A Beta Review for New Players***** Warning -- Long!***

 I'm going to go ahead and jump the gun here a tad, I wanted to wait until I had the entire OB experience but it sounds like a few things need to be set straight for new players or players that are on the fence about this game.

 

I'm not going to BS around, I'll just jump right into it.

 

1) The Character Creation Screen.  8/10

For those that have played CoX, this will be somewhat familiar to you.  The UI for the character creator is interesting to say the least, they give you many options --- seemingly ----- albeit the original faces are changed via sliders.  The sliders don't bother me much, except for the fact that you have minimal slider option (well you have the options, they just don't work) for the monster and beast heads.    

The costume selection is somewhat easy to navigate after you've spent a little time doing it.  The tabs are easy to glance over, and some costume pieces aren't available when choosing other pieces for example, you don't have many eye choices if you decided on making a character with a hood.  But overall this aspect of the game is enjoyable.  Keep in mind as well, that other costume pieces can be purchased or found later - in game.    Next, choosing your starting stats seems to be very straightforward, but it isn't, for a new player it would be a good idea to start with the recommended stats and not get too crazy into the custom framework until you see exactly how much certain stats effect your character.

 

Power choice is actually, very straight forward.  The first power you are able to choose is an END builder, the second could be from any framework.  ***Tip,  ranged END builders have an immense advantage over melee end builders... ****  

 

2) Combat  : 6/10

Fast paced action.  Thats what you will hear a lot about the combat, its fast paced... and to an extent it is fast paced.  This is partly due to the END builder.  This is also where I found a great deal of issues with the game...  for one, CO touted "No Auto Attack"  but from the moment you start the game, you auto attack your little heart out.  In the later levels you can sufficiently rid yourself of this END builder, but between levels 1 - 20 in most frameworks, it will be your best friend, or your worst, boring, enemy.

 

The sad thing about that is that it is solely reliant on your framework and your stances.  Some frameworks can easily rid themselves of the END builder around 14.  Some others not until the mid 20s.  Some custom frameworks will not rid themselves of the END builder at all.  And right now you're asking me... "So What? Why do I care?"  Well, to this I answer simply, the END builder is pointless, annoying, and flawed -- especially in PvP.   You ask why?  Have you ever seen a single blade user.. that has super jump chase down a Power Armor user with rocket boots?       I've seen one try before....    and he would HAVE to chase him down so that he could gain endurance to use his attacks.   If he had a ranged END booster, it may not be so bad.

 

So to this I say, whats the point?  You trade the illusion of "fast paces combat" for gimping a number of melee characters from the beginning.  Many other players will tell you, simply, do not take a melee end builder... and to this I ask, why do they even have them?

 

My next gripe on combat is the targetting system.  This game needs offensive and defensive targets --SEVERELY  and we've been asking for them in CB for months.  Targetting is exceptionally tough in this game.  Tab targetting (as used by the 360 controller) is inefficient.  You can tab to the closest guy, or you could accidentally tab to the guy from the mob behind him.  If you have a ranged END builder, congratulations, you've just accidentally aggroed a second group.  Most recently they've made some modifications to where you no longer need to target using tab... that is, unless you have a specific enemy in mind, like a boss per se.  Good luck trying to target only the boss when you have several henchment on you.

 

Then targetting friendlies is tough as when you target a friendly, you take your focus off of an enemy.  That means anytime you buff or heal, you have to stop attacking -- switch to a friendly --- buff/heal them -- then return to an enemy, and begin to build your END again.  Some will tell you thats what a support build is for.  To this I call shananigans.  You can't be in a support build with all frameworks, or else you can no longer use certain other powers --such as your passive powers.

 

While I'm on that subject, lets talk about passive powers.  There are many different kinds... but they really break down into 2 of them.  Defensive, and Offensive.  Defensive powers like invulnerability are considered a must have for the majority of the player base.  Personally, I found the offensive passives to be more to my taste.  The offensive passives give you a damage boost, sometimes a minor defensive boost, or faster END recovery..... in fact, in the case of martial arts they give you the ability to gain END from using your other Martial Arts attacks.  This is what gives you the power to take away your END builder.  In order for this to work on all frameworks, you must pay very close attention to what powers you choose and what advantages you choose as well.

