The Pre-Beta Days...

[IamLink]

I know I do, who else misses the pre-beta days? And if you want, please post anything that you remembered and liked about it in comparison to now.

Sorry that not everyone can reply to this post, but I just wanted to reflect on some of the things that made the community great back then. :|


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I most liked how everyone got along. There were a few quarrels (SP?) but nothing that serious, mainly people complaining about RPs. :chuckle: I sucked at RPing but I thought it was fun. I miss all the old Untouchables and wish I could talk to them all one more time. =\

[Overbite]

I remember applying for it and being rejected... O_o

I had to wait for it to hit the shelves... O_o But seeing the screenshots on Gamespot made it worth the wait. :p

Thats my "beta day" memory...

[IamLink]

I don't remember you being around back then... O_o But beta was pretty cool, got to see everyone's characters how they wanted them to be. Everyone was so excited once the NDA was lifted... :( -sigh-

[8 Ball]

I remember the mad rush to reserve my name once the virtue server opened up during the last days of bata :D.

[IamLink]

lol, i remember that...Tried to reserve paladin but it was already taken XD

[ShadowSoldier]

I think this was Pre and during beta, but I remember the original "I Kill You/You Kill Me" thread. So many creative ways to die....(reminisces something about a coca-cola truck....)

[IamLink]

I could be wrong but I think that was after the game came out...

[Solario]

Man, I miss the pre-Beta days so much sometimes. All the creativity and the thoughts on how the game would work and what it would include.

[Vendel]

I remember the waiting....and waiting and waiting...then they compleatly reworked the game....waiting waiting.... :shinner:

[sheld0n]

I remember hunting for every new bit of information like a vicious hound. Examining every new screenshot, pixel by pixel...
The speculations...

Yeah, those were the days...

[suburbanhell]

I remember wishing I had been part of the Rikti Invasion...getting my copy of the game, running to create Captain Obvious to find out he was already taken, thus Major was born, created him logged out created Flamestrike, cept that was already taken too, so now I have Dr. Flamestrike...then created Miss Judgement and was like woohoo cos one of my names was there....since then I've not had any problems with my toons names aside from changing Major Obvious to Major 0bvious when I moved from Liberty to Virtue.

[Bolero]

I most liked how everyone got along. There were a few quarrels (SP?) but nothing that serious, mainly people complaining about RPs. :chuckle: I sucked at RPing but I thought it was fun. I miss all the old Untouchables and wish I could talk to them all one more time. =\

Hey! I was on The Untouchables for a while! I don't remember my character at all but I do remember some of the people like The Almighty. I actually have all the bios from Team Egypt saved on my computer.

Does anyone remember the expatriots? I was the second member of the team. It was started by Imperial (Mineral back then). The team were all members of a secret government organization against there will. On some particular mission they escaped and found there way to Paragon City. I dont really remember any of the members except Pardigim Shift. But if any of you are out there chime in!

[Meltman]

I remember loving Yankee Daring's awesome humor threads. Especially the "What the villains are saying about Yankee Daring" one.

[inkblaster]

See my sig.

[Impact]

*looks in Ink's sig*

What was that thread about? It sounds interesting :D

Anywho....I remember lurking on the forums, reading the rp's and seeing all the cool art. I especially remember seeing Poison, Xan, and some others and thinking 'wow....I hope I can make a hero almost as cool as theirs'

[TroubleWolf]

I remember Boxhead and a couple of others, altering screenshots to make them funny. I tried my hand at a couple, but people didn't seem to get my humor. I'd been watching "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" about 4 times a week. ;)

[Amoeba Man]

*looks in Ink's sig*

What was that thread about? It sounds interesting :D Back when they started having semi-regular updates to the main site the community would wait greedily for the updates, which I think were on Tuesdays. One day when it was mid to late afternoon and there was no update someone created the "Today is not the day" thread talking about how that day there wasn't going to be an update.

An aside to this is that the "Today is not the day" thread was a spin off of the "Today is the Day thread" where people would speculate about what the Tuesday updaye would be.

I miss the Anti-Power Gamers Creado and our attempts to get that thread deleted. Then there was the occasional newb that signed it. :D

[inkblaster]

I also remember in a sig/origin thread I called Statesman out about not having an awesome sig with a link to his origin.
He responded that his origin was his own, and he thought people were getting sick of seeing his face or something like that.

I think Aura also posted in the Today is not the Day thread back in the day too, to comment that the day wasn't over.

[Randomus]

People quarrelled just as much, but the passage of time has worn down the memories to make them seem more pleasant than they really were. That's the danger of nostalgia and regressionism.

But as to the topic at hand, I remember refusing to sign up and join the boards for three years and then regretting it when I didn't get into Beta until the pre-order. I remember Boxhead's site and in particular the screenshot with "Cha" editted into the moon. Go The Tick. I remember the first time I saw a link to Paragoncity.com on the BHAT. I remember coming up with the idea for The City Watch and meeting the amazing people who would later form the core team.

[inkblaster]

the City Watch.....

I hate them so....much......
:inkblaste :randomus:

[sheld0n]

I remember Boxhead's site and in particular the screenshot with "Cha" editted into the moon. Go The Tick.

Oh yeah, i had that one as my wallpaper for quite a while! :D

[Jade_Dragon]

I remember Boxhead's screenshots. Those were great. :D

I went all through Beta without being able to get Jade Dragon. Had to settle for Jade_Dragon. Signed onto the boards as Jade_Dragon, and used that pretty much every time on the boards after that. Then, the day everyone rushed to register their names for the release, I actually got Jade Dragon.

I also remember registering Jade Dragon, Blue Diamond, Bloodwolf (all one word) and Sandy on four different servers.

I remember seeing Poison and Bugbite in a screenshot that was released from Beta, and everyone realizing they'd gotten into the Beta. :D

I remember Mav's first report from E3 (wasn't it?) and the AR/Broadsword Blaster he created. With the Crossbow as the first power in Broadsword. :D

Mostly, though, I remember, "this is just going to be Everquest in tights", and how all the different Power Sets were really just going to be the same thing with different effects. And the backlash from Statesman's article where he talked about how he developed the archetypes.

[Amoeba Man]

I remember seeing Poison and Bugbite in a screenshot that was released from Beta, and everyone realizing they'd gotten into the Beta. :D
I remember that, and it was hilarious because it was so obviously them. :chuckle:

[Xanatos]

Yeah I had some good times back on the old boards. BETA was good too but the old boards was where is was at!

As good as the past is, it's the future i'm looking forward to ;)

[Tsarmina]

I think this was Pre and during beta, but I remember the original "I Kill You/You Kill Me" thread. So many creative ways to die....(reminisces something about a coca-cola truck....)
There was a Kill/Kill thread on the original forums, pre-beta. 90% of my posts were there. :chuckle:

I remember rants of vaporware.
Aura laying the smack down on those that deserved the smacking.
The astounding array of artwork on the BHAT before we even knew what was possible.
Boxhead was amazing with his info gathering and screenie editing skills.
I remember loving Yankee Daring's awesome humor threads. Especially the "What the villains are saying about Yankee Daring" one.
Almost busted a gut on some of those!
I remember a poll, a few polls actually... asking for a simple yes or no for beta invites. I remember posts consisting of a row of jumping, clapping gleeful smilies. I remember when I could finally post my own row of jumping, clapping gleeful smilies. :)

[IamLink]

Man, I remembered Aura on those boards....-shudder-

-goes to the archived boards to look at stuff-

[Bagman]

I remember trying to reserve Bagman, but only getting Bagman with a period. Then the devs did a reset, and I was able to get Bagman the second time.

Also I remember the boards being funnier and more friendly back then. But I think part of that is nostalgia vision looking back. Everything is always better back in the good ole days.

Just think of it this way, a few years from now you'll be looking on your time right now as those same good ole days.

[IamLink]

eh, maybe. =) Pre-beta was still the |2oXx0rZ

[Randomus]

Nostalgia-Vision would be an awesome super power.

[IamLink]

heh, I might finally get to see my wings on paladin or my plant control powers!

[IamLink]

-tear- Cant believe I remembered the url for this...
http://www.angelfire.com/un/touchablesteam/Home.html

[Mosquito]

I remember starting to read the forums and get interested in the game in late 2001, but not signing up until later, thus screwing myself on an early beta invite.

I remember reading boxhead's screenshot thread ALL IN ONE SITTING.

