DC Universe Online - Dc Online Comics

DC Universe Online is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) based upon the fictional universe of DC Comics. Developed by Daybreak Game Company's Austin studio and co-published by Sony Computer Entertainment and WB Games, the game was released January 11, 2011.

Following its acquisition by Columbus Nova on February 2, 2015, Daybreak Game Company President John Smedley announced that the title could come to the Xbox One in the future.

Premise

Jim Lee serves as the game's executive creative director, along with Ale Garza, Carlos D'Anda, JJ Kirby, Oliver Nome, Eddie Nuñez, Livio Ramondelli, and Michael Lopez. EverQuest developer Chris Cao was the game director through launch up to May 2011, but has since stepped down to be replaced by Mark Anderson, previously the art director. Mark Anderson himself has since been replaced by Jens Andersen. Shawn Lord was also involved. Geoff Johns is the principal writer.

The revenue model was subscription based with a user cost of $14.99 per month, rather than using microtransactions. The UK subscription was £9.99 a month, £19.99 for three months, and £49.99 for six months. The cost for Australian subscribers was $19.95 AUD. It was announced on September 19, 2011 that the game would go free to play. On November 1, 2011 the game became free to play for everyone. DC Universe Online was announced for the PlayStation 4 on June 5, 2013 alongside with PlanetSide 2.

Business Model

DC Universe Online features three available types of game membership for players:

• All Access - The paid subscription membership in DCUO (previously called "Legendary"). Daybreak Game Company allows players to purchase monthly, 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month subscription packages. Lifetime memberships with no expiration were also made available at game launch. All Access players can create up to 16 characters, unlimited in-game cash, automatically granted access to all DLC content, trade in-game cash with other All Access members, trade items with other Premium or All Access members, form a League, obtain 150 Replay Badges monthly, 500 Daybreak Cash/Loyalty Points, 10% off Marketplace purchases and exclusive promotions and offers.

• Free to Play (F2P) - Available starting November 2, 2011. F2P players can join the game at no cost and can create up to 2 characters. F2P players have a very limited inventory, limited to $1,500 in-game cash (excess deposited in escrow), can join a League and have no DLC content available.

• Premium - If a F2P player makes at least a one time $5 purchase with Daybreak Cash, or if a player allows their All Access membership subscription to lapse, they become Premium players. Premium membership allows up to 6 character slots and has similar inventory to F2P and limited to $2,000 in-game cash (excess deposited in escrow, but can purchase Unlimited Escrow Access or Escrow Withdrawals), can join a League, and trade items with other Premium or All Access players.

Micro Transactions

DC Universe Online features an in-game Marketplace where certain forms of content can be purchased separately in the form of micro transactions. The currency used for these transactions, Daybreak Cash for PC and Loyalty Points for PS3 or PS4 can be linked to a DGC account, credit card number, Steam account, or PayPal account.

Gameplay

DC Universe Online is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) set in the DC Universe. Daybreak Game Company's stated goal is to make a different kind of MMORPG, with The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction cited as one of the main inspirations for gameplay. DGC is working to make DC Universe Online more interactive than standard MMORPGs, while trying to keep their key elements, which include a leveling system, raid instances, endgame progression and inventories. The world is mainly shared, public space instead of heroes or villains owning territory. The public space features dynamically-generated content designed for both hero and villain player characters (uniquely created by the player, who can create their own custom character to fight alongside and against iconic DC characters).

Character Creation

The player creates a new, original character that interacts with the heroes and villains of DC Comics. Players choose their character's faction (Hero or Villain), gender (male or female), body type (both height and muscularity), personality (comical, flirty, powerful, primal, serious), and form of special movement (flight, acrobatics, or speed). Numerous hair, skin, and costume types are available, and up to 3 colors can be applied to the color scheme palette. Pre-built templates, inspired by some key DC heroes and villains, are available to expedite the character creation process.

All player-characters receive their superpowers from Brainiac's exobytes, and choose a mentor based on the source of their powers. Characters with meta-human powers receive missions from either Superman or Lex Luthor, and will start the game in Metropolis; Characters with technology-based powers receive missions from Batman or Joker, and will start the game in Gotham City; and Characters with magic-based powers receive missions from either Wonder Woman or Circe, and also start the game in Metropolis.

