At Comic-Con, we had some time to spend talking with the developers and getting some more hands on exposure to DC Universe Online. In addition to talking to Executive Creative Director on the game Jim Lee, we also got to talk to some of the more hands on members of the team.
Up until this point, the focus of the DC Universe Online message has been your own character’s adventure with interaction with the iconic characters. What they are looking to do now is have a mentor method where to learn from the Iconic characters such as Batman, players must experience what it’s like to be them.
The result is the competitive versus mode that allows for players to take on the role of characters like Batman or the Joker and go up against other players in order to advance as characters. The theory is that by playing as these characters, players will better understand their strengths and weaknesses, their strategies and their tactics. These matches go from 2 vs. 2 to up to 16 vs. 16. The game modes will include territories, capture the flag and sabotage.
It also allows for quick jump in and jump out gameplay for a player who only has a few minutes to play and doesn’t have the time to complete a full thirty or more minute quest in the game. Players gain PvP points that can be spent later on unlocking other characters or their character’s raid suit.
At release, Robin and Harley will be available for players for the heroes and villains sides respectively. Gaining currency, players can then unlock Nightwing, Bane and Huntress, eventually unlocking the Joker at the highest levels. As a bonus to people pre-ordering the game, Batman will be available to them from the start.
At Comic Con, we got the chance to talk to DC Comics Editor-In-Chief and the Executive Creator Director of DC Universe Online, Jim Lee about the game that everyone around the offices has been clamoring to get a hold of. As you’ll see in the’s interview after the jump, Jim explains what it takes to create such an expansive MMO game. Jim also discusses the newly announced two vs. two simulator mode which allows players the chance to step out of the boots of their own created character and instead play as the iconic heroes of the DC Universe such as Batman or Martian Manhunter.
Lee also discusses the Geoff Johns announcement from the Con for a Suicide Squad video game. Lee describes it was a Dirty Dozen style grittier than your average super hero game. For those who aren’t aware, the Suicide Squad is a team of villains who were put together on a mission where they knew everyone wouldn’t be coming back. It is definitely a darker take on the super hero genre which, if Batman: Arkham Asylum has shown us anything, looks like it is coming out at the right time in this industry.
What you don’t get to see on camera was when Jim mentions to us just how the trailer for the game comes into play. For those who have seen it, the trailer sets up the back-story of why a Luthor from the future comes back and talks to DC’s Trinity pleading for their help. The shockwave he sends on the planet sets forth an explosion of new powers, explaining logically why all these new heroes and villains are created. This ties in directly with the upcoming comics miniseries which will show how these new found powers affect the lives of average citizens who have now been transformed into powered beings.
Check out our interview in its entirety after the jump and stick with us for all things DC Universe Online as the Beta kicks into gear this month.
Fans of the MMORPG DC Universe will be happy to know that today Sony Online Entertainment announced that two of their best-known vocal talents will be voicing two of their most popular characters.
Mark Hamill (Star Wars), who voiced The Joker for both the early ’90s Batman: The Animated Series as well as the hit game Batman: Arkham Asylum, will be returning as The Clown Prince of Crime; and Kevin Conroy, voice of Batman himself, also in The Animated Series and Arkham Asylum, will again lend his talents as the Caped Crusader.
In addition to Hamill and Conroy, a number of other well-known voice talents fill out the cast, among them Adam Baldwin (Firefly, The X-Files, Angel) will be providing the voice of Superman while Gina Torres, star of the ABC series Huge and previously the voice of DC favorites Vixen and Superwoman, will be playing the Amazon Wonder Woman.
You have to feel a bit sorry for Michael Rosenbaum as an actor. Even though he’s left Smallville and Lex Luthor behind, he’s still going to be identified as that character for a long time to come. That’s just the way things work. When you’re on a popular show and make an impression on fans, they tend to want to think of you as that character forever.
Given that, it’s easy to see why he’s trying something new. That something? A new comedy series for Syfy, featuring Rosenbaum and Jonathan Silverman of Weekend at Bernie’s fame. The series, which has been given a script order from the network, is a single camera show following the lives of two friends, former actors on a popular science-fiction show, who have hit rock bottom and must work together to get their lives back on track.
