I downloaded, installed and patched Champions Online: Free for All when it re-launched the other day, like thousands of others. Fearing the inevitable crush of the servers, I decided to sit back and enjoy War and Peace the patch notes. The reading was to hype myself up for how much the game has grown since I last logged in to Violet Preston, the gunkata assassin inspired by Equilibrium (amazing action movie) and Ultraviolet (not so much), well over a year ago. Wednesday I attempted to begin her career anew.

Attempted, because I was meet with this little diddy.

That’s exactly the kind of restriction gamers should be afraid of when a title changes its business model. I paid for six months of Champions Online, an early adopter no less, and now my character, albeit far from level cap, is behind bars. Since Violet was created before the re-launch, she’s a completely custom design. For better or worse, she’s an amalgamation of a few different archetypes – marksman, endurance, blade – but it’s the character I wanted to play.

I have two options, either pay to let her out of jail, which means subscribing as long as I want to use her. Or downgrade her from a Gold character – former or current subscriber – to a Silver character to match my Silver account status. The only hurdle to downgrading is being content with placing her in a specific archetype, which means ruining my movie-inspired design. I’m not about to do either, so she’s going to continue to gather dust. As is the installation of Champions Online.

Ideally, I’d like to be able to pay a one-time fee to unlock her for FFA play as she was designed. There’s just no option to do this. Or at least, not one I can find. And I’m completely willing to pay for it. I don’t think it’s asking too much of Cryptic Studios. I would see it as an olive branch from the company to former players. A way of saying thanks and tempting us to return, while still having us play by the new rules (and leeching a quick $5-$10 from us).

I bet there’s numerous former subscribers in this same boat.

You can check out the full offerings from the Champions Online Store, aka C-Store, here.

Hey, look, content!

I’ve never been all that nice to Champions Online. To me, it was a rather shallow experience with dozens of glaring quality assurance issues.  Everything from balance to leveling curves to content distribution had obvious issues. I’ve played vicariously since quitting after my 6-month pre-purchase ran out (what a mistake that was). By keeping in touch, I’ve seen that Cryptic has continued to polish and iterate the game, but I was burned severely. It’d take something major for me to jump back in, like the game going free-to-play. Executive producer Shannon Posniewski announced exactly that in the latest State of the Game.

Like any game going from subscription to F2P, with a subscription option, of course, Champions will see a wide array of changes before the move. The tutorial and beginning areas will be improved for the flood of incoming players. Other areas will be “reordered, rescripted and augmented” to plug the aforementioned holes and the C-Store will be flooded with new items. Subscribers will maintain their current amount of content, while F2Pers will pick and choose. Lifetimers, you’ll be a Gold Members (subscribers) for life, only missing out on the C-Store content. Pretty standard stuff.

Champions Online F2P beta goes live in early November.

Unlike EverQuest 2 Extended, the Champs subscriber matrix is straightforward. I have two gripes: inventory limitation and custom archtypes. I don’t mind having to purchase inventory for a F2P game as long as it’s permanent, and not some sort of 6-month lease – looking at you, Runes of Magic – so this could be a non-issue. Custom archetypes, that’s an entirely different story. Read on for more. Continue Reading

Bill Roper or a young David Brent?

It’s a bit of a rarity these days to hear of someone departing a game development company straight from their own mouth (or, er… keyboard, as it were). Usually, the news comes from an observant, Deep Throat-esque source, or fellow employees that let the leash slip before the person being fired even knows that they have been yet. When people talk about video games and immaturity, the discussion inevitably veers towards the size of Lara Croft’s boobs or Duke Nukem’s guns (old references, I know, but still oddly prescient to people who enjoy making outdated arguments).

Allow me to take another tack on the issue, though: there continues to be a major, major disconnect between the people running the business and the ones making the games — more often an abusive father-stepson situation than a cohesive unit moving forward. As in many industries, the quest for cash usurps the pursuit of creativity and experimentation, but the video game industry seems to slathered in an extra-thick layer of vitriol and disdain. The immaturity comes not from the content of the games, but in the way the creators are maligned and herded like sheep. Cog. Machine. I know.

But things used to be worse. Continue Reading

I’ve been critical of Champions Online since securing a 6-month subscription, but that’s because I want it to succeed.  I truly have the purest intentions when I rib on it, turn critic or complain about what it’s lacking.  I want it to grow, rake in money and expand the market.  The last thing I want is another MMOG that’s outside the staple fantasy genre collapsing.

Cryptic Studios tripled up on the news today. Patch notes for the Super Powers Patch were deployed, exciting many.  Most players have not-so-patiently waited for Cryptic to balance the powers of the game.  The Super Powers Patch focuses on just that, putting melee and supernatural powersets in line with the more powerful flexibility and strength powersets.  Balance is definitely the number one aspect of the patch, hence the name, but new content is spread across the universe in the form of missions.  Dozens of them.  Yum.

After delivering on earlier promises, Rekhan decided to make some more.  The latest State of the Game addresses the aforementioned patch itself before beginning the forward-looking revelations State of the Game addresses often make.  The biggest eye opener is an upcoming adventure pack entitled “The Serpent Lantern.”  The Serpent Lantern will hit servers in June and includes veteran rewards, a review to Energy Builders and the addition of difficulty sliders.  Rekhan also announced that the Champions Online website will be receiving an overhaul “that will include a calendar of future updates as well as some navigation and visual improvements.”

Communication is always a plus in my book.

Last, but certainly not least, is the announcement of the Champs Referral Program.  Spam your friends with a 10-day unlimited trial code and if they play at all, then you’ll receive some action figures.  Play together and you’ll both receive an XP buff and other bonuses.  They can do you a huge solid by subscribing, granting you access to costume slots.  The more players that join your referral team the more you earn, ranging all the way to from free subscription time to Cryptic points.

Shameless plug time.  Shoot me a comment if you want to join my team!