I remember when the Hive had more than 50 members, which is a lot more than 8. :chuckle:

[Maveric]

I remember when when MacAllen and a few others were promoted into moderators.
I remember poking crusty old MacAllen with a stick (inside joke)
I remember MacAllen explaining to me how to use VB Code so I could make kewl posts
I remember collecting every quote a dev made about CoH. I collected every scrape of information about "pre-beta" CoH and organized/posted all the info into Maveric's Quick Reference threads (Origins, Powers, Combat & Defense, etc) which I had links to in my signature.
I remember threads that had starting posts that sometimes required multiple post introductions.
I remember super hero art, super hero art, and more super hero art
I remember getting threatened to be banned by Giest on 3 occasions.
I remember Skills and Equipment and Superior Humans.
I remember participating in online chat interviews with the devs.
I remember when the Forum member mods were replaced by Aura.
I remember numerous Super Power suggestion threads
I remember compiling a complete "wish list" of costume options and logos
I remember the long stretches of time (weeks and months)with no information released about the game.
I remember watching the E3 video when they announced that CoH was entirely re-designed but tried to play it off as a minor modification...


to be cont.

[Maveric]

I remember my reaction to the E3 1st look at CoH video and posting a very emotional thread:

As many by now have heard, I was quite upset with these so called changes to the game but which were in actuality is a completely different game all together which now bears the same name. I can't stress that point enough. The only thing that seems to have stayed the same is the high quality "eye candy" graphics and animations. BTW, I like "eye candy".

For those forum members that are fairly new to CoH, you probably shouldn't read this thread because a lot of what I say will have to mainly do with the "original" concept of the game as well as the history of Cryptic's actions over the past nearly 2 years. Let me repeat that, nearly 2 years and that's not counting the year they were working on the game before the website went up. (I have a quote from an interview where it was mentioned.)

OK, where to begin? Lets start with that extremely frustrating E3 2003 Gameplay Demo Movie that was released late Thursday, May 15th, 2003 - which also made me sick to my stomach to view.

It took me several, several hours but I carefully wrote down every word from the Video and will describe what I was feeling as I watched and listened to the video. All the comments written in orange are made by me.

Hey there City of Heroes fans, the day you have been awaiting is finally here. It is E3, and as Statesman promised, I’m gonna show you all the latest and greatest of the game.

Maveric - I have a problem from the very start. The video shows Jack Emmert standing inside the Cryptic booth with a small fuzzy blue computer screen nearby. Even at the biggest video setting I couldn't see what was on the computer screen. Cryptic knows, the last E3 video from the previously shot was made by an amateur with a crappy video camera from a gaming website. There were a lot of screen details that we, the forum members, couldn't make out, which was very frustrating at the time. At the very least the camera person did stay on the entire computer screen for most of the demo which was a blessing. We, the forum members, were very vocal about this, So the Cryptic staff were aware.

So there have been a lot of great changes in the past few months, and this is the start of “letting the cat out of the bag”, as I said on the website. So let’s start with character creation. Now, as before, we had Origins. Origins determine where a super being gets his power. Well, instead of having the seven, we have collapsed them down to five. We had uhhh two basic Origins, which were essentially the same, that is Technology the same thing with Magic – We had the Mystic Relic and Magical Powers… So we collapsed them down and simplified them into five.

Maveric - Ok, Now I'm starting to worry. Cryptic is simplifying the game. One of the things I really liked about CoH was it's very complex, detailed, and customizable Superhero Creation system. Ok, I realize why the collapsed the two Origins mentioned above because they were very similar to begin with. I got no issues with that. It’s understandable...

The other thing we’ve done is removed the number of powers, and all the other various limitations and advantages that those Origins gave. Instead, what we’ve done is we’ve given them Origin Bonuses. Now, these Origin Bonuses affect the types of awards that players will get while they are playing. I’ll get back to what these awards are in just a little bit.

Maveric - What the Hell?!? They’ve removed Origin templates? These template features are what gave the characters such depth and uniqueness unlike the restrictive class based systems like EQ that I hated.. What's going on here? Origins were the part of the creation system that allowed you to customize your character they way YOU wanted. With this Origin System you could basically create your own class. You could even choose one Origin and role-play it as a different Origin, and no one would be able to tell...

OK, at least we discover that there is someone operating the camera because they are starting to ever so slowly zoom in to get a closer look at the monitor. Hopefully the fuzziness will clear up and we'll actually get to see what the new screens look like... OH NO! the monkey running th camera was only teasing and starts to zoom back out before we can get a good close up view of the screen! What the Hell!?! Is this person purposely doing this to keep us from getting specific information? WHY! WHY! WHY! Won’t you just focus in on the d@mn computer monitor and leave it! I mean you don't to have four years of college to set up a camera on a tripod or stand, focus it on the computer screen, and press record. It's that simple. Not very hard and not too much to ask. The frustrating actions of this person's (monkey's?) camera operation is making it hard for me to concentrate on what Jack is talking about.

Now the second thing a player does is, he chooses his Archetype. I know, I know, you’re in shock – “What’s an Archetype?”.

Maveric - You're D@mn Right I'm in Shock! It seems like you are introducing a class based system and severely reducing the customizing ability of the character! Please tell me these are just "fast start" characters or something similar because I don't want to be forced to play a "role" in a classed based system. Class systems are, by their nature, limiting in capability. I want to create my own class, my own role, my own capabilities!

Well, an Archetype basically helps a player understand what his role is. (Maveric – OH NO! That's the first signature of a Class System! ) What we found in play testing, is that people who weren’t familiar with the idea of building a hero from scratch, well, it was too easy for them to select powers, which did nothing and ended up “gimping” themselves.

(Maveric - Oh, Hell! You have stated in the past and I quote "There are No Useless Powers". If this statement HAD been truthful then it wouldn't have been EASY to "Gimp" themselves just because a player wanted to customize his character the way that player wanted regardless of effectiveness. I'm not saying it wouldn't be possible, just not as easy as Cryptic seems to make it appear to be. I even started a thread about this very topic. Creating a More Effective Superhero (http://www.cityofheroes.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15600&highlight=more+effective+superhero) IS part of the fun of building a Superhero. Even better than that, there's a simple solution to the gimping problem you seem to be afraid of. The "Fast Start" characters you mentioned before in one of the Q&A's. Hell, call these characters Archetypes if you want. I even started a Thread - 'Fast Start' Template Discussion (http://www.cityofheroes.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=19902&highlight=classes) - about it. You would only need to limit the choice of powers for these specific "archetypes/ fast start characters" for those players who NEED them. I mean that's just one solution for preventing people from gimping themselves. There are many more different ways to do this and also have been mentioned in NUMEROUS threads like Character Balance (http://www.cityofheroes.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=22378&highlight=fast+play) in the CoH forums.)

It was also too easy for somebody who really knew what they do, ummm to design the perfect character, that didn’t need to team up, that was basically what we call in the industry a “Tank Mage”.

Maveric - Your telling me that a character that DOESN'T need to team up with other heroes is a "perfect" character AKA "Tank Mage". I seriously disagree with this whole heartedly. I believe the definition of a perfect character/ tank mage is a solo character that gains experience as fast (or faster) than someone who does team up with others, and also who handles most difficult situations with relative ease due to their unbalanced abilities. Teaming up should be an advantage, NOT a requirement. Soloing should NOT be a mere hindrance (takes longer to gain xp) but it SHOULD be an option. It sounds to me like Cryptic is singling out players that specifically like to SOLO and prefer not to team up (except mabey on rare occasions). This is NOT a good thing.

We didn’t want to do the Character Class route, (Maveric – but you did anyway) but we did want to do something that reflected what heroes were all about, and Archetypes are perfect. (Maveric – I can clearly see that my definition of "perfect" is a far cry from your definition) When you open up the pages of a comic book today. Heroes tend to fall into some basic categories.

Maveric – I Agree! But you should allows us, the players, the options to create any of those numerous basic categories. I even started a thread - Creating COH Classes.... sort of... (http://www.cityofheroes.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15701&highlight=classes) - in which myself and several other forum members recommended these NUMEROUS basic categories...

