The #SaveCOH campaign has received much press, and not just from the likes of Lore Hound and other gaming blogs. The effort to save the superhero MMORPG City of Heroes from closure has attracted mainstream media, best selling authors and thousands of followers. Yet, NCSoft has stonewalled all positive momentum, going so far as to ignore requests for information. Resolve unshaken, the group has turned its sights towards finding a new suitor, Disney.

The group continues to make a strong case for continuing the MMORPG and why it’d be a good fit in Disney Interactive’s stable of titles.

Best selling author Mercedes Lackey, who helped to draft the pitch to Disney, stated “We believe that Disney and City of Heroes are a perfect match; Disney now owns Marvel and two impending Marvel MMOs which are slated to be mirror opposites of the cooperative, community gameplay fostered by City of Heroes.

“In addition, Disney has the reach to effortlessly give City of Heroes the exposure it never had under NCSoft’s regime of benign neglect–and City of Heroes will provide Disney with some extremely unique cross-marketing opportunities.  Disney has always understood and fostered community and loyalty–something NCSoft never did.”

Many will point out that there are two Marvel universe MMOGs in development, the already-launched and kid friendly Marvel Super Hero Squad Online and the upcoming Diablo-style title Marvel Heroes. City of Heroes, while ironically sued by Marvel in the past, would fit the core MMORPG bill. (Editor) Let’s not forget about the Asia-only Marvel MOBA.

City of Heroes is scheduled to go offline this Friday, November 30 at 11:59 PM PST. There’s little chance of stopping that now, but an 11th hour effort may be able to resurrect the game at a later date.

In one of our lengthiest posts ever, the full press release is presented after the cut. Continue Reading

I’ve had a love-hate relationship with Champions Online. The second attempt at a superhero MMORPG by Cryptic Studios drew me in with numerous features, advanced customization to the point of full uniqueness, a fast-paced combat style and quirky comic-inspired quests and missions. I considered it a popcorn MMORPG, a guilty pleasure that would be a great compliment to other, more fleshed out experiences I was playing.

Yet it was a full cost title that lacked content, identity and overall direction. For every aspect I enjoyed of the title, I found two that annoyed me. I ragged on the offering so hardly because I wanted to like it. I left shortly before my six month purchase ran its course. It’s F2P return perked my interest, only to send me fleeing due to losing my main character to the freemium cutoff.

After Atari abandoned Cryptic Studios, allowing Perfect World Entertainment to grab the developer at an assumed bargain price, hope returned. PWE had been looking to break into the western market the appropriate way, ie not porting Eastern titles alone, and this was a great first step. A massive development effort would be needed, but we’re seeing the fruits of that labor with On Alert.

The latest content patch adds a few new systems to the game in addition to the expected content and bug fixes. A reputation system lets gamers accumulate prestige over time, opening up new travel power options and gear. The Modification and Fusion System returns customization to the hands of players, even allowing more damage dealing stats.

Mind you, the changes put the game back on my radar. Not my plate. It’s just a step in the right direction. I need a few of these, or a giant leap.

Hit the jump for a batch of stills from the patch. Continue Reading