DC Universe Online, the highly popular and impressively long-running free-to-play MMO game developed by Dimensional Ink Games and published by Daybreak Game Company, launched its horror-themed Episode 46 called Justice League Dark Cursed earlier this month on October 5.
We were ecstatic to get the opportunity to have a detailed conversation with Lynnea Glasser, the Narrative Designer for multiple iconic DC Universe Online episodes, about the spooky new chapter and how she comes up with freshly intriguing storylines for the players.
Lynnea Glasser has been the creative force behind many standout DC Universe Online episodes, including the beloved Flashpoint, the massive Wonderverse, and the fitting conclusion to the Dark Knights saga. Since it is Halloween season, it was the perfect time to ask Lynnea about how she handled the sinister DC Universe Online Episode 46, Justice League Dark Cursed.
DC Universe Online Episode 46: Batman Joins Forces With Justice League Dark
Q. DC Universe Online was initially released more than a decade ago, in 2011, and features an expansive narrative. How do you maintain a consistent story arc while also introducing fresh content with each new episode?
Stories like Justice League Dark Cursed are some of my favorites to write because they make it really easy to do both: keep a consistent story arc while telling a completely new story!
We have these characters we know and love facing a new danger to magic from the goddess of magic herself, letting us throw together Wonder Woman and Circe in an uneasy truce, Zatanna bickering with Constantine while asking Batman for help, and of course a lot of other Justice League Dark favorites all facing this new threat together.
DCUO [DC Universe Online] has so much lore that you’ve really got to nerd out with encyclopedic documentation: story bibles, character bibles, and just spending time replaying old content. Knowing the game backwards and forwards helps you see where it should be going next.
Sometimes I’ll look back jealously at things from before my time (writing Deluge with Starro would have been a blast!), but the bigger problem is wanting to write more and more and more stories! Usually, I’ll bring several different options to the team and then we’ll have to pick between them. Which is great, because that gives us opportunities to think about additional cool characters, locations, or mechanics.
Q. Do you first focus on writing an individual episode’s storyline as its own thing, or do you try to ensure its overarching connection with the rest of DC Universe Online’s narrative?
I do like a story arc that builds up over time, and cliffhangers are such a staple of the old comic books and serials that it’s fun to follow in that tradition, but ultimately, my goal is to make sure that each [DC Universe Online] episode feels self-contained. I want to make sure that if players jump in for the first time, they can still understand what’s going wrong, why, and how they can fix it (or for villains – how they can profit!).
Continuity is always important, down to costumes, characters, teams, and so on. For example, we had a long internal discussion about how (or if!) to include Terra in the Homecoming fall seasonal event after the events of Teen Titans: Judas Contract. Everything players interact with has lasting consequences for the story of the game. My challenge is in tracking that without making it into a story overload on the player’s end.
Q. What inspired you to create a horror-based episode narrative for [DC Universe Online] Episode 46, Justice League Dark Cursed? Were there any drastic challenges that you had to face during the entire creative process?
We’ve got a lot of horror fans here, so this minor switch-up was actually a lot of fun for us! That’s the thing about DC: there are so many areas of the fandom. We always stay true to the core of being a DC superhero or villain, but we also want to make sure everyone has a chance to play with their favorites.
That said, a horror episode of DCUO [DC Universe Online] is a unique challenge: horror is about being crushed beneath overwhelming odds, whereas superheroes are all about overcoming overwhelming odds. That’s why the Justice League Dark roped in Batman and the players: they needed help evening the odds!
Every episode comes with its own set of challenges: balancing maps, characters, and mechanics is a multi-team conversation; even seemingly small things like stringing dialogue together in a natural-sounding way can pop up finicky engineering issues.
This time around, we had an unusual amount of engineering issues with the fog in the Collective Unconscious map (that might have needed cutting!), a voice actor who had retired leaving behind a role that needed a last-minute recast, and even a power outage in the studio on launch day! Maybe that’s what we get for using the name “Cursed” in the episode title, haha!
Q. Over the years, DC Universe Online has introduced numerous iconic DC characters. How exactly do you decide which characters to feature prominently in each episode while also maintaining their authenticity to adapt them for the game’s narrative?