Now up on the screen, as you can see, there is four listed. (Maveric – NO!, We can't see because the camera is too far from the computer's monitor and the monkey operating the has started zooming EVEN MORE FARTHER away!!!)The first is the Blaster, this is the guy who is great at offense, but if you just tap him on the head he goes unconscious. (Maveric – You think this is a desirable Character?!? I can't think of any superhero in comics, which fit this description, but it sure as hell sounds very similar to the EQ Ranger class (great offense but goes down fast in battle.) So, he can hurl things at a distance and he’s really good up close but he just can’t take it. Then there’s the Defender, who is a long-range support specialist and doesn’t like to get into hand to hand. (Maveric – Ok, i can think of a few comic book characters that fall in this category but man this class sounds alot like The Archer template in AC (except archers had point blank shot) ) The Scrapper is the best at what he does.

(Maveric – OK, The monkey running the camera finally starts to zoom back on the video monitor, mabey we'll actually get to visibly "see" what Jack is describing... I mean that's the entire point of doing a video right? If not, then why didn't they just release a audio demo or a written transcript. I'm sorry to sound like a whiner but this was really driving me nuts, especially since Jack had dropped this huge nuclear bomb on me and I needed to understand why...)

The Scrapper is amazing at hand to hand combat, he is very good, he can last a while. (Maveric – OK, sounds cool, most of the standard comic book heroes fall in this category. Not very versatile though which is what I liked about the old system... ) But lastly, there’s the Tanker, and he is the big, strong, tough guy invulnerable to most attacks and he is also very good but not quite as deadly as the Scrapper is in a hand to hand. (Maveric – Sounds decent like the Scrapper but yet still too restrictive for my taste... ) (Now there is a fifth category, called the Controller. I don’t want to talk too much about that yet, but it will be coming down the pike. (Maveric – Given Cyrptic's past history with "information coming down the pike" you might as well drop any expectations of geting any details in a few days or weeks or mabey even months... If they do release that info soon, then good for them. I'm just basing my opinion on their past actions of the last year and a half. I can probably guess that this class has benefits with powers that control or manipulate game play features and AI. In other words this is going to be the Mage/Cleric class of EQ errr I mean of the new CoH. With all the "forced" restrictions (another sign of a class based system) it's as if the new CoH is forcing players to team up.) So you can have a combination of any Archetype and any Origin. (Maveric –Big Deal! Now that Origins aren't a template and don't determine powers, I find this hard to care about. What I mean is, before now, your Origin determined which powers you were better at than another Origin, but appearantly that is no longer the case.)

(Maveric – Ok, this is my last Monkey comment. From this point on in the video the camera monkey zooms in and out and all about a does the hokey pokey.... sorry, had to lighten up a bit because when I actually watched this video the first time I was screaming at this "monkey" and getting ready to punch my computer monitor - just to relieve some unnecessary aggravation this person was causing. Another point I wanted to bring up is that several times Jack would talk about a certain area on the computer screen and this person would be zooming in on a different part of the screen. My point is that this person's inexperience with handling a camera just added fuel to my growing rage about this new direction CoH has taken. Ok, so enough about the Camera Monkey and back to the post...)

The Archetypes determine the types of powers that you’ll receive. So I’m gonna just take a Blaster right now and walk you through that. Now you see in the left-hand column - three powers listed. They’re actually not powers, they’re Power Sets. (Maveric – Oh No! They are restricting certain powers to certain Archetypes another clear sign of a class based system. I see character customization dwindling away into cookie cutter version of heroes... Not Good! )
So when I select an energy blast, there are nine different variations of power blast. Each of these is virtually equivalent in their overall power, but they’re each different in strategically and tactically in use. (Maveric – This is starting to sound more like Mortal Kombat or Super Street Fighter! ) What this means is that, as a player becomes more powerful, gains access to more powers and learns more powers, then he gets more decisions to make during combat. You won’t have to purchase over and over again variations of each of these powers, they’re just simply more powerful or do more damage, those come automatically over time. (Maveric – This sounds like he's talking about levels and your powers increase as you increase in levels of your Archetype - another sign of the class based system. )


Every single Archetype chooses a Primary Power Set (the power they are best at) and a Secondary Power Set (the power they’re not quite as good at but still pretty darn good). These are the two powers that the heroes will forever be known uhh for.(Maveric – I don't want to be defined by my powers! I want to be defined by my accomplishments as a superhero. Super powers were only tools. That's why I liked the Superior Humans so much... ) So, I’m gonna choose energy blast right now. You see, there’s ice blast also fire blast. Most characters have somewhere between 5 and 8 Power Sets to choose from their Primary and Secondary Categories. Oh yeah one more thing, these Power Sets are not the same as one another. So what a Tanker has for his melee powers isn’t necessarily the same as a Scrapper. There is some crossover but not a ton of crossover. (Maveric – Even more restrictions! ) So I’m gonna choose power blast. And I’m gonna choose a [/b]Secondary Power[/b] – super strength. Now super strength brings up a really good point. We don’t have attributes anymore. (Maveric – What does this mean? Attributes are another feature that helped truly define your character!) Everything is reduced to the powers that a hero has. (Maveric – Oh No! They are simplifing every thing! CoH is starting to look more like an arcade game like Mortal Kombat or Gauntlet Legends... No Items, No Weapons, No Skills, only powers...) So if you want super agility, you actually choose that power into your Primary or Secondary Power Sets. So, I am choosing a uhh super punch and an energy blast.

*Whoop…(*side-note; Jack accidentally skips over the Avatar selection screen and goes to the costume creation screen ) Now, as before, we have three variations of uhhh avatars, that hasn’t changed. One thing we have added to costume creation, even more choices and selections like the random costume button which makes costume creating a lot of fun, if not to help you get a good costume, you can get a heck of a whack one too. So let me just go through a couple of times and you can see the different stuff we have available. That looks good. I’m gonna go right into the game and show you a little bit of paragon city and what’s changed.

(Maveric – It would probably look awesome if the video quality wasn't so shoddy! Didn't really need a random costume button but if it took alot of time to implement then I wish they had left it out. In all honesty I think this game feature - Costume Creation - alone will "sell" CoH, but once the "Eye Candy" loses it's flavor that's where the real test for CoH keeping a long term player base begins...)

Now, this is your ID card, where you’re gonna type your character name, so… Now, you have both your name (that’s gonna appear above your head)., then you have your nick name (this is gonna be what appears in people’s group windows). The various bits of information about the character, over time, gets put onto this ID card. And see that background slot at the bottom? That’s where you can enter text about your origin. People can click on you and read about that origin, uhh at some point, whenever they like… (Maveric – Cool, I kind of figured they would do something like this. )

Now, as you guys remember, Paragon City is divided into two different types of zones. (Maveric – No! this is incorrect! As I remember from a previous interview, it was stated that there were 3 types of zones, a city proper zone (safe) a hazard zone (dangerous) and a in-between zone with features of both the other type zones..)
There’s the City Zones, which is like Atlas Park here, average, normal, everyday, uhhh city with walking around doing their business, and in the Hazard Zones, areas that are so dangerous that nobody wants to enter into it. (Maveric – ok, so you only have 2 zones now. This doesn't really bother me... )
to be cont.

[Maveric]

Well, one thing that we used to have in the previous incarnation of the game - mission terminals. You would go to a mission terminal and uhhh request a mission and you would be directed to a particular location. Well, that’s not exactly the case anymore. The way things are gonna work now, are through Contacts. (Maveric – I really liked the Idea of Mission Terminals and the quick, medium, or epic missions. As long as this feature wasn't sacrificed I don't mind. Sometimes, I don't have time to "deal" with contacts and just want to go an a quick 30 minute or mission. If I can't do this in the new version of CoH, then chalk another complaint down on the board. I particularly don't like having to go and find/ search out these NPC's when I just want to jump into the game and do a quick mission. However it does facinate the explorer inside me, it's just I don't always have time to explore. Not to mention, the Lag factor will decrease because you won't have 100 heroes piling up at terminal locations. Also, Why couldn't they have both? they already had the terminals in place and ready to go... )

Contacts are essentially people you get to know throughout the city – NPCs; newspaper reporters, professors, scientists, police officers, uhhh your snitch in a back alley. Whoever it is, you’ll get to know them and get to know who they are and also the story of their lives. And each of these individuals of paragon city are going to be intricately intertwined with the various villain groups and the plots they’re up to. These [Contacts will help guide what you’re doing, and as you get to know them better, as you get to advance them, you will also get access to more and more different types of missions and also different types of Rewards. So right now I’m gonna go searching for some combat so I can show you what one of these Rewards are.