There are four roles in the game, determined by the type of super powers chosen:

• Damage (aka DPS) - All players have this role available from the start of the game as a damage-dealer.

• Tank - Unlocks at level 10. Players in this role defend teammates from taking damage.

• Healer - Unlocks at level 10. Players in this role heal the health bars of their teammates in battle.

• Controller - Unlocks at level 10. Players in this role recharge teammates power bars, as well as stun and trap enemies with crowd-controlling effects.

The player chooses one set of superpowers for their character. Each power set has a Damage role and one of the specialty roles as mentioned above.

• Fire - Tank and DPS.

• Ice - Tank and DPS.

• Gadgets - Controller and DPS.

• Mental - Controller and DPS.

• Nature - Healer and DPS.

• Sorcery - Healer and DPS.

• Light - Controller and DPS (previously available with Episode 1: Fight for the Light).

• Electricity - Healer and DPS (previously available with Episode 2: Lightning Strikes).

• Earth - Tank and DPS (previously available with Episode 3: Battle for Earth).

• Quantum - Controller and DPS (previously available with Episode 7: Origin Crisis).

• Celestial - Healer and DPS (previously available with Episode 8: Sons of Trigon).

• Rage - Tank and DPS (previously available with Episode 9: War of Light Part I).

• Munitions - Controller and DPS. Arm your character to the teeth with militarized weapons. Inspired by Sgt. Rock.

Power Sets announced for future releases:

• Atomic - Blast your enemies with nuclear-powered energy. Inspired by Firestorm.

• Serums - Tank and DPS. Inject your character with exotic chemicals. Inspired by Bane.

Each character is given a communicator appropriate to their faction, via which they receive urgent communications from their mentor and their colleagues and subordinates; heroes will frequently receive status updates from Oracle, while villains will receive data from Calculator. In addition to assignments from their mentor, player characters may also receive requests for help from other mentors of the same faction. Player characters may also accept missions from non-player characters (NPCs) in the street, usually minor characters from their faction. There are also opportunities for quick street encounters appropriate to the character's faction: for example, a hero character may encounter a thug robbing an armored truck, trying to break into an office building, or in the process of mugging a citizen; while a villain character may be presented with opportunities to assist NPC thugs with an armored truck robbery, or assault a citizen using an ATM. All NPC interactions are fully animated and voice-acted. Player characters will earn threat ratings that will cause NPC heroes and villains to interact accordingly with the character.

The shared world space offers primarily solo and team player versus environment (PvE) gaming opportunities in the form of open air missions and instances, although player versus player (PvP) combat is also possible in this worldspace. Other PvP and PvE gaming is available in various types of queued instanced encounters: "Legends", small scale PvP combats in which players take on the identities of iconic characters (continued success in Legends combat unlocks additional iconic characters); "Arena", small scale PvP combat in which players fight as their own characters; "Alerts", 4-player cooperative team missions; "Raids", 8-player cooperative missions; and "Operations" which can consist of either 4 or 8 player missions and take place in a mix of instance-based maps and the open game world. Success in PvE missions is rewarded with in-game currency, costume pieces, equipment and consumables, while PVP combat is rewarded with unlocks of special equipment sets.

Storyline

The opening cinematic takes place in a gritty, war-torn future depicting a final battle between the world's greatest heroes and villains. A future version of Lex Luthor provides voice-over narration.

This battle takes place in the ruins of Metropolis. Lex Luthor, wearing a heavy mech armor, commands an army of super-villains that includes Circe, Deathstroke, Black Adam, and Giganta. A scarred, armored Batman commands the heroes, which includes Cyborg, Flash, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman. The battle culminates with the death of Wonder Woman at the hands of Lex Luthor, at which point an unshaven, weary Superman hears her dying screams from orbit and flies to Earth to confront Lex. As Superman cradles Wonder Woman's dead body, he collapses to the ground, and it is revealed that Lex hid kryptonite pellets in her mouth as a trap. Lex impales Superman with a kryptonite-tipped spear, and stands back to proclaim his victory, only to see Brainiac's war fleet fill the skies.

