Should you Pre-Order DC Universe Online?

From the Article: "There are video games out there that let you take over the life of some other superhero, or even MMOs that let you create your own in a living breathing world and they range from great to simply god awful. Based on the beta DC Universe Online is looking to hit that meaty part of the curve also known as 'meh'."

[Wizziokid]

at the moment I'm still on the fence, enjoying the beta but it still needs a lot of polish before they release it, more powers wouldn't hurt either. seems to be lacking on the front, for a super-hero mmo anyway.

I hope it gets to COH standards with the customisation and power selection. also super-bases would be awesome, again the same way they are done in COH

[Chris399]

They only have six for the beta. Lightning, atomic and a bunch of others will be there for launch.

The meat of this person's argument (the author's) is that he doesn't fancy paying $15/ month. Well tough $hit. Unless you want to play Malbonigi or Perfect World where they charge you micro-transactions through the roof that often add up to more than a one month subscription. I'd rather have a chock-full of content, constantly updated MMO where EVERYTHING can be unlocked simply by virtue of me playing the game.

A lot of the QQers are just people who have little to no experience in the MMO space. Subscriptions are standard. Free to Play MMOs have only become relevant in North America in the past few years. TERA, RIFT, and many others still use a subscription model.

From the article:

"So think of it this way. I will find myself obsessed with this game for (at most) two months. After that obsession has passed I will move on to some other video game thinking back fondly at my time with DC Universe Online. For my two month obsession it will cost me almost $100 for a video game that in order to play again when I get the whim, I will have to pay for."

Newsflash, if you bought Dragon Age on launch day, you'd probably only play it for about a month total play-time (spread out over all the DLC and the expansion) and pay well over $150. So your value comparison is weak.

[Wizziokid]

I don't mind paying monthly if the content is there I mean I've played a fair few mmo's in my time both P2P and F2P so it's all dandy for me, I just need something to hold my attention until SW:TOR comes out. this could be the game.

Good news on the powers front, defiantly needs them

[Chris399]

Yeah SW: TOR could be good. Only issues I see are that the space combat is a bit crude compared to Eve and it might come out around the same time as GW2 (which I HAVE to play - most anticipated game ever). Too many MMOs coming out in 2011. I hope some of them get pushed back to be honest.

Edit: Here's an incomplete wiki. Atomic, Light and Lightning (three coolest imo) are listed.

[BlackRoseDelt]

I bought Dragon Age just after opening day. Paid $60. Don't have to buy DLC to play it again and get replay value. I've played it through three times already. Still enjoy it. So for the first month it cost me $60. Not the $75 for a mediocre at best offering like DCUO.

I bought Heavy Rain. $60. Played it a few times. Still like it. Gotten a bit if enjoyment out of it every time.

White Knight Chronicles, BioSock, Halo, CoD, etc. No DLC. Good games. Months of enjoyment. $60. No tacked on cost to simply play the game. You dont HAVE to pay for DLC. you HAVE to pay to play DCUO.

DCUO. Medicore. Initial Price $60.

Lets assume you play after work for a month. Thats 2 hours a night, 5 nights a week, for 4 weeks. So lets say 40 Hours. Lets look at DCUO and a regular non subscription game.

$60 for 40 hours = $1.50 per hour. Then there's DCUO
$75 for 40 hours = $1.88 per hour.

Your argument is mathematically and fundamentally invalid.

[Chris399]

Black.

I'm arguing value, which was they lynch-pin of this author's argument. And you're adding semantics into the mix (value is subjective, you don't NEED to get all the Dragon Age DLC to enjoy it, and so on). The reality is that to get the COMPLETE Dragon Age experience (expansion + DLC), the full storyline, characters, character advancement and gear, you DO have to pay over $150 if you purchase the game day and date of.

To get the COMPLETE DCOU experience, you do not. You pay a purchase price and a monthly fee for as long as you chose to play the game. Chances are that if you're into MMOs and you've chosen DCUO you WILL get far more time and value out of it than Dragon Age.

Additionaly the flaw with your value assessment, is that you do not factor in month 2, 3 and so on into your argument. A GOOD MMO YOU PLAY FOR MONTHS, NOT ONE MONTH.

