The highlight of the Beta is probably the character creation system, which is one of the deepest available in a MMO, allowing you to shape you hero exactly as you see fit. It's time consuming but entertaining and the best thing is that the chances of meeting a similar looking player in the radiation infested world are slim. Not only the facial and body features can be adjusted, but with plenty of sliders and dropdown menus there are limitless costume and color combinations to make sure your hero is unique. Some people will probably feel a bit overwhelmed with it, so choosing a random character and tweak it just a bit, to fit your image of a hero can be an alternative.
Following the intricate character creation, players will have to deal with a rather lengthy tutorial which is supposed to introduce you in the brand new world of Champions Online. For those completely unfamiliar with City of Heroes, this first chapter is a great addition which allows them to get in-depth knowledge about gaming mechanics and the basic narrative. I personally appreciate the way the tutorial unfolds, but some people may find it a bit too long, with rather repetitive quests they'd rather skip in order to start the real missions.
Once you've dealt with the tutorial and succeed in assisting the notorious Ironclad to fend off the alien invasion, there is a short instance to be solved before departing from Millennium City. The main villain in Champions Online is Doctor Destroyer, whose ambitions of world domination you are determined to shatter. Uncovering his plans will see our hero travelling to both fictional areas and ones bearing real names, with each zone being sectioned off by servers to prevent over population. It may seem a bit awkward in the beginning since it somehow affects the idea of open world, but the benefits are superior with no lag to worry about.
Champions Online was meant to be a game without any class restrictions, with players being capable of taking different roles while questing in a party. As a result there are plenty of powers and special abilities you can choose from and the best thing is the opportunity to constantly modify them as you see fit. On the bad side, I found some of these powers' descriptions not fully typed out and the advantages were lacking, not to mention the fact that customizing powers is mostly visual. You can also pick a perk for your special abilities to increase damage and make them look better, but this comes with a price, an equally potent weakness you'll have to deal with in the future.
Questing is not particularly demanding and if you are careful not to aggro too many bad guys, it's most unlikely to suffer an untimely death even when fighting enemies with higher levels then your own. Nonetheless there are certain occasions when your health is depleting very fast, after engaging the same type of enemies you were obliterating earlier, which makes combat a bit arbitrary. Death will eventually occur but there's no reason to worry about resurrection sickness or any death penalty, instead you'll be just losing stars. These can be replenished by donating to specific NPCs but the benefits of having all stars up are considerable, since they boost your powers and special abilities.
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Something most MMO enthusiasts will definitely appreciate is the reward you get after reaching level 5, consisting in the unlock of an unconventional movement option. Either we are talking of flight, teleportation, swinging, super speed or underground burrowing, all of them greatly enhance the gaming experience. Reaching the objective in a few seconds rather than walking long twisted paths, as well as having a fast, reliable method of fleeing is a huge boost for any low level hero. Another original ability is blocking enemy melee or ranged attacks, a power you receive from the beginning and proves invaluable.
Just like any other power, blocking consumes energy and it requires perfect timing if you are to repel a powerful blow. In compensation, your hero possesses other abilities which despite inflicting low damage are very effective in regenerating energy. There are countless combinations to use you ability and this only gets more challenging as you unlock more of them, but the good think is it will never grow into button mashing or tapping. Coordination and planning rather than spamming are the cornerstone of Champions Online, and this is even more obvious when you are joining other players to bring down a powerful foe.
Both single missions and group quests are given by NPCs with exclamation marks over their head and a question mark indicates the place where they should be turned in. A worthy addition to the whole questing activity are the map markers which direct you to the appropriate zones, without indicating the exact location. Rewards consist mainly on better gear and credits, while leveling up will award extra points to be spent boosting your stats. Frankly I was puzzled and even now I'm uncertain if investing in Ego, Presence or Recovery was the right thing to do, since the descriptions are pretty vague.
I doubt many players got the time to level up to 25 but those who did were probably thrilled to discover that you are presented with the opportunity of designing your own nemesis. Once again you've got full control over the character creation, choosing his name, powers and outfit, but taking the time to come up with a worthy adversary will pay off on the long run. This villain will be constantly tracking you down, tormenting you and issuing challenges when least expected. The storyline doesn't revolve around him, but his role in the narrative is considerable and keeping him at bay will be equally demanding as fighting the infamous Doctor Destroyer.
It is far to early to come up with a definitive statement about Champions Online and its chances of becoming a popular MMO, but the Beta provided us plenty of hints. The combat style is dynamic and intuitive so the PvP is something we should be looking forward to, while graphics are not sensational but fit the game style and overall this title looks very well. The Champions Online universe is an original one and although it's unlikely that this game can end the World of Warcraft domination, it is still an admirable substitute.