Originally posted by cabalist

Be afraid...  SOE takeover imminent, no doubt.

 Clearly they are in trouble.  I look for SOE to end up owning perpetual AND this game, AND Star Trek Online.

Which is horrible, SOE is the most incompetent and unethical MMO publisher out there.

Not that I had high hopes for STO recently, but this latest announcement troubles me even more.

Originally posted by vajuras

looks like another EQ-clone is bout to bite the dust prematurely. they pushed us PVPers to the side so looks like they are getting whats coming to them

Originally posted by gatheris

 

Originally posted by vajuras

looks like another EQ-clone is bout to bite the dust prematurely. they pushed us PVPers to the side so looks like they are getting whats coming to them

PVPers are the absolute smallest group of MMOers - they are not an issue one way or another

 

 

I would say that both role-players and crafters (the ones that solely craft) are both smaller groups, actually, especially the former.

In fact, past the general PvE crowd, I think the PvP group comes second.

Look at the popularity of PvP servers for games that support different rulesets. Typically PvE is something like 50%-60%, PvP is 30%-40%, and RP is 10%.

I would never underestimate the PvP crowd, particularly after so many people are getting burned out on static content and the loot grind.

Honestly, didn't look like that great of a game. Of course, I'm reading in between the lines that this game won't be coming out, or it will be another half finished turd.

SOE is only publishing the game, PE is in change of designing and making the game. 

Sony might as well have mad this a joint press release about their new aquisition and saved us all some time.

PE is cutting overhead and has a prime title in star trek that is way off production.   Sony has capital and loves ruining high profile titles.  You can already hear the wedding bells.

hey are laying off 30-40 people at the exact point they had originally hoped to release, AND they are delaying the game for "more polish"

Reading between the lines, they are out of money, the game is still unfinished, and while they themselves may not have learned the lessons of recent releases soon enough, those giving them what little money they are still getting have. The investors are demanding a reduction of costs and a "polished" release.

If they are doing these things at this point, in all liklihood the game is a turd and will join Horizons, AC2, Vanguard and the imortal Dark & Light in the annals of bargain bin bad games.

Don't try and read too much between the lines. So they are laying off 30-40 people at the point they were planning to release the game, and they are delaying the game to add some polish? Makes sense. The main parts of the game are finished. They may not need anymore as many sound people, graphics artists, animation specialists, world designers, etc. The actual polish can be done with less people. And a sound guy may not be the best person to tune the graphics engine or write quests or whatever.

Why didn't they move these people onto another game? It may be fully staffed, may not be at the right stage of development, be on a different budget or whatever. I don't know. Nobody who can post knows. And those who speak can't be trusted because they've already lied on the NDA :).

Here is something to think about.

When I first read that PE was assisting the 30 - 40 people that  they were laying-off find new jobs, I thought, that's very nice of them.

But the more I think about it in the context of of all of the other news that leaks out of PE, I believe that the offer of job placement assistance is only a damage control device.

I have no proof, only a gut instinct, that PE is only offering job placement assistance to those that were laid-off, in an attempt to avoid having a flood of disgruntled (former) employees attack the studio on the various online game websites.

Remember the forums after the lay-offs at Vanguards, Siegel? That's when some of those laid of started spilling their guts about the inner workings of the studio.

Originally posted by Daffid011

SOE is only publishing the game, PE is in change of designing and making the game. 

 

 

Sony might as well have mad this a joint press release about their new aquisition and saved us all some time.

 

 

PE is cutting overhead and has a prime title in star trek that is way off production.   Sony has capital and loves ruining high profile titles.  You can already hear the wedding bells.

 

 

My only issue is Paramount owns the rights to Star Trek and all of it parts....So, Paramount would be the ones discussing STO. Sony has no ownership of this...so even though SOE may have distribution rights..Paramount may have the final say regarding the ST license..

But, Paramount also is in league with Sony and the Blu-Ray media...who is to say they will not partner in respect to this license...and this could be the infusion of cash PE needs, SOE may be "evil" as everyone says...but, they also have a boatload of cash to work with...which is what it sounds like PE needs right now

Cheers!

Originally posted by Sornin

 

Originally posted by gatheris

 

Originally posted by vajuras

looks like another EQ-clone is bout to bite the dust prematurely. they pushed us PVPers to the side so looks like they are getting whats coming to them

PVPers are the absolute smallest group of MMOers - they are not an issue one way or another

 

 

 

I would say that both role-players and crafters (the ones that solely craft) are both smaller groups, actually, especially the former.

In fact, past the general PvE crowd, I think the PvP group comes second.

Look at the popularity of PvP servers for games that support different rulesets. Typically PvE is something like 50%-60%, PvP is 30%-40%, and RP is 10%.

I would never underestimate the PvP crowd, particularly after so many people are getting burned out on static content and the loot grind.

"Gods and Heroes development team by 30 to 40 people, citing the need for a less specialized team."

What this says to me is "combat upgrade". The only way you can manage to lay off 30-40 devs specializing in certain areas of the game mechanics is if your planning to revamp the whole system to make it more simple. Anyone who has played a game "published" by SOE knows that gloomy cloud over the horizon.