Also worth mentioning is that most subscription MMOs GIVE YOU THE FIRST MONTH FOR FREE. Again, this illuminnates the general ignorance of the MMO circuit that console only gamers have. I don't know if this is the case with DCOU but I would expect that it is. Going back to your straw-man value argument, let's deduct another $15 then.

So let's adjust your figures.

Dragon Age $60 for one month. Next month you have no games to play and will likely spend another $60.

DCUO $75 for TWO months (first month is free). Each consecutive month you continue to play the overall investment DECREASES. $90/ 3 months ($30/ month). $105/ month 4 ($26.25/month).

All value is subjective, but the author of this piece doesn't sound like he is A.) into MMOs or B.) has the time commitment necessary to enjoy one.

So yes, if he can only play an hour or so a night and has other family commitments than DCOU or ANY MMO for that matter is not a good idea. You won't get enough value out of it for the cost. But his blanket assessment that the game is therefor "meh" because it doesn't suit his particular situation is "fundamentally invalid" as you put it.

Edit: White Knight Chronicles was terrific value for money btw. Logged over 500 hours into that game.

Edit 2: I'd also add that most of the people who have played the beta are of the impression that it's quite fun and full of content aside from stability issues. What exactly are you finding that is "mediocre at best"? Have you played RIFTs or Allods or the betas for pretty much any other WoW/ EQ out there? There's a sea of mediocre in the MMO genre and DC certainly stands out.

[outwar6010]

chances are eu will get the shaft and pay £15 a month(making it 30 bucks eventhough it should be around 8 pounds)

[xTruthx]

Already did, awesome game

[JsonHenry]

For a game about super heroes, there sure is a lack of customization available.

[despair]

??? really

I mean sure you don't have a face slider or fat or skinny characters which are kinda there with the body type. But the gear customization in the character create is pretty comprehensive and the in game gear you pick up can be put on or off at anytime without compromising stats.

There are options to change skin type and hairstyle outside the create area in the world and they will add changing color scheme outside character create by launch. You can also unlock a secondary weapon if you want and each power set interacts with the weapons in different ways. Where is the lack of customization?

Edit: Oh and 3 movement types, flight, superspeed and acrobatics right from the start that are also upgradable after level 9. Not to mention the option to spend power points on iconic powers like laser sight or sonic screams like your favorite heroes or villains.

[Baka-akaB]

despair , it is lacking compared to games like coh and (gasp) Champions who already offer than and more in customizations .

Still it's early , and it's still easy and extensive to customize a char .

And it does offer the mentor and template systeme to build upon

[Sharingan_no_Kakashi]

Dude this game is so fun. It has a lot of glitches since it's still beta but I only put the controller down when the game freezes lol.

[herukuti]

i agree with legends.

[DirtyLary]

I wont be buying it. Right now the content is lacking. Every fight is exactly the same. All the pvp is exactly the same.. a gank of button mashing. Being on the same engine as Global Agenda, it's suffering the same issues.

When the free keys went out Friday, 1.5k ps3 were still available and the pc keys were gone. There's a hint that this game will be a ghost town on the console for sure.

Maybe if things were slowed down fights would be more strategic. Right now it's all about who gets the 1st stun off and who has more purples.

It feels like a god of war button mash.

[Chris399]

forgot to add that the games that you listed - Dragon Age, BioSock, Halo, CoD - are either single-player or multi-player games. Not MMOs. WKC is the closest on your list, but still falls short. This illuminates the issue with some of the attitudes people are approaching this game with. It's an MMO. Compare it to WoW or EQ if you must (though it still offers different elements and themes). It has a totally persistent world and content than you won't find MP games.

[BlackRoseDelt]

I was just using those games as an example since DA was pulled out to compare it against. However Halo and CoD do have a multiplayer element that has kept me hooked.

But we can compare them to EQ or WoW. Neither of those cost $60 to buy. I would be totally down for DCUO if it wasn't a full priced game AND monthly subscription.

If it was a lower initial cost I would totally be down for it. Then I can easily justify and support spending $15 on a monthly fee.