As you can see, City of Heroes is all lit up at night. And you’ll also notice that our UI (?Universal Interface?) is a little bit different, and a little bit more simplified. We now have a target window, which you can see up in the upper left-hand corner. And the Hit Points and the Endurance and so forth and the Tray has been streamlined. As before, every single Screen you can move around with out a problem. So, I’m just playing around with some of the dimensions. And I’m pretty sure we’ll find something just around the corner.

Now, another thing that’s different, as you can see in the distance there, there’s some thugs up to no good. This has changed, what we previously had were thugs in-groups that people you go and stop. Now, here there are actual crimes to be prevented. Maveric - Why not have both? You already had it in place...) So, if there, for instance, is a shady deal, you’ve got to be able to catch the bad men before he escapes. These are just the things that happen in normal City Zones. Now, every encounter is a uhhh “staged” encounter. So, it looks like a mugging is in progress. I’m gonna stop it. (Maveric – I'm a little leary of "staged" encounters but I'll reserve comment untill I've actually played out a few of these "staged" encounters...)

As you noted, now, the recharged time of various powers is now recorded by the fact that the icon now decreases in size. You can see each of the different information recorded in the target window about the target. There you saw my pow- super strength power punch. Now, exactly what I wanted. In the right-hand side of the Power Tray there is now a square Inspiration. Inspirations basically are “intangible” rewards, “dramatic” rewards that the player gets. So, in this particular case it’s Find A Weakness. What Find A Weakness does is allow a character to boost his damage for about a minute and a half or so. The, the second Inspiration (?) that I earned will heal me a few Hit Points. Inspirations are quick, easy-to-use, constantly coming, rewards, boost ups, power ups. You’ll be getting these throughout your play and will be a necessity when you go into your various missions and adventures. (Maveric – I don't like power ups and intangible temporary rewards. This reminds me of Super Mario brothers or Gauntlet. It also seems like they are trying to make CoH more like an arcade/ console game. Where's the freakin' joystick? I particularly don't like the thought of these temporary power ups being a necessity. I liked the old CoH because all you had to rely on was your skills, power and equipment.)

Now, I’m gonna show you… Oh, by the way, there’s a lucky victim thanking me. You can see him saying,“You’re the best”(Jack replies “No Problem citizen, be safe”).

OK, now let me show you the last reward uhh element and then… uhh well… We’re gonna call it a night. So, here we are on the menu, I’m gonna open up… Powers. Now see these Hexagons that are empty? These Hexagons represent Specializations. Specializations are individual tweaks to damage, range, endurance. Things that you get as rewards for playing. You’ll slot them into your Powers, but once they’re slotted in, you can’t remove them, but if you have Specializations in slots you can try to combine them and certain Skills increase your chance of being able to combine them successfully. So, if you have two ranges you could, of +10 feet you could try to combine them to be +20 feet, but be careful, you might lose them both. This preserves the intent we always had in the beginning, of people creating characters that they want.

(Maveric – I think that's bull crap. That does not even come close to preserving the large amount customization that you have raped the original concept of...)

These Specializations and Inspirations come not only through encounters, but they are also gonna be able to come from your contacts that you can purchase through Influence. Influence is the currency of City of Heroes which you will be earning on a constant basis. That’s it for now, but really it’s only the beginning. There’s a lot more to see in Paragon City, and over the coming days, (Maveric – As I mentioned before, when you say days, we don't know if you mean 2 days or 365 days from now... ) I can’t wait to show it to you. (Maveric – You've waited nearly two years to show us this what's to make us believe you now?) So, uhhh until then, I’ll see you in Paragon City… END (Maveric – Jack's grammer is horrible and I'm only complaining about that because he's supposed to be offering official game information, otherwise I don't much care about grammar as long as I can understand what your saying. Jack uses the words "So", "Now", and or "Uhhh..." in nearly every sentence. I took 4 years of public speaking in high school and the one thing I learned was that these words basically mean that the speaker has now clue what he's going to say next, that they are "improvising".



Maveric - Okay, please realize this is only part of the reason I was feeling so angry and frustrated at the time.

Another reason is because of my dedication to CoH. Let me describe briefly what my dedication to this game consisted of -

Several hours of forum participation on a regular every day basis
Creation of numerous Reference threads
Helping run an informational fansite devoted specifically to CoH
Promoting the game on numerous other message forums
Spreading the word about CoH around the local game/comic shops
E-mailing every superhero/game related websites/magazine about CoH
Showing extreme patience with Cryptic Studio's false promises

The main thing I want to know is WHY? Why did you totally redevelop the game. I don't buy the whole "Tank Mage" lame excuse for one minute. Was it for marketing reasons? Was the Game Balance to hard to deal with? NCSoft put the squeeze (pressure) on you? Was there an inside personal squabble over the direction of the game? Company Politics? When did Cryptic realize that it needed to basically start all over and redesign the concept? I suspect it was in February when the Information black out started. Why didn't Cryptic warn us? I mean there is a big difference in making changes to the game and virtually redesigning the game itself from the beginning. The only thing I recognize about the new CoH is the Costume Creator. Why did Cryptic let us continue build a website based on that old information knowing it would all be in vain, wasted, useless...? Why did Cryptic allow forum members like myself to create information threads and constantly reinforce this information into new forum members, knowing what they knew?

You see, when I realized that Cryptic "killed" the old CoH I slowly but surely realized something.

I was addicted to the game. Sadly, I feel most forum readers won't or can't possibly relate to what "addiction" is. I know addiction, even been on intimate terms with it. I've seen and dealt with it my entire life in various forms. I'll let you figure that out on your own. I thought I had conquered and rose above such a sad and pathetic way of life. I thought I was smarter than that. What's the worst part is that I didn't realize that I was addicted to the game. I mean, I played D&D and Asheron's Call for years but never came close to matching the participation/ desire for this game. I didn't even realize it could happen to me much less to a game that wasn't even released yet. At the time, when I realized that the old CoH was gone and not coming back I started going through physical and emotional withdrawal symptoms. It was like I was a crack addict and suddenly found myself on a desert island without a dime bag for millions of miles...

As I mentioned in another post, I vomited 3 times that night while I was at work. Even today, the depression and physical illness lingers. I'd like to think it's my intelligence, common sense, and acknowledgement of what has happened to me that has kept me from truly "freaking" out.

In a way, I guess I should thank Cryptic for killing such a brilliant concept, because I might not have known exactly how bad my situation was.

Because of this I have resigned my appointment by the gracious Pharoh as Site Administrator for The Registry. I think It's apparent that I have lost my taste for superhero culture and I am thoroughly displeased with this brand new and different game called City of Heroes.

Speaking of The Registry, which gets virtually no respect from the Cryptic/ NCSoft staff, I am very saddened about how the Cryptic and NCSoft Staff have treated it. It wasn't until recently that they finally got off their @sses and added The Registry to the Fansite list. Even Leilo's quote seems to be nothing more than just another empty promise.

Leilo: I'd love to work with the fansites as much as they want, to be honest. There's a really great thing about game fansites... The people who devote their time to creating those sites are often some of the most dedicated and knowledgeable fans out there, and they can both grow the community and inform the community beyond the scope of the actual game company. In that sense, I think they're one of the most important parts of what my team works for. :)

Especially since The Registry has been the second longest running fansite around, yet other sites like the incompetent and disrespectful CoHStratics get the "pat on the back" and community interaction from the Cryptic/ NCSoft staff... (that's my opinion, not Pharoh's)

Speaking of adding insult to injury, check this out -

I’d like to ask all of our long-term forum members for help in making sure that as new people arrive on this forum, they are sent to up-to-date sources for all their information. I know that some of you in the past have created threads that compile info about City of Heroes, but please do not refer anyone to threads of that sort unless you are sure that they are still accurate by comparing that info to the Support Knowledge Base and the City of Heroes website. Anything new about the game released in the future will be added in these two places. - Aura

She might have well as just labeled "Attention Maveric" because out of all the forums members I'm one of the few that actually made reference threads and it's something I'm actually known for. I'm also the one constantly reinforcing direct quotes about the game (in it's previous incarnation) to new forum members and she obviously felt the need to display this publicly. I understand it's not her fault. It's her job. She is just a tool, a hammer if you will. NCSoft is her brand name and Cryptic is the one swinging her around. Me?, I guess that makes me the common board nail.


to be cont.

