A Veteran Returns

[Paraclete]

I'm so glad that this game was revived. It is my favorite video game of all-time. I had played numerous mmos back in the day, and I narrowed them all down to just City of Heroes. Then I had computer problems and other trials in life, and by the time I finally returned, the game was being shut down!

 

I was tired of having lag issues in my games so I finally gave up the pc and I just play on console now. I tried playing DC Universe Online (on Xbox) but it just doesn't compare to City of Heroes. It's like World of Warcraft compared to Everquest 2 (I was an EQ2 player). I do have Elder Scrolls Online for Xbox (comparable to EQ2) but once again, DCUO cannot replace COH!

 

Am I willing to get a nice computer so I can play COH again? Maybe... not sure. I'd be happier if COH would come to console. One thing that would persuade me to go back to computer, however, is if my old characters were available. I would pay up to a hundred dollars $$$ apiece for each of about eight characters! That's right, a new computer plus $800 dollars just to be able to play COH again, just like I had it a decade ago. Is that even possible?

 

I put sooo much time into getting each character dialed in *just* right. I never got any characters to level 50 because I had so many of them throughout the game so I was too spread out, but by the end I had narrowed them way down, and I had 2 or 3 that were *almost* lvl 50.

 

Anyway, hello fellow veterans! I am with you in spirit...

 

Regards,

Quentin

[MTeague]

Welcome!

 

I'm not sure how doable Consoles are or not. Particularly given the kind of no-man's land that the legalities off the private servers exist in. I know lawyers can take for EVER to approve something, and NCSoft may actually prefer to leave the game in a legal limbo.  I still have hopes something will come from the HC team talking to NCSoft, but it feels like all those decades when I hoped the Cubs could win the World Series, you know?  Still, miracles CAN happen....

 

I do believe the question of reclaiming characters from LIVE has been answered with a firm Never Going To Happen.

Some old threads certainly suggest so, anyway.

 

EDIT:   That said, it's pretty fast to level up and gear up characters now.  VASTLY easier to get the IO sets than it was back in the day.

 

Edited April 28, 2021 by MTeague

[Doomguide2005]

I'll double down on what MTeague has said.  I discovered the HC servers late 2019. Got to play for about 4 months when my computer up and died on me.  Hope to soon return beyond using this phone.  But that 4 months saw me recreate my main from Live and play her up yo 50+.  Point is they haven't passed in your memories and they can live again here on HC.  Welcome back!!!

[Andreah]

In fact, if you start playing again, you will the community is every bit as helpful and friendly as it was before, and probably even more so. We have the help and general chat channels in game on all servers; we have the Homecoming Discord, and we have these forums here. All of these are filled with people ready to answer questions, give advice, solve problems, hold hands if needed, and even help you get good names and design costumes.

 

Just about the only thing we cannot do is get your characters from Live back again. Many of us dearly wished we could resurrect ours as well, but it just is not in the cards.

 

But there are compensations. All the premium, cash-paid-for perks and items and systems from Live are here, and either free or paid for with in-game monies, not real monies. All the costume pieces we had to buy, and almost all the ones we had to tediously unlock are available from the start. The base editing systems are vastly improved. We've had many, many bug fixes, powers fixes, and even new content we never had on live back, and more in the pipeline. All provided by volunteers working from their passion. The servers are paid for by donations and no in-game perks go those who donate -- it's from our joy at being able to play together, again.

 

If you can get a computer that will run this game again (and it does not take an expensive high-end one to do a good job!), this game is here for you.

 

We want you back with us and we help returning players get going again!

 

 

[Paraclete]

Ok, no retrieving old characters... Sigh. I mean, I could definitely recreate them from memory, it would just take time, precious time. I suppose I would just start with one and go from there, or do all eight in a month and level them up gradually. I've been so busy as of late, though, I'm not sure when I'll get around to it.

 

So can you still customize the colors of super power effects, and do auras and such? Like, if I wanted to recreate my archer with shield bubbles, could I customize the shield color? Or give my lightning guy green electricity? What about the Architect, can you still create missions?

Edited April 28, 2021 by Paraclete

[TheZag]

16 minutes ago, Paraclete said:

So can you still customize the colors of super power effects, and do auras and such? Like, if I wanted to recreate my archer with shield bubbles, could I customize the shield color? Or give my lightning guy green electricity? What about the Architect, can you still create missions?