I have a feeling this game will turn into another SOE dusty gamebox come release. Now I could be wrong and this could mean nothing but, looking at SOE's track record with everything thier involved with minus the everquest series I would be extremely shocked if PE and SOE didn't revamp the game into another EQ2 or WoW clone.

SOE is in this for the money and nothing else, despite thier claims to please players. It's fairly easy to influence developement when you say "look at this game and it's profits, now look at games like yours and thier profits".

This may have been a PE decision to take the game in a new direction but if you think SOE didn't play a role in influencing this then your sadly mistaken.

Gee, this subject seems to have arisen before with Sigil and Vanguard, it ended up with Sigil being bought out by Sony.   I don't think it will be too long before PE succombs too.  SOE probably could care less about Gods and Heroes, they want the Startrek Online name.

My 2 cents:

They didn't want to "vanguard" the release of the game.  So, they push back the release date to get as many bugs out as possible. 

But, since they have to push back their release, they also need to cut costs.  Letting 30-40 non-critical people go is the easiest way to do that.

Originally posted by anoma7y

 While I admire and support a delay in order to launch the game polished and high quality,they think laying off 30-40 employees will enable them to "act with more agility on the feedback of the playerbase"? What kind of illogical nonsense is that? The game is in trouble.

Exactly, it's a total PR line. Businesses downsize for ONE REASON ONLY --because of finances.

As others have stated. I don't see the delay as a problem. I have played most all of the major MMOs and they all seem to have one delay or another. Taking their time seems like a good move to me.

However, also what others have said,  what sends a red flag for me is the corporate mumbo-jumbo about letting the "specialzed" people go. *cough* You mean you fired people. That sounds like money crunch talk to me. I mean how about let'em become testers? They would be better than testers as they could not only test but probably fix things as they go.

I don't know. Sounds like money crunch talk to me. And I don't think that is a good sign.

I am not crying doooomm by any means but as I said it does send a red flag up for me.

Originally posted by FomarThain

As others have stated. I don't see the delay as a problem. I have played most all of the major MMOs and they all seem to have one delay or another. Taking their time seems like a good move to me.

However, also what others have said,  what sends a red flag for me is the corporate mumbo-jumbo about letting the "specialzed" people go. *cough* You mean you fired people. That sounds like money crunch talk to me. I mean how about let'em become testers? They would be better than testers as they could not only test but probably fix things as they go.

I don't know. Sounds like money crunch talk to me. And I don't think that is a good sign.

I am not crying doooomm by any means but as I said it does send a red flag up for me.

Also, remember that in 2006, they did the SAME THING -- said they didn't need so many devs, and fired a bunch of them. So this is the second time they've done this during the development of this game. That's horrible for morale in the company, if nothing else.

And let us not forget by delaying early next year, that the potential revenue from the Christmas sales have lost.  Q1 is not a good time for releasing, ought to wait 'till Q2 for the summer, but the money tree may not be able to support that.

I'm happy, G&H doesn't want to be the next Vanguard.  Good for them.

I love those people that want a game to come out early unfinished and when it does they rip it apart about not being done.. Let me guess you aren't still playing Vanguard or SWG.  I think they know the real fanbase are the real mmo players not the ones that complain till a game comes out then when it does they don't even buy it. LOL...You are mad because you couldn't download the beta client but that's minor compared to testing a unfinished game so just give it away to someone that doesn't have A.D.D.

Originally posted by anoma7y

 

 

While I admire and support a delay in order to launch the game polished and high quality,

they think laying off 30-40 employees will enable them to "act with more agility on the feedback of the playerbase"?

What kind of illogical nonsense is that? The game is in trouble.

 

Yeah, i dont see laying off 30-40 people is going to do them any good and i would have to say that not only is the game in trouble though i would say the company is in trouble as well. Hmm, i wonder were this puts STO know that they have delayed and i guess going with another no name company for another Startrek title will be a goner as well! Also, Daron Stinnett is a PR whore to be honest and this guy should have been put out to the pastures along time ago.

Iam going to tell you all this right know and iam not going to say how i know about this but ill tell you what PE are hurting for money, they have made many mistakes when it comes to there financing. They have spent a lot of money and they are running a little dry and this is what the second layoff in the last year if iam not mistaken? I suspect that they are in some real trouble and iam even wondering if this title could even see daylight.

As for STO.net those guys are nothing more than the Nazi that will and say and do what ever they are told it why they have and control the flow of what comes out of it. These guys will go after anyone and they will attack you so I would watch out as they are nothing more than lap dogs for PE!

As for the STO title it is owned by Paramount/CBS and they should have in the first place should have gone only with STO. GNH is nothing more than a platform to launch of get more money to build STO.

What people need to realize is that the gaming industry is simply dysfunctional and we have seen this too many times, with Blizzard being the exception and the people who made Guildwars. They are the only two that I have seen that are on the ball and instead of producing half baked games.

Cheers,

Acidrain

http://www.outpostraders.com