[Chris399]

PC games cost about $50-60 now. PS3 games cost 60-70 bucks. That's market standard. When TERA launches it will cost $60. RIFT will cost the same. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic will follow suit with a $15/ month sub.

"This game should launch for or cost less than other MMOs". Why? Please explain why. If you'd been paying attention to myself and others in this thread, you'd see that most of the people who have played DCUO find it to be exceptionally polished and full of content in contrast to what is currently available (or in BETA - another "?" that I have with the author even providing a dictum on whether to purchase a product which is clearly being tested at the moment).

You can get WoW and expansions bundled these days, but when they launced they cost the same as every other PC game on the market at that time. WOW was never FREE (a 10 day trial wasn't around until the game had been out for a bit in any case). It was a piece of sofware you purchased AND payed a subscription for.

Your issue, seems to be that you have no real grasp of how pay to play MMOs function. If you wrote this article (as you published it to N4G, I noticed) then your grievously misinformed about MMOs. I'm not going to belabor this point, because from your comments it's quite clear.

Do some research on the perils and truths of "free to play" MMOs. These things aren't charities, in many cases they make more money with micro-transactions and buried costs than pay to play MMOs do. Look at LOTR or D&D Online, their player base and profits have soared since they went FTP. They're making more money than EVER.

$15/ month is the market standard - stop making it seem like it's some ludicrous over the moon highway robbery. Anyone who plays MMOs is familiar with this price. I would assume that MMOs aren't your forte as you keep making a big stink over it. That's just what pay to play MMOs cost. WoW has dictated this for years now.

Your continued insistence to compare MMOs to other multi-player experiences when they are a distinctly different affair also makes me raise an eyebrow. MMOs have communities, high degrees of character customization, role-playing (real stuff) in some, and generally more dedication and care put into their persistence and content by both the players and the developers than any other sort of game.

MMOs create WORLDS. Not instanced multi-player matches. White Knight Chronicles, much as I loved it, was exactly that. It was not an MMO, just a glorified Monster Hunter. That was the closest you got to an MMO in any of your comments and that was still well off the mark.

[BlackRoseDelt]

In the modern age when games are competitive by price points and offerings DCUO has very little to put on a pedestal and say "This is why this is worth this much." The gameplay is typical MMO. Nothing that blows me away. The missions get fairly stale and repetitive very quickly. "Go beat people up, pick something up and carry, defend this person."

Add into that the fact that I personally have never ended the game at a time of my own choosing. It glitches out so bad that I have to restart my PS3. IMO there is little redeeming aspects to have me coming back dropping $75 to play it for the first month and $15 every month after that.

Throw that against games like LOTR:Online (which moved to F2P because Pay wasn't working for them) Guild Wars, and yes even Perfect World where when the mood strikes I can fire up the PC and play a bit.

They are a stale model, stale gameplay, but good graphics.

I never said it was "highway robbery" as you said. I said it just wasn't something I was willing to pay for. There are MMOs that ARE worth the price that DO contribute something innovative. DCUO just rehashes the same old routine. Assuming you can get it to work for you.

This game will go down as an "Also Ran". It won't fail on the level as APB but in a year from its launch look me up and tell me how it's doing.

And the only reason I keep throwing around the other games was as an instance of value vs. price. I'm well aware that they are not the same. I never said they were. They were used strictly as an example of value vs cost vs time.

As for your figure adjustment..it was off. I played DA for a while. I work for a living man. It takes me a while to get an RPG done. Esp one like DA:O where I can play it multiple times with different outcomes. I spent about 3 months playing it. That's $60. Three months.

Comparing DC Universe Online to WoW is pretty much an insult to WoW. I am looking forward to SW:TOR which is a PTP model but because it looks like it's going to do something genuinely unique.

[negroguy]

Done and Done. The gameplay of this MMO is fantastic. There is also nothing more rewarding then screwing someone over while theyre on a mission in some PvP.

[DirtyLary]

So let me guess you are one of the many level 15+ heros camping the level 1-5 villian quests?