 

Either way you look at it though passive powers in general are a must have.  You cannot compete in this game without them, nomatter what anyone tells you, its just not worth it to torture yourself like that.  And -- to talk about torture, lets talk about equilibrium.  Equilibrium is the point of your endurance bar that your endurance will charge back up to while you are out of combat.  This bar can change depending on your different stances.  I often oppose the Equilibrium bar.... because its stupid.  It doesn't even sound right.... how can my character be MORE tired outside of battle, then when he's been firing electric bolts out of his hands for the past 20 minutes?  Not having a full bar of END at the beginning of each battle can make or break certain fights.  Being able to start with a large attack.. or a fully charged hold could be the difference between an easy fight, or an incredibly tough fight (or fights depending on if -- in mid - battle, you aggro another group because you couldn't lock the mob down in time)

 

Now you can always increase your equilibrium by using the recovery stat... but thats really a waste in my eyes.. because normally someone would increase their damage, or increase their defense.. but under the circumstances they feel they need to spec for recovery so they can use their frickin' powers at the start of a battle.     My suggestion??? Slot Intelligence instead... it decreases the cost of powers, and overall is just a better idea.  Later on you can pick up items to assist in your recovery, or you can slot intel. and reco. if you want... its your character.... but between the two Intelligence > Recovery in my book.

 

Anyways, bad points aside, the combat is still somewhat enjoyable. The 360 controller makes it so.  If I had to play with the M&K I would've given up after my first week.  The travel powers feel sluggish and the whole overall movement of the game felt clunky to me until I used the 360 controller.  Then suddenly I "got it" .... it just all came together and I understood-- this is how it should be played.  Granted navigating menus with the 360 controller is a pain, and in some cases impossible.  But for random fights and missions.. I wouldn't have it any other way.  The controller is what pushed this combat to a 6....  every thing else is just a sad gimmick to me that becomes tired and boring, and can easily be trumped by a combat system such as WoW or WAR or even LOTRO.

 

Level Designs/Missions:  8/10

So you've started the game, Did you like the tutorial?  I hope so, because once you leave that tutorial you've got... ANOTHER TUTORIAL!  No they don't call it a tutorial, its a crisis zone.  I have to say my first time in game, the crisis zone was confusing and off putting.  I just got my travel power and boy, I wanted to use it.  Unfortunately I was in a CoX force field land where I couldn't get out of my little glass box.  I had to complete the *2nd tutorial* before I could go on.  The choice between the desert and canada is nice at least... but once you've done both crisis zones, it just gets repetetive and boring, and pointless.  Making alts then becomes a chore, 2 tutorials just to get to the regular content.  Also, I call it a tutorial simply because they have to walk you through everything.  Crafting, leveling, and using items are all portions of the process known as the crisis zone.  The levels turn out to simply become linear.... you jump mission after mission, then once you are done, they tell you to go somewhere else to get more missions.

 

I was originally under the assumption that the levels and content were so vast i could level from 1 - 40 just in a single area.  I did not experience that when I leveled to near -max level with one of my characters.  I often times had problems finding missions and had to jump around to many different places to make the next level or find something to do.  No missions that I really did stood out much.....  strongholds were just like any other high profile mission...   and only a small handful of  missions really stood out as being original.  On one particular missions -- my missions was to get defeated so that I could be captured to infiltrate a base... or Dr Destroyers robot factory where you have to navigate the magnet... other then a few missions somewhat similar to those, maybe the MI crisis, and a few other interesting but not out of the ordinary missions in Lemuria its pretty on par with regular MMO missions.   

 

This brings me to an interesting point about crisis missions.  Queuing for Crisis missions!  It may be different with the new flux of players.. but the later tier crisis missions like Lemuria and MI require you to queue like you do for PvP.  Previously I've waiting half an hour or more on a crisis mission only to find that I was the only one que'd for it, and the only one doing it.  With thousands more players playing now, we may not see a queue problem or force people to do these missions alone, but just a heads up for new players.. it might be more fun to get a group before going to the crisis.

 

A lot of people will complain about the lack of instanced missions -- which there is a lack of.  Please, don't worry about the lack of instances... because personally the missions that ARE instanced have relatively the same level design.  Many of the instanced missions you get will be from crazed civilians off the street.. and many times that takes place in MC.  You'll always get a mission in a museum or sewer, or something that has a generic instance -- much like CoH... but to me its the scarcity of these missions that makes them bearable.  

 

The silver lining is the nemesis system, which is really the sole reason I gave the missions and level design as high of a rating as I did.  Making your own nemesis and giving him a sort of focus and base storyline is .. dare i say it.. fun!  I liked being able to meet my nemesis, and battle him, send him to jail so that he could break out, or get jumped by his minions anytime, anywhere.