[AfterglowNoMore]

I remember the original powersets being so much different than they are now, like Radiation Control was supposed to have a possibility of infecting passersby(Citizens) negatively. And Density Control before it got seperated into many different power sets. I remember my first team with Afterglow called The Peacekeepers of Paragon, then shorted to Peacekeepers, which started out as people with a Crey grudge, then became closer to a New Warriors homage, which then became a sort of government funded paramilitary team.

And I remember one of Mav's pics that he did of Spatula of Doom, that always made me laugh.

[Graphite]

I remember that that was the period of time when I was most creative. All my characters had descriptions, origins and crappy heromachine pictures. By the time of beta, I had 10 characters ready to roll. New thoughts and new ideas were just easier then, not bogged down by game mechanics. So many wonderful artists, storytellers and comedians...

My only regret was not being more active on the boards. Spent alot of time reading but never really paticpating.

[Maveric]

And I remember one of Mav's pics that he did of Spatula of Doom, that always made me laugh.

this one or the photo of some guy wearing sunglasses holding a spatula like thor's hammer?

[Maveric]

this one or the photo of some guy wearing sunglasses holding a spatula like thor's hammer?
or this one?

[Maveric]

I Remember when Rick Dakan was the Lead Game Designer for CoH...


City of Heroes Design Journal #13
Episode 13: Find out what having Fame means from the superhero game's Lead Designer at Cryptic, Rick Dakan.

December 11, 2002 - Now the greatest metropolis in America, Paragon City began in the 18th century as a quiet group of colonial coastal villages. By the time of the bloody Civil War, its location had helped it become a major port. After that conflict came decades of prosperity and continued expansion as a center for industry, science and commerce, which left it particularly vulnerable to the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression that followed. The collapse of the economic order brought both social and political chaos. Various criminal elements, both organized and random, quickly moved in to take advantage. Through bribery, intimidation and murder, the mobs seized control. Corruption became ubiquitous. With every politician and cop seemingly on the take, there was no one to stand for the ordinary citizens and the cause of justice - until The Statesman.

Over the ensuing decades, Paragon City attracted more super-powered heroes than anywhere else on the planet, but even their combined efforts proved unable to eliminate crime completely. As a result, when Cryptic Studios' City of Heroes launches next year, players will take up the cause of good. Using a system that allows nearly countless variations, they will create avatars that will then set forth to fight evil and to keep the citizenry safe. This will be no easy task, for the city's prosperity has drawn a number of formidable villain organizations. These groups will offer up a diverse range of nefarious and powerful adversaries including super-villains, aliens, madmen, underground monsters, gangsters and more. Success against them will, of course, lead to Fame, which is the topic for the latest journal written for us by Lead Designer Rick Dakan.



I wanna live forever...

Not to long ago, an interview with me appeared on GameSpy (including a slightly psychedelic-looking shirt that the digital camera apparently didn't like at all). The next day, I got an e-mail from an old friend who lives in Ireland. I hadn't heard from him in over a year, but he saw the interview and was thus spurred on to write. That night, I had a dream where this very bizarre, creepy guy I knew in college had also seen the interview and was stalking me through Disney World. In the end, we fought and, naturally enough, I defeated him. And in the dream, I thought "Hmmm, that kinda sucked. Oh well, the price of Fame I guess." Then I woke up.

And so that naturally brings me to today's topic. Fame. From the very beginning, Fame was destined to play a role in City of Heroes. That's one of the many things that makes superheroes in comics so interesting; they live in a world that recognizes them and lauds or declaims their accomplishments. Everyone in the DC Universe loves Superman and knows who he is. Every criminal in Gotham City knows Batman and fears him. Every reader of the Daily Bugle in Spider-Man knows the famed web-slinger and either loves him or hates him. The Fantastic Four used to live in a building with a giant "4" on the top and everyone in Marvel's America knows who they are.

Fame also has its practical benefits in the comics as well, and for City of Heroes, this proved to be an important point of inspiration. The Avengers have saved the world enough, are respected and famed enough, that they get government clearances and support from world leaders. The same is true for the JLA. Even the X-Men (at least the Ultimate version) received some government-sanctioned support for their good works. Well, up until this whole Ultimate War thing started up...

We knew we wanted Fame to play a similar role in City of Heroes. We wanted players to experience some real, practical benefits for gaining fame. Likewise, we wanted them to worry some about losing it, too. After all, bad press seldom helps Spider-Man do his job and we wanted heroes in our game to suffer a similar fate for their misdeeds (although we promise you'll only be penalized for your actual misdeed, not because the editor of the paper doesn't like you).

So, in City of Heroes, every time you do something good, you earn Fame. Doing good is pretty much everything you would imagine - defeating villains, rescuing hostages, completing missions, and generally helping to protect the city from the many, many dangers that beset it. In short, every time you earn Fame, you also earn experience. And also like experience, when you earn enough fame points you gain a Fame Level.


What good is all this fame? Well, your Fame Level provides you with access to certain perks, like fancy stores or just a friendlier reception from the citizens of Paragon City. On a more nuts and bolts level, Fame also determines your hero's Influence. If fame is the general barometer of the city's goodwill towards you, influence is how you put that goodwill to work. As you gain Fame Points, you also gain Influence Points, and the maximum number of Influence you can have is determined by your Fame Level.

Influence points are sort of like currency, except you can't spend them on other people. In effect, they're a stylized way for your player to ask for favors from the game. What kinds of favors? Well, we do in fact have things called Favors, which you receive from Hero Organizations. These are one-use events of some sort that you ask for ahead of time and then use when needed. For example, an emergency teleport out of a dangerous location or some timely medical assistance are both commonly requested Favors. A hero's Fame Level determines the number of favors he or she can ask for.

You can also use your influence to get special items. These are often experimental technology or even mystic pieces of equipment that work very differently from other items. In game terms, this means that they are equipped in a body slot not normally associated with their function. For instance, most body armor type items must be equipped in a chest slot. A special influence item might be usable in some other slot, like the belt or head. These great items are technically only on loan to the hero, so they can't be traded or sold to other heroes.

Influence has other uses as well. For example, Hero Organizations often reserve their toughest and most important missions for their most qualified heroes. A hero who wants to get assigned such an important task had better have some connections and know the right people - which means spending influence. Of course the experience and rewards for completing these vitally important and difficult jobs usually makes the cost worthwhile.

As you can see, Paragon City offers plenty of perks for the famous and successful hero. However, it is less forgiving of those who don't live up to its expectations. Unlike Experience, Fame and even Influence can go down as well as up. Whenever a player does something less than heroic they lose fame points, and possibly even fame levels. For example, failing to succeed on a mission once you've agreed to undertake is a big no-no and will take a chunk out of your fame. Likewise, getting defeated by a villain and teleported off to a hospital (dying in other words) may be the result of heroic actions but also causes people to lose confidence in you.

The result of this system is that fame loss is one of the primary penalties for "dying" in City of Heroes. We did this because there's nothing I hate more than losing experience in an RPG, and I know many other players feel the same way. Losing Fame isn't quite so bad. Fame certainly has its uses and Influence can play a big role in a hero's life, but even if you somehow lose every point of fame, your Energy Blast will still hurt just as much when you smack your enemies with it.

And look, I've managed to avoid using more than one reference to a certain 80's movie with a catchy title song and spin off TV series that is pulsing through my brain even as I write this.

Now where did I put those leg warmers...

Rick Dakan
Lead Designer, City of Heroes
Cryptic Studios

[AfterglowNoMore]

this one or the photo of some guy wearing sunglasses holding a spatula like thor's hammer?
That's the one.

[Maveric]

I remember intelligent discussions on how powers (like Telekinesis) should or could work in the game...

I posted earlier references of what others imagine Telekinesis is and how it should be handeled but this time i am posting my views and opinions about it...

Telekinisis by my definition is the ability of mind over matter, or simply the ability to move objects by just thinking about it.

if i were to write a comic book i would put a more realistic spin on superpowers and how they would react in a bit more realistic environment...

YES, I DO realize this is a game and COH is basing their powers/ concepts on the comics books so bare with me...

I have noticed a lot of powers that are related to Telekinesis that i can't really understand --- going by "my" definition of course...