Not that Roseenbaum has exactly hit rock bottom, but as the creator of this new show, I can see how the subject might appeal to him. Or maybe he just wants to play a character with hair? Can’t blame him for that.
What do you guys think? Will Rosenbaum always be Lex Luthor to you?
All week we’ve been bringing you an exclusive interview each day with a member of the cast or crew from the upcoming DC Animated DVD Superman/Batman: Public Enemies. From screenwriter Stan Berkowitz to art director Michael Goguen to casting director Andrea Romano and even the voice of Batman, Kevin Conroy. Today, we’ve decided to save a great one for last.
Clancy Brown is both fortunate and unfortunate enough to be recognized by face and voice in TV and film. Fortunate because he’s had enough consistent work since starting acting in 1983, and unfortunate because just about every one of those roles casts him as the bad guy.
From The Kurgen in Highlander to Brother Crowe in Carnivále to Mr. Crabs in Spongebob Squarepants and of course, Lex Luthor in just about every DC Animated production. Check out our interview with Clancy below where he discusses the hardships of always being the bad guy, to his thoughts on other Lex’s, and even who he originally read for back in his first audition for Superman: The Animated Series.
Check back in with us next week for final coverage of Superman/Batman: Public Enemies and our review of the DVD, which hit’s stores nationwide Tuesday, September 29th.
Now that all the dust has settled, and San Diego Comic-Con is slowly becoming a fading memory, we wanted to bring our readers a look at some of the things we saw, people we talked to, and stuff we did during what we like to call NerdiGras.
We put together this little video to show you what we all went through last week, so check it out, and be sure to stay tuned for all of the interviews, specials, and news we have to offer you from The Flickcast team!
After a US District Court judge brokered a settlement between the heirs of the Superman creators and DC Comics and Warner Bros., mandating that a new Superman must go into production by 2011, or a new legal battle would ensue, fans everywhere began wondering which Superman Returns cast members would be back for the long awaited sequel. An interview with Kevin Spacey posted on MTV Splashpage helps to shed some light on the future of Lex Luthor.
“They have me,” Spacey explained while promoting Shrink, an indie film about a pot-smoking Hollywood therapist. “We made a several picture deal.”
Sadly the recent court developments haven’t been able to jump-start a dialogue between Spacey and the studio. There isn’t a script and Bryan Singer has not been confirmed as the flick’s director.
Singer’s involvement is key to his reprisal. “If they make the movie and Bryan Singer’s directing the movie, then I will do it,” Spacey says. “If they make the movie and they go in a completely different direction and they decide they want other actors, then obviously that’s their purview.”
Relax, Superman fans, this doesn’t mean that Spacey isn’t looking forward to reprising his roll. “I’d be up for it,” he explains. “I had a great time doing it and it’s one of the great iconic parts.”
With DC’s animated division releasing Green Lantern: First Flight later this year, the marketing for the next direct-to-DVD film is already starting up. This time, the focus will shift on the world’s finest, as Superman and Batman take on Lex Luthor in an adaptation of Jeph Loeb’s Public Enemies story arc. From a Warner Home Video Press Release:
The movie reunites the lead voices of Superman, Batman and Lex Luthor from the landmark “Superman: The Animated Series” and “Batman: The Animated Series”. Tim Daly (Private Practice), Kevin Conroy (Batman: The Animated Series, Justice League) and Clancy Brown (The Shawshank Redemption) reprise their roles as Superman, Batman and Lex Luthor, respectively.
At Comic-Con, we had some time to spend talking with the developers and getting some more hands on exposure to DC Universe Online. In addition to talking to Executive Creative Director on the game Jim Lee, we also got to talk to some of the more hands on members of the team.
After a US District Court judge brokered a settlement between the heirs of the Superman creators and DC Comics and Warner Bros., mandating that a new Superman must go into production by 2011, or a new legal battle would ensue, fans everywhere began wondering which Superman Returns cast members would be back for the long awaited sequel. An interview with Kevin Spacey posted on 
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