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Star Trek Online Interviews: Quick Beta Q&A
With the recent announcement that Star Trek Online was starting its beta process, MMORPG.com's Garrett Fuller asked a few questions of Craig Zinkievich, the game's Executive Producer.
By Garrett Fuller on October 26, 2009
| MMORPG.com: | The start of Beta is always tough. Can you tell us what elements you are testing first? |
| Craig Zinkievich: | We're really focused on the initial gameplay experience for the first few weeks; making sure that the tutorial resonates with new players. |
| MMORPG.com: | Will you be testing the away team and ship combat segments of the game separately at this point, or are both elements in one build? |
| Craig Zinkievich: | We'll be testing both. Moving back and forth between space and ground segments of the game is integral to the design and vision of Star Trek Online. We couldn't just put out one element and call it a beta test. |
| MMORPG.com: | What type of feed back have you gotten so far? What tools are you using to capture that feedback? |
| Craig Zinkievich: | What type of feedback are we getting? Useful. : ) Finally being able to let players into our game and see how they react to it is something that we've been looking forward to for a long time. We gather all the information we can and then discuss and analyze it. There are a lot different routes from which we get our information. We have a huge amount of logging in the game so we can watch what people do, how they do it - how fast different builds advance, what choices are made. The best feedback comes straight from the players, though - it's their impressions that matter the most. We have Beta forums, organized chats after each playtest and surveys to fill out about the particular focus of a night's playtest. |
| |
| MMORPG.com: | At this stage of the game can players voices be heard? How will they impact the changes? |
| Craig Zinkievich: | Definitely. MMOs are as much about the players playing them as the company making them. What the players say after a Beta test directly impacts what the dev team is working on next week. |
| MMORPG.com: | Tell us where you are with Star Trek Online as a whole game. Are you on schedule for the project? |
| Craig Zinkievich: | Yes. On schedule. We've finished the core of the game and now we're balancing and iterating quickly on the UI and the features and systems in the game. It's an exciting time on the project - letting people in to play - the game is changing and improving noticeably on a week to week basis. Everything is coming together really quickly now. |
;)
The link to Quick Beta Q&A (http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/352/feature/3657/page/1 isn't working right now. :(
nvm, working now
Ugh, this tells me basically...nothing. How about the questions that are burning up the official forums? What's the timeline on letting the in 6 month/lifers of CO subs? How many days a week do you test? What days are invites sent out? Anyway, these aren't the questions I need answers to..../sigh.
This was just a preliminary Q&A on the subject. Thanks for your questions, We'll keep those in mind for our next opportunity.
Although i agree with each question you asked for, i doubt they would be willing to release that info right now.
Well I applied for beta and nothing yet. One of the few games I did not get into a beta.
I cant wait to see what they have done.
I hope I can do a Vulcan nerve pinch!!!!
I hope I can do a Klingon headbutt!!!!
Would really like to know what kind of system specs they are running with for who they chose as testers.
I am not just picking on STO ,the problem exists in all betas.They need to be done 4-6 months from launch,this way changes can actually be implemented and feedback is more useful.I know they asked them the question about the changes at this stage of the game,and honestly ,i do not believe there can be anything big changed at this point.
I might add,that it is a great idea for the game to have space and planet interaction,something EVE has taken forever to implement[still hasn't],so good job.I have way too much on the go,but i might eventually try this game out,if i find out both the space and land interaction is done well.
Please go back to playing hello kitty. Thanks
Oh...OH....... I wonder if there will be holodecks????? A real person playing a virtual person, playing a virtual person.....does that mean the virtual virtual person is a real person as 'negitive + negative = positive'. (please note the OP is heavily medicaed and probably needs to go back to bed). Peace out....Live long and prosper.
I'm so bored w/the current genre's out there, i cant wait fo this to materialize for us all. i do hope the planet to ship interaction is good and well thought through. Till I get a beta invite or at latest, release, take care all.