*for instance telekinetic shields and bolts... while i can imagine that a Telekinetic could move an object (with his mind) to be hurled at a target or perhaps be moved in-between an incoming missile as a shield but i can't see how you can make a shield or bolt of "force" (what exactly is "force") out of nothingness... this seems to me that it would be a different power IMO, which i might call Psi blast / Psi Shield... *

By my definition you could levitate and move objects including yourself. You could physically manipulate objects without actually touching them with your body but instead your mind.

while this may simulate a Levitation/ Flight power it could not be as powerful because of the following reasons - 1. it requires some if not total concentration. (you get distracted --- you go splat!)2. Telekinesis wouldn't protect your skin from being ripped off your bones if you tried to levitate or fly yourself at mach 5 speeds... 3. Telekinesis wouldn't prevent Wind (turbulence -sp?), lack of Oxygen at high altitudes/speeds.

Being able to physically manipulate objects without touching them could be quite beneficial depending on how much control/ practice/ and power level the TK has...

Imagine moving somebody's internal organs from their insides to the outside, or perhaps a skilled enough TK could make someone Implode...

Twist someone's neck 360 degrees.

close someone's nose and hold his mouth shut.

Hold someone still (mimics paralyzation)

[Maveric]

I remember when CoH heroes could choose any power from any powerset. There were discussions on what combinations of powers would make a more effective hero (regardless of role-playing characteristics)... I honestly feel that these discussions had some effect on the decision by Jack Emmert (and Jack alone) to redesign the game.

Creating a more effective Super Hero...

What should be the requirements for creating the ultimate super hero (most effective within the given limitations as described by the Origin Templates)?

here are some suggestions -

Combat Versatility, Ability to deal various types of damage
Combat Effectiveness, Ability to damage multiple enemies at once
Resiliency, Ability to recover, resist, and prevent damage
Dependability, Ability to work within a team environment
Independence, Ability to overcome obstacles alone with little aid
Mobility, Ability to maneuver quickly and efficiently
Perception, Ability to detect and locate objects efficiently


Please feel free to add to the list, this does not include playing style but feel free to add comments...

I have found that in almost every combat game I have ever played the same rule has always applied without fail...

Speed kills.

Why would you have to worry about taking damage if you can kill you opponent in the first few blows?

Also, it's better to deal multiple guaranteed minimum damage attacks rather than one random attack that might or might not deal more damage than the previous attack. Basically, play the odds.

Example- I'd rather strike with a 1-4 damage dagger Four times rather than strike twice with a 1-8 damage sword in a combat round... odds are better with the dagger that you will deal more damage over a few rounds of combat...

My point isn't to create a superman or uber character but instead how to make the most "effective" character with the given limitations described by the Origin Templates...

I agree that no hero can be a one-man army but you can make a hero more effective than another hero.

For example; if you have a hero with only defensive capabilities and no offense. He might work well in a team environment but would have a very hard time independently...

Complimentary Powers...

Part of making a more effective Super Hero would be including complimentary powers...

for example Super Agility grants bonuses to Martial Arts, Super Willpower grants bonuses to Psionics, and Super Intelligence grants bonuses to Skills...

another example would be Flight/ Super Stamina. Flight as we know drains alot of Endurance. Super Stamina grants bonuses to Endurance...

I have mentioned Mobility as a possible characteristic of a more effective hero...

When I listed it, I was thinking along the lines of agility, speed, movement and Transportation...

I got to thinking about that. Since there is a Monorail system that will help heroes get around town, just how badly does a hero need to have a "traveling" type power. Not to mention you will have access to items that can duplicate those effects (albeit at a lesser effectiveness)...

I guess it depends on the routes/ stops of the Monorail system as well as the effectiveness of the items than can duplicate those type powers...

…but do you really NEED Transportation type powers to build a better more effective hero... ?

Reason is, as I will most likely be taking a Superior Human, having the fewest Super Power Slots available I have to access exactly which powers are the most effective for my Origin...

"Playing Style" is another topic which hasn't really been discussed yet…

I'm not really referring to role-playing unless you plan on playing a more realistic version of a superhero like a Police type or Fireman type character....

Don't get me wrong, I not sayin' everyone should or shouldn't role-play this way or that way, or use specific player tactics...

I know everyone has their own playing style and techniques for MMORPG’s but some techniques are more effective than others.

An example that comes to mind from EQ is using a ranged weapon to pull a monster away from a large group to defeat him more effectively without getting pounded on by his friends... Another example, In Asheron's Call it was using walls or terrain features to snipe monsters that could not reach you.

Anyone have any special techniques or tactics they have used in other MMORPG's that may or may not be useful in CoH, that you want to share?

[Maveric]

I remember Fame. It was a gameplay feature that was unique to the original vision of CoH....
While there aren't any traditional experience levels in the game, there will be levels for your Fame rating. "With fame you get different titles and adjectives describing who you are as a superhero like 'The Heroic', 'The Daring', 'The Dashing', and 'The Famed'. There're fifty different levels of fame. The difference between that and your traditional levels is that it fluctuates depending on how you're doing as a hero. If you succeed in a mission you gain fame, you fail in a mission you lose fame, if you don't play for four months, you'll lose a little bit of fame. So that it's basically your measure of how successful a superhero you are. It can go up and down." Basically the Fame rating ends up acting as a bit of a reward system for those that play a lot and are a bit more skillful than others. "The more famous you are in a server, if you're in the top five or ten, your face will start appearing on billboards, they'll be statues in your honor and they'll be NPCs that stop and wave to you and stuff like that."
Even though Fame is mainly used as a "status Barometer", there are some affects to the gameplay that will have folks striving for better status. There will also be hazard levels, mission types as well as some other little options that you can get when you reach certain fame levels. You'll also need to be careful around the natives however. Your Fame could go down if you unleash some of your devastating power around the mere humans in the game because you're endangering people's lives. - Jack Emert aka Statesman

DivisMal: Will fame have to be maintained, such as to get higher levels of fame you have to do bigger things, not necessarily more things - how will individual fame differ from group fame?
Jack Emmert: Group fame will depend upon the vagaries of every member - but individual fame will reflect only what a single player's actions are. Fame will have to be maintained to a degree - but you won't necessarily need to do more things, perhaps just "larger", or epic, things.

Ogg: There has been mention of NPC's reacting to heroes fame levels. Will we see other interaction from them as well? And how static/non-static will they be (wandering the city or always found in the same place)?
Jack Emmert: That depends on the NPC, really. We might have some types of NPC's that are found only in certain parts of the city, but there aren't plans to root any down in one place. Though things may change.

[SovietGary]

I miss the pre I1 days and the I1 to I2 days. they were fun.

[Maveric]

I remember items, equipment, and a sense of achievement...


Items and A Sense of Achievement - a designers journal entry by CoH lead game designer Rick Dakan

Okay, let's delve into some nuts and bolts-type game design stuff. Stuff, in fact, is the subject at hand. Items, equipment, weapons. You know, stuff. Items are a tremendously important part of most online RPGs. Heck, they're a big part of almost all RPGs - computer, console or tabletop. From my very first D&D character, a lot of the fun of playing RPGs was looking forward to that next magic sword or enchanted ring that would give my character a much-needed boost. This need continues to be a tremendous factor in all of the online RPGs out there right now, with the added complexity of trading and selling of items in the game to other players making the item issue all the more interesting. Either way, obviously there's enough complexity to items in an online game that they deserve some careful thought.

This might make one wonder why I didn't give them much thought in the beginning when I started thinking about City of Heroes. Well, with a few bat-exceptions, items don't play a particularly large part in most comics. Or if they do, it's just the one really powerful or iconic item, like Captain America's shield or Green Lantern's ring. The heroes don't usually acquire gobs of doodads that they use for a while until they find something better. Nine times out of 10, it's the characters' powers and personalities that define them.

And so, my original thought was to focus on the development of powers as one of the cornerstones of the player's experience in City of Heroes. You'll (hopefully) be glad to know that my thinking remains largely the same. Powers are, and continue to be a cornerstone to this game and definitely play the primary role in defining a hero. Indeed, it is only for those heroes (Superior Humans) whose paucity of powers defines them that we needed to really address items in a comprehensive manner. We knew we wanted to have them, but how to do it?

But step over here with me for a moment, into the realm of game design theory. For many games, items fulfill a very specific and terribly important role - they provide a sense of achievement. Acquiring and using better and rarer swords, wands, shields, magic rings and other gewgaws helps a player see a real difference between those early days and their current lofty status. After all, wizards get new spells to try out, but fighters, thieves and other less flashy fantasy heroes need new and better items to reach their full potential. Even wizards and priests get in on the action, with new spell-related items. Item acquisition sits right in the heart of our RPG heritage as a delicious carrot urging us to keep playing and getting more and more stuff.

