So I tried out the City of Villains beta this weekend. I mean really tried it out. I had some limited experience with it at E3, but with the beta I got to sit down and really play around with it.

As happened with City of Heroes, I spent the most of my time on the character creation. The City of Heroes franchise has yet to be topped in terms of MMORPG character customization, and for that I have always loved it.

I was a little disappointed to find that 80% of the costume options for the villains were exactly the same as CoH. There are some cool new options, and the ability to distort your facial/physical features for added customization.

Once I finally got into the game, I felt like I was playing City of Heroes again. Which is a great thing I guess, because CoH is a great game. However at the same time, I lost my interest in CoH quite a while ago, so seeing the exact same thing did nothing to tug me back in.

Overall it seems like a solid expansion to the franchise. If you’re into City of Heroes, I think it’s safe to say that this game will be just what you’re looking for.

But if you’re hooked on World of Warcraft like me, I’m not sure there is much there to pull you away.