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How I felt reentering the world of Citiy of Villains

Jul 17, 2009 Citiy of Villains|367views

Where are all the bad guys?

That was how I felt reentering the world of Cities of Villains and, for an older game, it makes sense. The population has grown up and is PvP-ing and hanging out with the other big kids, so it was a lonely trip back. But even in older MMORPGs, you can see new players or alt players running around, looking to group while they level up fast. You feel immersed in a world populated by others, but being a villain, creating an evil character, running around? It felt, well, kinda lonely. The uniqueness about Cities is how easy it is to get attached to your particular character, and the desire to take that character to the ultimate goal: PvP — battling those awfully good guys in the case of Villains. So much has been said about the ability to customize a character, and I still feel it’s one of the best boons of Cities, in both the Heroes and the Villains. I spent a lot of time customizing my character and getting everything ‘just right.’ This ability to create such a unique character grants almost immediate investment. The only complaint I have is with the monster face. I just can’t find a body that looks right with the face. The rest? I could spend hours just dressing a superhero, and probably lost some prime play time trying out the many different variations. I settled on a Brute with Technology origin, with a great kick-ass leather duster. If you’re going to be a villain, you might as well do it right.

Origins

The origin of each Villain can be selected from Science, Mutation, Magic, Technology and Natural and each origin has its own unique power. Mutants are born with it, Science deliberately sought it, Magic is sought after or bargained for with Technology is for those who alone have no powers but use tech to enhance or create powers, and Natural is the development of super-like powers through training and honed skills. Each origin comes with allowed enhancements ranging from Training and Gadget to Genetic Alteration and Dimensional Entity. I chose the Technology brute, and selected my primary power set — electrical melee over dark melee and a secondary set. The secondary power set tends to be the defensive powers — for instance, my secondary set, Stone Armor, provides some pretty serious defensive shielding. Once set up, I ran into the city, ready to do villainous deeds and gain infamy… …after I ran through the tutorial… it’s been a while…

Villainous Deeds

Once I entered the Isles, things got lonely. It seemed to be just me and some hungry zombies. Now, one of the greatest joys of playing Cities is the team/group experience so not having anyone around to group with was slightly discouraging and made leveling feel much slower. The missions are key in both City of Heroes and City of Villains, and this is where I felt less than evil. I felt more like a hero from Paragon City in an alternate world that was just grungier, darker and a bit more tattered on the edges. Though the mission was always to do some dastardly deed, often related to destroying a competitor or stealing from someone, the nature of the mission and the task itself seemed to blend with each mission until they all felt the same. There wasn’t a lot of variation in the stories. Most were basic, cut to the chase missions with very little story, a clear objective, and geared toward the ‘easy to beat’ side. They were also slightly addictive. See, I like goals and I like clear-cut instructions: go here, do this, get rewarded. I became obsessed with getting the next mission, because of the instant-gratification gained by their completion. I became so obsessed with completing mission after mission, that, after having played for a week alone, I missed my one and only invitation to join a team! I also liked the fact that at the end of each mission, I could select ‘exit’ rather than having to run back to the entrance.

One thing I did notice when doing the missions solo, rather than with a group, was the wonky AI. It seemed like the mobs were being polite, waiting until I was ready to face them. There were several occasions where I charged in and should have been mobbed, but instead only pulled one, two or at most three mobs. Outside of the instances, I found that the real focus was on missions rather than exploring. Most doors wouldn’t open, and while I understand the impracticality of having every door in the city open it didn’t stop me from trying. Wandering around the world, I did get the feeling of being stuck in an urban jungle, trapped by skyscrapers and part of a world that never got to see the country-side often — and I felt it added to the game, this feeling of urban decaying life. I would have liked to have seen some more wandering mobs but the overall feel was right. The NPCs were either trying to kill me or wandering around in a dejected, please-don’t-mug-me fashion. After practicing some of my skills I found myself in the Architect Mission building.

Mission Architect

This is something I want to try my hand at, very badly, but haven’t yet done. From everything I’ve read and heard, the ability to create your own missions is a somewhat revolutionary, but risky, breakthrough in MMOs, though my gut says it would be more fun to create a mission than to run around someone else’s, and I can’t wait to create one. After I got tired of running around the world, I returned to my disturbingly OCD-like compulsion to complete more and more missions, clearing map after map after map.

Mayhem Missions

The Mayhem Missions are more fun than the normal missions — because there is an element of urgency: the instanced missions give you only so much time once you begin to complete the task. It does add variety to the sameness of the missions — you can’t just wander around exploring every corner at your own speed before you accomplish a mission — you have to accomplish your task against the clock. In Villains, it’s another way to feel a bit more evil — steal something, engage in civil disobedience — get out. And quick. These missions add some variety but aside from the time factor, have the same issues missions from contacts have. This feature, more than anything else, helps the player to actually feel like a “bad guy.”

Why I Solo’d for So Long

When I re-entered the world of Villains, I did bring along a teammate, a villain who would partner with me, but after the third mission, said teammate abandoned me for another shinier MMO. Wandering around, I ran into few people, and while it may be the server, my belief is that the population of Villains exists at the higher levels and has little use for creating newer characters. It’s not a game that attracts new entrants, and so while it’s user-friendly, once a new player gets in, they may not stay. This is where I think Villains does itself a disservice. While a player’s goal tends to be to reach higher levels, and the goal of MMOs is not to have groups of players linger below level 20, it’s too easy to get bored by the ’sameness’ of the content in the lower levels. A little bit more variety here or there in the stories, or the missions, and I’m convinced my teammate would have stayed with me, and there would be more alts running around… because there’s just something fun about leveling new characters, just not in City.