The scene then shifts to the present-day Watchtower, where the future Lex Luthor, heavily modified with Brainiac technology, is telling the story to the present-day Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. Future Lex explains that the deadly final war between the heroes and villains was triggered by the subtle manipulations of Brainiac (who had been slowly downloading their powers over time). With the planet's most powerful beings dead, Brainiac intended to use the pirated data to create an army of metahumans under his control, facilitating his conquest of Earth. As the only survivor of the war, Lex Luthor could do nothing to resist Brainiac's subjugation of the planet. Lex Luthor explains that he was able to survive in secret and eventually seal the stolen data and energy from Brainiac's mothership in the form of "Exobytes" (nanobot-sized devices that can bond to a living host and give them their own superpowers). Lex has traveled into his past to release the exobytes into the atmosphere of present-day Earth. The heroes are outraged, but Lex Luthor explains that because he has done this, soon thousands of new metahumans will be created from ordinary humans (becoming the player-characters of the game). He implores the Justice League to find and train these new metahumans, because Brainiac is coming and the Earth must be ready to succeed where it was once doomed to fail.

When this cinematic ends, the player is brought to the character creation menu to build their new Hero or Villain.

In the second trailer to the game "In Lex we Trust", we find that Lex Luthor's description of events leading up to his arrival in the present time is not as he described to the heroes. The trailer begins with Lex Luthor reviving his companion Fracture from being unconscious. Lex Luthor explains that Brainiac's forces have already penetrated the Fortress of Solitude and that their time is running out. As they approach a time portal chamber, a Brainiac Eradicator attacks and Fracture destroys the robotic drone with a small grenade. The two arrive at the portal which is being stabilized by Batman (whose face is disfigured and arm is replaced by a robotic prosthetic due to injuries from the battle of villains and heroes). As more Eradicators enter the chamber, Lex Luthor lies saying his armor is damaged and that he can not hold them off. Batman tells Fracture to take the canister that contains millions of Exobytes and go through the portal attacking the Eradicators and buying him more time. Fracture thanks Lex for using the exobytes to give him his powers. Seeing the opportunity he had been waiting for, Lex Luthor kills Fracture describing him as "an excellent lab rat." As Lex Luthor is about to step into the portal, Batman calls to Lex Luthor warning that "I'll be coming for you" to which Lex responds "No, you won't" and activates a self-destruct sequence. Lex Luthor enters into the portal and the Fortress of Solitude suffers massive explosions. He arrives in a dark alley, presumably present day. He is greeted by his present-day self who describes him as being late.

It is then shown at the end of "The Prime Battleground" raid that Future Lex Luthor and Lex Luthor are working together to steal Brainiac's power. Lex Luthor is then betrayed by his future self as Future Lex Luthor wants the power for himself. It is then seen that Future Batman survived the explosion at the Fortress of Solitude and has been chasing Future Lex Luthor through time. Future Lex escapes and Future Batman follows him. In the following cutscene, Future Batman is said to be the last hope for humanity.

Following these events, the heroes are led by Future Batman while villains are led by Future Lex Luthor to the Nexus of Reality (the center of the Multiverse itself). Both sides fight for control, using paradoxes from constant time-travels to alter the histories of iconic characters, forcing heroes and villains to work parallel to each other, changing the timelines in the same fashion. What one causes, the other reverts, thus making an infinite cycle. This result in a massive paradox creature that consumes time itself. In the game's hardest raid, the player must stop the creature from destroying the time-space continuum (one of the many raids where both villains and heroes have the same goal). This event completely ends the storyline the game was based upon.

Episodes provide new storylines to continue side missions.

Universe

While the game has shown a DC Universe largely similar to the pre-New 52 DCU, notable differences exist, such as the absence of Damian Wayne and Stephanie Brown. Dick Grayson as Nightwing and Tim Drake still operating as Robin, Cassandra Cain still operating as Batgirl, Bane's continued use of the Venom steroid, Black Adam's return to super-villain status despite recent comics changing him into an anti-hero, and Ralph Dibny still active.