It made for a kind of dynamic gameplay that really made me want to continue playing.   Never knowing when I'd fight the next group that would drop that next clue to my nemesis' next dastardly plan.  At the very tail end of my testing it appeared as though I was able to create 2 more nemesi but at the time, it was bugged and I couldn't actually create them.  I could only imagine what it would be like to have 3 different nemeses minions attacking together.. increasing the difficulty on mobs that are often times too close together as it is.

 

The mob density in general is just very out of control.  Now with "dynamic" spawns that they added some patches back, you get aggro more then ever... and some powersets such as might and force always gain more aggro due to knock back.

 

PowerSets:  7/10

I'll be honest, I was expecting more.  Sure there are a lot of sets, and a few sets like gadgeteering and sorcery have their fair share of powers... but with the way the progression is in this game... after level 25 I have a very hard time deciding what new powers I should choose!  From start to finish this game has a very hard time balancing powers.  With the way the END builder is used and the way the frameworks are built most sets will end up with the simple combination of 1 End builder, 1 Charge Attack, 1 Charge AoE... and some may choose to have a hold in there.  The only other powers left that are really necessary are the travel powers (which are fun, but some just make no sense..... super speed and super jump are both gimped in their own way) and your passive power.   Other will contest that adding a block power helps...     but really you end up with 1 of each in your set.   

 

Normally I advocate sticking within your framework to get the best results with END regeneration and bonuses on damage/healing/ status effects etc.  The fact of the matter is though, some frameworks are impossible without multi classing.. and some frameworks just don't have enough powers without multiclassing (MA I'm looking at you!)  Some powers like Power Armor really doesn't need help.. wheras sorcery needs a passive badly .. amongst other things as sorcery is possibly the closest thing to a support framework as you can get.  Telepathy and Telekinesis were pretty close to both being necessary to make their builds complete.    The elemental builds all seem fairly fleshed out, but some major drawbacks are with the different forms and effects.  Fire obviously will not work well with the electric form...

 

Supernatural and darkness both have their advantages.... but singularly they both feel fairly gimped.  Going pure darkness is a possibility, but I always felt I killed way too slowly and my END regen was never were I wanted it to be.  Maybe this will be fixed in OB, as this is more a balance issue then anything else.

 

PvP:  5/10

PvP .. what can I say.. some say they love it.... those people are the ones with Power Armor or a ranged build.  You can gimp yourself in PvP very easily.... its called taking a power other then flight or teleport.  Don't even take teleport unless you use a ranged build, you'll never get a hit off to build END.  Holds, roots and stuns are the winners here, as are those with Defensive powers...  close range melee builds need not apply.    Sure my Single Bladed swordsman could down a Power Armor character in the blink of an eye..... but he could never catch one to do so....  Using superjump, swinging, or ice slide is pointless. Acrobatics will work alright, and superspeed only really has an advantage in the lower level arenas.   Eventually you'll notice a flux of players just targeting you and pounding on you.. and many times you will be outnumbered and over powered.

 

So basically its only fun for ranged and flying characters.  Melee characters will stand a chance if they can use the kunai chain.. which still has a problem on flying characters (pulls that forward, not down)  or if they have holds or a ranged END builder..... but thats the only way to really compete.  Many people will disagree with me... but please, try it for yourself.... I'm not making this up.  Ranged/Flight is king, all the rest are fillers.

 

Last but not least and I will not grade on this, but sounds, voiceovers, and miscellaneous.  

The music is a decent score,, at first... the main theme of the melodic vocal harmony gets old fast.... especially now that they've added that score to the PowerHouse.  The sound effects aren't anything to write home about... but the interaction between CO and outside media players such as winamp are nice additions.. and much needed.  Its good the developers understood their music choices for the game weren't entirely A+.    Defenders voice was okay to me, but Iron Clads choice of words were overly corny but oddly fitting for a game that loves to throw on the cheese.

 

So altogether I give this game a 7/10 (not an average): The game has a good draw to it, it is fun for a short while, but the combat and levels become incredibly repetetive very fast.  If you've played CoH you maye get a kick out of the new sets and the new levels.... a few months down the line, without content updates, this game could easily be uninstalled and forgotten.  This could also go the other way and with strong leadership and enhanced content it may hold on to a slightly higher then expected fan base.  Is this the GOTY?  No, but it is still a somewhat solid game.