Every once in a while a project so dauntless and ambitious that you almost have to cringe at what might happen if it all falls apart comes along, but with these projects also comes a pure excitement at the thought of them working. NBC Universal’s Syfy Channel and Trion Worlds have just such a project in the making, and if it works like they want it to work, it could quite literally change the world of entertainment forever and ever.

Here’s the basic idea: Trion, who’s latest title, Rift, has many saying that MMORPGs that aren’t World of Warcraft can be made and enjoyed, have entered into a partnership to create a brand new currently untitled TV series AND online video game — currently being called a Syfy Action MMO — that live and breathe as one entity. Confusing, right?

DC Universe Online
Sony Online Entertainment
PlayStation 3/PC
Price: $59.99 with a $14.99 monthly subscription
Released January 11th, 2011

DC Universe Online is not the first superhero Massively Multiplayer Online RPG to be released, but it is the first to have a major license behind it and it has been widely anticipated by its audience. Thanks to this game, players have the chance to fight alongside some of their favorite characters as well as interact with other fans. The game doesn’t stray too far from the formula perfected by World of Warcraft, which is a good thing, because the setting is really the selling point of the game. Never before have players been able to explore a living, breathing DC universe in this way. However, the game is not without its flaws, and those looking to check it out may want to wait a few weeks while the inevitable bugs are worked out of the system.

The story sets up the flavor of the DC universe right from the start. Lex Luthor has traveled from a future in which he has defeated Superman, but met defeat at the hands of Brainiac. He has traveled back in time and released those most precious of plot devices, nanobots, into the atmosphere in order to turn ordinary people (the player) into an army of superheroes that can defeat Braniac. It doesn’t take a masters degree in DC history to keep up, but a lot of the fun of the game is seeing your favorite DC heroes and villains brought to life and fighting beside them. It also helps to know some of the creators behind the books, as many of the locations are named after famous writers, artists, and editors.