In online games in particular, the acquisition of items is an important part of showing other people just how cool and powerful your character is. If you're wearing the ultra-rare panda armor and wielding the incredibly powerful blade of ultimate nullification, then anyone who happens to walk by you is bound to be impressed. This is, I think, a pretty cool little social dynamic. It's especially important in games where, when you start out, all the characters of a given class and race look very similar indeed. Then, having these different items plays a big role in setting your guy apart from that other 50th level knight. He's only got a blade of penultimate nullification.



The problem with this model, from my point of view, is that it doesn't work very well with City of Heroes. We have this amazing costume creation system with billions of different options. We want players to take a little time and make their very own hero, with a costume that reflects whatever image they want to portray of themselves. We don't want to go changing that specially designed costume every time the hero picks up a new item that boosts their abilities some way. We wanted to give the flexibility and sense of achievement that comes with items, but we wanted players to feel that their special costume really meant something and helped define their character.

As is so often the case, I turned to Dr. Doom for answers. Although, I could have just as easily have asked Batman or Iron Man or even Green Arrow. Which is to say, I can't really ask any of them anything because they don't exist. I know that. Really, I do. Honest. What I meant to say is that I drew my inspiration from these costumed heroes and villains for an answer to my item problem. You see, Dr. Doom pretty much always looks the same. Why? Because he looks so freaking cool, there's no reason for him to change. Besides, that armor of his is full of all kinds of interesting tricks.

You never know what little trick Doom has rigged into his armor. This time around, it might have tougher plating that can stand up to a punch from the Thing. Next time, it might have infrared sensors to snoop out Sue Richards' location. You get my point. He upgrades the costume without changing its appearance. Batman does the same thing. Who knows what gadget might get pulled out of the utility belt (although these days he thankfully relies more on his mind and abilities than on gadgets)?

And so, that brings us to items in City of Heroes. Basically, there are two very broad categories of item that I'm going to talk about today - items you use in your hand, and items that are, in fact, costume upgrades. Items you use in your hand are, for the most part, weapons. Whenever you're using a weapon of any sort, you see your character holding it then swinging/shooting/stabbing as appropriate. There are a fair number of these in the game, but not tons and tons and tons. After all, most heroes and many villains rely on their super-powers when it comes to fighting.

The much larger class of items we're talking about today is the costume upgrades. These are not even necessarily "items" in the strictest sense of the word. They are, as their name suggests, enhancements to the hero's costume. For game purposes, the costume is divided into five different regions - head, chest, belt, gloves/arms, and boots/legs. Each of these regions has a number of different slots where heroes can place costume upgrades. This assumes that the hero has the skill and security clearance to use a given item of course. Different origin types have different numbers of slots available. Mutants for example have the bare minimum of slots, while Superior Humans and Gadgeteers have much more flexibility.

So what do these "items" do anyway? Well, they're good for a lot of different things. Some of the most basic ones provide you with a little extra protection (Kevlar weaves in your costume) or a little boost to your attributes or even helps focus your powers. More powerful upgrades let you use powers and abilities you don't normally possess. Of course, these items can't rival the potency of a hero's innate powers, but they can provide an extra boost or advantage when needed.

Do all heroes need these items? Certainly not. Like I said, powers are still the main focus of this game. Players can create compelling, fun, effective heroes who focus on developing their innate abilities, helping the city in its time of need, and discovering all the mysteries and dangers that Paragon City has to offer. My point is, rather, that the items are there for those who want to become involved with them. The game is not about acquiring items. For those who want to keep score and compare one hero to another, we instead focus on accomplishments. What have you done for the city and your fellow citizens? That's the true measure of a hero. Items can be a tool that helps to accomplish that goal for some heroes, but items do not "make the man" for most heroes.

Indeed, one of the things I like most about treating most items as costume enhancements is that this firmly leaves the focus on the heroes themselves. One hero is not cooler than another because of his sword or armor. He's cooler because of what he has done and what he's going to do. Our fame and mission systems are all designed to reinforce these concepts. How exactly do they do this? Well, those are topics for another time, I'm afraid. Boy, I can really be quite a tease sometimes can't I? I know it's kind of cheesy, but I'm not going to release design information before its time. I think you'll like it though, and I can assure you it's not like anything else that's out there right now (easy for me to say, I know, but trust me).

[Maveric]

I remember Origin templates


Summary of Origins

CoH has seven origins each with its set of strengths and weaknesses. Some of these include: maximum number of powers, maximum power level, rate of character advancement, endurance cost, item use, and proficiency in using skills. While exact numbers will not be determined until during beta testing, the details of what we do know about each characteristic are given below.

Maximum number of powers
Many – Mutant, Gadgeteer
Medium – Mystic Artifact(?)
Few – Altered Human, Magical Powers, Cyberware, Superior Human
(Note: It has also been stated that heroes have between 3 and 8 powers to start with. Mutants start with the most and Superior Humans start with the least.)

Maximum power level
High – Altered Human, Magical Powers
Medium – Mystic Artifact(?), Cyberware(?)
Low – Gadgeteer, Mutant
Lowest – Superior Human
(Note: Superior Humans also have a higher maximum attribute level than the other origins.)

Rate of character advancement
Normal – Magical Powers, Cyberware, Gadgeteer, Mutant, Superior Human
Slow – Altered Human, Mystic Artifact

Endurance cost
Improved – Gadgeteer, Altered Human, Cyberware, Mystic Artifact
Standard – Magical Powers, Mutant, Superior Human

Item Use
Tech Items – Superior Human, Gadgeteer, Cyberware
Magic Items – Superior Human, Magical Powers, Mystic Artifact
Neither – Altered Human, Mutant

Skills
It has been stated that the Superior Human has a higher maximum skill level than any of the other origins. It is uncertain if the rate of advancement for their skills is improved as well. It is also uncertain if some of the other origins get similar advantages with some skills such as the Gadgeteer with science skills.


Commentary on each origin

Altered Human
Strengths: Highest Maximum Power Level, Reduced Endurance Cost
Weaknesses: Few Powers, Slow Advancement, Little or no Item Usage

Comments: With few powers and few items, Altered Humans have the least diversity of any origin. Additionally this origin shouldn't get more than one control power because of its slow advancement. Consequently the Altered Human will work much better on a team than solo.
Their strength is the ability to use high endurance powers at potentially the maximum level. Players interested in focusing on a high endurance power should pick this origin. In other words if you are mostly a "one trick pony", but that one thing will drain your endurance than this is the origin for you.

Magical Powers
Strengths: Highest Maximum Power Level, Magical Items
Weaknesses: Few Powers, Regular Endurance Cost

Comments: The most striking difference between this origin and the Altered Human is that it trades an endurance benefit for better advancement. Therefore characters which will have a few powers with low or no endurance cost should pick this origin. Yes, as strange as it may seem, a character with Super Strength, Invulnerability, and Leaping (like the Hulk) should choose the Magical Powers origin.
Alternately, a character that wanted to have some powerful control powers could also choose this origin as the advancement rate would not be as slow as the Altered Human. Unfortunately the character would also have to use these powers sparingly if they have a high endurance cost.
Though their item use makes them slightly more versatile than the Altered Human, Magical Powers still have only a few powers and can not use them as often if they are high endurance powers. Consequently they also make better team characters than solo.

Cyberware
Strengths: Endurance Benefit, High Tech Items
Weaknesses: Few Powers

Comments: Cyberware characters apparantly have one of the best endurance benefits of any origin. Therefore they are the best origin for powers which have a frequently repeated usage(such as Energy Blast or Teleport) and a high endurance cost. Also they do not have the advancement drawback of Altered Humans and so are a good origin for control powers if you do not mind the slightly lower maximum power level.
Depending on how this character is built it could be useful for solo or group play. A Cyberware blaster would make an excellent group character. However a Cyberware with several control powers could solo quite well. They also can use High Tech items to round out their character more.

Mystical Artifact
Stengths: Balanced, Endurance Benefit, Magical Items
Weaknesses: Slow Advancement

Comments: This origin is perhaps the most balanced of any of the origins. Presumably they have an average amount of powers and a medium maximum power level. They can also aquire other magical items to cover any weaknesses they might have. The only real disadvantage this origin has is its slow advancement level which means that it should stay away from control powers, but other than that there are a lot of options.
This character type could make for a very good solo character, but might feel left behind on a team as their team mates reach the higher power levels faster.

