Champions OnlineBack in the pen&paper days of RPGs, my all-time favorite was Champions. It was the only point-based system I've ever played where everything was truly balanced. Attacks, defenses, and characteristics were scaled very well on point value, so there were very few loopholes to exploit to create an imbalanced character. As long as everyone stayed within the campaign's point limits, it worked far better than any other RPG.When I heard they were coming out with an MMORPG of Champions, I was thrilled. Then I found out that only the setting had been licensed, not the balanced game mechanics I had appreciated so much. Still, the open beta for CO is now underway, and I can honestly say this is the only other game besides WoW that I would consider buying a Lifetime Subscription to. The devs were the same guys behind City of Heroes, and while I played that one to death because it was the only superhero MMO in town, it suffered from numerous problems. Repitition, no end-game, boring grinds, rigid power frameworks, etc. Refreshingly, the devs actually learned from their mistakes and made CO one of the more player-friendly games I've played yet. For example, when it comes time to level-up and add new powers/talents/points to your character, in most games you are stuck with what you pick, unless you pay gold or some sort of limited re-spec token to undo your mistakes. Not so with CO. When it comes time to levelup, you go to the Powerhouse, pick your particular upgrade, and then you can try it out on their practice dummy rooms first. If you don't like it, head back to the desk and undo it. You aren't locked in to your choices until you exit the Powerhouse. You can also tweak your powers to change the color of your energy blasts and on some powers, change what part of you they shoot out of. (within reason, and in good taste only) The open beta runs until go-live (Sept. 1) and you can still get in on it. GameStop and Best Buy sell a $5 preorder kit that has a beta key inside, and you get little perks for buying these keys. It's worth five bucks to just take a spin in this one, and if you don't like it, well, you aren't out 50, at least. Excuse me, I have to go deliver a mighty smiting to Dr. Destroyer.... |
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