Dust off your cape: DC Universe Online has a release date. Yes, after a last minute delay pushed the MMO from Sony Online Entertainment past its original November launch, the company announced DC Universe Online is coming Jan. 11, 2011 for both PC and the PlayStation 3. If you live in the UK, look for the game on Jan. 14, 2011. Sadly, there was no word on an Australian release date.

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Superman was the favorite mentor by far. Circe needs a publicist.



Heroes seem to have the upper hand at about 60 percent. For now. Villain numbers are larger on PvP servers.



Players like blowing stuff up. Hand Blasters are everywhere.



The Little Bohemia Police Station is hopping on PvP servers. More player deaths occurred around it than any place else in both cities.

Speedsters+are+purdy.

DC Universe Online is an MMO where players can create their own villains and heroes and set out to make their name known under the tutelage of Batman, the Joker, Superman and so on. The PC version of the game will cost $49.99 and the PS3 version will cost $59.99. Both come with a free 30-day subscription to the MMO, but after that, the game will cost $15 (€13) a month – or $199 (€180) for a lifetime subscription, which is sadly only available for the PC.We even have the PlayStation 3 Trophy list , if that's your thing.These details are no doubt exciting after months of waiting, but we at IGN wanted more. So, we fired off some questions to DC Universe Online Game Director Chris Cao – questions about what reward beta testers can expect, what he thinks of the subscription fee, and much more.Right at the start, we sat down with Jim Lee in a steak house here in Austin and asked ourselves, 'How do you bring a universe to life?' Many, many hours, obstacles, demos, and play tests later we know. The DC Universe is online. We've got it. Now, we are very proud to share it.A little over a decade ago, people questioned subscription fees on a PC. They'd never played an MMO before and they weren't sure why they'd pay monthly to play it. Then they stepped into those first worlds, lived online, and came to realize that the experience was worth the expense. The same thing is going to happen on the PS3. People are always willing to pay for good games, especially when they continue to grow and change. We've made a great game in DCUO and we're going to keep adding to it with each and every update.Frankly, it's a golden opportunity. We're going to be here for far more than a single year. We've got a lot of universe to build, and we're not going to stop anytime soon. If you take your math and only double it, the value grows. If you take your math and spread it across five years… or more… well, there's no better value for your entertainment dollar.Our beta testers have been our greatest asset in these last months. That they now want to live on with the characters they've made proves that world we've built together is ready. But there are millions of other players out there who haven't yet had a chance to start their journey in DCUO. To give everyone a fair, fresh start, we're going to end the world one more time just before launch. Jim Lee and our friends at DC are going to join us in a live, end-of-beta event where players will fight alongside and against the iconics as Brainiac's menace yet looms. Players will be able to experience what would've happened had they followed in the footsteps of the cinematic and battled each other instead of fighting to save Earth. It will be an epic end and thank you for beta. And it will set the stage for the real struggle to come in live.Probably the most important thing we learned is that DCUO has a vast and varied audience. This isn't a "me-too" game or a clone. This isn't an iteration. DCUO is something new. And that fact caused more beta feedback than anything else. Some people wanted more of what they already had in other games. Others wanted more of what we'd made. In both cases, we gauged the forums, analyzed our metrics, and changed what was necessary to set the game on a solid foundation for day one. There will be many, many more days to come in this universe and we're excited to continue to the journey with our players.We married metrics with direct feedback to get the best possible picture of what's going on in beta. While the statistics fluctuated a bit, there were some interesting results:Yes, everyone will have a fresh start at launch. Even I am going to have to grab my favorite names on launch day. Watch out for [EDITED], heroes, on The Killing Joke!If I had to offer one piece of advice to a new player, it's this: get ready for something new. We aren't a traditional MMO. We aren't a single-player action game. We're a super-powered game you can play with your friends for months on end. That's not hype. That's DCUO.We have a lot more we want to add and we'll be doing it with a series of updates and publishes. Updates will be more frequent and will bring new 'tween' content (content between the solo game and end game), end game growth (e.g. Batcave Phase 2 and beyond), new comic cutscenes, and new cool loot to win. Publishes are much larger and will introduce all new features, completely different environments, and big story advances to the game. Brainiac has invaded Earth. He's bottled the cities. Go stop him! And, when you've saved the Batcave, rest assured that another famous lair awaits…

What do you think of DCUO? Happy with the release date? Cranky about the subscription? Let the world know in the comments below.