City of Heroes / City of Villains

Winners of the PAX Prime Contest!

2010-09-02T01:03:50Z

Please join us in congratulating all three winners of the PAX Prime "Three Day Pass" Contest! The contest required participants to compose haikus expressing their excitement and anticipation of the then soon-to-launch City of Heroes Going Rogue expansion and you certainly didn't disappoint us! Without further ado, here are the winning haikus and their composers: "Job? Girlfriend's birthday? Too busy drooling right now Going Rogue is here" By C. Powers Pittsburgh, PA "I once was so good Then I heard temptations call So fun to be bad" By L. Jones DuPont, WA "Anticipation I count the seconds to Rogue feeling each clock tick" By M. Philbrook Kelso, WA Congratulations again to the winners, we hope you have a great time at PAX Prime! And for those of you who will be headed to Seattle this week, don't forget the City of Heroes panel and the Meet & Greet!

New In-Game Pack - Get Ready to PARTY!

2010-08-31T16:14:38Z

Ready to be the life of the party? Now you can be with the new City of Heroes® Party Pack coming your way this month! Jam-packed with all-new dance, nightlife and sports emotes, the Party Pack gives you exclusive access to some of the coolest emotes you've ever seen. Dance like a super-powered pop star or energize your Super Group with the fancy finger work of an Air Guitar performance. Maybe your idea of partying is kickin' it up on the field or b-ball court. Well, now you can strut your stuff like a pro athlete with new soccer and basketball emotes. One thing is for certain - with this new pack, the party will be wherever YOU are! The City of Heroes Party Pack will go on sale in the NCsoft store for $7.99 (€5.99 / £4.99) on Tuesday, September 14th, but you can get a sneak peek today! Check out the new Party Pack trailer here!

CoH Going Rogue Sweepstakes on MMORPG.com!

2010-08-27T07:41:21Z

MMORPG.com is celebrating Going Rogue in style - by throwing a big sweepstakes! They're giving away $2,500 worth of great merchandise made up of 63 total prizes including 5 ATI Radeon 5870 video cards! But the Grand Prize Winner gets an even better reward...the ability to design and name a character that will actually go into Going Rogue! All you have to do to enter is to log into their site between now and 9pm Eastern on August 31, 2010 and you'll be entered to win. You can log in once each day which will of course, increase your chances. This is a Sweepstakes, so out of all those who enter, winners will be randomly picked. After being identified, the Grand Prize Winner will be contacted so they can start designing and naming the character they'd like to see come alive in Praetoria. So why aren't you entering already? Go enter today and every day up until 9pm Eastern on August 31, 2010. Good Luck! Please Note: This Sweepstakes is only available for U.S. and Canadian residents. But don't despair our European friends - some EU specific activities will be coming your way soon!

Matt Miller Talks GR on Electric Playground!

2010-08-23T19:42:27Z

The Going Rogue interviews keep rolling in! This time, we have a video interview to share with you where Matt "Positron" Miller gives Electric Playground the low-down on what the new expansion is all about. Watch it below:

Announcing the City of Heroes® Design a Loading Screen Contest!

2010-08-21T05:09:33Z

Please note: You must be 13 years of age or older to participate and a legal resident of the United States (excluding the State of Rhode Island, and excluding Guam, Puerto Rico, U.S. territories, military installations and commonwealths), or Canada (excluding Quebec) or the European Union, as of Friday, August 20th, 2010 to participate in this contest. Submissions open from 11:00 p.m. CST (5:00 p.m. British Time / 6:00 Central European Time) Friday, August 20th, 2010 until 11:59 p.m. CST (5:59 a.m. British Time / 6:59 Central European Time) Monday, September 20th, 2010. 2010 has certainly been a creative year as far as our City of Heroes contests go. We asked you to design a Valentine's card for War Witch and you sent us tons of romantic and pink-laden cards. We asked you to collage EMPulse's and TheOcho's face in various environments and we got the most humorous situations we could have expected. We asked you to design billboards or graffiti that determined your allegiance to the Loyalist or Resistance factions and you showed us how resourceful you would be in Praetoria. We asked you to write haikus to show us how excited you are to get started with City of Heroes Going Rogue and you've proven to us that excitement could be contained in a mere 17 syllables. Well guess what? It is only going to get better...starting now! This time around, not only are we asking you to be creative, we may also reward some of you with a spot into the game, meaning that if your loading screen design is selected as a winning entry, you may well end up seeing it in the game...along with thousands and thousands of other players! Isn't that the optimal creative reward? Now, how do you go about designing a loading screen for City of Heroes? This is where things get even more interesting so bear with us! For starters, download the following loading screen frames: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. There are three layouts each for Hero-side zones (in blue) and Villain-side zone (in red), plus a modified Hero frame for use with Hazard zones. You'll see that each frame file is composed of several different layers including:

a map background layer;
3 masked photo layers (with a masked-out image area, making it easy for players to simply drop their photos into place);
a text layer (which can be edited with the name of the zone you're working on).

