"Our players love the worlds and characters of DC. We’re our own version of this universe inspired directly by the comics, so what we do resonates with everyone, from the most casual fan to the experts."

DC Universe Online has been around for over a decade at this point, and is continuing to go strong with its playerbase and content updates. What has been the biggest reason for the game’s enduring success, and what are the most important lessons you’ve picked up along the way that have helped the process on your end?

Our players love the worlds and characters of DC. We’re our own version of this universe inspired directly by the comics, so what we do resonates with everyone, from the most casual fan to the experts.

We put you in this world as your own character, standing right next to the greats like Batman and Wonder Woman, so you really feel it. The visceral nature of the combat reflects that classic super hero aesthetic, too, so the whole game opens up into this fantasy I think everyone has shared at some point.

As developers, we have learned to embrace this unique mixture unapologetically in everything we do, and then turn it over to our players to live in and explore.

What are the most significant technical and performance upgrades players can expect from DC Universe Online on current-gen consoles?

Being a networked game, we have to be careful about balancing new machine power with player experience across the different platforms. We certainly do not want to encourage a “pay to win” experience where the new platforms have performance gains that become required to experience the game at its fullest. At the same time we are looking at improving the visual and audio fidelity where we can.

The game’s current-gen launch will also bring a number of quality-of-life improvements over the coming months. Can you tell us about the key areas that you’re prioritizing with these improvements above others?

Our focus will be on aspects of the game pretty much any player bumps up against, with emphasis on how players get their characters created and get immersed into the game world. We don’t have a lot of details to share quite yet, but a new character creation experience is definitely something we are working on.

Holistically, we want to make impactful changes to how the game feels, with the current generation of consoles and gamers in mind. We are a game with over a decade of content, and we want all of it to be accessible and feel engaging, whether you have been with us for all that time or whether you just created your first character yesterday.

What can you tell us about Episode 46, and what served as the primary inspirations for its main story and setup?

Episode 46: Justice League Dark Cursed, is such a fun story where we join Wonder Woman, Circe, Batman, Constantine, Zatanna, and more to solve a mystery: what is this new magical curse? How can we stop it? The Justice League Dark leads the investigation, and when we discover that the Amazonian goddess of magic, Hecate, is trying to actually destroy all magic, we jump from the Cursed Gotham and occupied House of Mystery to confronting Hecate in her Olympian ritual. Of course, nothing is ever simple when you’ve got double-dealers like Circe, Etrigan the Demon, and even the sneaky John Constantine, so be prepared for a few twists along the way!

Our main inspiration was a DC storyline called The Witching Hour, a really fantastic cross-over event. In it, Hecate activates 5 Witch-Marked heroes (like sleeper agents!) as part of a ritual to change magic itself. The original story ends with Zatanna unleashing an even more dangerous threat on Hecate, and while we didn’t quite want to go in that direction, we did like the idea that our actions might lead to an unforeseen threat. Possibly something that will have major implications for the following episode, stay tuned!

"We are a game with over a decade of content, and we want all of it to be accessible and feel engaging, whether you have been with us for all that time or whether you just created your first character yesterday."

What was behind the decision to build Episode 46 as a direct follow-up to Episode 34?

DC has so many wonderful teams, but it’s hard to find one that’s more fun to tag along with (or fight against!) than The Justice League Dark! So we always knew we wanted to revisit them, but when you combine that team with Wonder Woman, Circe, and Batman, it really is a dream cast.

This new Justice League Dark story is not just an opportunity to revisit fan favorite characters, but an opportunity to add some new mechanical twists and amazing styles with all of Hecate’s curses. I can’t wait for people to see all the fun things we managed to add into this newest update.

What should players expect from Justice League Dark Curse’s scope as an update, in terms of how much content it will be adding to the game?

Episode 46 hits all the top notes we strive for with any of our large episode updates – an open world to explore (this time a portion of Gotham City, with Constantine’s House of Mystery teleported right into the heart of it), with small and large group instances to tell the story.

We will also see new styles, a new artifact, and the full course of new rewards for players to go after.

What frame rate and resolution will the game target on the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S?

The frame rate is 60fps, we are still evaluating performance at 4K.