We always strive for a balance between the core cast (Batman, Wonder Woman), niche favorites (Etrigan, Swamp Thing), and totally new characters (Deadman!) thrown into the mix. We want to make sure everyone serves the story, but does so in a way that stays true to their character or serves their own motivations.
Sometimes it makes sense for heroes and villains to team up against a more dangerous threat, like the Justice League and Legion of Doom teaming up against the cosmic threat of Perpetua. That said, sometimes a petty Demon Etrigan wants to destroy all magic just to spite his former jailer, Merlin.
Being a game, there’s also the additional goal to make sure the story is strong, fun, and serves gameplay. We give character moments in hallways, in mechanics, after big fights, in collectibles, to really let players control how much they engage with the story. Writing a collection detailing Constantine’s failed relationships definitely wasn’t plot-critical to JLDC, but it was a fun bit of character backstory for players to chase down, if they want.
Q. Do you collaborate with DC Comics while coming up with new narratives for the game, or is it more of an independent thing? Since [DC Universe Online] Episode 46 delves into the darker and more mystical aspects of the DC Universe, what kind of research or collaboration went into the creative process?
Working with DC Comics has been really great. On our end, we do a lot of the outlines, because so many of the considerations around maps, characters, styles, etc. are so internally connected. We do try and cross-promote for DC as best we can by featuring stories that are inspired by other DC projects coming out around the same time. Which makes for some exciting opportunities given the future of DC cinema!
Of course, we always send everything to DC for approval, and occasionally need to iterate here or there: change up a voice, fix up a look, add in a catchphrase, that sort of thing.
When we were looking for a guest writer for the Static-focused episode, Shock to the System, DC was extremely helpful in pointing us to Leon Chills, and he did an amazing job!
Such a fan-favorite episode that really shone thanks to his writing. Definitely check out his work!
Q. Would newcomers to DC Universe Online be able to comfortably check out Episode 46 without having played the rest of the game, or is the narrative connected to a previously introduced storyline?
Absolutely, jump right on in!
You do have to be level 20 to play the episode and get that first message from Zatanna inviting you to Cursed Gotham, but there’s a lot of different ways to level up in the game fairly quickly, and playing in Event Mode means that you don’t need top-tier anything to enjoy and play along.
The story itself uses established characters like Batman, Wonder Woman, and Circe, and for any members of the JLD that might be unfamiliar, you’ll get to enjoy getting to know Constantine’s capricious charms, watch Zatanna put on a real magic show, and everyone finally gets to meet Deadman face-to-face! It really is a blast.
Q. Are there any particular moments in [DC Universe Online] Episode 46 that absolutely blew you away while writing them? Or were there any aspects that you loved but that had to be cut out due to certain reasons?
This was actually an emotionally challenging episode for me, working with lines from the late Kevin Conroy, whom I consider a personal hero. We had recorded Batman’s lines fairly far in advance, which is always a gamble because then we can’t account for normal iterative changes. I was so happy we were able to fully honor his work and have one last big adventure with the man I consider to be the voice of Batman. I’d like to think he’d appreciate it.
When Constantine and Zatanna guide Batman through the warded House of Mystery, I gave Zatanna the line, “…you being here like this, it means a lot to me.” and I think we can all feel the double meaning behind that line. I certainly hope the fans do.
Sometimes during development, we do need to cut or cut back on story elements, but I felt very lucky that with this episode we were able to include and support all the major beats, even down to Swamp Thing’s conservatory within the House of Mystery! I’d say “knock on wood,” but it just comes down to good planning.
Speaking of which, I’m especially hopeful that people can enjoy what we’re planning next, with Hecate’s warning about “a power of dreams…” Stay tuned!
Q. Since you have a B.S. in Biopsychology, how does having in-depth knowledge of human behavior factor into your ability to create attention-grabbing and intriguing [DC Universe Online] narratives?
Having a more scientific background definitely helps me with my game writing! It’s a lot of character research, story documentation, and then combining all that data into a compelling conclusion. It especially comes in handy when giving flavor to combat mechanics, because the dialogue has to serve gameplay just as much as it serves narrative.
