First let me say that I LIKE this game right now. I loved this game until open beta. It turned real ugly at that point. A LOT of people were in there swooping in constantly getting at mission clickables/mobs while we were fighting to get to them, there was an awful lot of lag and the number of people simply being butt munches and handing out tripe for advice to newbies was insane. Typical open beta... I eagerly await the time when this immature crowd has settled into the game or moved on after their free taste. Usually this is about 2-3 months after launch. Otherwise THE PLAYERS will be what make me not want to touch this game. Sad, but true.

Anyways at the end of it all my two brothers and I are going to be playing it. 2 of us have lifetime subscriptions and the 3rd only doesn't because college ate a lot more of his funds than he thought it would. I really like the game. Like CoH/V it has a robust character creator and comic book theme, but it has its' own flavor too. I really appreciate the angle they have taken.

PvE
Decent, but now a hair grindy. Not like like really bad, but definitely more grindy than CoH/V. The missions are good. I like the open world ones, but I was really hungering for more indoor missions to break it up a little. There is an ok amount of them, but I like door missions or at least private instances once in a while to break up the world quest aspect so many MMOs lean on. You gotta have variety. Still the fact that a civilian or drop can give me a mission is nice and helps break things up. The one thing that really and truly bugs me about PvE from the beginning in CO is that when you start a new character you cannot skip the friggin tutorial. I mean come one! That is like standard fair now. Now many freakin times to I have to be forced to endure that stupid battle. Far worse is that since I will likely be playing it when other players are snoozing I will have to deal with a LOT of the tutorial quirks like when there are a BILLION enraged qularr between me and the end of the tutorial.

PvP
If you were an Ice/Ice/Ice or Force/Force/Force or Ice/Ice/Force in PvP you are pretty much invincible. No really. My brother made a Force/Force/Fire and only those types could take him down. Ice for primary attack, AoE and Secondary is strong. TOO DAMNED STRONG. Ice focused attcks+Ice Focused AoEs and Force for defenses works really well too. Harder to focus than a pure build, but a master at opponent positioning/speed and damage resistance.

The Future (Micro-transactions, Lifetime Members, XP ETC)
As a lifetime member I worry that micro-transactions, as they have been recently discussed, will be something that every player may be forced to pay in order to enjoy the game more fully. I mean XP boosts and in-game items could ruin the game. It is decently balanced right now and I have to wonder what these Micro-Ts with do to the that balance. Also if they become something that REALLY enhances the gameplay I worry that Micro-Ts will become the new "second subscription" that everyone is so worried they will become. We have all heard rumors about additions character slots, access to exclusive zones and costume pieces/swag will be in the store, but worries me is what they AREN'T telling us. You know the "MUCH MUCH MORE" part...*sigh*

Something I am worried about is something someone else mentioned. They recently upped the XP needed to level. For an often solo player like myself (my brothers only play one day on the weekends) this will get really harsh really fast. I noticed something. When got out of the tutorial zone and started doing my missions in the crisis zones that the task NPCs were awarding me items that I couldn't wear for 2 or 3 levels. This not only made those lower levels harder, but I had to make sure not to sell them until I had a chance to wear them. Even crafting has been effected. Usually you can craft something and don it right away. I was capable of making something I would have to wait 5 levels to utilize because of the new imposed XP/leveling system! That is a LONG time to hold onto something to equip it. Unless you grind mobs to level up between missions you could have a contact send you on a mission that is utter doom even for a large group. It was starting to get that way right around 26-28. I can only imagine later in the game...

Anyways I have posted far too much of my opinion. I am glad there are a lot of people giving the game a shot as I think that there is a lot to like about the game. Is it a WoW killer? No. WoW is an "Every Niche" monster that appeals to a very wide spectrum, but isn't great at any one thing. Will it destroy CoH/V? No. That game has momentum going for it. It has been rolling a while and will keep rolling until it CHOOSES to stop. CO is its' own thing really. Similar, but different enough. They reward you different and THAT is what I think leaves room for both. Is it strong enough to be considered alongside DCUniverse and Marvel Online? Yes. THIS is where CO will prove itself out or not. These two unreleased games, in my mind, are its' closest spiritual kin. If it can elbow its' way between these titans their IPs with great gameplay and a uniquely angled perspective it will make it for a long time to come. Otherwise they might bowl it over with their IPs and possibly similar gameplay. The IPs will attract many, but unless those two execute themselves carefully they will be outgunned by CO and its simple fun gameplay in my tiny opinion. CO, to me, is a really good comic environment with the potential to do really well if things stay loose and fun. Otherwise it will become a grindfest. No one wants that...right?

Originally posted by metalhead980

A new content patch with one more month before server shut down?

Either these guys are going to tweak the game to be F2p with a cash shop/ Game ads or they plan to sell this to another company.

If this game goes F2p they will take it down make it more cash shop friendly and relaunch a few months down the road.

TR would be the best F2p on the market if they did that to be honest.

I completely agree. I love this game and would love to see it live on in whatever form, but as you say, if it were F2P with a cash shop...it would utterly dominate. Fantastic observation!

 Want...want bad...

I wish that I could work there. They all seem to know what games mean to me and I wish I could give back. I intend on making many missions for this when it comes out. Maybe I can contribute back to the game that way. Love it and them a lot.

Originally posted by djnso

I believe LOTRO let you keep your open beta characters.

Yeah they did, but there were wipes along the way before beta ended so no one was too far ahead. Edit: Oops I was thinking of another game. In LOTRO They didn't let you save your character did they? Even then anyone that beta tests and/or is really dedicated to MMOs has learned the fastest ways to get ahead in any given game anyways so wipes are really a half assed attempt at slowing those types of people down so the rest of the crowd can catch up.

Being a casual player I didn't get my first level 20 in DDO for months where as the first one rolled off that very weekend of launch. The same is true of other games I have played like COH/V. I have yet to get to 50 in that game (mostly due to lacking the time to), but the first 40 (The game's level cap at the time) was reached in less than 7 days.

In the end stopping people from carrying over beta characters never does what it is supposed to, so I don't understand the proliferation of the activity. I wish they would "reset" your character so that you had your desired name, race and archtypes set when the game launches. THAT would make up for wipes in my mind. That way I don't have to fight for my name in a game with 2,500,000 other players. Let us testers have all our character reverted to lvl 1, but keep our names and what have you. THAT would be better...and they could keep their precious, nonfunctional, wipes in place.

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Incidentally I am not there just to play the game. I want a chance to aid in ironing out the bugs and to have my voice heard on issues that I think need addressing. I also want to see if this game will be worth upgrading my machine, the monthly fee and leaving behind another MMO community in the same genre. (Fantasy MMO) Mostly I am there to see if the game runs smoothly and offer my bug reports, feature input and general opinion of the game. I might even throw in some future update feedback. In any account I am very interested in helping. I know that isn't the common goal of most beta testers these days, but that is mine. I have made games and good strong beta tests make or break some games. I love the premise of this title and wish to aid in making it all it can be. Other people's reasons...not so much. I just wish we all wanted to help out, but it isn't so. I wish I had gotten in sooner to help out, but for whatever reason they didn't. Now I just hope to give them 2 good weeks of feedback.