- We knew it was coming, but now it is official: Champions Online is officially launching their free-to-play service on January 25, 2011. Called Champions Online: Free For All, you will now be able to play from level 1 to the cap without ever paying a cent. For everyone who gave up on the game early (and I really don't blame you), it is the perfect time to have a second look.
- The feature matrix shows what you have access to and what you're missing out on as an F2P player. Much like EQ2X, almost all of the content will be available. So you could play without ever touching your credit card and not miss anything. The great costume creator is all in there, which is the highlight for most people.
- You will be missing out on one thing, though, and it is a biggie. The custom power frameworks are only available to subscribers. From what I saw in the beta (and I freely admit that I didn't spend much time with it), the archetypes look like they will play just fine for most people's needs. Custom frameworks is the advanced mode and I can see why Cryptic would save that for paying customers. If you are so invested in the game that you want that much freedom, it is worth paying for.
- Cryptic also threw a new trailer up on the site, this time discussing all of the system updates for the game. The video, called System Shock, does for their game upgrades what past videos have done for content updates. If you haven't been keeping up on development (you know, like skipping all of the Champions posts on this blog), then this is a good way to see how the game has been polished since launch.
- A little part of me was hoping that Cryptic would announce new content as well, but it was not to be. CO has a pretty small team so that wouldn't be feasible. But keep an eye out. I'm willing to bet we have an Adventure Pack announcement in February. Call it a hunch (because that's what it is).
© 2011 Marty Runyon. All rights reserved.
I haven't played the CO beta in awhile, but I do remember not being too thrilled about the lack of some of the powersets. I don't dislike the change to the archetypes but some of the cooler poweres were missing.
ReplyDeleteI hope they announce some new content too, but I'd rather not see another adventure pack. I've still not played Demon Flame, mostly because I'm not looking forward to breaking my keyboard in frustration over a boss fight.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to playing F2P CO. This pretty much means a hold on DCUO though, I just can't fit it in now, with this starting up later this month and Rift headstart beginning late February.
ReplyDeleteJust a few more days until the re-launch of Champions Online as a Free-To-Play game. Now, I’ll be able to take my demo version character, Ultimate Champion, out of Millenium City. Woohoo!
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