MMORPGs have, more or less, gone out of style over the last half decade or so. It’s largely because online gaming has evolved enough to where constantly online games can function alongside a single player competent, as well as because of the lack of appeal of an extra subscription fee- and because MMORPG gameplay staples have become more ingrained in other genres. That said, even if almost none launch nowadays, there’s some legacy MMOs still running (and doing very well), such as Final Fantasy 14, World of Warcraft, and DC Universe Online. The latter of which you’ll be able to take on the go later this year, when it launches for the Switch.

You can see the announcement trailer below, provided via CBR. Little is shown, but you get the general idea that the multiplayer title will be coming to the Switch this summer, as it pans across the familiar settings of the DC Universe the game recreates.

DC Universe Online originally released all the way back in 2011 on the PC and PlayStation 3 (though the latter version is now discontinued). It’s since been turned free to play and released on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, with multiple expansions and cosmetics, as you create your own character to battle alongside DC’s iconic superheroes and villains. DC Universe Online will launch this Summer for Nintendo Switch.

Note: This interview was conducted before the Xbox One version was launched.

What prompted the decision to bring DC Universe Online to Xbox One, especially considering it first released in 2011 and arrived on PS4 in November 2013?

When we transitioned to Daybreak Games last year, it opened up a lot of opportunities for us – we were able to redefine and evolve as a company. This also meant that we were able to develop games on different platforms like Xbox One. DC Universe Online has a thriving community and Xbox one users have been asking for us to bring the game over to the Xbox so that they too can be part of the DC Universe. We’re really excited that they’ll have the opportunity to work alongside (or against) Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Circe, Lex Luthor and the Joker this April when DCUO launches on the XB1.

Given the game’s success on PS3 and PS4, what are your goals for its Xbox One release?

Our top priority is a fun and immersive player experience. We aren’t changing the game’s core gameplay, and we hope that players on the Xbox One will have just as much fun as our current players exploring Gotham City, Metropolis, and beyond.

"DC Universe Online has a tremendous amount of content available, much of it for free. Since we launched the original game in 2011, we’ve put out 23+ Episodes of content (missions, instances, raids, etc.) to the end game."

What can you tell us about the current content for DC Universe Online and what Xbox One players can look forward to?

DC Universe Online has a tremendous amount of content available, much of it for free. Since we launched the original game in 2011, we’ve put out 23+ Episodes of content (missions, instances, raids, etc.) to the end game. It’s the ultimate DC experience with over 220 iconic DC characters. We’ve also got a lot of level-agnostic content like Legends, where players can actually PvP or run certain pieces of content as some of the most iconic DC characters like Batman, Green Lantern, and dozens more.

Will the game run at 1080p resolution and 60 FPS on the Xbox One?

The game will run at 1080P and 30+ FPS.

How are you dealing with the Xbox One’s complicated architecture, especially with eSRAM in the mix?

We are using the Unreal 3 engine which supports this architecture.

Are you using the 7th core CPU on the Xbox One to improve performance?

We aren’t using the 7th core, instead, we are using Unreal engine 3 to optimize performance on the Xbox One.

"Shortly after launch on Xbox One, we’ll be releasing Episodes 24 which means Darkseid is coming to DCUO! I can’t wait to see players work hard to get powerful enough to take him on."

What kind of new updates can we expect to coincide with the Xbox One release?

Shortly after launch on Xbox One, we’ll be releasing Episodes 24 which means Darkseid is coming to DCUO! I can’t wait to see players work hard to get powerful enough to take him on. Also, we’re adding new Harley Quinn missions to the game that are quite fun (and ridiculous). Around this time, we’ll also have our annual Spring seasonal event going on, which features Poison Ivy and Swamp Thing. Players can expect lots of updates throughout 2016, including more new features and lots of new story content.

What kind of modifications have you done to the game to better suit the Xbox One’s controller?

We want to make sure our game, including the controls, is familiar across all platforms to give players the best experience possible. No modifications to the controller were made.

Is there anything else you want to tell us before we let you go?

We just revamped the website (www.dcuniverseonline.com) and added a bunch of new content to help new players get started on the Xbox One. The site looks great, you should check it out!

DC Universe Online is now available on the Xbox One and GamingBolt recently caught up with S.J. Mueller who is the Creative Director of the game, to check out how the game is shaping up on Microsoft’s console. The game is already available on the PS4 and PC, so what prompted the devs to bring the game on the Xbox One?

