NCSoft’s new MOBA game Master X Master introduces a hero from the discontinued MMORPG City of Heroes for the first time. This does not sit well with fans of the game!
Master X Master is a bit like Heroes of the Storm for NCSoft: A playground of the coolest heroes and villains from the respective publisher’s franchise games. Where in HotS icons like Thrall, Kerrigan, and Tracer are playable, MXM features Rytlock Brimstone (Guild Wars 2), Mondo Jaxx (Wildstar), or Jinsoyun (Blade & Soul).
Master X Master – A Hero from City of Heroes?
The mentioned games are by no means all titles from NCSoft. The now-defunct superhero MMORPG City of Heroes was also part of the Korean publisher giant’s repertoire.
So it seems that they thought nothing bad when they recently announced that the superhero “Statesman” would be playable as a new character in Master X Master.
“We decided to bring Statesman into the game as a recognition of the fans and a tribute to the franchise. City of Heroes is part of our history and was perfectly suited to be brought into Master X Master alongside other characters from NCSOFT games.“
Initially, it seems like a nice gesture from NCSoft to the CoH fans. However, this triggered a significant backlash against NCSoft! But why? Isn’t it great when a hero from a deceased online role-playing game makes such a comeback?
Why are the City of Heroes fans upset?
The math from NCSoft, according to colleagues at MassivelyOP, did not add up, because City of Heroes certainly did not die peacefully. Rather, the superhero MMO was brutally and abruptly shut down in 2012, and the responsible Paragon studio was dissolved. There was no extensive warning, nor any farewell events or similar – lights out!
Many players were so appalled that they swore vengeance against NCSoft forever and have not touched any of the publisher’s games since then. Furthermore, conspiracy theories circulated: City of Heroes was a successful game in the West that was abruptly killed by clueless and greedy suit-wearers in Korea.
Meanwhile, many hardcore fans of CoH are still fighting for the game even five years later. They initiated campaigns to buy the IP, they wanted to persuade NCSoft to relaunch it, and until the very end, they hoped for a change of heart from the Koreans.
But now, as NCSoft seems to happily exploit the game for Master X Master, this hope appears to be gone, and the rights to CoH will remain with NCSoft.
Master X Master: We MMORPG players aren’t playing your MOBA anyway!
As City of Heroes is still fondly remembered by many players and its end was so ignoble, they are certainly not happy about the CoH hero in Master X Master. They want to keep City of Heroes as a beautiful memory and not see its remains exploited in other games.
Moreover, MOBAs like MXM and MMORPGs like City of Heroes have completely different target audiences. Most former players of CoH likely won’t play Master X Master, and younger players probably don’t even know City of Heroes anymore and would gain no value from Statesman.
He would just be another superhero guy with a cape.
Furthermore, in the eyes of many old fans of City of Heroes, Statesman was a poor choice as a debut character. The superhero was created by a developer who left the CoH studio early on and moved to Champions Online, only to end up at DC Universe Online. This did not sit well with many fans, and when Statesman officially died in City of Heroes, some players are said to have even celebrated.
What do you think about the controversy surrounding Statesman, City of Heroes, and Master X Master? A good idea because dead games can live on in some other form? Or is it a shameful and disgraceful exploitation of a beloved, but far too early deceased favorite game? Let us know in the comments!
Also interesting: Master X Master – Closed Beta date announced