Now for the fun part! Roam around your favorite Paragon City and Rogue Isles zones as a photographer, taking artistically composed shots of the zones' coolest landmarks and vistas. In particular, focus on the signature areas that make the zone unique. As you set up your shots, look for interesting camera angles (perhaps a very low or high angle or maybe a shot with your subject in the middleground and some other object in the immediate foreground)--in other words, get creative! When you're done, take your best three shots and plug them into the provided frames, and voila. Here are a few requirements you will need to follow for your entries to be valid:

You must submit your entries in .PSD format ONLY (there is a free Photoshop Elements trial available here if needed);
The resolution for each entry is set at 1024 x 768 exactly and entries should remain that size;
Your entries have to include all 3 layers (see examples above) and we have to be able to view each layer separately. DO NOT COLLAPSE THEM.
Items placed on the photo layer must be your own creation. While we do expect you to ONLY use in game screenshots, it still has to be your own original work;
Please use the highest Ultra Mode settings that your computer allows in order to take screenshots for the photo layer(e.g.: shadows, water, ambient occlusion, texture quality, anti-aliasing have to be turned up; environment reflections must be turned up where applicable);
NO character should appear on the screenshots. The focus should be on the zones themselves;
If you submit more than 1 entry from a given side (i.e. 2 or more Hero-side screens), use a different frame on each. Yes you are allowed to submit several entries but you may only place once as a Contest Winner.
Last but not last, make sure you familiarize yourselves with the list of zones eligible for this contest. Some of them are excluded from this contest!

Your submission will be judged on originality, creativity, and visual appearance. Feel free to create loading screens for whichever zones you want, but please note that we'll probably receive many entries for commonly used hub zones and fewer entries for outlying areas. You may increase your changes of winning by focusing some attention on the more obscure zones. We reserved the right to make alterations to the winning entries. Do NOT post your submission publicly! Enter only through email. We will share the winning entries with you when the contest concludes. Here's how to enter: 1) Between 11:00pm (CST) Friday, August 20th, 2010 and 11:59 PM (CST) Monday, September 20th, 2010 send an email to cohcontests@ncsoft.com with the subject heading "City of Heroes Design a Loading Screen Contest." Include the following information in the body of the email: A. Your first and last name B. Your age C. Your location -- city, state/province, country D. A contact phone number (this will only be used as an additional method of contacting you regarding this Contest if we need to reach you) E. Your full mailing address (Important: This is where your prize will be mailed to) F. The sentences: "I permit NC Interactive, Inc. et NCsoft Europe Limited to use my name, likeness, photograph, hometown and any comments which I may make about myself, this competition I provide for advertising and promotional activities. By submitting an entry to this competition, I accept and agree to be bound by the Official Terms and Conditions" 2) Include your Loading Screen file as an attachment. There will be three (3) Winners and their prizes are: One (1) First Place Winner Will Receive:

One (1) 6 Months Subscription to City of Heroes® (Estimated retail value $90.00)
Super Booster V: Mutant (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster IV: Martial Arts (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster III: Superscience (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster II: Magic (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster I: Cyborg (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Mini Booster: Temporary 30 Day Jetpack (Estimated retail value $4.99)
Wedding Pack (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Mac Special Edition In-Game Item Pack (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Good Versus Evil In-Game Item Pack (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Ghoul Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Freakshow Boss Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Carnival of Shadow Harlequin Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
PPD Hardsuit Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Praetorian Clockwork Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Knives of Artemis Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Carnival of Shadows Ring Mistress Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
*Possible entry inclusion in the City of Heroes® game (No retail value)

Estimated Total Prize package value: $174.91 One (1) Second Place Winner Will Receive:

One (1) 3 Months Subscription to City of Heroes® (Estimated retail value: $45.00)
Super Booster V: Mutant (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster IV: Martial Arts (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster III: Superscience (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster II: Magic (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster I: Cyborg (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Freakshow Boss Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Carnival of Shadow Harlequin Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
PPD Hardsuit Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Praetorian Clockwork Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Knives of Artemis Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Carnival of Shadows Ring Mistress Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
*Possible entry inclusion in the City of Heroes® game (No retail value)

Estimated Total Prize package value: $94.95 One (1) Third Place Winner Will Receive:

One (1) 1 Month Subscription to City of Heroes® (Estimated retail value: $15.00)
Super Booster V: Mutant (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster IV: Martial Arts (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster III: Superscience (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster II: Magic (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Super Booster I: Cyborg (Estimated retail value $9.99)
Freakshow Boss Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
Carnival of Shadow Harlequin Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
PPD Hardsuit Costume Power (Estimated retail value $0.00)
*Possible entry inclusion in the City of Heroes® game (No retail value)