This video game also featured the appearance of various fictional companies such as Ferris Aircraft, Wayne Enterprises, LexCorp, Stagg Industries, S.T.A.R. Labs, and Blaze Comics. There were also various brands in this video game such as Big Belly Burger and Soder Cola.

It seems as though Final Crisis has not occurred, as Batman has not apparently endured trauma at the hands of Darkseid, the Martian Manhunter is alive, but Barry Allen appears to be serving as the Flash. Jonathan Kent is also alive and well, unlike his mainline DC Universe counterpart. Several story-arcs used for alert and raid instances are based upon content that occurred in-continuity that pre-dates Final Crisis and occurred, in some cases, as events in 52 and Countdown to Final Crisis. Examples include the Oolong Island instance and multiple story-arcs centered around Black Adam as well as Darkseid being currently absent from content. Also, certain key events from the mainline DC Universe are still referred to as history in the world presented in the game, including the Crisis on Infinite Earths, The Death of Superman, and Knightfall.

Additionally, the events of Flashpoint and The New 52 reboot which ensued have not been reflected. Hero and villain design as well as in game canon all continues to be based on the pre-Flashpoint DC Universe.

Characters

The following heroes, villains, and other characters appear in this game:

Cast

The game's voice cast is very extensive, and is inclusive of many known characters in the DC Universe. Daybreak Games Company released a complete voice cast list on January 19, 2011. Some cast members, such as Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill, were announced early. The high-profile heroes and villains include:

• Adam Baldwin â€" Superman/Clark Kent (Previously voiced the character in Superman: Doomsday)
• Corey Burton â€" Brainiac (Previously voiced the character in Superman: The Animated Series, Justice League and Legion Of Super Heroes)
• Kevin Conroy â€" Batman/Bruce Wayne (Previously voiced the character in Batman: The Animated Series, Batman Arkham games and numerous other productions)
• Susan Eisenberg â€" Wonder Woman originally voiced by Gina Torres until the introduction of DLC 8 Sons of Trigon when Susan Eisenberg took the role.
• Michelle Forbes â€" Circe
• Mark Hamill â€" The Joker (Previously voiced the character in Batman: The Animated Series and numerous other productions)
• James Marsters â€" Lex Luthor (Previously voiced the character in Superman: Doomsday)
• Dwight Schultz â€" Flash/Barry Allen and Martian Manhunter
• Arleen Sorkin â€" Harley Quinn (Previously voiced the character in Batman: The Animated Series and numerous other productions)
• Wil Wheaton â€" Robin/Tim Drake
• Jens Hartvig Andersen  â€" Aquaman, Gorilla Grodd, T.O. Morrow
• Alexander Brandon â€" Black Adam, Black Lightning, Cyborg, Major Force, General Zod
• Beth Broderick - Hippolyta
• Tracy W. Bush â€" Calculator, Booster Gold, Deathstroke, and Ambush Bug
• Charles C. Campbell â€" Kilowog, Ace Factory Thugs, Brainiac's Robots, Civilians, Joker's Goons, Spectre's Possessed, Zombies
• Bruce Carey â€" Bruno Mannheim
• Claire Hamilton â€" Huntress/Helena Bertinelli, Jinx, Zatanna, Police
• Samantha Inoue Harte â€" Isis, Zombies
• David Jennison  â€" Penguin, Green Arrow, Jeremiah Arkham, Solomon Grundy, Heat Wave, Manhunters
• Brian Jepson â€" Felix Faust, Ultra-Humanite, Sentinels of Magic Member
• Robert Kraft â€" Mr. Freeze, Sinestro, Spectre
• Lana Lesley  â€" Hawkgirl, Giganta, Arena Announcer, Green Lantern Corps Member, Raven
• Jason Liebrecht â€" Bane, Eclipso, Hawkman
• Robert Matney â€" Doctor Psycho, Green Lantern Corps Member, H.I.V.E. Drones, League of Assassins Member
• Edwin Neal â€" Two-Face, Killer Croc, Harvey Bullock
• Robert Newell â€" Doctor Fate, LexCorp Troops
• Shawn Sides â€" Fire, Arena Announcer, Green Lantern Corps Member, Police
• Mike Smith â€" Pete Ross, Atrocitus, Ace Factory Thugs, Atlanteans, Bane Thugs, Black Adam Priest, Circe's Bestiamorphs, Civilians, Mr. Freeze's Goons, Green Lantern Corps Member, Gorilla Grodd's Gorillas, Guards, Joker's Goons, League of Assassins Member, LexCorp Troops, Mutants, Poison Ivy's Minions, Police, Prisoners, Robots, Scarecrow's Goons, Sinestro Corps Members, Zombies
• Brian Talbot â€" Vandal Savage, Kyle Abbot
• Ken Webster â€" Commissioner James Gordon, Wildcat, Sinestro Corps Member
• Ryan Wickerham â€" Captain Cold, Metallo, Flash/Jay Garrick
• Cyndi Williams â€" Poison Ivy, Queen Bee, Advertisement Voices, Civilians