Another oddball benefit: having such a strong scientific background also helps when it comes to writing mad scientists, and DC has quite a lot of them, lucky me!
Q. Knowing that you helped bring various other episodes of DC Universe Online to life, including Wonderverse and Flashpoint, which story arc would you say has been your favorite to work on till now, and why?
As I work on each episode, it’s easy to fall in love with it as my new favorite, and then be delighted when I watch it come to life! Justice League Dark Cursed really is my current favorite: it’s got the right mix of feeling grounded, super-heroic, and mystical all at once! We got Batman’s Gotham, the creepy House of Mystery, and a final showdown in Themyscira, all in one little neat self-contained story.
My second answer would have to be The Sins of Black Adam, where Black Adam fights the Underworld itself in order to free his wife, Isis! It was so much fun to sneak in a villain-focused episode where we help Black Adam with some less-than-noble goals. I had so much fun writing a Solo where we travel to the Underworld as a narrated flashback, and then a later Raid where we travel back to the Underworld, making it deeper this time.
Both the flashback and the “going deeper” were formats I’d like to play around with again, if it makes sense to do so.
Q. Are there any other iconic DC story arcs and characters that you would like to adapt for DC Universe Online in the future?
So many!! But talking about what arcs or stories I’d like to do is difficult, because at any point it might go from “would be nice…” to “ooh, we’re doing that one next!” and then I really-really can’t talk about it. I’ll keep it vague, and scattershot a few characters or themes: I’d love to see more Lanterns, more Suicide Squad, and maybe even more Joker himself. We’ll see what the future holds!
I’m always curious: what sorts of stories would the readers here want to see? Who I want is great, but I always like to make sure people get to play alongside their favorites!
Q. When can fans who have already played through Episode 46 expect the next chapter in DC Universe Online? Do you already have an idea of which storyline and characters it would revolve around?
The “when” is a question for our production team, but we have a pretty good on idea “what” the next big story will be about. I just wish I could talk about it more! It’s definitely toying around with some themes that I know players will have a lot of fun with! Hopefully I’ll be able to say more soon.
As a very minor spoiler for those who are enjoying the current episode, while we normally release an extra Open World boss, this time we’ve been able to tease that boss’s identity a bit more than normal! See if you can spot the fuming villain roaming around Cursed Gotham, he’s mad as hops!
Q. Considering how video games mean so much to so many of us, what would you say your favorite title of all time is, aside from DC Universe Online, of course? And what would be another video game genre or type aside from MMOs that you would love to design narratives for?
Favorites are hard! I have the most hours in the brutal survival game The Long Dark; I have to praise the perfect overlap of mechanics and narrative in Hades, but ultimately I’d have to say Inscryption with its meta-narrative of terrifying discovery makes it my favorite. Another horror game, of course.
I’ve had a lot of fun writing my own unique stories, settings, and characters for indie interactive fiction games (Check out Creatures Such as We, or Coloratura!) but writing with DC characters, whom I’ve loved since childhood, is hard to beat. If I wasn’t working on DC or MMOs, I’ll say that I find the idea of educational games a really interesting challenge: how do you thread the needle of conveying important information in a fun and exciting way?
Maybe one day I’ll really have to put my writing skills to the test!
Q. Just in case I missed anything, is there something else that you would like to tell our readers and fans of DC Universe Online?
I’m always excited about new characters, stories, and -of course- cosplay opportunities. (Have you seen the Deadman and Wondergirl-inspired outfits? The new Zatanna ally!? The Final Bat-Suit?! They are the best!) But I do want to call attention to a lot of really great quality improvements that are in the works and coming very soon!! For every style of player, starting a new character is about to get a whole lot more fun!
As the writer, of course, I’m probably the most excited about our long-term story plans! There’s a few really fun things we’re looking to build up to in the coming episodes, and I can’t wait to bring everyone along on this journey!
Lynnea Glasser is clearly a huge fan of DC comics, characters, lore, and stories, and her love and dedication perfectly reflect in DC Universe Online Episode 46. Be sure to check out the latest DC Universe Online episode here.
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