Invested in the Brute

Since the lower levels tend to drag a bit, creating the correct character was key for me. This is why I spent so much time outfitting the Brute, whose secondary power set I came to rely on. This is the character I plan to take to 50.

Buttons! or rather, UI

Every game needs a good UI, and Cities has it. From the maps to the ‘can’t get lost’ navigation. The UI fits the mood of Villains, a more urban-feel to the look than a traditional fantasy MMO, yet it was still easy to navigate. UI is one thing I think designers shouldn’t get too crazy with - if the standard works, then keep it. Enhancements I like buttons. I like clicking buttons and seeing things happen. It’s part of the desire for instant gratification in games for me, and why I wish I could loot. Leveling up often comes with either an enhancement, or another slot to add an enhancement and the ability to combine similar enhancements to your power. Earlier I mentioned picking a Primary and Secondary power set. My primary power set, electrical melee, has Charged Brawl. Charged Brawl, and any power, can have aspects of it enhanced. For instance, under Charged Brawl, I have the ‘enhance damage’ and ‘enhance accuracy’ enhancements added. To buff those enhancements if I had similar or compatible enhancements, I could combine the enhancements for a greater effect. As my Brute goes up in level, lower enhancements should be combined because they can lose their effectiveness or provide little value. Under the power Brawl, I combined two accuracy enhancements to increase its strength. This, I found to be a lot of fun. I enjoyed creating combinations, which added extra bonuses. I also spent some time playing around with the various combinations trying to, well, make my character “badder”. Enhancements aren’t just granted when training. They can be purchased (and sold) and they can be discovered after defeating an enemy. It would be wise to actually wait until the mission is over before trying to manage your enhancements… it can get somewhat distracting. Not all enhancements work with all powers. I had to sell an entire inventory’s worth of range increase enhancements.

Inspirations

Inspirations are buffs that are usually found when defeating enemies, and can be activated simply by selecting the buff. Inspirations can help you get through a fight and be the difference between being sent to the Hospital or surviving long enough to finish. There’s not much to say about them except that they are very useful when you’re the type of character who likes to fight to the end rather than run away.

Infamy

Infamy is what you gain when you complete missions and is what you spend when purchasing enhancements. With enough infamy, you can change parts of your costume, or if you have enough, buy a new costume. It’s used to create inventions, and can be used to shop the Black Market (the auction house). Infamy is the economical equivalent of money in some ways, but is also used for other purposes in Cities, such as in recipes.

Badges

As a character, you can achieve badges for a variety of different feats. Badges can be achieved by doing a variety of different things, having a subscription to an account, visiting certain areas, completing missions and more. My Brute managed to gain the Thrillseeker badge by visiting Mission Architecure technology. Badges that grant benefits are called Accolades. Badges can be worn by the character, and the pursuit of badges could honestly be a game in itself. If you have the collector mentality, and have done everything else, seeking out every possible badge you could achieve is like a mini-game. Supergroups can also earn badges. Badges can also be earned by having a day job.

Day Job

It might be surprising to think that a villain would need a day job, but someone’s got to pay the bills and a life of crime in a crime-ridden city sometimes just doesn’t pay. Simply by logging out in certain areas, characters will earn temporary benefits from the related day job. For instance, as a Villain, by logging out near the black helicopters characters will get a temporary travel speed bonus, and by logging out of one location after 30 days, characters will get a badge with an associated bonus. Get two complementary day job badges, and you get an accolade, which give you added powers. A day job can be useful, so be aware of where you are logging out.

Salvage, as in… There’s No Looting

An important part of most MMOs is crafting, Cities is no different. At level four, characters will begin to receive salvage pieces, which can then be taken to either a Superbase, if the character is part of a Supergroup, or to locations in the city if the character is solo. When a character gets a salvage piece, it can be turned into an invention with the use of a recipe and a certain amount of infamy. Recipes can be unlocked through missions or by earning badges. Members of Supergroups must build a workbench in their Superbase before being able to complete inventions. Recipes can be used by Villains to create enhancements, inspirations, and if they have a base, objects such as teleporters.

The Next Step

I like the Rogue Isles, the darker side of their shiny alter-ego, Paragon City, offers a grittier urban feel that appeals to me. After having found few people in-game to team with, I had to reach outside the world of Cities, and where retired old Villains have retreated to a life of non-evil, civilian mundaneness. I finally pulled a Villain of greater experience and knowledge out of hiding (he complained that being evil just wasn’t what it used to be, what with so many of the old guard having retired from the game) who agreed to take me on as his Sidekick.

Being a Sidekick

The best bad guys have their go-to guy, and in Villains, being the side-kick has advantages… such as playing in the higher-level zones and enjoying PvP-ing with teammates that are normally too high in experience. While no new powers are gained, a whole new playing experience is. The truth about City of Villains is that it is fun when you’re grouped with other superheroes. It’s not designed for a purely solo experience though if you’re determined you can slog your way through solo.

Final thoughts

Aside from the repetitive feel of the missions and the lack of an active population under 20, Villains is a lot of fun. The ability to wander and fight random mobs combined with the focused and goal-oriented missions helps keep the game interesting, and the ability to custom-create Supervillains has the immediate effect of creating a bond with the character. It’s hard to stop playing an Evil Mastermind when you’ve gone through so much trouble to make him the perfect evil mastermind! The rest of the game will be well-worth exploring, and I look forward to being a sidekick and exploring the rest of the game. It’s a solid, stable fun game, and, who knows, perhaps my villain won’t be satisfied being a villain, perhaps… she’ll go rogue.

Tags: Citiy of Villains