Seems thats all the bored players are doing, nothing to do but the same dps spam mob fights.

[negroguy]

Na I dont fight low lvls thats just wrong. Besides the final game will have raids, duos, more alerts and vaults. Ive also been trying the different powers out with different characters even though more powers will be released in the retail version also.

[Lirky]

Yay! pre-ordering dc universe online... oh wait... You mean i have to pay 15$ a month now that i went thru this hard time to pre-order + exclusive items will be worthless now that im not submitting to paying 2 play the game.

Unless there's a life time pass released on psn store 49.99 you pay that once and thatll unlock to play the game forever no hidden fees, only fees would be for the cash shop items.

[Baka-akaB]

i'm waiting for you to make sense here .

If you pre order a game , you just get it earlier with potential bonuses . Did you expect to pay no subs because of preorders ??

Or did you pre-order the game based on a weak assumption that there would be no fee ?

Highly unlikely since sony for a long time gave no official position on the matter . Then why preorder based on rumors ?

Even more unlikely when , at the time preorders and collectors were announced , sony already stated the game would be subs based .

EDIT :

I disagree anyway with the notion of cash shop , from previous experiences .

There is no such thing as a good f2p game . They are crap and/or force items that disrupt balances as a sale . After how would they make money if worthless crap were the only item sold for cash ?

The only two worthwhile models so far (from an economic and entertainment standpoint for the players ) , are games you purchase with no additional fees , like guild wars , or sub based mmos .

[-X-]

Since it was made by SOE I thought that maybe the price was going to be cheaper or something like that so they would be able to sell more PS3s.

[DirtyLary]

It does have something, the entire game was made around the dual-shock. They got that part right.

[Highatus]

Currently enjoying the beta myself,a long as the final product is polished I'll pick it up no question. I get the same feeling I got from it as I did with wows beta.that's a huge plus

[DirtyLary]

I did for two days then I started seeing what this game was coming down to, god of war button spam. I haven't found a reason to even group up with anyone. It feels like a single player game thrown online so you can have the occasional gank.

[despair]

"When a customization menu fails to let you customize it pretty much loses its name. It becomes an “it is what it is menu”."

what? there are tonnes of options and the devs said and from what I've seen alot of the customization comes when in the game from the tonne of loot you get, I mean you can leave the style and take the stats or vice versa and get some awesome looking characters beyond the create option.

"What takes away from it are more bugs. I seen mission critical NPCs on my map but nowhere to be seen."

Its a beta the point is to find the bugs and it is one of the most stable betas I've played to date(PC version, the PS3 one freezes way too often). I saw what he said about burglars breaking into building and not being able to stop it, but thats fixable and we are still months off from retail release. Its what the feedback option and forums are for.

Oh and stating opinions are for Beta version at the beginning does not mean ignorance and stupid things like saying it has bugs in a BETA to be a reason not to purchase the game.Also the cities both Gotham and Metropolis look really great and follow the comics extremely well with many iconic landmarks.

"For my two month obsession it will cost me almost $100 for a video game that in order to play again when I get the whim, I will have to pay for"

It will cost 65$- 75$ as the first month subscription comes with the retail purchase. Also the devs said that new powersets(need verification on this), events, areas and monthly updates will bring new content every month(yes until its actually done we can't be sure they are truthful).

Also this is an MMO what else do you expect? I mean it is very different from any other MMO I've seen and this little article left out tonnes of things that the Beta offers including really amazing motion like comics for villains and heroes backstory that you can unlock among many other things.

@below

oops forgot that, he really is a talented artist, love his work.

[memphis2]

why would you ask a question like this. DC is huge and no one else is messing with the game itself. it's strictly DC made. been playing the beta for a week now and i can say this is this the best mmo i've played by date. can't wait for the release!!!

[Lirky]

Ive been playing the ps3 beta for awhile i reached the level cap of lvl 20 though.. the game is addicting with tons of things to do im sure itll be worth it pay 2 play 15$ a month. Its just like how Star Trek Online offers a life time pass, if this dc universe game online offers the same thing then i'll consider getting "That pass" so i can re-download the game when needed to play it at times from the account management > download list area on psn.

