City of Villains storms factory

NCsoft today announced that City of Villains has gone gold and is on schedule to ship October 31. The game was developed by Cryptic Studios, an independent developer in Los Gatos, California, concentrating on massively multiplayer online games. The company also produced the prequel to City of Villains, City of Heroes.

Whereas City of Heroes lets gamers play caped crusaders defending the fictional metropolis of Paragon City, Villains does the opposite. Players create an evildoer bent on terrorizing the populace and battling the city's pesky superheroes.

NCsoft also announced that those who preorder the game from major retailers can help out in the beta testing of the game. Early adopters will also get access to the game two days early, in addition to a limited edition poster, an exclusive in-game item that varies from retailer to retailer, and a free 14-day trial for the purchaser and a friend.

City of Villains is rated T for Teen and will retail for $49.99, with a $14.95 per month subscription rate. Gamers who play both City of Heroes and City of Villains will only have to pay one $14.95 subscription fee. For more information, check out GameSpot's recent impressions of the game.