Comics

DC Comics announced in January 2010 that they would be releasing DC Universe Online: Legends, a 52-issue weekly limited series (along the lines of previous similar series like 52, Countdown to Final Crisis and Trinity) which would be based on the game. Rather than a weekly series, the format was changed to a biweekly series, with comic book writer Tony Bedard and game writer Marv Wolfman, and with artists Howard Porter and Adriana Melo. The title launched in February 2011.

Development

The first conceptual art for the game was released on July 4, 2008, and the first trailer was released on July 14, 2008.

A Beta was released on December 14, 2010 and was closed on January 5, 2011. There were a number of technical issues that came to light when the beta was closed which were only partially resolved by the game's release. Then in August 2011, there was a global server merge implemented by the developers to consolidate all PC servers and PlayStation 3 servers into 4 individual servers, one for each platform per region. In mid-2013, as part of a hosting deal, accounts for the European PC version were sold to ProSeibenSat.1, however they were still capable of using the US Servers. As of mid-2014, after SOE had announced their All Access Membership changes, the SOE and ProSeibenSat.1 parted ways, returning the accounts to SOE. All 4 Servers, USPC, EUPC, USPS and EUPS are still hosted by Daybreak Game Company for all regions.

Game Updates

"DC Universe Online" has been actively updating through Game Updates, (also known as GU), and Hotfixes. Aside from bug fixes, several Game Updates involve Seasonal Events such as:

• Love Conquers All - Valentine's Day Event where Star Sapphire battles Mister Freeze.

• St. Patrick's Day - Event where Mister Mxyzptlk plagues Metropolis with his shenanigans.

• Springtime - Event where Swamp Thing requires to be taken down while either facing or under the control of Poison Ivy (comics).

• Tides of War - Summer Event where Aquaman squares off against Ocean Master.

• The Witching Hour - Halloween Event where Klarion the Witch Boy attempts to find revenge.

• Season's Greedings - Winter Event where Larfleeze attempts to take Christmas all for himself.

There has also been recently two new Events that tend to cycle throughout the year, one being Survival Mode where the top Tier players can play for exclusive styles and bragging rights. The other is Legends PVE where players obtain feats for completing instances as Iconic Legends Characters unlocked in game that your character can use to become a Simulation of the Iconic character, and obtaining feat by playing with a certain set of Legends yourself or by having a group composed of the required Legends Characters.

Downloadable content

"DC Universe Online" offers downloadable content or Episodes (Previously known as "DLC" packs) which expand the game universe with newer, more difficult missions; new costume styles and types of equipment. Power Sets are also available as new sets of super-powers for players to incorporate into character designs. Movement Mode Variants also give a new appearance to already existing movements in game that better allow players to envision their characters as they want. All Access members are automatically granted access to all Episodes, Power Sets, Movement Mode Variants and Gear Up Bundle, (Shield Weapon, Utility Belt and Lair System) while Premium and Free-to-Play members must purchase each piece of content individually.

• Fight for the Light was the first Episode, launching September 6, 2011. Hero characters join the Green Lantern Corps and villain characters join the Sinestro Corps. New missions included one Duo and three Alerts. It was introduced with a new Controller power Light, which can be used for assault or support.

