City of Heroes announces Going Rogue expansion
THE NEXT LEVEL
In the City of Heroes, the line between hero and villain will blur.
This week, NCsoft and Paragon Studios announced the development of “City of Heroes Going Rogue.” This is the first major expansion of the “City of Heroes” game franchise since “City of Villains” in 2005.
“City of Heroes” is a long-running massively multiplayer online game featuring comic-book style superheroes. In “Going Rogue,” hero characters can become villains, and villain characters will be able to redeem themselves and become heroes.
This is a long-standing tradition in comic books, which inspired “City of Heroes.” The archer Hawkeye in Marvel Comics, for example, began his career as a villain, before becoming a member of the Avengers and a hero. DC Comics’ Sinestro was a member of the Green Lantern Corps before becoming the most dangerous enemy of the intergalactic peacekeeping force.
In “Going Rogue,” hero and villain characters will enter a parallel universe called Praetoria. Praetoria is governed by Tyrant, who is an evil version of Statesman, the protagonist of “City of Heroes.”
As gamers search for Tyrant, resistance will arise to face them from all sides, causing heroes and villains alike to question their loyalties, the company announced in a release.
The “Going Rogue” game will introduce a new alignment system allowing players to explore shades of gray. Hero archetypes will be able to cross over to the villainous Rogue Isles, and villain archetypes will be able to visit virtuous Paragon City.
Missions, behaviors and decisions will affect the character’s moral compass, which could lead to a change in the character’s alignment.
Going Rogue will also introduce two new fictional characters into the game’s storyline that exemplify the possible changes. Maelstrom is a pistol-wielding hero gone rogue, and a Desdemona is a demon-summoning villain who has been redeemed.
“City of Heroes has brought a fresh new perspective to the MMO stage with its foray into the super-powered hero comic book genre, and we are excited to present gamers with even more innovative content in Going Rogue,” Brian Clayton, general manager and executive producer at Paragon Studios, said in a release. “For years, players could choose between playing as a hero or a villain. Now we will present a third, malleable path where players can be affected by the results of their actions, enabling them to further develop, unveil new perspectives, and overcome new challenges.”
– By Matthew Price
From Friday’s The Oklahoman
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awsome