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is the premier daily MMOG newsletter, only from Ten
Ton Hammer!

Welcome
to the 1,383rd
edition
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Just when your audience thinks it has the white hats and black hats sorted out, good storytellers often throw in a jaunty character or faction that poses something of a threat to both sides. DC Universe Online revealed their foil - their Sephiroth or Saruman if you will- over the weekend at San Diego Comic-Con 2010, and in our opinion added a great deal of cohesion and depth to the DCUO story. We'll fill in the details in href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/loading/2010/jul/24">Loading… Enter the Interloper.

cellspacing="0" width="100%">

The
Pulse

You vote with what you
view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the
result
is the Ten Ton Pulse ( href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/thepulse/">What
is The Pulse?).

Today's
top 5 Pulse results:

  1. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow">World
    of Warcraft
  2. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/eq2">EverQuest
    II
  3. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/ddo">Dungeons and
    Dragons Online
  4. Vanguard: Saga of Heroes
  5. Age of Conan

Biggest
movers this week
:

  1. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/860">Champions Online
    - UP 7 to
    #15
  2. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/gw2">Guild Wars 2

    -
    UP 8 to #12
  3. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro">Lord of the Rings Online

    - down 3 to #9
size="-1">Recent Releases
  • size="-1">5/26
    - EVE
    Online: Tyrannis
    size="-1">
    (expansion)
  • size="-1">5/27
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2422">Craft
    of Gods size="-1">
    (release)
  • size="-1">6/9
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1004">Mortal
    Online size="-1">
    (release)
  • size="-1">6/29
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/998"
    target="_blank">APB
    (release)
  • size="-1">7/13
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1801"
    target="_blank">Mytheon
    (release)
  • size="-1">7/20
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2461"
    target="_blank">Need
    for Speed World
    (release)
size="-1">Upcoming
Releases

  • size="-1">August
    17, 2010
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/140">City
    of Heroes: Going Rogue (release)
  • size="-1">September
    7, 2010
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion">Aion:
    Assault on Balaurea (free
    expansion)
  • size="-1">September
    30, 2010
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/ffxiv" target="_blank">Final
    Fantasy XIV size="-1">
    (release)
  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">October
    26, 2010
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/170">LEGO
    Universe (release)

  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">November
    2, 2010
    - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1407">DC
    Universe Online (release)

size="-1">Upcoming
Events

  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">7/22 -
    7/25 - href="http://www.comic-con.org/" target="_blank">Comic-Con
    International
  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">8/5 -
    8/8 - href="http://events.station.sony.com/fanfaire/" target="_blank">SOE
    Fan Faire 2010
  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">8/18 -
    8/22 - href="http://www.gamescom-cologne.com/en/gamescom/home/index.php"
    target="_blank">Gamescom 2010
  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">9/3 -
    9/5 - href="http://www.paxsite.com/paxprime/index.php" target="_blank">PAX
    Prime
  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">9/3 -
    9/6 - href="http://www.dragoncon.org/" target="_blank">DragonCon
  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;">10/22 -
    10/23 - href="http://us.blizzard.com/blizzcon/?rhtml=y" target="_blank">BlizzCon
  • size="-1"> style="font-weight: bold;"> 3/24
    -
    3/26 (2011) - href="http://fanfest.eveonline.com/" target="_blank">CCP
    FanFest
align="undefined" valign="undefined">

Be
sure to check out all of href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/events/sdcomic-con/2010">Ten
Ton Hammer's San Diego Comic-Con 2010 event coverage!

Loading... Daily

Longtime comic book writer Marv Wolfman ought to know a good trailer when he sees one. Little known fact: the man who created Blade, the Teen Titans, and remade Lex Luther as the businessman (as opposed to Lex Luther the madman) is married to Noel Wolfman, Lead Cinematic Production Manager for Blizzard Entertainment, who has certainly made some good trailers as well.

And what did Mr. Wolfman have to say about the DC Universe Online trailer revealed at San Diego Comic-Con: "I just flipped... that was one of the most incredible trailers I have ever seen for anything... in the year and a half that I've been working on this, I go 'Oh my God, it's better than anyone ever convinced me it could be.'"

Hopefully Mr. Wolfman won't be sleeping on the couch when he gets home, but I have to agree with him. DCUO as revealed at SDCC is looking better than I personally thought possible. Our abiding fear with MMORPGs built on a hot license (such as DCUO) is that they'll rest on their IP laurels; that the game will be built mostly of reputation and hype rather than good gameplay and excellent storytelling.

But DCUO's storyline come-uppance as revealed by the trailer (and explained by DCUO's all-star panel at Comic-Con) both gives us a reason to play beyond the tired old superheroes vs. supervillains motif, gives large numbers of superpowered heroes and villains (i.e. DCUO players) a reason to be through Brainiac's exogenes (the waste product of his superpower pilfering), and even gives players of heroic or villainous flavors an overarching sense of purpose.