 

Yes, yes, and yes

 

Edit: and yes

Edited April 28, 2021 by TheZag

[Glacier Peak]

Oh you will be giddy when you see every costume item unlocked at the very start, every powerset free and customizable, every quality of life feature you ever thought of would've been nice back in the day, it's here! 

 

I have been playing on Homecoming since they went public and I've been nothing but happy with the way they've kept this fun little super hero game not just alive, but ready to thrive.

[gourdhead]

Welcome home 🙂  For the $800 you are willing to spend to get your characters back, you could easily buy a system that would run CoH at close to max, and I'll gladly help you level as many characters as you want.  I'll even throw in a couple of hundred million inf to sweeten the pot.

[Paraclete]

Thanks, guys, for your input. I'm pretty sure about doing it now, it's just a matter of when. Got a lotta things on my plate at the moment. I will reply to this thread once I've gotten a new computer.

 

Like I said, it's my favorite game ever, and it even sounds like it might actually be a little better than it was before! It's so awesome that it has risen from the ashes...

[Paraclete]

I was going over it in my head during my nightly run, and realized that there are actually 11 characters that I want to recreate! I just have a couple of real-life hurdles to get through here, and then I'll look into getting that computer... I'm starting to get really excited!

[KauaiJim]

Welcome back!

 

When I first found Homecoming, I was feeling much like you.  I really wanted my old characters back.  As I'm sure many others did also.  The truth is that it is very unlikely that those characters will ever be available.  Sure, anything could happen - CoH came back from beyond after all.  But as mentioned there are lots of legal reasons that make the chances slim to none.  (not to mention it is claimed that no one actually has that data and if anyone does they would probably get in trouble if they released it.)  So...

 

THE GOOD NEWS is that it doesn't take much or very long to recreate your toons from live.  In fact, I highly recommend it.  I personally enjoyed the experience and now I have some of my favorites back as new and improved 2.0 versions - and let me tell you, they are VERY improved.  It gave me the chance to re-bond with them and get up to speed with how they play in the current state of the game. 😁

 

Just be careful not to catch alt-itis.  I mean, I don't have it.  I just like to make new toons.  All the time.  Every time I think of something new or someone else gives me an idea.  No I totally got this under control.  I'm fine.  Honest!  (I have 111 toons and counting, lol)

 

As far as the computer goes, just like gourdhead said, you could get a decent rig that could handle CoH for around what you stated.  My son plays it on an old 15" hp laptop (low end ATI mobile card) at good settings.

 

As you have already probably noticed, this is an incredible community and there are lots and lots of helpful people here.  If you have any old screenshots of your toons from before that can be helpful (I found some and they helped me get things accurate).  Great to have you back!  😃

Edited April 28, 2021 by KauaiJim

[Paraclete]

Yes, I did take screenshots of all my final characters (and some former ones) when I played the game way back when, but the computer doesn't work anymore. I'm planning to take it to a computer shop so I can salvage documents from the hard drive...

 

Then again, I may actually have those images on a backup memory stick somewhere, now that I think about it....

[Snarky]

Welcome back.  Good news, any modern comp will play City of Villains like a champ.  i bought a mid level box from Best Buy when I first rediscovered it.  (was using an ipad for all comp needs) and then about a year and a half ago an upper end (lower end of the upper end, $900) tower from Best Buy on a Thanksgiving sale.  Both run City of Villains like a champ.  I just use the House WiFi that has about 12-15 devices on it.  I do run an EtherNet cable for my two gaming boxes.  

[TheOtherTed]

7 hours ago, Paraclete said:

Ok, no retrieving old characters... Sigh.

To be honest, I'm sort of glad I couldn't get my old characters back.  It sort of freed me up to play with different ideas and playstyles, or at least to create characters that some of my original cast "should have been" (thank you Martial Combat!).  Out of my small stable of 2 dozen, I think only two are full-on recreations of legacy characters - one who is still a lot of fun in terms of both powersets and concept, and the other just to save a name I like but no longer know what to do with.

 

It's up to you, of course, but there's something to be said for wiping the slate clean.

[cranebump]

Way things are with ease of play and QoL improvements, I'm pretty sure the OP can get a few characters to 50 in about 6 and a half minutes.:-)

[Paraclete]

Ted, those 11 characters were the result of tons of hours of trouble-shooting and testing, creative genius, artistic perfection, and a narrowing-down process, as well as endearing myself to them over time. They are the reason I am willing to go back to pc after being on console for several years. I miss them, just as I miss the game itself. Clean slate? That would be like scrapping Star Wars or The Princess Bride or Rocky and starting all over again.

