More Gameplay

Thankfully, though, you don't have to get beaten by yourself! Other than making teams, you can form your own Supergroup. So if you've ever had dreams of being The Outlaw Josey Wales and his band of Merry Gut-Punchers, then your time has come my friend. In Supergroup mode you can change into your group costume because, as we all know, you have to be color-coordinated to fight crime. Other than the matching tights, Supergroups also allow you access to a chat channel specifically for your group and a vault to hold your Enhancements.

Enhancements are City of Heroes loot. Whenever you vanquish a ruffian, there's a chance that he'll drop an Enhancement which allows you to improve one of your powers. Each power has at least one Enhancement slot. Different powers allow for different types of upgrades. For instance, if you have a long-range attack you could find Enhancements that allow for more damage, accuracy or a smaller usage of your stamina. On top of just having slots, you can combine Enhancements to improve upon those that were previously installed.

Other than Enhancements, villains also drop Inspirations. Inspirations act as a one use self-buff that can be a serious life-saver. Inspirations come in several different forms such as the ability to revive yourself when you fall in battle or increase your attacks damage or to hit rating. They only last a short while, but can mean the difference between winning and losing. And we all know that winning is the most important thing in life. Speaking of winning…

Combat in City of Heroes is amazing. Each of your powers can be bound to a number key for activation and, unlike Everquest, the fighting experience is very fast-paced. Your powers recharge very quickly combined with the different power visual effects make this game not only fun to play but fun to watch. Truly a game fit for a super hero!

Though not as in-depth as a fighting game, the action in City of Heroes is definitely a step above any other MMORPG to date. The sheer amount of thugs that you can engage at once is almost too much to take in. Almost. It's very cool wading into a group of guys with bats and guns and dishing out the justice.

I could go on all day about the different nuances and mechanics of City of Heroes, but it's really something you have to experience to fully appreciate. It's hard to describe a game like this in writing, because some games rely on a hard-set rule system while others rely on atmosphere. City of Heroes is one of the latter.

There's something enchanting about sprinting down a sidewalk, leaping over a fence into a back-alley and putting a stop to a purse-snatching, or running through the broken down streets of the Perez Park area and lunging into the woods of the park to find a coven of baddies performing an arcane ritual in a grove. There's a feeling you get when standing on top of a skyscraper at midnight, looking down upon the city and hoping for a chance to save someone's life. There's definitely nothing like it, and I don't think there will be for some time yet. It's quite an experience.