CharlieMack

Well written as always, SB.

Not to carry on the stereotype BUT, every time I have tried an MMO I can compare it to a first date (I'm married, sit down). There were some that I met and we hit it off, got along...at some point, lost interest and never saw each other again. Some I met and was totally not feeling from the jump. The few that are still a part of my life, I can say that only one truly jumped out at me from the beginning; style, fun, looks, depth etc. and still there and still great, if not a bit...older. The other few I feel that I truly did have to dig a bit deeper. There were things that turned me off, there were times that I didn't understand them. But I kept them around, I put some work into them and in the end, enjoyment, pleasure, challenge....a relationship.

Sometimes our favorite people, or relatives are boring. Sometimes they don't make sense, they seem stupid or silly and you fail to understand why you bother. But you do, and that's something that is intangible. There must be something more to them than just fun and looks. That - I think, is what makes these games a big part of our lives.

@Blackstream - I don't think that, the Dev said it in the forums...

I don't think this is the worst change ever. I spam gigabolt as a default as most players do. There needs to be more power balance but I really don't think you want them to "nerf the damage of some of the highest power attacks, like Force Cascade, Haymaker, Gigabolt, etc through the floor". These powers are REALLY fun to land and it should take a bit more finesse to pull them off.

People talk about power balancing as if CO is City of Heroes or WoW, it's not - there are no set classes so there is no way to balance power sets against each other. The only way is what the Devs are TRYING to do in making energy building more generic and balanced for all players. Yes, you have a crazy huge attack like Haymaker but, you shouldn't be able to hand it out like business cards.

Building in a more tactical aspect to CO is not a bad thing. AND LEAVE MY GIGABOLT ALONE!

Besides, you haven't even TRIED it yet.

I am extremely excited about the Super Powers patch. The melee changes will be welcome and WHAT?!?! WEAPONS VIEWABLE IN THE TAILOR!?!?! OMFG!!!

I digress, keep it up Cryptic. I'm liking what I'm seeing.

I am kind of shocked while reading most of the comments that no one made mention of the 'housing' in CoX. While this may be a bit different than WoW or LoTRO housing (or any other for that matter) housing, it really works well in CoX and I am looking forward to having a similar system in Champions Online, especially if there is some really nice customization involved.

The housing in CoX is basically a Super Group Base. It can be accessed from any map (generally) and includes crafting tables, medical functionality, RAIDS!!/raid defenses, and great customization in its own right.

The major congregating area (Atlas Park) was never impacted my SG bases and stayed busy most of the time (this is all past tense because the last time I was logged in, all 3 of the servers I checked were pretty bare). There was rent for the bases which helped manage SG's (not enough members, not enough rent) and created a great staging area for SG events, Trials, initiations and team building.

Cryptic, I want SG's in Champions more than cars, motorcycles, capes, crafted travel powers or throttle controlled rocket boots from pre-Beta.

Again, there are plenty of people who hate Cryptic, hate Champions and hate Star Trek and hate and hate and hate. As BCAnimus stated, please stop playing, and stop spreading the hate. Keep it balled up in your tiny little hearts until they burst. Then come out and join the rest of us just trying to have fun.

Oh, and PeterD - You haven't experienced HALF of the entire game because you quit at level 20. You've never visited Vibora Bay, Monster Island or Lemuria. Therefore, you can only half-ass your way through a meaningful conversation regarding Champions. I can't and won't accept narrow sighted views and let this be a lesson to all, if you really don't know the half, go play the games you like and let us have what we like. Deal?

@Kdolo - Your sentiments have been repeated, ad nauseum throughout this and other forums and we all completely understand your point of view. Try to see a DIFFERENT perspective while not feeling threatened.

Your so called 'Glaring Issues' are, at best, obvious:

1. CoH was also made by Cryptic
COMPLETELY obvious and irrelevant. If you are saying that Champions is a clone of City of Heroes then, I doubt you have played the game and if so, at a very 'surface' level. Some aspects, from an outsider's view may seem to be the same, but to be fair, I can't expect everyone to see it clearly from my perspective either. COH is a great game in my eyes but I thoroughly understand how it got to be that way.

2. CoH came out five years prior to CO development - Can't see your point here.
My point is that COH is a great MMO and had the same growing pains as CO. Yes I am comparing and contrasting these two games in the same topic, perhaps that was too deep for these boards but, I went there anyway.

We probably in the end, have to agree to disagree however, even if I am the lone fan of this game I think it needs to be stated and I am more than happy to say it.

CO has definitely come a long way for the players who have stuck with it from beta to Revelation. Vibora Bay is an excellent map, the style and feel of the city is one of the best areas of the entire game at this point. Some of the actual missions are still grindy but, they have tried to make teaming a bit more appealing in Vibora.

Yes, the powers still need to be thoroughly rehashed for balance. Yes, teaming is still an issue. Yes, the crafted travel powers are the ultimate time-sucking grindfest.

To all of these issues, I can point to parallels in the only other MMO that I would care to compare to CO and that is COH. There were PLENTY of power balances (re:nerfs) that pissed everyone off and brought over powered sets into focus with other sets. There were tweaks and additions to end game, lairs and team dynamics as well. All of these things came in time, and all ended up in the final recipe for one of the greatest MMO's of our time, COH.

I give CO the same time frame for greatness because I for one, think that Champions already great. Not perfect, not without frustration and fault, but still great fun to play.

I found the interview refreshing. I am liking the new position on the fanboy backlash and I think it's good timing. I for one adore champions-online and I find that it is developing into a great MMO. I was there when COH began and it had it's own growing pains along with every other MMO. Bandwagons are common these days and I can see why Cryptic is pushing back on some of the more ridiculous behaviors that are evident in the forums and on sites such as this one.

Revelation is a great expansion. Am I glad that the pushback helped make it free: Yes. Would I pay for an expansion along with my Sub: Yes, as long as I get to taste it first. And boy does it taste good. Great job on Revelation, Cryptic.

AWESOME! I WILL be logging in tonight just to find this...thanks! DOUBLE PRIZER!