The latest issue of Edge magazine has some details concerning DC Universe Online straight out of executive creative director Jim Lee's mouth. DC Universe Online, which will be released on the PS3 and PC, is a MMO that will include the cast of heroes and villains of the DC universe -- that's Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Darkseid, to name a few. Lee describes the genre as a "kick-ass hybrid between a traditional MMO and a first-person action console game" where you create a unique superhero or villain and choose his/her/its superpowers. Abilities named so far include attacking with fire or ice, acrobatics, flight, speed-running and teleportation. Unfortunately, you can't be the Flash or Poison Ivy or any of the famous (or infamous) DC characters for obvious reasons.
You then level up, improving your powers and learning new tricks; for example, flying becomes attacking while flying. Eventually you get to interact with famous DC characters, and Lee cites a mission/quest for a hero where you save Superman from Lex Luthor or, for a villain, attacking Metropolis and battling the Man of Steel. Gotham City is another place you can attack.
There is also less of an emphasis on instances and raids compared with other MMOs, and the focus will be on action rather than grinding. PvP details include arenas where you can use your superpowers against others and interact with multiple players: "someone might freeze your character in a block of ice, then pick up the block and chuck it at another player" and these arenas can also become "giant PvE boss battles." Lee also hinted at story events in DC Universe Online happening simultaneously with comic book DC Universe.
We are actually pretty stoked about this; with a well-known and well-established franchise behind this MMO, Sony might just have a fighting chance. We'll see how it is marketed and whether the gameplay elements live up to expectations when the game comes "next year."
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