“When we transitioned to Daybreak Games last year, it opened up a lot of opportunities for us – we were able to redefine and evolve as a company,” Mueller said to GamingBolt.”This also meant that we were able to develop games on different platforms like Xbox One. DC Universe Online has a thriving community and Xbox one users have been asking for us to bring the game over to the Xbox so that they too can be part of the DC Universe. We’re really excited that they’ll have the opportunity to work alongside (or against) Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Circe, Lex Luthor and the Joker this April when DCUO launches on the XB1.”

Furthermore, he also confirmed that the game will be running at 1080p on the Xbox One with an unlocked 30 frames per second experience. Mueller also revealed that they did not used the Xbox One’s 7th core CPU to improve performance. However, they simply used the functionality available within Unreal Engine 3 to optimize the Xbox One build.

The game is now available for free on the Xbox One. Stay tuned for our full interview with Mueller soon.

Rashid Sayed: DC Universe Online is a fairly well known game now. As most of your target audience is already playing the game, what was the inspiration behind bringing the game over to the PS4?

Jens Andersen: MMOs have a very long lifespan, so it was important for us to be on the next-gen consoles. We want DCUO to be around for years to come and while not everyone will make the switch, we wanted to make sure our players had the option to play on a platform that best suits their lifestyle. The new generation of consoles brings a lot of power to the table and we’re excited to be one of the launch titles!

Rashid Sayed: Ever since its original release in 2011, DC Universe Online has received an amazing amount of post launch content and patches. Will the PS4 version of the game include all these updates on day one?

Jens Andersen: Everything that is available in the game right now, which includes 31 game updates and 8 downloadable content packs, will be available on the PS4. Players on all platforms – PC, PS3 and PS4, will continue to see regular updates and DLCs.

"Players on all platforms will get a smoother and more satisfying gameplay experience. Specifically on the PS4, however, we’ve optimized the game to take full advantage of the next gen hardware so players will see a higher resolution of the textures."

Rashid Sayed: Gameplay and features wise, what has changed in the PS4 version of the game?

Jens Andersen: We made a ton of updates to get the game ready for today’s launch on the PS4, but many of the improvements can be seen on all platforms. For example, character progression was retooled to make it smoother, environmental destruction was added to many areas in the open world, and over 2,000 points of feedback from our community were addressed. Players on all platforms will get a smoother and more satisfying gameplay experience. Specifically on the PS4, however, we’ve optimized the game to take full advantage of the next gen hardware so players will see a higher resolution of the textures.

Rashid Sayed: Can you please let us know what resolution and fps does DC Universe Online run on the PlayStation 4?

Jens Andersen: The game looks and runs amazingly smooth — performance has really improved. We’re targeting 1080p at 60 frames per second.

Rashid Sayed: Given that you’re going from a keyboard-mouse configuration to the DualShock 4, what will the control scheme be like? Will you be taking advantage of the controller’s features such as the touchpad? Will there still be support for a keyboard and mouse on the PlayStation 4 version?

Jens Andersen: Yes, we will be taking advantage of the DualShock 4. We are starting small but have some great things planned for the future. Initially, we’ll be using it as a button and it will act similar to the “select” button on the PS3 controller. We have plans to use it for scrolling in menus, as well as zooming in and out of maps.

As for the control scheme changing, it really hasn’t. Keep in mind that we already had the game working on the PS3 controller. In fact, many of our PC players plug in controllers to play DCUO because they really enjoy the control scheme.

"We fully support the share button; players will be able to share their DCUO experience live from the game. This is a feature we're extremely excited about given SOE's interest in live streaming and our Player Direct program."

Rashid Sayed: There’s been some anxiety about the file size of next-gen games. Games Killzone Shadow Fall and Call of Duty: Ghosts have file sizes close to 40GB. Can you please let us know what will be the file size for the PS4 version of DC Universe Online?

Jens Andersen: Players will only need to save 20 GB to be able to download DCUO on PS4 launch day. Of course, we’re always adding new content in the form of updates and DLCs so it will increase slightly over time.

Rashid Sayed: The PS4 boasts several community and streaming features. How are you planning to utilize those?

Jens Andersen: We fully support the share button; players will be able to share their DCUO experience live from the game. This is a feature we’re extremely excited about given SOE’s interest in live streaming and our Player Direct program. We really admire the videos that our players make and can’t wait to see what gets shared from the PS4.