You see, while the signature characters we know and love from DC lore are dealing with the new threat posed by Brainiac (and in many ways the baddest of DC's baddies, given his universe-annihilating tendancies and ability to steal superpowers at will), someone has to take care of the everyday superheroic and supervillainous business. If Mr. Freeze, Ivy, and Scarecrow are loose in Arkham Asylum and Batman's busy devising new tech to confront Brainiac, the call goes out to second-string superheroes like your character. And vice versa if, say, Joker needs to stop a police raid at Ace Chemicals but is too busy trying to lay hold of some of Brainiac's secrets. In the process, players will prove themselves to the Justice League or Secret Society and, in time, be called on to confront Brainiac's schemes.

This is not to sell the other comic book MMORPG that sought to make a splash at SDCC short, and we'll have in-depth, hands-on previews of both City of Heroes: Going Rogue and DC Universe Online this week. But Brainiac as interloper, in my opinion, changed DCUO from a mild-mannered multiplayer brawler into something RPG players of all stripes can really sink their teeth into. What say you? Did the blur trailer impact your understanding of DCUO? Is it important for both good and evil players to have a sense of purpose in an MMORPG, or are loot and achievements purpose enough? Have your say in the Loading... forum!


Shayalyn's Epic Thread of
the Day

From our SWTOR News & Announcements Forum



Space Combat Announced!


Our good friend and news hound, Metal, pointed our forum community at a link which indicated that space combat was coming to Star Wars: The Old Republic.
There might have been much rejoicing, but words like "restricted" and
"shallow" came into play as the community responded to the news. What
do you think about space combat in SWTOR? Hit the forum to have your say.


==============================

Awesome Quotes from the
Epic Thread




"In all honesty I expected no space combat at all at start.
Having it in, even in a reduced and more or less 'minigame' form is
still a step forward. They can build on this if it proves popular,
making it a separate 'game' with separate skill trees, quests, 'raids'
and PvP options.
"



- WZT
==============================




New
and Exclusive Content
Today at Ten Ton Hammer

10 new and exlcusive Ten Ton Hammer
features
today!  89 Ten Ton Hammer
features
in July! 801
in 2010!

HOT! SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON COVERAGE

DC Universe Blur Trailer from San Diego Comic-Con 2010
http://www.tentonhammer.com/dc-universe-online/trailer/blur
 
Anyone who thought DCUO might be long on multiplayer brawler and short on DC
grit should check out the latest DC Universe Online trailer revealed at San
Diego Comic-Con 2010 and done by Blur Studio (the creators of many an awesome MMO
and video game trailer, from SWTOR to WAR to Dragon Age: Origins). Have a look
at DCUO's new
CGI trailer from San Diego Comic-Con 2010
to see how it's not just as simple
as superheroes vs. supervillains anymore!

Full-Length Session Video - The DC Universe Online Panel at San Diego Comic-Con
2010
(Premium)
http://www.tentonhammer.com/dc-universe-online/video/comic-con-2010-panel/story

Join an all-star cast of DC Universe Online personalities for the latest on DC Universe Online. The panel kicks off with the world reveal of the DC Universe Online trailer
by Blur Studios (if you've seen trailers from games like Star Wars: The Old
Republic or Warhammer Online, you know the awesomeness of their work). Jim Lee
and Marv Wolfman then help us realize the full impact of what's revealed in the
trailer on the DC Universe as revealed in DCUO, then SOE Austin's Jens Anderson
and Chris Cao help us see how this unique story twist is fleshed out for players
of the game. And did we mention that Mark Hamill offers some unique commentary
on voice-acting the Joker too?

It's all in this full-length
panel video from Comic-Con 2010
, available for Ten Ton Hammer Premium
Members exclusively! (An abbreviated public version will be available later this week.)


Exclusive LEGO Universe Video Interview on Factions, Reputation and More!

http://www.tentonhammer.com/events/sdcc2010/lego-universe/video-interview

At San Diego Comic-Con,
we had the opportunity to check in with Creative Director for LEGO
Universe, Ryan Seabury to see how development is progressing. In our
exclusive video interview Ryan explains how the faction system works,
and the types of rewards or gameplay each of the four unique factions
will bring to the table. We also gain some fresh insights into the
game’s reputation system which will help rank the various
player-created properties so that players can quickly find the best
player-created content available. Learn all the details on factions,
reputations and much more in our Exclusive LEGO Universe Video
Interview from San Diego Comic-Con 2010!

