City of Heroes

"The best combat of any MMO ever! This review is as of Issue 6."

MMORPGs: Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game. These have become quite popular because of a game known as Everquest. Basically, the genre involves thousands of people playing in one huge area simultaneously. What makes them even cooler is that every character can be customized. More on that later. If you're not into a slightly slower-paced game than, say, Doom or Halo, stop reading this review now. You don't like the genre. If you like all genres of games, like me, then keep reading. By the way, this is written as if you have a cutting edge computer that meets all of the recommended system requirements.

Story: 8/10

The story is very elaborate. Literally thousands of different story arcs are available in this game. Each of these story arcs also start differently based on what Archetype (or Class in other games of the genre) you chose for your character. There is a very complex build to each one of the story arcs, most of which involve different villain types of the game. That's another cool part of the story. Each arc usually leads to how that particular villain group is associated with another, which constantly builds on the story. So, the story is really open-ended. Why only 8/10? It doesn't hold my interest. I get into the story a little bit, but I can't get into it as much as they want you to.

Graphics: 10/10

The graphics can get to be really good if you have a really good graphics card. Especially considering how many things are on screen at once, the graphics are awesome. With the recommended graphics card and resolution all the way up, the visuals are pure art! They may not be up to par with, say, Half-Life 2, but CoH isn't suited to that kind of graphical presentation. It puts you in a believable fictional city in Rhode Island with impressive visuals even at the tutorial. There is also a great bloom effect and well-done bump-mapping that can rival the likes of Everquest II. Enough said here. The costume customization is also a big feature in this game. I would even go as far as to say that the customization found in CoH is better than in any other game ever made. Period. The people at Cryptic estimate that you have a possibility of approximately 6 x 10^24 different costume combinations. Yeah. That's huge. Also, it's incredibly easy to mimic anyone from Arnold Schwartzenager (seen it) to Willy Wonka and the Oompa Loompas (seen that too) to Cyclops from X-Men (so easy, even I did it). Later in the game, you can even get multiple costume slots that you can switch between on the fly. The animations for the attacks are also superb, keeping the combat even more interesting than it already is.

Sound: 8/10

I give a lot of credit to the sound effects people at Cryptic Studios. They did a tremendous job with the sound effects on every one of hundreds of powers in the game. The music is okay, but is not really noticeable unless you're out of combat. Perhaps I'm being a little too generous in the sound department of the review, but the music, when noticed, is somewhat catchy.

Gameplay: 10/10

This is a big one with MMOs. It's my major problem with all of them. The combat just isn't as satisfying as in other games. In all those other MMOs, with the exception of Star Wars: Galaxies and one or two more, hold control and click on a monster to attack. You have a weapon and magic. You will normally keep slashing about every 2.5 seconds unless you use an item or magic. Do this 100000000 times and you're having fun! No, never mind, you're not. CoH is my favorite in the genre because you get the feel of fast-paced action and some of those management gameplay mechanics that you get from other MMOs. Also gone from this game is the "loot" collecting of other games. The problem with that system is that whoever has the most money can get the most powerful weapon, and be stronger than you no matter what level you are. It turns the genre into an auction. CoH gets rid of this and, instead, you get more powers (what you will be looking forward to the most), enhancements for your powers (these can be "equipped" to your powers to balance their weaknesses for your benefit), and inspirations (these act like your "herbs" and other items that you use in mid-combat from other MMOs). But what really makes CoH innovative is the different team-up concepts. You can actually have a sidekick, which is their way of letting your pathetic friend who isn't as high level as you play with you anyway. They also have an exemplar system, which is the reverse. It's a great system that will allow you to play however you want with just about anyone, not just the people your level. And it's nearly impossible to not have anyone to group with. Now we get to the missions. They're basically broken down into two types of missions; indoor and outdoor. Outdoor missions are pretty diverse in that sometimes you're in an isolated area performing a specific task, and other times you're out looking for particular baddies in the main city zones. The combat is meant to use teamwork to get the job done, but playing by yourself is entirely possible. PvP is a great new addition to CoH. There's arena PvP, where you're in set rules with a certain amount of players, and it's in a set area with a time limit and such. Then there's hero vs. villain PvP which you can do if you own City of Villains and City of Heroes. In that mode, you go into a zone and you can attack any human-controlled villain as a hero. Afraid of all the human-controlled villains that may attack you? Bring in your supergroup. Or better yet, get your supergroup to raid a villain supergroup's headquarters. Be careful though; your headquarters can be raided as well. There's also an online comic book that you have a chance of getting your in-game character featured in. I'd have to recommend this for everyone who's looking for a great MMO without having to worry about getting the best equipment, or anyone who's looking for an MMO that does something plain different. Just make sure you have broadband or you may get too mad at your lag to play it anymore. My only problem is that there isn't as much customization from character to character as far as the way they play. There is an accolade system in which getting a set of badges adds something to your character, but it's not played up enough in my opinion. Aside from that, I have no complaints.

Overall: 9/10

Pros:
*fast-paced combat
*awesome customization
*innovative team systems
*no loot
*free comic
*addictive
*great PvP system

Cons:
*music can be bland at times
*not for people who don't already like the genre
*some people still like that awful loot idea and therefore will not like this game

Get the game if what I said sounds appealing. There are plenty of free 14-day trials to go around if you want to try this game. You get a free month of play anyway when you pick up the box, too. So if you don't enjoy it after your first month, it's no big deal. I hope to see you on the Justice server sometime soon. Send Spoonman a team invite when you're ready!

*City of Heroes gets little free mini-expansions called “issues” that add a lot of content and significantly improve the game. This review was written as of issue 6.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 02/14/05, Updated 11/08/05