Rashid Sayed: Last question: Will the revenue model (in-game pricing) be similar to the PC version?

Jens Andersen: DCUO’s free-to-play model will remain the same on all platforms, allowing players to experience DCUO in a way that best suits their lifestyle.

“We’re helping the Sony PlayStation 4 launch on November 15 by releasing DC Universe Online at launch, and we’re following up that early next year with our next game, Planetside 2, on PS4.”

Disappointed, especially considering that DC Universe Online is rated significantly lower than PlanetSide 2? Regardless, there will be enough at launch to keep players occupied with Killzone: Shadow Fall, Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag which will feature exclusive content for the platform (along with PS3), Knack and much more.

The PlayStation 4 will launch on November 15th in North America and on November 29th in Europe. Stay tuned for more details.

The next game update for DC Universe Online, the 31st update, will be improving the game’s graphics immeasurably via a series of improvements: the art has been improved, the level of texture detail has been increased, and areas like Centennial Park in Metropolis and Robinson Park in Gotham City have been completely rebuilt. In addition, the team has also redone the game’s geometry.

The difference has to be seen to be believed, however, and as such, there’s a ‘before and after’ video that shows the difference in the level of graphical detail before the update, and then after it. The video demonstrates the significant changes in the level of details for well known in-game locations like Hedge Gardens, Amphitheater, The War Room as well as for the Superman-Statue and The Magic Win. It’s pretty impressive, all things said, and players should appreciate the change, which surely brings the graphical quality closer to the story that the game is telling.

The update will be available to PC players soon.

PlanetSide 2 is an MMOFPS that has been out for PC for at least 6 months, the developers are absolutely thrilled to bring this free-to-play game to the PlayStation 4. PlanetSide 2 is widely popular on PC due to it’s massive battles, vehicular combat, nice graphics and free-to-play model.

PlanetSide 2  PlayStation 4 Trailer:

Fans of DC Universe Online may also rejoice and won’t be left in the dust because the game is also being added to the  fantastic library of PS4 games.

DC Universe Online PlayStation 4 Trailer:

Here is a quote from John Smedley the President of Sony Online Entertainment: “Since the launch of the original EverQuest, we have pioneered major shifts in the development of MMOs and videogames as a whole, and now we’re bringing our titles to the forefront of next-gen gaming.”

“Players are evolving and want a variety of ways to access and play games. Our goal is to deliver epic gaming experiences that players crave while harnessing the awesome power and technology of this incredible new platform. We are thrilled to bring two of our most popular free-to-play games to PS4.”

PlayStation 4 will be an amazing piece of hardware for Sony thanks to the strong support from publishers and developers and of course Sony for creating such a beastly platform.

Let us know if you’re excited to play PlanetSide 2 or DC Universe on your shiny new PlayStation 4 in the comments below.

Check back on GamingBolt for our E3 coverage next week.

Sony Online Entertainment has released Origin Crisis the new downloadlable content pack for DC Universe Online.

The Origin Crisis content pack  will include “new high-level multiplayer and solo adventures [that] send players through alternate realities as they amend or alter the origins of their favorite”.

Origin Crisis will also feature something called – Quantum – which will allow the player to alter time and space during combat with the enemies.

Here is a bulletin version of the Origin Crisis DLC features:

• New Quantum Controller Power Set – Manipulate time, control gravity and twist the very fabric of space itself.

• Two new Raids

• Two new Hero Origin Operations

• Two new Villain Origin Operations

• Iconic Anomalies – Two new Solo Simulation Challenges

• New Gear, including Tier 5 PvE Gear and new Iconic-inspired Gear

• New Feats, Collections and Trophies

Check out the Launch Trailer below:

But that’s not all. Home Turf will also feature new missions and boss fights at four new (and well known) areas of the DC Universe: Stryker’s Island, Arkham Asylum, Steelworks and Ace Chemicals. You’ll have up to 10 missions to complete at each location for “Marks of Triumph”. These can then be used to upgrade your hideout and unlock it’s secret benefits.

Larry Liberty, executive producer of DC Universe Online stated, “Home Turf is going to be our biggest DLC Pack to date, and add a completely new dimension to the game. The level of depth that we’re adding to the new housing system will really let dcuo players live out their heroic or villainous fantasies like never before.”

Look out for the DLC to hit PSN and DCUO’s official website in early 2013.