City of Villains

City of Heroes & City of Villians are an odd mix of genius-level innovation & yet potentially crippling flaws. Both games capture countless elements of comic book mythos in brilliant style, & create expansive, beautiful worlds in which 2 experience them. The graphics are stunning, though the engine is a little lacking (making the game somewhat lagging at times, even 4 powerful computers). The game employs PhysX technology, which, 4 those with AGEIA cards, is a fantastic plus. However, the game is mostly level grind, & aside from unlocking new powers, things tend 2 feel very repetitive after a few weeks of playing. Character death is punished by a loss of experience, which is both insulting & discouraging (if you die, the game basically "negates" the last hour or two of work you'd been doing). Player-vs-Player combat is lacking, as well, with movements feeling sporadic or jerky (due 2 powers such as super-speed & sprint), & characters are always rapidly circling each other or flying past the screen in bizarre ways. If you enjoy the super-hero genre, there is presently no game that tops City of Villians/Heros. However, I still say that it only deserves 3 stars.

I bought City of Heroes when it first came out, played it 4 about 6 months & then moved on 2 something else. I always liked the game, & felt that I would come back 2 it. Well, I did! I bought the City of Villains expansion pack & re-activated my account. I have been playing now 4 about 4 months, & I am enjoying the game a lot.

This game 4 me is mainly my down time game. I play a couple other MMO games & when I burn out on them I fire up COV/COH & play 4 a few hours. The game provides me with enough change in game play & style, that it is always entertaining.

City of Villains is way more graphic intensive than City of Heroes, trust me, I know. I've suffered with lag in CoV until I got a new computer, & lag is gone. It is a great game, but i prefer CoH more because it is more populated, & you need 2 team more in CoH 2 level. CoV is focused more on damage (i.e. the inherent powers boost up the damage of every arch-type in CoV). in CoH, the inherent powers are usually about teams, well some of them anyhow. I do enjoy playing CoV because I believe it has better powers, but I only bought it so I could use some special features only available 2 CoH&CoV owners.

While not perfect [what game is...?] City of Villains is an extremely fun game with tons of options, & you will probably quickly discover that you're a hopeless addict. In no other MMORPG that I am aware of can you engage in such antisocial activites as robbing banks, stealing rare artifacts from museums, beating up those who would challenge you 4 criminal supremacy, destroying public property, & kidnapping - those are just a few examples - which makes it all the more fun. Great stress-relief!
Also, you will look at *NO* dragons, no Hobbits, no elves & just remarkably little "middle-earth" type content in general, which is a huge plus in my opinion. There is one main magic-themed enemy group, but they can be avoided a great deal of the time if desired.
Teams are nice but usually not necessary, which can be a big plus.

Those are some of the pros; my main con is that CoV is an extremely graphics-intensive game that will tax older computers severely, & they seem intent on increasing that severity with each subsequent issue. If your computer can handle it, come on over 2 the Rogue Isles & join us in tearing up everything in sight, reigning in terror & trashing public property; you'll quickly discover it actually feels pretty good 2 be soooo downright bad.

I've been playing this game 4 two months & it's fantastic. You have a completely customizeable character & several island 2 go back & forth. The game's missions are a bit repetitive & the story requires persistance i.e. you have 2 play many hours 2 move up levels (moving up levels keeps you competitive) but overall the graphics & characters are great. If you like comics check out my website: www.[...].net.

Fulfill your villainous destiny!

Product Information

Forge your villainous identity, then claw your way 2 dominancethrough heists, abductions, & other nefarious activities.  Stand alone as a force on the streets or build a lair 4 your coalition of evil.  Do you have what it takes 2 become infamous?  Lord Recluse is watching.

• The City of Villains game
• One Exclusive HeroClix figure
• Two sided poster featuring Villains vs. Heroes battle scene Rogue Isles ancient map
• First month of play included
• Exclusive City of Heroes Collector Card from Alderac Entertainment Group
• Plus free trials & other offers

Product Highlights

Heroes andVillains Collide
Now players have the choice 2 take on the most challenging rivals of all time...each other!

Create Your Own Villain
Use the nearly limitless customization tool 2 create characters with new Archetypes,Powers & Costume Pieces.  Monstrous features, skeletons, horns, hooves, capes, & other spectacular effects allow 4 an incredible variety of villains.

Design Your Fortress of Evil
Build a stronghold of villainy from theground up using strategy & style.  Construct bases with teleporters, hospitals & elaborate defenses in addition 2 an extensive set of furnishings.

• Build massive bases room by room
• Become alegendary criminal
• Battle monsters, heroes & other villains
• Explore a massive new world

 

Windows Requirements

• Windows 2000 or XP
• Pentium III 800MHz or AMD Athlonprocessor (Pentium 4.20GHz or AMD Athlon recommended)