The
final beta phase of DC Universe Online came crashing to an end on the
night of January 5th with a series of highly publicized events dubbed
the
"Battle of Legends" that included appearances of iconic heroes and
villains donning the battle gear that was shown in the game's epic
trailer.
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 640px; height: 480px;"
alt="The crowd gathers"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/93936">
Also making a special appearance, was Brainiac and
several of his "Avatar of Tech" monstrosities that took over key
historic points such as Metropolis' Centennial Park near the statue of
Superman, and the Botanical Gardens in Gotham City.
Several of the iconic characters were being driven hands-on by
developers and comic book celebrity artist, Jim Lee.
This
all sounds like the set-up for what was intended to be a monstrous
battle of epic proportions, but really amounted to nothing more than a
few flashy effects and nigh-unstoppable monsters being spawned. Other
than a little smacktalking between the developer-driven heroes and
villains, the event was barelya blip on this game's already weak radar
signal.
Superman and Lex Luthor
square off!
On the technical side of things,
it suffered so many glitches
and inadequacies that dozens (if not
hundreds) of potential participants were either unable to stay logged
online for long before crashing, or were subjected to incomplete
graphics and effects that left them unable to actually see the action
unfolding before them. Most notably, very few of those present could
actually located and witness the climactic battles between Joker and
Batman, or Lex Luthor and Superman, which was kind of the entire point
of attending the events!
Other reports are indicating that the
entire event failed to launch on the PS3 servers, or was even worse-off
technologically speaking. It's hard to see the facts between the
squeaky wheels, but I believe it's safe to say that this particular
event did not live up to the hype that SOE had put behind it.
Brainiac's Monstrous
Minions
Additionally,
many had speculated that in order to facilitate participation in the
battle against these level 60 behemoths that kept showing up, players
would be allowed access to NPCs or mechanics that somehow put them at
the current level cap of 30. This turned out to not be the case, and
the vast majority of attending players were under level 15, resulting
in entire fields of defeated heroes and villains alike with every
ability launched by the Avatars of Tech, or the developer-driven
superpowers.
While this may sound like old hat for veterans of the MMOG industry as
far as "GM Events" go, it's important to note that DCUO is trying to
reach out to a different audience of action gamers and console owners.
Throughout the event, it was common to see complaints about every
aspect of what was going on including the stuff that someone that's
seen dozens of such events might take for granted. Like being able to
find the central characters, or stay logged in, or actually participate
in the action without it being a slideshow or slaughterfest.
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 640px; height: 512px;"
alt="dead... again..."
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/93939">
In the end, I believe this event came back and bit SOE in the ass on
this one. For a game that already seems to be having difficulty
marketing itself to the right audience, launching such a failbomb at
the end of what amounts to a "Free Preview" to most beta testers is
likely only going to serve to alienate them.
So, thanks for the thought Sony, but how about something that's
actually new, fun and exciting next time around? Everybody's bored out
of their minds of beating up freakishly overpowered villains in random
locations, and nobody wants to fight the crowds, the lag and the
crashes. So why pump up the promotion on an event that you know, and we
know, is never going to meet expectations and only going to break
hearts?
I've included a few more pictures at the end of this article for those
that were interested in watching the event unfold, but just couldn't
manage to participate.
DC Universe
Online will launch on January 11th in the US for both PC and PS3
markets, and is available now for pre-order at your favorite retailer
or digital download provider.
Left
to Right: Future Batman, Future Joker, and Joker doing battle
with an Avatar of Tech
Left
to Right: Lex Luthor, Superman, and Brainiac himself!
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our DC Universe Online Game Page.
