Discussion Thread: Superhero MMOs

With regard to the earlier thread on Blizzard's latest WoW Fail, I asked Shaker Norbizness, who mentioned in comments he was "trying out different superhero mmos" and finding "the levels of freedom and customization are much higher," if he would be interested in providing a brief review by way of introduction to a Discussion Thread. Norbiz replied (which I am publishing with his permission):

My superhero mmos are basically City of Heroes/City of Villains and its successor, Champions online. From any sort of feminist/disability/heteronormative perspective, it suffers superficially from the same tropes that plague pen-and-paper comics. The thing that partially redeems it is the unbelievable level of customization for your characters; literally trillions of combinations with all body types, species, colors, and even robotic. As a result, Cryptic Studios (I have no affiliation with them apart from not wanting the game to die because of the WoW monopoly) has made it that you can create characters that transcend whatever norm there is. I'm fairly certain that it's a minor game compared to the number of subscribers Warhammer, Star Trek Online, and especially WoW have.

DC Universe Unlimited is coming out in November, and I've seen the screenshots. If you didn't like Power Girl's and Wonder Woman's outfits before, the game is certainly no different on the surface from your typical DC comic. I will probably try it out in beta in the next couple of months and can tell you whether it offers the same opportunities for customization and individual experience that are lacking in many of the fantasy games.

For those interested, DC is rolling out their product here, and Champions online is here.

I know there are a lot of Shakers who play superhero mmos (including Spudsy, who loves playing a supervillain), so please feel free to make your recommendations and add your reviews in comments.