Reviews February 8, 2011
DC Universe Online
Reviewed by: Bryant Crawley
System: PS3
Genre: MMORPG
Rated: T
Players: 2 (Unlimited online)
Cost: $59.99 ($14.99/month after 1st month)
Release Date: 01/11/2011
Developer: SOE Austin
Publisher: Sony Online Entertainment
I should state that I’m not big on the MMORPG scene. Yea, I’ve played a couple before (Final Fantasy 11, Phantasy Star Online) but never felt the need to play a game as big as WOW until now. Sony Online Entertainment has taken a huge risk in creating DC Online Universe just because it’s a tall order. The sheer amount of comic heroes and villains of DC is a pretty big task for anyone to take on, especially for an MMO. Does it live up to the hype or should it have died a horrible death like the Marvel MMO that never came out? Let’s find out!
This is an MMO game so don't expect it to blow your mind with fancy graphics and amazing cut scenes. Although looks are important, MMO’s are 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). 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. If you want to fight in street clothes like the characters from InFamous or Prototypek, you have the options to do so. The DC characters all look just like you would expect them to down to the last detail.
SOE Austin 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 done all in 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.
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) and dual wielding blades. The styles can range from characters swinging massive two handed weapons, dual wielding guns, blasting long rang rifles and using magic. I’m probably leaving a few out as there are a lot of choices. The way you use your character will change depending on the style you chose. There are not only differences in how much damage you can do but also in what 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. Even thought there are two skill trees for each power, 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 and dropping a meteor on someone while the other tree has more in the way of big ranged damage. Powers like nature is more diverse when it comes to options as 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.
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. In DCU as a hero, you start on a Brainiac ship with a full assault force ready to attack Earth It's not just about escaping but you must destroy the ship as well. 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 (which starts an “instance” with you and your party) 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 (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 or a cool Joker costume, and there are 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.
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.
The powers are probably one of the coolest visual aspects the game. No matter what weapon and power combination you're using, your choices will show up 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. Fireballs will appear to be shot out of your rifle and while using melee attacks your character will throw fire from their hands. There is a great variety to pick from when it comes to weapons and they all have their own unique animations too. Everything from your travel powers (like flight or super speed) to your weapons looks awesome in game. The developers really wanted you to feel like a superhero. Also one of the smartest features as far as looks go is a menu system where you can browse all of the different costume styles you've gotten. You can even switch off/on what looks the best while keeping 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.
There isn't a lot of voice work in the MMORPG genre with DCU being one of the exceptions. 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. This adds a lot in terms of sound quality. Throw in the many action sound effects in the battles and the cool superhero music and DCU shines in the sound department!
As of typing this, the game hasn't been out for about a month and my free trial is just about up. 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. 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.
Game Play: 8
Not so much an Tactic RPG but more of a Beat’em up RPG which is still great and also makes this very easy to get into. Being able to crate your own superhero and battle alongside of the likes of Batman, Superman, or Joker is a winning feat.
Graphics: 7
If judging against other PS3 games such as Uncharted 2, or Killzone 2/3 it doesn’t stack up. But, against other MMO’s it holds its own very well!
Sound: 8
Great voice over work especially for an MMO!
What’s new: 9
A well-done MMO done on a console, enough said!
Replay Value: 8
This is the key with any MMO. DC could be considered great but also could fail miserably if not supported by Sony. So far, so good but we’ll see if people are still into this game 6 months from now!
Final Score:
8.2
Editor’s note: Although there are differences between the PS3 and the PC versions of DC Universe, they aren’t big enough for a double review. The main difference we saw was the keyboard vs console controller scheme. If we find more differences down the line, will visit DCU again. But until then, this is our review!