Sony Online Entertainment invited members of the press to its Austin studio for a behind-the-scenes look at DC Universe Online. Editor-in-Chief Darryl Gangloff shares his notes from the class.

DCUO 101 – Game Overview

Once the history lesson was out of the way, it was time to jump into our introductory overview on DC Universe Online. Professor Jens Andersen, better known as the game's creative director, told us to drop the action MMO terms. “We're making something very new. This game has a huge amount of physics in it,” he said. "SOE, back when we first started EverQuest, has been a trailblazer. We defined that genre for MMOs. Now we're trailblazing again.”

Andersen wants players to feel connected to their characters as if they're living in this universe. “You're going to be hoisting the bus full of people up and bringing them to safety,” he said. So how does your character become the next legend in DC Universe Online? Blame Brainiac.

As players can see in the opening cinematic, Brainiac has taken over the future. Lex Luthor has come back in time to thwart his plans by releasing exobites into the atmosphere and giving ordinary humans some amazing powers. That's where you come in.

Anatomy – Creating a Character

Game Director Chris Cao took this opportunity to jump right into DC Universe Online's robust character creator. “We never want character creator to end,” he said. Here's an overview of what you'll do when you make a new hero or villain:

• Pick your gender, body type, mentor and personality
• Choose your power type, travel method and weapons
• Create your starter outfit

If you just want to quickly make a character, you can choose a hero or villain for inspiration and jump right into the game. You can also use this feature as a model to start customizing your character. For example, choose the Joker if you want to play as a crazy villain, but feel free to change his outfit or power.

If you want the full customization experience, you'll want to start from scratch. Body type and gender are obvious, while personality affects your emotes and stance. The mentor you choose turns out to be pretty important. There are three origins: meta, magic and tech. Each origin has a hero and villain associated with it. Superman and Lex Luthor are meta, Wonder Woman and Circe are magic, and Batman and the Joker are tech. The iconic battle suits you'll be able to earn at end-game are based on your mentor, so you may want to put that into consideration. Also, players who select either Batman or the Joker will start in Gotham City, which all other characters will begin their adventure in Metropolis.

There are six power types: Fire and Ice are tanking roles, Gadgets and Mental fill control roles, and Nature and Sorcery are healers. Each power has two separate trees, so there's technically 12 power sets to pursue. Every character is a damage dealer regardless of the role you play, but they can switch over to that specific role when needed. If an ice character needs to tank, he can create some ice armor and take some hits.

As an added bonus, players will be able to toss some points into iconic powers. If you want x-ray vision or super strength, you can have it.

The three travel methods are flight, speed and acrobatics. While they all help you move throughout the cities, they also have practical applications. For example, an acrobat can use zip lines to pull enemies in, which helps them combat players who can fly.

Weapons include everything from dual-wielding pistols to firing force beams from your hands. Every character can use both melee and ranged attacks, so you won't have to sacrifice one for the other. “We are a combo-driven game. You're going to want to learn the combos you have available,” Cao said.

As far as outfits are concerned, you can collect the style of every item in the game. Each time you earn a piece of gear, you can keep the look of it while maintaining the best stats for your character. “It's the perfect fusion of form and function,” Andersen said. You can also change the color of your outfit during the character creation process using a three-color palette that was established by Jim Lee, a well-known comic artist and the executive creative director for DC Universe Online.