REVIEWS

Age of Conan: Rise of the Godslayer Review
http://www.tentonhammer.com/aoc/review/rise-of-the-godslayer

Age
of Conan by Funcom has seen the launch of its first expansion, Rise of
the Godslayer, and while the original launch may have had a rocky
start, the new expansion promised new adventures, resolved issues,
better systems and loads more content. But is it enough to make Age of
Conan a game that should be in your library? Find out as Ten Ton Hammer
reviews Age of Conan: Rise of the Godslayer.

DEV DIARY

Rift: Planes of Telara Dev Diary
http://www.tentonhammer.com/rift/class%20overview/video

Trion
the developers of Rift: Planes of Telara has recently released a new
video Dev Diary. In the video they discuss the details of the Ascended
Class System in Rift. It gives players an overview of soul attunement,
details about the root and branch soul tree, and some examples of the
souls you can attune to.

FEATURES & GUIDES

HOT GUIDE! StarCraft II - The Top Multiplayer Strategies for Launch
http://www.tentonhammer.com/starcraft2/guides/launch-strategies

Everyone
wants an edge on the competition at launch. Some prefer to earn their
stars and strategies in the campaign first. Honorable as that may be,
players are far more ruthless than any scripted event in the campaign!
You'll need to not only be familiar with the game, but familiar with
the strategies players will throw at you--and have a strategy to throw
back. That's what we're covering in our final guide before the
long-awaited launch day, The Top Multiplayer Strategies for Launch!

Building An Outpost In EVE Online (part 2)
http://www.tentonhammer.com/eve/guides/politics/outpost2

This
guide is the second of a two-part series written by  Space Junkie
dealing with the arduous process of building a new space station in EVE
Online. The previous article outlined why and where to build an outpost
and examined many of the issues surrounding outpost construction. This
final section explores the particulars of constructing an outpost and
includes shopping lists and industrial skill requirements.

The World Revealed - Guild Wars 2 Weekly Report
http://www.tentonhammer.com/gw2/features/newsletter/issue-8

The
Guild Wars 2 Weekly Report arrives every Saturday morning giving a
recap of the previous week's news and articles relating to the original
Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2. This week ArenaNet is at comic-con, the
new landscape is revealed, and much more. All of this and more can be
found in our latest issue of the GW2 Weekly Report here at Ten Ton
Hammer.

WoW Cataclysm: The New Leveling Experience
http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow/editorials/new-leveling-experience

Azeroth
is not the only thing changing in Cataclysm. In an attempt to draw in
and keep new players, Blizzard has revamped the leveling experience.
The learning curve has been reduced, and the overall experience has
been made more exciting for players new and old. Will these changes be
enough?

WoW: Thin Air – Climbing Mount Hyjal: A Zone Preview
 http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow/cataclysm/zones/mount-hyjal-preview

Cataclysm
will be bringing a lot of new things to the game World of Warcraft. It
will also be bringing back a few old things, such as access to Mount
Hyjal.  The last time the legendary area was available to players
was through the raid instance “Battle of Mount Hyjal” in the Burning
Crusade. Now in Cataclysm players will be able to more fully
explore the zone that houses the World Tree, Nordrassil  Join
Byron “Messiah” Mudry as he gives you the basics about this ambitious
zone.



Today's
Hottest Articles, Guides, and Features

  1. DC Universe Online Blur Trailer from San Diego Comic-Con 2010
  2. Exclusive LEGO Universe Video Interview on Factions, Reputation and More!
  3. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning From 38 Studios Unveiled
  4. A Preview of TERA's New UI, Glyph System and More
  5. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/events/sdcc2010/DCUO-Legend-Play">SOE
    Unveils Legend Play for DC
    Universe Online

  6. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/starcraft2/guides/beta-changes">StarCraft
    II
    - The Evolution from Beta to
    Launch
  7. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/podcasts/live/16">Episode
    16 - Paiz and Boyer from
    Dungeons & Dragons
    Online:
    Eberron Unlimited
    href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/podcasts/live/16">

  8. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lego-universe/gnarled-forest-preview/july2010">First
    Impressions: Exploring style="font-weight: bold;">
    LEGO Universe’s Gnarled
    Forest
  9. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/gw2/features/interviews/death-and-healing">Death
    and Healing in style="font-weight: bold;">Guild
    Wars 2 - An Exclusive
    Q&A with ArenaNet's Jon
    Peters
  10. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rom/giveaways/runesurfer"> style="font-weight: bold;">Runes of Magic Runesurfer
    Bundle and Summer Prize Giveaway href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/eve/spymaster/48">


Thanks
for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer network!

- Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer team


To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our DC Universe Online Game Page.

Last Updated: Mar 13, 2016

About The Author

Jeff joined the Ten Ton Hammer team in 2004 covering EverQuest II, and he's had his hands on just about every PC online and multiplayer game he could since.

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