Estimated Total Prize package value: $64.95 We reserve the right to award prizes to further Winners (Runner-ups) if their submission is selected to be used as a loading screen in the game but don't place in the top 3 Winners, in which case their prize would be:

One (1) 1 Month Subscription to City of Heroes® (Estimated retail value: $15.00)
two (2) of the following packs:
- Super Booster V: Mutant (Estimated retail value $9.99)
- Super Booster IV: Martial Arts (Estimated retail value $9.99)
- Super Booster III: Superscience (Estimated retail value $9.99)
- Super Booster II: Magic (Estimated retail value $9.99)
- Super Booster I: Cyborg (Estimated retail value $9.99)
- Wedding Pack (Estimated retail value $9.99)
- Mac Special Edition In-Game Item Pack (Estimated retail value $9.99)
- Good Versus Evil In-Game Item Pack (Estimated retail value $9.99)
- *Possible entry inclusion in the City of Heroes® game (No retail value)

Estimated Total Prize package value: $34.98 And last but certainly not least, make sure you read the official City of Heroes Design a Loading Screen Contest Rules and Conditions before entering the contest! Don't dawdle and start now, 6 weeks are sure to fly by! Happy designing all!

City of Heroes Going Rogue Deal at Best Buy!

2010-08-20T19:19:10Z

For all of you out there with friends who have never played City of Heroes or if you haven't had the chance to pick yourself up a copy of City of Heroes Going Rogue, we have word of a great deal! Best Buy locations in the United Sates (and their website) are offering the City of Heroes Going Rogue Complete Collection boxed sets for just $29.99 (through Saturday August 21, 2010). There's not much time left on this deal, so if you're interested, get to a Best Buy today!

A Gamasutra City of Heroes® Retrospective!

2010-08-19T18:49:39Z

Gamasutra managed to sit down Art Lead, David "Noble Savage" Nakayama and Senior Development Producer, Jesse "Ghost Falcon" Caceres to talk about the game's eventful past six years. This resulted in an interview that gives an exciting in-depth look at CoH's history -- from the product's launch in 2004 to the release of City of Heroes Going Rogue, it covers it all! Visit Gamasutra to read City of Heroes: Secrets to Six Years of Success and learn about everything from the vital role our community has played in the success of the City of Heroes franchise to the challenges that were part of transitioning comic book art from the page to the computer screen. Enjoy!

Keep an eye on Electric Playground

2010-08-19T01:05:19Z

Recently everyone's favorite lead system designer Matt Miller sat down with Electric Playground for an interview on Going Rogue for an upcoming episode of their Telly award winning show. We're waiting anxiously for this one to come out and expect it to be shown soon, so keep an eye on the show. Check here for availability and scheduling!

Massively, MacLife, and PCGamer Giveaways!

2010-08-17T20:29:16Z

Our friends at Massively are just as excited about Going Rogue as we are and want "in" on all of the giveaway action!! Head on over to Massively.com and let them know exactly why you are a Loyalist or Resistance member, and you could win a copy of the Super Booster V: Mutant or City of Heroes Going Rogue! Not to be outdone, MacLife is hosting their own giveaway. They're asking you to tell them what you think of City of Heroes Going Rogue so for goodness sakes tell them! You could win a code that upgrades your City of Heroes® account to City of Heroes Going Rogue or even better, you could win the City of Heroes Going Rogue Complete Collection! Finally PCGamer has thrown their hat into the City of Heroes Going Rogue giveaways and has their own contest up as well. Along with a fabulous article on what the Devs' plans are for Launch Day, they are inviting readers to share their own stories of launch day activities. They'll be handing out some Super Booster V: Mutant codes, so make sure you let them know what you've been up to! Good luck!

City of Heroes Going Rogue™ is now available!

2010-08-17T17:19:38Z

This summer's biggest super-powered MMO expansion is available today in North America and Europe. Enter the brave new world of Praetoria, an alternate universe where the line between good and evil is blurred. Battle strange new foes, wield four new power sets, and choose your character's destiny through new story arcs and missions. For the first time ever, your Hero can fall from grace to become a Villain, while your Villain can be redeemed to become a hero. Watch the new Going Rogue launch trailer, then buy it from the NCsoft store now!

War Witch Address on the Going Rogue Launch

2010-08-17T13:46:29Z

It's launch day for our latest expansion Going Rogue and Melissa "War Witch" Bianco, Lead Designer for the City of Heroes development team, wanted to share a few thoughts with our community.