• Lightning Strikes was the second Episode, launched December 6, 2011. Explore the new open-world environment: Central City, which features the famous Flash Museum, along with Daily missions and bounties and also featured one Duo mission. It was introduced with a new Healer power Electricity, which uses voltage and amperage.

• The Battle for Earth was the third Episode, launched March 13, 2012.. New missions included three Duos, one Alert, and two Raids. Travel for the first time to the Paradise Island of Themyscira, and aid the Amazons against the Brainiac attack, while "The Prime Battleground" raid brings the Brainiac story arc, which began at game launch, to a conclusion. It was introduced with a new Tank power Earth, which uses geokinesis and seismic powers. Tier 4 gear for characters was also introduced.

• The Last Laugh was the fourth Episode, launched June 19, 2012. This Episode focused more heavily on Player-Versus-Player (PVP) rather than Player-Versus-Environment (PVE). One new PVE duo per faction and PVP maps allow players to enter the Safehouse of the opposing faction and several other locations. It was introduced with the Shield weapon for PVE and PVP.

• Hand of Fate was the fifth Episode, launched August 14, 2012. This Episode introduced a new type of PVE mission - "Operations" - which can be played in either 4- or 8-player groups and are a mix of instance-based maps and the open game maps of Gotham and Metropolis. New missions included 4-player Operation per faction and two 8-player Operations per faction. It was introduced with the Utility Belt attachments, which allows a character to equip up to 4 more consumables or trinket items.

• Home Turf was the sixth Episode, launched January 29, 2013. There are plenty of open world Daily missions, two Solo instances per faction and two bounties per faction for heroes in Stryker's Island and Ace Chemicals, and villains in Steelworks and Arkham Asylum. It was introduced with the Player Base/Lair System, which come in a variety of styles and can be decorated using items that are found as loot in missions. Player Bases are available maps for PVP Arena matches. All players are granted 1 Base Theme: Dive by default, while the Lair Upgrade provides you with the Base Themes: Deco and Gothic, as additional Base Themes, (Ancient, Bunker, Cave, Eastern, Industrial, Penthouse, Sewer, Tech) and Deeds to obtain an extra base (up to 4 bases per character) can be purchased from the Marketplace.

• Origin Crisis was the seventh Episode, launched May 14, 2013. Started the next major story arc of the game, continuing from the conclusion of the "Prime Battleground" raid in Episode 3. Tier 5 gear was introduced. New Iconic Solo Challenges has the player take on a simulation as the identity of an iconic DC hero, Huntress or villain, Bizarro to re-enact a defining moment in their origin. Two 4-player Operations which take hero players to Alternate Metropolis and Gotham where they must correct origins of iconic DC heroes, or villain players to change the past and alter the future which causes the alternate cities to occur. Finally help the Council of Batmen combat the Council of Luthors as a hero or vice-versa as a villain in two Raids. It was introduced with a new Controller power Quantum, which manipulates time and space.

• Sons of Trigon was the eighth Episode, launched August 29, 2013. Introduced a new type of map - a limited subsection of the Gotham City open world where the environment has become a hellish wasteland, a pocket dimension known as Gotham Wastelands. Introduces the titular characters, the Sons of Trigon who are attempting to resurrect their father, Trigon and corrupt their sister Raven and feature the Teen Titans and the Fearsome Five facing off. Several Daily missions are available, one bounty per faction, three new Duos and one Alert were added. It was introduced with a new Healer power, Celestial, with blessed and cursed powers which can be corrupted or cleansed respectively.

As was announced at the 2013 SOE Live Convention by DCUO Developer Jens Andersen, the following Episodes from this point forward use a "trilogy" format to follow a certain connecting theme.

• War of Light Part I was the ninth Episode, launched January 22, 2014. It is the first chapter in a trilogy focused on the seven Lantern Corps and the Blackest Night. The "Metropolis Warzone" mini-open world was added, following map type used in Episode 8, with 16 Mist-Empowered Iconic characters. There are three sets of gear styles in this Episode: Green Lantern inspired Scion of Ion for heroes; Sinestro inspired (yellow) Disciple of Parallax for villains; and Red Lantern inspired Vestments of Rage for both factions. This Episode also features two 4-player Operations and 1 8-player Operation. It was introduced with a new Tank power, Rage, which uses the Red Lantern ring as you focus your anger into constructs and dole out punishment to your opponents.

