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Preview: DC Universe Online 'Play as Iconic' arena battle mode

Mike Schramm — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 19:00:00 EST

We've seen DC Universe Online several times now over the course of its development, and it's failed to much impress us. Still, the game continues to generate interest, if only because Sony Online Entertainment is bringing it to the PS3, and many gamers have been waiting for a new console MMO, polished or otherwise, for a long time.

Last week at Comic-Con, SOE showed off the latest build of DCU and spotlighted a new feature with the awkward name "Play as Iconic." ("Iconic" is what the licensed DC comics characters are referred to as in the game.) In the main game, you will play as your own custom characters, getting guidance and help from established veterans like Batman and Superman. But, as you've probably deduced, in the Play as Iconic bonus mode, you'll get to play as DC heroes (or villains) in a 2-on-2 PvP match.

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Preview: DC Universe Online 'Play as Iconic' arena battle mode originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 29 Jul 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hands-on: DC Universe Online

Mike Schramm — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:30:00 EST

MMOs are at their best when you're gallantly fighting alongside compatriots, using abilities with a group of friends (or strangers) to topple bad guys and win epic loot. But let's face it -- even in a massively multiplayer online game, you can't always have a full party of helpful members with which to face your challenges. Sometimes you're up late, playing by yourself, and you've got to grind it out alone.

And that's where the road meets the rubber in an MMO: Is the game fun even without the multiplayer element? I got a chance to see Sony Online Entertainment's DC Universe Online in action at a pre-E3 event a few weeks ago, and played a combat-based level by myself. And while I did get to see some new features of the game by browsing through the menus and beating up Harley Quinn's henchmen with my Batman-alike, I'm sorry to say that DCUO's combat isn't quite as enthralling as it could be.

Gallery: DC Universe Online

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Hands-on: DC Universe Online originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hands-on: DC Universe Online

Ben Gilbert — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:00:00 EST

MMOs on current-gen consoles? We've yet to see it really happen. However, DC Universe Online for PlayStation 3 and PC sure looks (and plays) like a game on its way to completion. When we last sat down with the game in February and talked to its producer, DCUO already had a ton of polish and -- even to our console-addled brains -- felt like an MMO we could get on board with.

The controls on PS3 felt quick and intuitive then, and not much has changed (other than graphical fidelity, character animation, and bug squashes) since we last saw it. We muscled our way around S.T.A.R. Labs, turning zombified security guards back into their old selves and then employing the security guards to take down our foes. While the squad mechanics felt woefully underdone (as in, they don't exist -- you roll with a gang and they take down fools as the gang sees fit), we appreciated the ability to pick up a crew mid-mission to assist us.

Gallery: DC Universe Online

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Hands-on: DC Universe Online originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Joystiq hands-on: DC Universe Online (pre-alpha)

James Ransom-Wiley — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:44:00 EST

You will not play DC Universe Online as a licensed hero or villain. You'll create your own character, inspired by or dissimilar to the familiar NPCs you'll see soaring and tromping around Metropolis and Gotham. While SOE wasn't ready to show us the full breadth of the game's character creation system, creative director Jens Andersen did fill us in on the basics: you choose (a) a super power; (b) the source of that power; (c) a movement mode; and (d) an initial ability (you unlock more as you level up). For example, Green Lantern would answer: (a) light; (b) ring; (c) flight; and (d) strong will power. Or the Flash: (a) electricity; (b) hands and feet; (c) speed; and (d) fast metabolism.

SOE dropped us into a midtown Metropolis instance (game event) involving Lex Luthor, Doomsday, and ostensibly Superman (we didn't encounter the Man of Steel, thankfully), and handed us a PS3 controller (technically, we were playing a pre-alpha build of the PC version). We were put in control of a user-created super villain, "Kid Something-or-other" (we neglected to note his full name), who wielded a pair of ice-powered pistols and had some zingy acrobatic movements. We were tasked with collecting "DNA" samples from heavily guarded crates, oddly secured in the middle of several separate streets, and then it was onto and into a room in Lex Corp where we fought alongside Luthor to subdue an escaped Doomsday for some sinister purpose.

Gallery: DC Universe Online

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Joystiq hands-on: DC Universe Online (pre-alpha) originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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