankly I am jonesing for a new MMO, and all the games I REALLY want to play don't drop until 2011 or later.
Not a ringing endorsement for DCUO, but if they release it on PS3 on the projected release date ( unlike FFXIV), I would like to try an MMO on a console. I played both CoH and Champions, the latter being a great disappointment. It would be nice to have a good superhero MMO, and the IP might put the fun factor higher than the 2 games we have so far.
The female characters look like transvestites.
Perhaps the geniuses at SOE might want to find a different adjective besides "iconic" to use....
It did not work so well for them the last time.....
What's with SOE and the word "iconic"? Don't they realize that people still remember what they did to one of their other titles trying to make it more "iconic"? SOE+iconic+a valuable IP = bad feeling for me. Makes me glad I'm a Marvel fan...
Well, maybe they'll surprise me and make a high quality game. On the other hand, I can't help wondering if it'll be a buggy, incomplete mess full of RMT cash traps...along with iconic heroes and villains of course. Time will tell I suppose.
Why do they love that word, 'Iconic' so much. They use it all the time, like it's their buzz word and they must use it atleast two or three times a day, lol.
If anyone actually traced SOE's use of the term iconic back to it's roots, you would probably see where they started to go downhill. I think there is some market guy and that's his favorite word : iconic.
This game is so iconic. The characters are iconic. Iconic gameplay to follow. LOL. WTF?
I CanT wait
I'm cautiously watching this game but I remember all to well what SOE did to SWG as that was all to be more "iconic" instead it destroyed it. Since then I've been a gaming Hobo wandering from title to title but never recovering the same level of enjoyment.
However everyone is allowed a second chance. This, in my mind will be SOE's. So I wait and I read but try to not get to excited.
These themepark games get old quick. Not to mention that allowing gamers to play iconic characters is a mistake. This game sounds more and more like an over-hyped single-player console IP.
I agree with you re themepark games, but as a fan of DC stories there is a wealth of fictional material of much higher grade than the usual mmo fare to lift the experience.
The ability for players to use iconic characters is soley a pvp sub game to recreate classic confrontations so there is no real negative impact.
I think you undersell what this game can provide but as ever the proof of the pudding will be in the final release....much as I try to curb my enthusiasm its looking cooler all the time imo.
I'm intruiged too, but as others have commented, there has just been too many fail games recently.
Still there is a spark of hope in me that DC will do a good job, and lets be honest here, it couldnt be worse than cryptics useless effort.
But this hope isnt enough to warrant breaking my "never buy an mmo on release" principle. So all I can say to them is good luck and hope they have paid very carefull attention to recent MMO's releases ( except APB which I still cant stop playing )
Huh, I don't see that.
Usually people see what looks best in them in other things, so maybe you're more attuned to transvestites?
I think they look like pretty super hero women.
Well if I was you i would not tell Zantana she looks like a tranny to her face.
Its still time out on this one, how will they handle pvp as regards progression when you are playing big name toons? I certainly will give it a look but as always don't buy it till you have seen the reviews not the previews.
Every time I see the word iconic in reference to this game, my interest in it drops another notch.
It's like they think the mistake they made with that other game was to make it more iconic post-release and their solution this time around is to make sure it iconically sucks right from the start.
When I want a single-player story, I'll play a single-player game. When I play an MMO, I want a massively multiplayer world.
Im chiming in because I just cant stand the unintelligible random hate for City of Hero/Villains. It has one of the best combat systems of any MMO out there, despite its age, and despite the original company that spawned it. Crytic was once a small indi company that made a great and innovative game - then the founder, Jack Emmert, let his ego grow way out of proportion and he sold the City of Hero Francise and saught to merge his company with coprorate money so they could pump games out faster. He basically fell prey to the money monster and every descicions since then has been made for shareholders and not players.
The Cryptic debacle falls on everything after they made an epic fail trying to snag a deal to make a Marvel MMO . Emmert was like damn we just lost a bajillion dollar deal - we need coorporate backing to get the job done and look like a player to the big boiz, so they mereged with atari. yay for them, shite for us.
Anyway, my point is to shed some light about the "Cryptic situation" to newer people on the scene. The way things are now, have absolutely no impact on how City of Hero/Villains works, run, plays, charges, costs, manages, monitors, or recruits players. Cryptic created the foundation of a cool game, then Paragon Studios, and NCsoft, spent years nurturing and further developing the game, far beyond what it was 6 years ago. There were ups and downs, and thats life.
Dont let blame fall on a child for what its father has done. In other words, dont bash City of Heroes just because the founder of Cryptic is an egomaniacal epic fail with his other projects.
So, a weekly column dedicated to DCUO? Is this going to be a reocurring column going forward (for how long)?
What other games get a dedicated weekly? I didn't know this website was that dedicated to one game.
Oh I dont know...
I would say SOE has had better luck than the vets claiming they were going to get their PRECioUs back. It is nearly 5 yrs later, and no Pre-CU nor has NGE shut down. Methinks you, and your buddies, called that one wrong. Couple that with the fact BW isnt making SWG2, and you will forgive me if I take comments from folks like you with a grain of salt.
Other than Marvel characters, DC has the most iconic heros/villians around. My opinion of course.
DCUO cant be much more lacking in content than CO. By all accounts, the last 2 Cryptic titles were nothing short of cash grabs. . DCU should surpass CO, if not outright take over from CoH. I expect it will beat out CoH as well, as I found that game boring after 6 weeks at launch. A lot could of changed since then, as I dont keep up with game.
I will probably end up getting a copy just to try it out.
Asking Devs to make AAA sandbox titles is like trying to get fine dining on a McDonalds dollar menu budget.
We've got several weekly columns in the mix.
Keep your eyes peeled. I picked DCUO, because (maybe foolishly?) it's the upcoming game I'm most jazzed about.
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