FLASH! you are back in 2009 at the launch of champions online. Cryptis studios new addition to the superhero MMO franchise.

—

Champions online goes online in moments, but will it succeed or fail? That is always the question when a new MMO launches. However in this case there is a president with city of heroes / city of villans. I have played both but which one do i like best?

Now it’s two weaks later and I feel ready to let go of my distrust and hand my heart to Champions Online. Shure it’s flawed – it’s an MMO, a world of compromises in it’s essence.

These are my off the top notes:

• The graphics are great
• Missions are okish
• The world is kinda small
• I love travel power at level 5!
• Character designer – WORLD CLASS
• Additional costumes at higher levels? check!
• Nobody talks, where do you hang out when everything is instanced? (make the city center a special small instance where the auction house++ is located, but only ONE instance)
• The developers chat and connect with the community
• It runs okish on my Q6600 // 8800 GTS 4gb ram setup, but just okish (~25 fps@1680)
• I cannot wrap my head around the business concept – subscription AND microtransactions?

—

DEAD BULB! It’s now 2010

Here is the new list:

• My high hopes for new quality content have greatly diminished. A few explicitly themed events happened in 2009 but that was it.
• The character designer is still a great feature, and it remains interesting to create a new concept toon.
• The areas seems very repetitive by now and the small world size really takes it’s toll on you. The content creates little or no need for group play.
• New content in the future you say? Well a new expansion is planned for lvl 37-40. If you have played the game you know that 37-40 is a gap with largely little content so this step seems great yes?. It would be, but you have to cough up real money for it.
• The business model is at a point where you pay a subscription to play and everything else costs money too- costumes, expansions you name it.
• My time with the game have been sporadic during the fall game mania season of 2009 and I think that it will die a slow death during 2010.