DC Universe Online

*Originally published on 8/26/09



I never got into World of Warcraft. I bought the game, but some error kept occurring during installation on the final disc. When that finally went through, the registration process kept screwing up. I finally got fed up with it, uninstalled the program and never looked back. All things considered, it's probably a good thing, I have work to do after all.

Still, the MMO does have an odd, irresistible allure. I keep joking that my roommate should get back into Everquest, he hasn't yet for some odd reason. Between watching TGWTG personality, Marzgurl, play World of Warcraft on a live broadcast, and hearing rumors of some apocalypse level event hitting Azeroth, I've been tempted to reconsider the game.

I've been able to resist WoW though, and I don't know if I'm going to buy the upcoming Old Republic MMO, but one MMO I won't be able to resist is Sony's DC Universe Online. It's being written by Geoff Johns and the art is done by Jim Lee. You get to choose from a variety of powers and abilities to fight crime or be a part of it.

Some might be disappointed that you don't play as the heroes themselves, but if Ghostbusters: The Video Game is any indication, the feeling of fighting alongside these characters will be just as pleasing. I have no problem creating my own character to battle the likes of Doomsday and Brainiac.

I've seen demo videos on various websites and the game looks quite extraordinary. The art is solid and it looks extremely fun. My only quibble is that I don't like the look they used for Joker. Everything else though, is great.

One of the most annoying aspects of this game is the lack of a release date. I know, the game is still in early phases of production, and I would rather wait for them to get everything right than release a flawed product early, but TBA annoys me. I don't know why, it just does. It leaves me vexed. Wikipedia lists the release date as April 30, 2010. I don't know if that's right, no other site has such a date listed, but at least it gives me a ballpark figure to aim for.

The game itself has you playing as either a rookie hero or villain and you're trying to make your way into the Justice League or Legion of Doom. The game features a plethora of DC characters on both sides. So far, the only cities released are Gotham and Metropolis, though I wouldn't be surprised if Central and Coast cities were added as well, possibly Star City. It would be odd for an MMO to cop out on explorable territory and limit you to only two cities.

Some have wondered if you can play as a Green Lantern (since there is a whole corps). I hope that you can, mostly because that's what I would pick if it were available, but if it's not, the idea hit me that they could release a Green Lantern MMO. You could use the current Blackest Night/War of Lights story as a backdrop, allowing people to choose the corps of their choice. When characters die than they become Black Lanterns. I think that has the potential to be an awesome game myself.

Back to DC Universe online. I can't wait for this game to come out. I've been a DC fan for quite some time now so this is a dream come true, video game wise. The missions look fun, battling "zombies" at Star Labs, staving off an invasion by Brainiac, and taking on Doomsday. There are so many options as far as "quests" go. I can't wait to get a bunch of friends together to get involved in these epic battles. Being able to "interact" with the likes of Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern is going to just be a great geeky joy for me.

This game is still several months away, but I already know that I'll be picking it up as soon as humanly possible. In the meantime, I'll just have to try and keep my mind off of it. 2009 has really zipped by, so if the pattern continues, the wait shouldn't be that bad (an official release date would help though).