The Star Trek Online development team has penned this developer journal looking at Episode Missions, quest chains meant to capture the feeling of one-off episodes within the Trek universe.

Episodes are the mission chains in Star Trek Online that feel even more like you're playing an episode of the show than normal. We looked at more than 700 Star Trek TV episodes and dissected them to determine how those writers told stories in Roddenberry's universe, then set about crafting our own for you to enjoy.

We actually have content writers on staff who approach the mission chains as though they were standalone TV episodes. Rather than thinking strictly in game terms, they design the chains from an entertainment prospective. This means Episodes have themes, interesting dialog and dramatic moments designed specifically to look, feel and play like Star Trek.

Read Episode Missions Explained.

Skill based system was a good move but this I am just not sure.

Is it Linear Progression?

 and there we have it, the devs said it. their will be choices, diplomacy, not everything ends in a fist fight.

So there "STO is just combat" nay sayers

Originally posted by nekollx

 and there we have it, the devs said it. their will be choices, diplomacy, not everything ends in a fist fight.

 

So there "STO is just combat" nay sayers

Sorry, but did you read the article at all?

...

You can make diplomatic overtures toward characters in Episodes, but on the front lines it's very rare to avoid confrontation when dramatic forces have guided you into hostile territory with combat-ready antagonists nearby.

...

Seems to me it IS very combat focused.

Originally posted by Falcon2K

Originally posted by nekollx

 and there we have it, the devs said it. their will be choices, diplomacy, not everything ends in a fist fight.

 

So there "STO is just combat" nay sayers

 

Sorry, but did you read the article at all?

...

You can make diplomatic overtures toward characters in Episodes, but on the front lines it's very rare to avoid confrontation when dramatic forces have guided you into hostile territory with combat-ready antagonists nearby.

...

 

Seems to me it IS very combat focused.

 

did you?

In the same area we have

"will your negotiations with the captain of a Klingon Bird of Prey break down and come to blows? How far do you need to go to apprehend a spy on another vessel?"

Originally posted by nekollx

Originally posted by Falcon2K

Originally posted by nekollx

 and there we have it, the devs said it. their will be choices, diplomacy, not everything ends in a fist fight.

 

So there "STO is just combat" nay sayers

 

Sorry, but did you read the article at all?

...

You can make diplomatic overtures toward characters in Episodes, but on the front lines it's very rare to avoid confrontation when dramatic forces have guided you into hostile territory with combat-ready antagonists nearby.

...

 

Seems to me it IS very combat focused.

 

did you?

In the same area we have

 

"will your negotiations with the captain of a Klingon Bird of Prey break down and come to blows? How far do you need to go to apprehend a spy on another vessel?"

 

 

I don't think you get what they are expressing. He basically says that there is a bit of other things like diplomacy but it will eventually lead to combat no matter what you do....but on the other hand perhaps my english is just to broken to understand him correctly. Please enlighten me if I am wrong about this.

Originally posted by Falcon2K

Originally posted by nekollx

Originally posted by Falcon2K

Originally posted by nekollx

 and there we have it, the devs said it. their will be choices, diplomacy, not everything ends in a fist fight.

 

So there "STO is just combat" nay sayers

 

Sorry, but did you read the article at all?

...

You can make diplomatic overtures toward characters in Episodes, but on the front lines it's very rare to avoid confrontation when dramatic forces have guided you into hostile territory with combat-ready antagonists nearby.

...

 

Seems to me it IS very combat focused.

 

did you?

In the same area we have

 

"will your negotiations with the captain of a Klingon Bird of Prey break down and come to blows? How far do you need to go to apprehend a spy on another vessel?"

 

 

 

I don't think you get what they are expressing. He basically says that there is a bit of other things like diplomacy but it will eventually lead to combat no matter what you do....but on the other hand perhaps my english is just to broken to understand him correctly. Please enlighten me if I am wrong about this.

if combat was inevitible then the wording would be "Whenl your negotiations with the captain of a Klingon Bird of Prey break down how will you come to blows" instead we get a less definitive "will it" imprying it "may not" break down.

Originally posted by nekollx

Originally posted by Falcon2K

Originally posted by nekollx

Originally posted by Falcon2K

Originally posted by nekollx

 and there we have it, the devs said it. their will be choices, diplomacy, not everything ends in a fist fight.

 

So there "STO is just combat" nay sayers

 

Sorry, but did you read the article at all?

...

You can make diplomatic overtures toward characters in Episodes, but on the front lines it's very rare to avoid confrontation when dramatic forces have guided you into hostile territory with combat-ready antagonists nearby.

...

 

Seems to me it IS very combat focused.

 

did you?

In the same area we have

 

"will your negotiations with the captain of a Klingon Bird of Prey break down and come to blows? How far do you need to go to apprehend a spy on another vessel?"

 

 

 

I don't think you get what they are expressing. He basically says that there is a bit of other things like diplomacy but it will eventually lead to combat no matter what you do....but on the other hand perhaps my english is just to broken to understand him correctly. Please enlighten me if I am wrong about this.

if combat was inevitible then the wording would be "Whenl your negotiations with the captain of a Klingon Bird of Prey break down how will you come to blows" instead we get a less definitive "will it" imprying it "may not" break down.

 

What ever.  Its just symantics.
 

Whats going to fill your Combat XP pool?

This is the first sign that I have seen to show that the game will have some story line content.

Perhaps it is merely dev-speak designed to placate critics of the design, but it is something positive.

Originally posted by MMO_Doubter

This is the first sign that I have seen to show that the game will have some story line content.

Perhaps it is merely dev-speak designed to placate critics of the design, but it is something positive.