[soundslike]

Every time I go to buy a game at launch, they have a pile of the "pre-order" exclusive swag a mile high, giving it to anyone who buys the game regardless.

I don't see a point in pre-ordering unless you live in NYC and for some reason there's only one place to buy games in a 100 miles radius...

[Baka-akaB]

Wich is why pre-orders have become a silly exclusive items incentive affair for most games

[DirtyLary]

Here's a good reason. You sell those codes and items and you pay off your game. I did that for REACH and COD:BO.

[Kyle1212]

Should you Pre-Order DC Universe Online?

what? no.

[mobijoker]

After the FFXIV rip off,i'd rather wait for a month or two after release than preordering it.

[spektical]

well we have to buy the game at $60, right?

are we getting a free month or something?

[theEx1Le]

30 days iirc

[Grimhammer00]

I'm not sure of the mindset of MMOers, but if you are like the rest of us gamers. You will be A) playing other games
B) getting addicted to online games with no subs.

DC Universe sounds cool, but MMO's are really not a good fit for conspled.
Too much competition. Not even factoring in life & jobs, family crap. Lol

If they really want it to be successful, a one time fee or just don't charge.
Sorry, I'm not missing out on kz3 just because I feel I need to get my $15 monthly worth out of DC:U! Sure, you can say DC is going to be soooo awesome that it wil eclipse gamers need to get the AAA titles on 2011....but you would be epic fail. Lol

[herukuti]

if there is only 2 cities at launch then its a done deal and a deal breaking move.

[StanRaimondi]

Im playing this and im loving it. I love the customization. I can't wait for the release

[Raoh]

i'm loving the beta.. i'm playing both pc and ps3 betas.

unfortunately its not shared servers.. i have the ps3 on pre order but i'm still debating on if i should commit to the ps3 or pc version.

[ECM0NEY]

People that complain about $15 a month have no buisiness playing or previewing an MMO. I cant believe people are still shocked about monthly fees when it comes to MMOs. Get a better job or STFU and dont play it.

[goalweiser]

There's a reason why you don't see too a lot of DC Universe beta articles floating around.

Anybody with common sense and/or previous experiences with MMOs would know to keep their mouths shut to the public especially concerning betas.

Why?

1) There's a place for your to vent your frustations...the official DC Universe Online Beta forums. How do I know? Because I'm also in the beta and use them to report my glitches instead of spreading negative publicity about a game still in beta.

The mere fact that you start complaining about how much time it would take up and how much it costs, shows you have absolutely no credibility when it concerns MMOs. If you did, you would understand the pricing structure and why it's there.

So you've already shown you're only casually interested especially when taking your complete lack of detail on the pluses of the beta. Hmmm...funny how such an objective person can forget those eh?

From your little smirky "meat" joke at the beginning to your whinny "I want something for free" begging at the end, this entire piece of work is in shambles.

Perhaps you'll exercise common sense in the future and stop wasting time writing impressions because you my friend are clueless.

Here's a tip for the future...go play more MMOs from the start. All of them start out very streamlined so they can support the initial populations. As time goes by, the money generated from subscriptions are used to make the game bigger, better, and special.

We have actual comic book artists working on this game. If that makes it "meh," then you don't use the same dictionary as I do. This is unprecedented. We're playing with COPYRIGHTED CHARACTERS in an MMO! Some of the most iconic figures in this country period!

Seriously...I'm not even a fan of DC Universe because I tend to watch more Marvel stuff but show some respect. Do your homework before you disparage a game to the public.

I'm really interested to hear what the lads over at the official forums will have to say about your piece...

[Kingscorpion1981]

I totally agree!!!!

[Kingscorpion1981]

Hey everyone I still think $15 a month is still to high for PS plus members. PS plus should get free subscriptions! or cheaper subscriptions! The PC version of the game will cost $49.99 and the PS3 version will cost $59.99. Both come with a free 30-day subscription to the MMO, but after that, the game will cost $15 a month – or $199 for a lifetime subscription, which is sadly only for the PC. I still think its a ripoff for PS3 owners. They should also get a lifetime subscription.