 

I need my heroes, I must rescue them.

 

 

 

We can REBUILD them!

Edited April 28, 2021 by Paraclete
Added video clip

[Grindingsucks]

7 hours ago, Snarky said:

Welcome back.  Good news, any modern comp will play City of Villains like a champ.  i bought a mid level box from Best Buy when I first rediscovered it.  (was using an ipad for all comp needs) and then about a year and a half ago an upper end (lower end of the upper end, $900) tower from Best Buy on a Thanksgiving sale.  Both run City of Villains like a champ.  I just use the House WiFi that has about 12-15 devices on it.  I do run an EtherNet cable for my two gaming boxes.  

 

@Paraclete I want to second what Snarky says here.  I've got an old rebuilt HP Desktop.  It's a rugged old tater that's pretty useless for most modern games, but it runs CoH like nobodies business.  If you get yourself a reliable, off-the-shelf desktop, you should really be fine.  No super-advanced graphics cards required here.  👍

 

Also, in terms of remaking your old characters and getting them back up to their former levels, HC has made it very efficient and user friendly to level characters, compared to most MMO's.  You can get double xp boosters for free and many people on the server are very happy to help new/returning players power level characters, if that is your preference.

 

I do always recommend that new/returning players play the regular way the first ten levels or so, though- just to get your feet wet and reacquaint yourself with the game systems.

[Nemeroff]

What's old is new again.

 

Your first time back in AP, hear the theme music, and see Ms. Liberty again, almost like she's been waiting for you to return, you get flooded with feelings and memories you can't put a price on. (The irony is the game is free.)

 

But the HC team is doing a fabulous job!

Welcome Home! 

[MTeague]

1 hour ago, Paraclete said:

Ted, those 11 characters were the result of tons of hours of trouble-shooting and testing, creative genius, artistic perfection, and a narrowing-down process, as well as endearing myself to them over time. They are the reason I am willing to go back to pc after being on console for several years. I miss them, just as I miss the game itself. Clean slate? That would be like scrapping Star Wars or The Princess Bride or Rocky and starting all over again.

 

I need my heroes, I must rescue them.

 

I get that. The amount of time I spent fiddling with the body sliders to get the height/physique/leg length etc to match my old screenshots, and poking through every last costume option and sub-option in every category until everything was just right, was very real.

 

Just do be aware.  Homecoming came online April 2019.  It's now May 2021. 

You may or may not be able to get the exact precise spelling of the names of your original characters. 

There are multiple shards; if you can't get it on Excelsior, try Everlasting, or Torchbearer, etc. 

But you may have to go from "Iron Eagle" to "Iron Ace" or go from "Firehawk" to "Doctor Phoenix" or something along those lines. 

 

Hopefully you can get exactly the names you want. But be ready to get creative if not. 

I had to alter the names of 4 of my original 10 characters that I recreated, and cooked up another 30 originals afterwards.

[Grouchybeast]

Welcome home!

 

If you're planning to try to have files pulled off an old machine, make sure to get any costume and power customization files you might have saved.  They will load right into Homecoming, and although some of the costumes might be slightly broken, you should get a big head start on remaking the characters.

[Glacier Peak]

@Nemeroff got it right, the first time you hear the theme music walking up to ms liberty after you just finished creating a character... 😭

[Doomguide2005]

34 minutes ago, Glacier Peak said:

@Nemeroff got it right, the first time you hear the theme music walking up to ms liberty after you just finished creating a character... 😭

     Hell I felt that way when I zoned into Atlas Park on Paragon Chat the first time.

    But loading into the log in screen, then the  character creator and finally into Atlas Park ... and seeing other characters moving around,  mobs!  hearing the familiar sounds, seeing chat channels full of chat.  Yeah screen got real blurry.

    And then came the rediscovering things so familiar but not quite recalled.  Where was the portal to Oroborous, how to change my chat tabs around and rebind keys.  What the heck is a DFB and why are all these folks hanging around near Ms Liberty but not actually interacting with her and what is an Amplifier.  Attuned and catalysts, what are they?  Okay not forgotten but after I was forced off Live by a different computer death prior to Sunset so new stuff!  Night Ward and First Ward I'd seen once so more new stuff!!  Good thing the game is still friendly to hopping on for 15 minutes or 15 hours. 😃

[KauaiJim]

12 hours ago, MTeague said:

Just do be aware.  Homecoming came online April 2019.  It's now May 2021. 

