Infinite Crisis, because one Batman is just not enough.

Infinite Crisis

Infinite Crisis is a new free to play MOBA developed by Turbine. Currently in BETA, it boasts fourteen playable characters from the DC Comics universe, and is roughly based on the comic book series Infinite Crisis. Infinite Crisis is set to release this year (2013) the first original title from Turbine since Warner Brothers purchased the company.

DC Multiverse

Each champion can originate form one of five different universes, the champion's name will then originate from that universe. For example Gaslight Batman originates from the Gaslight Universe, Earth-19. Fighting enemies from parallel universes does in fact mean you might have to deal with a Batman or two, in a single match.

Prime (Earth-0)
"Home to legends like Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman, this universe is where hundreds of heroes and villains originate. Universe Prime, also known as Earth-0, is the keystone upon which the Multiverse rests, and so the Monitor has great interest in maximizing the fighting potential of its populace to better defend it from extra-dimensional threats."

Arcane (Earth-13)
"The Shadow League, a cabal of twisted sorcerers, lusted for absolute rule over Earth. Blinded by ambition, they performed a ritual that extinguished the Sun. With eternal night blanketing the Earth, the world's most powerful magicians united to reignite the Sun, but its new arcane heart forever altered life on Earth. Heroes and villains have since adapted to their magically infused environment, developing strange new abilities."

Atomic (Earth-17)
"As the Cold War was brewing between the world’s superpowers, a mysterious object from space crashed into Kansas. Mistaking the crash for a first strike, the United States unleashed its full nuclear arsenal against the Soviet Union, who retaliated. The ensuing nuclear war instantly vaporized 97% of all life on Earth. The survivors hope the Earth can be healed, but the nuclear aftermath has left them with scars that never will."

Gaslight (Earth-19)
"The Victorian era has swept the Earth and a prosperous Age of Invention has revolutionized society through powerful steam technology, and this amazing progress is only the beginning. Heroes and villains have begun to emerge from all corners of society, and with them bring new sources of power and problems far stranger than steam and gas lights."

Nightmare (Earth-43)
"Tales of horrors prowling the night were once just legends on this Earth - until the darkness returned. Ancient and terrible powers beyond comprehension awoke and brought with them an army of monsters. In fighting these creatures, some heroes have fallen, twisting into monsters themselves. Heroes and villains have set aside old rivalries and are united in fighting darkness that threatens to engulf their world forever."

Mecha (Earth-44)
"In this universe, there were no heroes, until a league of scientists known as the Justice Consortium created them. Technology had always been advanced on this Earth, but these new robotic creations were able to think and feel, and wielded powers beyond anything yet seen. They now defend the Earth from threats within and beyond, particularly the Doom Legion and their villainous assassin bots."
 

Characters

Devon "~Gorrem" Cady-Lee: "For Infinite Crisis I did the initial run of paintings for the character selection. These all had to be squares and close-up shots of the character's faces to fit the UI, which was a challenge. The art direction I got was to make it dynamic in pose, intimate and a bit rough and "painterly" with the texture work. Not all the characters were redesigned by me, although some skins and multiverse characters I had a hand in. A departure from how I normally work, but they were fun to do.

I didn't design these two costumes for Zatanna, and for the most part they both take most of their ques from the comics. The left is classic, and the one on the right is her punky, younger look from the New 52. I made them pretty pinupish, oh well. Let the Hawkeye Initiative redos begin!"

Currently there are fourteen confirmed characters within Infinite Crisis, with speculation to further playable characters in relevance to cover art and so on.

- Batman
- Cyborg
- Doomsday
- Flash
- Gaslight Batman
- Gaslight Catwoman
- Gaslight Joker
- Green Lantern
- Joker
- Nightmare Batman
- Poison Ivy
- Shazam
- Wonder Woman
- Zatanna

Gameplay/Map Design

While I'll do my best to ensure all of this information is accurate, please keep in mind this is BETA and all of the information is subject to change.