This is where I am. Yes, this sounds nice, but if you really look at and dissect the writing in this article....not much more than a whole lot of rhetoric that doesn't actually mean anything.

Am I counting it out? No, of course not. We just need to see more, because there's more martketing and hype-speak than actual information in this article.

Can Episodes be played out of order so your "sorta" making your own series?  Do you have to play X ep to get to Y ep in a progression?  I get that some stories require you to be a more advance ship over others but is it broken into Seasons of advancment?

Originally posted by Ghostmind

This is where I am. Yes, this sounds nice, but if you really look at and dissect the writing in this article....not much more than a whole lot of rhetoric that doesn't actually mean anything.

Am I counting it out? No, of course not. We just need to see more, because there's more martketing and hype-speak than actual information in this article.

Arranging the missions in the form of 'episodes' sounds like a fun idea to me.

I don't like the claims about how they know the source material so well, when the game is apparently designed to be very solo-oriented.

BTW, very cool avatar.

Sounds Star Trekkish to me!

(AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH dances with Janice Rand)

Originally posted by Ghostmind

Originally posted by MMO_Doubter

This is the first sign that I have seen to show that the game will have some story line content.

Perhaps it is merely dev-speak designed to placate critics of the design, but it is something positive.

 

This is where I am. Yes, this sounds nice, but if you really look at and dissect the writing in this article....not much more than a whole lot of rhetoric that doesn't actually mean anything.

Am I counting it out? No, of course not. We just need to see more, because there's more martketing and hype-speak than actual information in this article.

And then there's the entire Story Arc issue.  What happens if we get into a Story Arc and decide we don't like where its going?  Are we forced to complete it?

I'm all for Story Arcs as an option ... they *can* be a lot of fun.   But they can also be poorly written, even to the point of annoying.  In other games, you can just bail on Story Arcs and move on ... but this doesn't seem to be the case with STO.  ???

Sounds good. but who knows, theres so much hype,build up, rumors, and contreversy that surrounds games in development these days that its really hard to tell IF a product will be of good quality. thats why im reserving my self til it gets really close to beta/release to make a more informed speculation. I followed WAR for almost 2 years getting all excited and hyped up only to be let down (with my expiereince) in the end (for me at least). I just  HOPE that cryptic puts together a GOOD and FUN game, honestly STO does not need to be the BESTEST game in the world, to many developers trying to make the Bestest game and just face plant them selves.

Sounds not too bad. I am curious how the game will actually play. Will it be a mere space pew pew or more? Guess we have to see.

A very postive direction in my opinion, just hope they have variable endings depending on how you complete them.

Wow, this sounds like a really cool single player game.

Where's MM part of this MMORPG?

It sounds like the entire game content of 42 episodes will take about 40 hours to complete. Depending on how compelling the random content is, it sounds a little light on content.

Fourty hours is plenty to warant a box purchase and a play through, but not a subscription. Either way I'll buy the game, but I am seeing no reason to believe that it will retain players at all.

Originally posted by Athcear

Wow, this sounds like a really cool single player game.

Where's MM part of this MMORPG?

Uh-huh. That's a big issue for me, as well.

 

Whats going to fill your Combat XP pool?

What ever.  Its just symantics.

You get XP from completing the episode, not from the fighting within it.  Or you can go to the neutral zone and get XP from the PvP fighting.

Originally posted by MMO_Doubter

Originally posted by Athcear

Wow, this sounds like a really cool single player game.

Where's MM part of this MMORPG?

Uh-huh. That's a big issue for me, as well.

Key Word: sounds like. The reason imo that it sounds like or seems like a single player game atm, is the fact they are focusing on aspects of the game that pertain to A player, and not the community. just like SWtor sure  your main story line is focused on YOU but, as they have stated, there may be times when you have certain class(s) in your party that will open up new options with in quests. I think STO will have a similar mechanic in that sure  you can do the episodes by your self, but there could be other events that happen when grouping with other players. again EVERY THING is speculation and just that. so far the space combat looks cool,and we all know ground combat LOOKS like it really needs some improvement.

Well three seasons, with 14 episodes, 90 mins each. That comes to 63 hours, or roughly two and a half days. Doesn't quite make an MMO does it. Of course I am sure there is the grind between episodes, but still, that isn't alot of content when you consider this is an MMO. Hopefully I am missing something. I would hate to get into this game only to find a month later I don't have anything left to do.

Originally posted by pcolapat

Well three seasons, with 14 episodes, 90 mins each. That comes to 63 hours, or roughly two and a half days. Doesn't quite make an MMO does it. Of course I am sure there is the grind between episodes, but still, that isn't alot of content when you consider this is an MMO. Hopefully I am missing something. I would hate to get into this game only to find a month later I don't have anything left to do.

where are you getting 14 episodes at 90minutes each? just curious, as I have yet to see info about how many episodes there doing. not to mention im pretty sure if they have said amount of episodes there will be more down the line AND the episodes are the major story arc/quests, dont think there including all the possible side missions and such.

"At launch, the game will feature three "seasons" of content; each season will feature 14 Episodes, as well as other handcrafted and procedurally-generated content, meaning you'll have your hands - and your Captain's Log - full for quite some time after launch.

While the three seasons available at launch will have common themes, and many Episodes are related to one another, there are only a few Episodes with prerequisites to meet before you can play through them. Think of those Episodes as two-parters, whereas the majority can exist within their own right. They're complete stories that inform but don't lead directly to the others.

Episodes generally last between 45 and 90 minutes and are designed with transition in mind. In many classic Star Trek episodes, the characters were never on one set very long."
 

I read the article.