You may or may not be able to get the exact precise spelling of the names of your original characters. 

 

VERY valid point.  I am very good at coming up with names and I am constantly surprised that some of my more creative name ideas are already taken - which actually impresses me instead of frustrating me.  I like that people are getting THAT into the game.  

 

Fortunately for me two of my 'mains' were still available (Maximus Power and Cybro) however the name of a third 'main' was taken - so I ended up making a slightly new name.  Was Crimson Avenger - now Crimson Vengeance AND Crimson Tempest (because my orig main was regen and for *reasons* I wanted to make a willlpower version too).  At first I was frustrated about it and did not like having to 'give up' the original name.  Since then however I am actually more pleased with the new name(s).  When I made Crimson Avenger, I honestly had not even THOUGHT about The Avengers - the name had NOTHING to do with them.  But I realized later that some folks might think it's a copy or homage or branch off or something like that when it really wasn't (while admittedly his skillset was 'borrowed' from a certain x-man, lol).

 

Also, you get to rename easily so you don't feel 'locked in' if you settle on some 'okay for now' name just to get into the game until you rethink of a better (or the perfect) one.  I just renamed one of my farmers from Infernux to Inflammation because I liked it better (and I read about GM Cyclone and his toon Infurno being memorialized and I decided to give that name some some space out of respect and love - my personal choice.  Could have just as easily decided keeping the name was respectful/loving also).  Anyhoo - renaming is readily available.

 

Homecoming has a name policy that they have not implemented yet that is designed to free up unused names.  You can read about it here:

 

Frequently Asked Questions - Getting Started - Homecoming (homecomingservers.com)

 

This is a good thread found here in the general section:

 

I can't believe I got that name! - General Discussion - Homecoming (homecomingservers.com)

 

And lastly I have a ridiculous 'about me' section in my profile with a (slightly outdated) list of my characters so you can get an idea of the kind of names I have been able to get.  See the link in my signature (skip past the part where I tell my life story lol).

 

Edited to add:  OH YEAH - Logging in for the first time is... overwhelming, in a really good way.  😍

 

Edited April 29, 2021 by KauaiJim

[Doomguide2005]

1 hour ago, MTeague said:

 

I get that. The amount of time I spent fiddling with the body sliders to get the height/physique/leg length etc to match my old screenshots, and poking through every last costume option and sub-option in every category until everything was just right, was very real.

 

Just do be aware.  Homecoming came online April 2019.  It's now May 2021. 

You may or may not be able to get the exact precise spelling of the names of your original characters. 

There are multiple shards; if you can't get it on Excelsior, try Everlasting, or Torchbearer, etc. 

But you may have to go from "Iron Eagle" to "Iron Ace" or go from "Firehawk" to "Doctor Phoenix" or something along those lines. 

 

Hopefully you can get exactly the names you want. But be ready to get creative if not. 

I had to alter the names of 4 of my original 10 characters that I recreated, and cooked up another 30 originals afterwards.

A small (or maybe not so small) PS to trying names on different servers.  It's very, very easy to move between servers.  Everlasting and Excelsior have the largest populations.  And good luck filling any server up with characters.  The HC team have ensured that those most riddled with the worst cases of altitis have plenty of room.  There's a 1000 character slots per server (yes you read that right a 1 followed by 3 zeroes).  Plenty of room for 11 favorites plus room for many, many more to join them.

[Paraclete]

I did consider that I may not be able to keep the exact same names on all of my characters, but thank you for the warning. Maybe for those names that I am not willing to part with, I'll just add a 2.0 or v2 or something at the end of it. Or not. Maybe some other extension. We'll see...

 

As far as costumes go, I'm not too concerned about it. I'm sure I'll be able to find something close enough to the original. I guess it's mostly about the characters' main look and the look of their powers and accessories, for me. And the names matter, too, but like I said I think I can work around that. It'll be interesting to see how many of the original names I get to keep...

 

I'm not sure about being on different servers. There are advantages and disadvantages. I'll think about it.

Edited April 28, 2021 by Paraclete