As far as I am aware, three maps are currently in development;

Gotham Heights, a circular map with five control points along the perimeter and a park in the center. Each team has 300 points that slowly decrease depending on how many control points the other team is holding. While I want to stay away from referring to League of Legends through out this article, this map does play a lot like Dominion, The Crystal Scar.

Coast City, the Turbine special map. Coast City is a pentagon-shaped, two-lane map that plays similarly to "tri-lane maps" of other MOBAs. It has a vast "urban jungle" between the two lanes, consisting of neutral enemies and a unique "Doomsday Device." Developers have told the Infinite Crisis community that they are currently "getting this map into shape" and that we will "learn more soon".

Gotham Divided, a tri-lane map inspired by other MOBA games.
 

Roles

Much like other MOBA games, there are several roles you can fill in order to capture objects and defeat your enemies.

- Enforcer: Often the first into a battle, an Enforcer intercepts as much damage for their team as possible.
- Bruiser: A Bruiser gets into the thick of fights, trying to destroy their target with close ranged attacks and powers.
- Marksman: Making frequent use of a strong basic attack, the Marksman devastates an enemy team with unrelenting damage.
- Blaster: A Blaster uses strong Powers, often unleashing bursts of punishment on enemies.
- Assassin: Jumping into a situation at the right time, Assassins deliver their high damage upfront and get out before their enemies know what happened.
- Support: Supports aid teammates by mitigating enemy damage and boosting ally combat prowess.

Stolen Powers

While character abilities are usually inert in MOBAs, Infinite Crisis offers a degree of customization using the Stolen Powers feature. As you level certain characters, you unlock their Stolen Powers, allowing you to use one of his or her innate abilities upon other characters. For example, you can assign Doomsday's super strength to another character that doesn't possess it by default.

- Super Strength: Pick up cars and other battlefield debris to use as thrown weapons.
- Surveillance Camera: Place a stealth camera that grants vision of the area around it for 120 seconds.
- X-ray Vision: Boost your sight distance, see through walls, and reveal hidden enemies for 10 seconds.
- Super Speed: Boost your speed and pass through enemy drones for 5 seconds.
- Trap: Place a trap that lasts for 90 seconds; when triggered, it roots an enemy in place for 2 seconds and grants your team vision on them for 6 seconds.
- Detonate: Instantly detonate an object, drones, and other creatures; deals damage to the area around detonated target, with increased damage on drones and creatures.
- Consume: Instantly consume an object to heal your Champion. Can also be used to damage a drone or creature.
- Bend Spacetime: Teleport to an allied structure, drone, or surveillance device of your choice.
- Meteor Drop: Summon a meteor that deals area-effect damage after a short delay.
- Invulnerability: Grants a Protector a 3 second shield to help keep their Champion alive.
- Psychic Assault: Places a 35% slow on a target enemy for 3 seconds.
- Mind Link: Temporarily reveals all enemies.
 

Will Infinite Crisis have a future in eSports?

At first glance it is quite obvious that there is possibility for competitive play within Infinite Crisis. One of the biggest concerns for Turbine is finding the balance between special features like environmental destruction while still retaining the same strategic, no nonsense trilane map that more competitive players are used to. The trilane map currently in development is rumoured to of had the environmental destruction features 'toned down' leaving room for 'balanced' linear play which is vital for the competitive scene.

Last hitting minions as with any eSports MOBA is an important aspect of play, a skill that all competitive players must have. However, while you’ll be able to last hit to gain currency in Infinite Crisis, there will also be coin drops to help gear up lesser experienced players who don’t know what last hitting is. Turbine wants people who’ve played DotA or LoL to be able to pick up Infinite Crisis without having to learn much more than itemisation.

Since this is a DC Universe branded game, it is extremely likely that there will be players who have never played a MOBA before. While coins will help these kind of players, it does not seem suitable in competitive play. That being said, coins have other effects too, Gaslight Joker’s passive lets him heal when he picks up a coin.

Let us just say that the future for Infinite Crisis in eSports looks promising, already having the basics covered, this looks to be a very popular and welcome new addition to the MOBA family.