Hey, everyone! I am so excited about introducing our newest expansion, City of Heroes: Going Rogue!! Everyone here at Paragon Studios has been working tirelessly on it, dedicating their time, creativity, and talent to ensure that it not only fulfills our promise of bringing you more of what you love but also creates a fun and unique experience for our veteran and new players alike! Missions! Zones! Going Rogue system! Villain Groups! Costumes! Emotes! (Okay, I could go on, but then it'll just get silly). Our goal for this expansion was to reinvent City of Heroes and I truly believe we've achieved it. There were times when I logged into our new Praetorian zones with Ultra Mode on and I went, "WHOA. This is amazing!" I hope that all of you have just as many "oooh", ahh", and "aha!" moments when you discover the new zones, missions, features, and - of course - easter eggs that await your exploration. This is the best work that we have ever done and that's saying something since we've put out some pretty fantastic content over the years. When you look at how far we've come, both in learning what works and in paying attention to how you respond to our content, we are constantly forcing ourselves to be better. In a space where an MMO has very little time to distinguish itself and gain a community, it says something that we started strong and have continued to be successful for over 6 years! It comes down to you the players so we take our development role seriously. This expansion is also an important accomplishment for Paragon Studios because we strive to not only distinguish ourselves from our previous work, but set the standard for how we will move forward as a studio, as a leader in our industry, and as a litmus test to determine how best to support City of Heroes moving forward. We've received excellent feedback from you during the Going Rogue Closed Beta period, which has directly affected many of the features you see in the Going Rogue expansion and I want to thank all of you that participated and took the time to write up your comments - both from a "broken" perspective AND from a subjective perspective because even if something is functional, it doesn't mean it's fun. The iteration on feedback has paid off because we made some significant changes that have made our features more enjoyable! So I want to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for your loyalty, your passion, and your commitment to City of Heroes and I hope that you enjoy all of the work that we have put into it. Thank you so much for making City of Heroes an amazing game to work on, thank you for your continued enthusiasm and excitement about this Going Rogue expansion (and beyond!), and - most of all - thank you for playing! Melissa "War Witch" Bianco

Reminder: the live Dev Q&A is happening today, 8/16!

2010-08-16T16:54:31Z

Don't forget the Dev Q&A with your favorite Devs, Matt "Positron" Miller, Melissa "War Witch" Bianco, Jesse "Ghost Falcon" Caceres and David "Noble Savage" Nakayama chatting and answering your questions about Going Rogue live today, Monday, August 16th between 4:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. PDT via the Coveritlive app below! So make sure to check back later! Test Run * 2

Introducing ViDoc #4 - Brave New World

2010-08-12T13:28:52Z

The City of Heroes® Dev Team is back once again to share with you even more about the alternate world of Praetoria, soon to be available with the upcoming release of Going Rogue. From the amazing graphics that re-invent the game to the intricately designed new City Zones, Going Rogue introduces a "Brave New World" for new and veteran players alike to explore. But don't take our word for it - hear about it straight from those who created it! Watch ViDoc #4 Brave New World now!

New Going Rogue City Zones and Character Bio Revealed!

2010-08-11T16:31:53Z

Imperial City is the glittering jewel in Praetoria's crown, the commercial and entertainment hub where Praetorians go to work and play. Neutropolis is an industrial district filled with Clockwork laborers, desolate warehouses, three antimatter reactors, and a few remaining refugees. After learning all the details associated with these two locales, make sure to watch the Imperial City/Neutropolis trailer to see first hand what awaits you in these amazing new City Zones! Then, take a moment to meet super genius Praetor Berry (a.k.a. Neuron), whose fascination with Science and willingness to perform untested procedures on himself has not only gained him super-human mental and physical speed, but the reverence and respect of Emperor Cole.

CoH Going Rogue™ Live Dev Q&A on 8/16 brought to you by Razer®

2010-08-11T00:31:56Z

Going Rogue is almost here, so let's celebrate with the next Developer Q&A! Please join us the day before GR launch on Monday, August 16th, from 4:00pm PDT to 5:00pm PDT, via Coveritlive! This Q&A is sponsored by Razer® and will have Matt "Positron" Miller, Melissa "War Witch" Bianco, Jesse "Ghost Falcon" Caceres and David "Noble Savage" Nakayama on hand to chit chat and answer your burning Going Rogue questions LIVE. Coveritlive (http://www.coveritlive.com/), a free web-based chat service. To participate, you can visit the Going Rogue Website or our Facebook Fan Page (http://www.facebook.com/CityofHeroes). There will be a Coveritlive applet available on Monday the 16th that you can click on to join the chat. No registration is required. If you're unable to attend the Developer Q&A, but you have questions you'd like to ask, you can send an e-mail to rogueqa@ncsoft.com starting today and up until the Q&A begins. We'll answer pre-submitted questions during the first half hour of the event. Afterwards, we'll post the Q&A transcript on the City of Heroes Forum and on our Facebook Fan page. See you there!