The Staying Power of CoX

That's why I think Atlas and Galaxy should be combined into one zone - there really isn't any need that I can see for new players to be given the option of going to a quiet zone as their first experience of the game.

Plus, the Atlas statue looks way more spectacular when you arrive

I think Atlas and Galaxy should be separate zones - there really isn't any need that I can see for vet players to be forced to go to a crowded zone on their hundredth character.

Yes, that. I haven't started a new hero in Atlas in years, and don't intend to start again.

I do, however, agree that starting content needs to be more exciting. I also agree that villains need the same alternate leveling paths that heroes have. I'd love to see Croatoa/Striga/Faultline type zones for villains.

I don't think adding endgame content has to mean making it a clone of WoW. For one thing, when they add new content it doesn't take away anything from the game now. Whatever you enjoy doing with your 50s now, you can just keep doing.

In the Comicon panel discussion they mentioned both that 50s would be able to become more powerful and that the endgame content would make the current content look easy in comparison. So I'm guessing that it will involve character progression that is similar to leveling without actually raising the level cap. The key difference from WoW will (I hope) be the lack of a grind. I've never played WoW but from what I understand you have to repeatedly do the same raid content hoping to get the drop(s) you need. I doubt they'd do that here. I think they realize that one of the strengths of this game is that it isn't a WoW clone.

The (perhaps impossible) challenge for them is to make this new character progression not feel grindy yet last as long as possible. It would suck if you could complete the fabulous new endgame in 2 weeks. Yet if it just feels like mindless repetition in order to draw it out, there will be player backlash. Tough, tough balancing act.

I've been around for a while, and got the 60 month veteran badge a few weeks ago. Sometimes, other games capture my interest for a while. I played Age of Conan for a while (great first 20 levels, went swiftly downhill after that while I played). I've been to World of Warcraft. I tried Lord of the Rings Online for a while. I've played a variety of single player games.

This is the game that's home, the one I've always come back to. I came close to /ragequit after issues 5 and 6, like I suspect a lot of people did, and spent a lot of time in other games until issue 9 at least. That said ....

The endgame content here is getting to make another character with a different power set and playing that. The number of characters you can have here is limited only by the number of servers. There is enough variation among the several ATs and among powersets within ATs (Illusion Control vs Ice Control, anyone?) to keep me entertained, at least.

When this game added loot, it did it right. Loot is handed out privately and is infinitely transferrable; if you have a respec you can unslot your IOs, and in the worst case scenario you can always buy a respec. This game has loot without much loot drama and raid politics, and the loot does not become a bone of contention that starts quarrels in circles of friends who play together. That misfeature is what has tended to drive me away from other MMOs. I suspect I will subscribe as long as this game avoids that pitfall.

More content is a good thing, but I don't think it needs to focus on high level raids. And if something were added that brought loot drama and its resulting tensions here, I probably would leave.

I'm curious how far they'll take this. How much harder than, say, the RSF can we make something before casual gamers are afraid to try it? How much more powerful can we make level 50s through new means without completely invalidating current IO builds? It feels like this is a very thin line to try to walk.

Ok, keep Galaxy, but make it only able to be chosen by 6-year vets

Hardcore progressive guilds (ones who are the first into every new 10 and 25man raid instance) will raid 6 nights a week for 4 hours each night but they're doing it for world and server firsts of boss kills (The big name guilds which tend to get world first are often professionally sponsored as well).

Hmm that gives me a great idea for a tagline for CoH.
If we ever get a box back on the shelves it should read:
"Not by the creators of Champions Online( And thank God!)"

I wouldn't combine Atlas and Galaxy. My suggestion (for the past several years) has been to make Galaxy a little more ... "galactic" ... by replacing the dowdy Freedom Corps building with a towering Space Needle type observatory.

Also, when we get new / revamped content (devs, please admit you were wrong, it is the first step toward recovery!) we can continue on the path of having separate stories for each origin, and having one set of origin arcs starting in Atlas and one set starting in Galaxy.

People create so many new toons, I think they would really enjoy a variety of choices for play at the lower levels. (And higher levels too, but start with the lower levels so some stories can continue from lower level to higher level.)

My Gamestops have usually displayed one copy (or at least they did; last time I was in one of them I couldn't even *find* a PC shelf); I don't know if they restock if it sells, if they have more in the back or what. But two of the locations still had lone copies of GvE that had been marked down to 9.99 when Architect came out. I know they only had one because I bought it at both locations, after which they were shown as not having it in stock.