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Champions Online is going head to head with DC Universe Online next summerA superhero MMO face-off of epic proportions is set to explode into action in 2009, one that may very well tear the Internet apart. On one side, cracking its knuckles and ironing out the chinks in its neck, is Sony's PC and PS3 superhero MMO DC Universe Online. On the other, star jumping and stretching its legs, is Cryptic Studios' PC and Xbox 360 superhero MMO Champions Online. Next year gamers will have to choose between the two because, well, no-one has the time to play two MMOs at the same time, right? We donned our cape and flew over to publisher 2K Games' booth at Leipzig 08 to find out if Champions is more deserving of our hard-earned cash.
It's immediately obvious that Cryptic has taken a much more action-oriented approach to Champions than it did with its previous superhero MMO City of Heroes. To demonstrate, designer Aaron Safronoff is showing off the game using a 360 pad plugged into a PC - the two control systems are "virtually interchangeable" he says. The point he's making is that you won't spend your time clicking on tiny little squares at the bottom of the screen in order to get your superhero to monotonously perform special abilities. Instead, Champions Online plays more like any other third-person action game you'd typically find on a console - quick, easy and hugely satisfying.
AdvertisementWe're attempting to complete Teleios Tower, one of the game's strongholds (Champions' name for instances). It's classic mad scientist lair stuff - bright colours, thick lines and more goons to kill than in a Bond flick. We're wading through the bad guys with only one companion, but in the final game you'll be able to form a 'Super Group' of up to five people, essential for when things get particularly busy.
Aaron points out Champions Online's action elements as the game's key point of difference. Objects can be picked up, used as weapons and thrown. 'Holds' are Champions' crowd control ability, be it locking enemies down, raising them in the air or stunning them and preventing them from doing a damaging AOE for example. 'Rollover Boosts' grant temporary upgrades, perhaps to damage, defence, or refill health and power bars. Enemy attacks have individual animations and effects, which doesn't sound like something worth shouting about but, in the MMO genre, isn't always a given. We see the Teleios Psyche raise his arms up to summon a Mind Worm, an example of this in practice.
Enemy animations and attacks are impressiveThese 'tells' aren't just there to make the game look pretty, they also provide visual clues to the player. When the Psyche raises its arms, that's your cue to move away. A bog standard critter might lunge before it attacks, letting you know it's time to block and, from there, counterattack. "Paying attention to your surroundings, health and boosts can be the difference between success and failure," explains Aaron. "It's about inspiring movement and dynamic gameplay."
We spot some alien DNA, which on the fly adds a new mission. We're in the tower because we know that Teleios, a geneticist super villain, is creating an army of clones - alien, dinosaur and of himself - with which he plans to take over the world. The alien DNA however, suggests that it's not just Teleios that we need to worry about. So, while we're saving the world from this egotistical megalomaniac, we might as well collect some samples to study later.
Destructible objects are another plus point. The Clone Combat Force Reader - Teleios' way of measuring the perfection of his clones - is an example. We can use the force reader to destroy his clones as they're being tested. "Knowing where the destructible objects are can really allow you to progress much more quickly through the stronghold," says Aaron.
There will also be Easter eggs for fans of the Champions tabletop game to dig out. We spot a vending machine, at first glimpse random and pointless, but upon closer inspection much more useful. It sells Nar-Cola, a classic from the Champions IP. In Champions Online the Nar-Cola acts as a damage reduction buff for Teleios' cloning baths, which you encounter at various points throughout the instance. Instead of bothering with all of that, however, Aaron uses a elevator to access the final boss fight early (the teleporter, as with much of the game, will have a skill check in the final game, in this case science). At the top of the elevator we face off against Teleios himself - well, his mega brain, and loads of enemy clones as well. Doing this raid encounter properly, you'll need to have one player on crowd control, one tanking the big brain and others causing damage, just as in other MMOs. After a brief cinematic, complete with comic book text bubble for speech, Teleios says he isn't bothered by the set back and makes his escape. Coward.
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