Day: January 19, 2011

MMO “Champions Online” Goes Free To Play

“Champions Online” goes Free To Play, adding a multitude of new features, as well as the option to play without subscribing.

On the January 25, Cryptic’s latest superhero MMO “Champions Online” will be going Free To Play.  This change is going to involve a great deal more than just having the option to not pay, however.  There’s a ton of changes coming at the end of this month, and Millenium City is never going to be the same again.

Now I know what you’re all thinking, “’Champions Online’, isn’t that the crappy superhero MMO that launched last year? It was supposed to be the ‘City of Heroes’ killer but it bombed!” The answer to this is yes and no.  When “Champions Online” was released, it was essentially still in beta, and as such was filled with hundreds of bugs.  Cryptic tried to delay the release date so they could iron everything out, but Atari, in its infinite wisdom, decided to push it to live, and boy were people pissed.

But all that’s changed. They’ve spent the past year squishing all of those pesky bugs, adding tons of new costumes and impressive new powers, and putting in some really impressive new Zones and Adventure Packs.

“Champions Online” has a great community to boot.  The remaining players are very keen on keeping the game afloat, and the developers listen intently to player feedback.  There’s plenty of powers and costume pieces that were added at the recommendation of the players.

Now you can get to the maximum level and go anywhere you please if you are going the Free To Play route, but you’re going to get much more bang for your buck if you pay the monthly fee.  You’ll have access to the a completely freeform power system, where you can choose powers from any number of powersets, and you’ll gets hundreds more costumes to choose from for your caped crusader.  You’ll get a monthly stipend of Atari Points, which you can spend on items in their store to get new costumes, powers, and items, like the giant growth device, or the summonable sidekick.

And to any of you naysayers to the Free To Play model, “Dungeons and Dragons Online” and “Lord of the Rings Online” have both been thriving now that they switched, with the latter tripling it’s revenue since last year.  And with “Champions Online” being the first Free To Play MMO on the market, and DC Universe Online getting poor reviews for the PC, we’re looking at a bright, hero-filled future.

For more information, go to http://champions-online.com/f2p

If you want to contact me in-game, shoot me a message @Loganius

The Dark Knight Rises Casting Info

The latest additions to the cast.

An interesting statement came from Warner Bros. Pictures this morning regarding some important casting decisions made about The Dark Knight Rises, the 3rd and final film in Chris Nolan’s Batman trilogy. The statement reads:

Warner Bros. Pictures announced today that Anne Hathaway has been cast as Selina Kyle in Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight Rises.” She will be starring alongside Christian Bale, who returns in the title role of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Christopher Nolan stated, “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Anne Hathaway, who will be a fantastic addition to our ensemble as we complete our story.”

In addition, Tom Hardy has been set to play Bane. Nolan said, “I am delighted to be working with Tom again and excited to watch him bring to life our new interpretation of one of Batman’s most formidable enemies.” Nolan will direct the film from a screenplay he wrote with Jonathan Nolan, from a story by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer. Nolan will also produce the film with his longtime producing partner, Emma Thomas, and Charles Roven. “The Dark Knight Rises” is slated for release on July 20, 2012. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

So there you have it. It has been known for some time about Tom Hardy being cast in the film, but his role was not yet determined. I personally am eager to see him take on another psychotic role, and Bane just might be the right fit for him. If you haven’t seen him in Bronson, I would highly recommend it. Check out this trailer below to get a glimpse of his brilliant performance.

And I’m just as excited to see Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle. Hathaway is beautiful, and is truly a great actress. I’m excited to see her under Nolan’s direction. Just note that the Press Release didn’t mention Catwoman. Now it would be silly to have Kyle, but no Catwoman, but… you never know. To see more of Anne Hathaway, check out our Chickswelike.com article on her.

So what are your thoughts? Comment below and tell us if you think they made the right choices!