• Amazon Fury Part I was the tenth Episode, launched April 30, 2014. It is the first chapter in a trilogy focused on Wonder Woman and the Amazons. The "Gotham Under Siege" was added as a mini-open world to explore and aid one group of Amazons against the other in Daily solos. There is a conflict brewing between Wonder Woman and her mother Hippolyta, while Circe joins in on the mayhem. Witness two Iconic Solos to obtain some background information of what caused this Amazonian war to break out in Gotham through the eyes of Wonder Woman and Circe, along with two Duos and one Alert to further explore the discord in Themyscira. Tier 6 gear was introduced.

• Halls of Power Part I was the eleventh Episode, launched August 6, 2014. It is the first chapter in a trilogy focused on the New Gods from Jack Kirby's Fourth World. Features one Alert, one 4-player Operation, one 8-player Operation, and one Raid. Introduces Mister Miracle, Big Barda, Kalibak and Mantis. Explore New Genesis, Apokolips, and League Halls which expand upon the concept of Player Bases to act as a shared base for an entire League.

• War of Light Part II was the twelfth Episode, launched November 11, 2014. It is the second chapter in a trilogy focused on the seven Lantern Corps and the Blackest Night, introducing the Star Sapphires to the game for the first time. The "Metropolis Warzone" mini-open world has been expanded with more content. There are four sets of gear styles in this Episode: Blue Lantern inspired Shepherd of Adara for heroes; Orange Lantern inspired Avatar of Ophidian for villains; and the first gender exclusive gear sets, Manhunter inspired Sector 3601 for males and Star Sapphire inspired Heart of the Predator for females of both factions. This Episode also features one Challenge, one Duo, one Alert, one 4-player Operation per faction and one 8-player Operation, and is the first time players can visit Zamaron.

• Amazon Fury Part II was the thirteenth Episode, launched February 3, 2015. It is the second chapter in a trilogy focused on Wonder Woman and the Amazons, this time introducing the Olympian Gods Hades and Ares while fending against mythological creatures. The "Gotham Under Siege" mini-open world has been expanded with more content. Two 4-player Operations, one 8-player Operation, two Raids and one Elite Raid are included.

• Halls of Power Part II was the fourteenth Episode, launched May 12, 2015. It is the second chapter in a trilogy focused on the New Gods from Jack Kirby's Fourth World this time introducing some of the Female Furies. Features two Duos, one 4-player Operation, one 8-player Operation, one Raid and one Elite Raid. Tier 7 was introduced.

Upon the completion of the second entries of all three Episode trilogies, Jens Andersen had announced DCUO would soon be planning to have monthly Episode releases instead of the quarterly releases thus far in order to deliver endgame content at a more consistent rate so that from any point onward, a player would have 12 pieces of content relevant to them at any given time, as the Tier cycles will increase every 6 months.

Episodes announced for future releases:

• DC Bombshells is a tentative Episode set to launch sometime in August 2015 as the first monthly Episode, and confirms that DC Bombshell Legends Characters will be coming out along with the Episode.

Reception

DC Universe Online received generally positive reviews from critics. Nick Kolan of IGN said, "I wish I loved DC Universe Online, but instead I just like it. It's got a lot going for it â€" a great license, some superb voice actors, a lot of well-crafted settings, fast action-based combat, and an entire market of people who, so far, have barely been exposed to the MMO genre." GameSpot's Kevin VanOrd wrote, "PC players will be immediately struck by the console-focused interface and the overzealous profanity filter, which inexplicably couldn't be turned off (this was later added in through updates). However, loading times on the PC are zippy, and the game runs smoothly as you soar across the skies. The PlayStation 3 version is noticeably more sluggish. Menus take too long to pop up; the frame rate chugs along every so often, or the game might freeze for a second or two; and the telltale texture pop-in common to games using Unreal 3 technology is all too prevalent."

As of August 2014, the game has 18 million registered users, and it's the number one revenue generating free-to-play title on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.

References

External links

• Official website
• DC Universe Online at the Internet Movie Database
• DC Universe Online Wiki