Gadgeteer
Strengths: Many Powers, Endurance Benefit, High Tech Items
Weaknesses:Low Maximum Power Level

Comments: This origin is screaming "Please play me solo". They can use many powes and use them often as long as they bring enough batteries. Additionally what their powers can't do, they can make up for with other high tech items. This origin will have a power or gizmo for every situation making them ideal for solo play.
Unfortunately since they can't reach a high power level they may not be so useful in a group unless the developers give them advantages with certain science skills (which would be useful to a team).

Mutant
Strengths: Many Powers
Weaknesses: Normal Endurance Cost, Low Maximum Power Level, Little or no Item Usage

Comments: This origin basically has one advantage, powers, but it has this in spades. If you want a character with a lot of powers, then this is the one for you. However one shouldn't take too many powers with a high endurance cost since this origin doesn't have the endurance benefits of the other origins. High endurance powers should be used in reserve instead of at the beginning of every encounter.
While a mutant could easily be designed to be played solo, their many powers could also be used for ultra-focusing by getting several powers which would complement one another. Imagine a mutant with Super Strength, Super Agility, Super Endurance, Regeneration, Absorption, Invulnerability, Martial Arts, and Power Punch. I believe that such a Mutant would be more than a match for any other character in Hand-to-Hand combat.

Superior Human
Strengths: Highest Maximum Level in all Skills, Higher Maximum Attribute Levels, Not Limited in Item Usage
Weaknesses: Fewest Number of Powers, Lowest Maximum Power Levels, No Endurance Benefit (Not like it really needs one)

This origin is really not like any of the others. This is the origin for heroes who do not want flashy powers. However this does not make them weak since they can not only use any item in the game, but can also use these items better than any other origin in the game. This origin is oozing with versatility since they will have a skill or item to deal with virtually any obstacle.
Since they have so much versatility this origin will excell at solo play. However their many skills will also make them valuable team members. Superior Humans can literally thrive in any setting.

[Yin]

Mwuhaha.

Yin was a Mystical Artifact character with Air Control, Ice Control, Earth Control, Fire Control, and Storm Control. Flight was in their somewhere. I can't remember if MA was rumored to have 5-6 powers. Dunno. I wonder if it'd be possible to have Statesman actually tell us how many powers each got now that that concept is no more. Oiy. The good ol' days. That was when Yin was truly "Father of the Elements." Now I have to RP him doing things with other elements. Oh well.

I really wish the old concept was successful. I do believe there would be more things to do in game other than missions. That old concept drew me in like a crackhead. The fact that if you wanted to be a Speedster, you could be just that. No MA/SR. No MA/REG. No nothing. You could select Superspeed, Super Stamina, and Super Endurance and be on your merry little way surviving the city and your team as one. With this concept, I actually tried the whole "speedster" role once. Just wasn't the same when I had to wait until 14. In the mean time I suddenly have uber 1337 fighting skillz and a healing factor - none of which was a part of the original concept.

But hey. We can't change it. It is the way it is. We can dream. We can hope. Heck. Someone might even actually try and take that old concept and turn it into the real thing (and that will be the day CoH has a mass exodus), but until then, I think the game we have now will do. ;)

I really wish they would archive the entire old forums. I PMed States and actually got a reply about that. Said something technical that I forget, but the answer was pretty much a no. How I wish to go through all 200+ pages of the old Children of the Elements thread with images and urls all saved. But, again, it's all gone. I guess they didn't want to leave ANY traces of the old game save what's left of the old site. Not all the power descriptions and stuff are there.

EDIT: THE JUMONJI RYU! I miss those guys too. Whatever happened to them? They were the "Evolution" peoples I guess you could say back then. Was all about PvP, and was real focused on achieving a variety of things in game. And too add, we lost so many good SG groups. I remember the day the blue/green forum template came up. Everyone got all lost and confused, then it rolled downward from there. n00bs infested the forums, we moved over to the Nexus forums, badda-bing, badda-boom, we're here. Man does time fly.

[Maveric]

I remember trying in vain to explain to the noobs the truth about CoH, Cryptic, and their past...


There's a lot of new people that recently registered here in the forums who just don't understand...

A Brief History of City of Heroes in a Nutshell

July of 2000 - Cryptic Studios was formed when a group of three former Atari employees and two members of the paper and pencil role-playing industry came together under one roof. According to the group, it took a long time for them to find a publisher for City of Heroes. Eventually, Cryptic decided that they had gotten far enough with the game on their own, and created the City of Heroes web site to declare their intentions publicly and generate game industry buzz that would attract the right kind of publisher. About 14 months later… The website goes online.

September 26, 2001 - San Jose, CA - Cryptic Studios proudly announces "City of Heroes," a massively multi-player online world home to an entire universe of super-powered, comic book style adventure. When the game releases next summer, thousands of players can take on the roles of superheroes, fight villains, and help create the story in a stunning, 3D graphical world, courtesy of the San Jose-based developer.

It was during the next few months that Cryptic quickly built a strong following. It was during this time we were lead to believe that the game would be released in a matter of months (that following summer) and so Beta (which usually lasts a few months) would be near at hand. At first Cryptic unleashed a lot of game information. New information was released on a weekly basis sometimes even twice a week. After the first couple of months the amount of information began to taper off as summer came closer and closer. The updates started slowing down to once or twice a month.

About 6 months later… Cryptic acquires a Publisher (NCSoft)

Monday, March 11, 2002 - NCsoft to publish City of Heroes!

There was an entire month (Apr 2002) without any updates at all. The reason we were told is because NCSoft needed time to evaluate the game and that they would take over community interaction. (I.E. Step in – Leilo and Aura the NCSoft representatives)

It wasn’t until May (the beginning of summer) that the NCSoft crew started to get back on track with releasing regular updates. At this time we believed that Beta was gonna be announced any day. Cryptic stated that it was going to be released this summer and here it was summer already so the general consensus was that they were going announce beta any day and release the game by the end of the summer. The excitement factor was at an all time high. It was a good time to be forum member.

Friday, May 17, 2002 - Update: City of Heroes Hits E3!

This was it. The sign we had been waiting so long for. Most forum members believed that E3 would be the announcement of Beta followed by the imminent release of CoH. Some forum members, but not many, believed they would announce a delay.

Wednesday, May 22, 2002 - City of Heroes Release Date

Over the past two months, Cryptic and NCsoft have been working very closely together to evaluate City of Heroes and make development adjustments. As a result of this assessment, we have determined that if City of Heroes is to meet our high goals and expectations for release, we must extend the production schedule. We want to be sure that when City of Heroes hits the market, it's an exciting, revolutionary MMORPG that sets a new standard for online gaming. Therefore, CoH will be released in 2003, rather than this summer.

Two things came about from E3. Forum members got access to a video of the demonstration of the game. We learn a lot about the game and it appears to be nearly if not completed. Not long we discover that production has been extended to make the game better. You would think that the forum members would be outraged and cause all kinds of hell on the forums. It actually wasn’t at all like that. Yes, there were a few members who didn’t like the fact that game was delayed, some people even expected it. The general feeling was, especially after seeing the E3 demo, that the delay would not take terribly long. They planned on releasing it sometime in 2003, but after seeing the video demo, many forum members thought beta would start early 2003 and the game would be released soon after. .

September 2002 -Unknown to forum members at the time, according to Jack Emmert, it is decided that after many months of play testing that CoH needed to redesign it’s entire game play system because it was too hard to balance properly… It would be 9 months before “the cat is let out of the bag”.

December 2002 – February 2003 – We learn through a Gamespy interview with Rick Dakan that the game is planned to be released the second half of 2003. Even though Cryptic has decided to redesign the game they still release information about the original incarnation of the game (information that will not be in the redesigned version of CoH further misleading forum members). Although it was during this time that updates about game content were severely reduced and updates about “fluff” non-game content were quite noticeably increased. We would learn the reason behind this decision many months from this point in time…

[Necra]

Isn't that photo and pic of Spatula of Doom?

[Maveric]

Isn't that photo and pic of Spatula of Doom? Nah, it was a random pic I snurched off the internet when I was looking for a ref erence pic to draw a spatula for his tribute pic... I saw that photo and got a kick out of it. reminded me a bit of one of the old walter simonson THOR comic covers...

[Poison]

Man, Mav is a wandering Nostalgiamator. O_o

I remember it all. :) Though the waiting was terrible, I enjoyed the pre-beta time a lot.