Merc
That's a nice, quick, sneak-peek at the game as it goes to beta. Thanks for the teaser. I've been following this game with interest as a long-time Star Trek and video game fan.
If the game does not have performance enhancing RMT (that's a big deal for me), I plan to give it a try. I really like the idea that the game will have space and ground components. I also like the idea of assembling away teams with specific skills.
P.S. I just told my son about the game and some of its features. His response, "Oh! That sounds cool."
Considering the farce that is CO and RMT (beta to prelaunch, retcon costs increase by factor of 100 effectivly removing the feature... full retcon for a mere $13.50 + tax available now!).
It would be nice to think that they tried to stop selling the life/6 month CO offers to make the beta numbers for STO viable. Although it smells a lot it was just a PR stunt.
Sad times :(
Us Sci-Fi fans sure have had it bad with the big name licenses (SW = NGE, heck even the prequels were painful), and this will just been Champions with a different lick of paint.
Considering the first article on this site is basically saying how poor customer service can usually be solved with the simplest of communication the 110 pages of joy turned to despair (yay beta... wait i'm not in it?! But I paid money for that...). They find time to do an informaiton free Q&A on a popular MMO website but not 30 seconds to reply on the official forums.
Have to laugh though.
I can answer all those questions.....
SOON!!!
*Soon is a registered trademark of Cornered Rats Studios Dallas Texas.
Just two words for you:
* Roper
*SCAM
That's what you get when you are silly enough to buy a 6-month / Lifetime deal for CO, just so you "thought" to get into STO beta.
While I am willing to give them time (end of December), I'm not to happy they are changing toon now on who they are letting into closed beta first. They implied lifetime and six-month CO would be first into closed beta that would start by the end Dec. As such, that is what I'm expecting. Now that they are letting all these other folks in based on system spec ahead of CO lifetime and six-month subscribers, if I'm not in by the end of Dec, I'm done. I will get my money back from my CC company and file a complaint against Cryptic Studios.
I'm catching up on this a bit late, just seen all the fuss and I have to admit I am with you guys and I assume the masses on the official forums. The reason "most" people paid a not inconsiderable sum of cash for lifetime and 6 Month subs was for Star Trek Close Beta access and now we find we are left out!
This is NOT the way to keep the player base happy, but having seen all the disasters that have been MMO betas of the last year or so I am not in the least bit surprised.
I'm sorry, I have absolutely no sympathy for people who bought a 6 month/lifetime subscription to CO just to get into the STO beta. First of all, you should have paid for CO because you like it and want to play it, the STO beta thing should have been an extra perk at most. Second, STO will be in beta, that means a heavily unfinished game. You paid for the privilege of playing an unfinished game. Third, betas are so the game can be tested, not so you can have fun. Fourth, you were never guaranteed a spot in the STO beta, it was presented as a perk, and extra for subscribing to CO.
A whole lot of fools in this thread: A fool and his money are soon parted.
You mean you bought CO for a chance to beta test STO? I'm still waiting to see the original statement promising you guys immediate beta access for buying that game before I either agree with or condemn any of you. Something though tells me it doesn't exist since I haven't seen anyone post it yet, and if that's the case you actually got what you paid for so good luck with that.
I sure aint paying for a lifetime sub on something I have not een seen the first bit of gameplay on.
Let me see the beta first, so I can be interested. I dont want to spend hard earned cash on an unknown.
Barnum Bailey said it and it still applies "There is a sucker born every minite". If you paid for a lifetime on an unfinished game that we know near to nothing on gameplay then you must have high hopes for it.
I will wait until I can actually get at the game play before I worry about subscription to it. My money and me are friends and I dont like spending it unless I like the gameplay.
Actually, I paid $60 six month sub for the sole reason to be in Star Trek Online closed beta. I've been testing games for over a decade both invite and paid as a tester. I love Star Treak and I've been waiting for Star Trek Online since it was announced in August 2004. To me, $60 was a small price to pay to get into a closed beta not to play, but to help test the game. It had nothing to do with playing. The reason why I have the collector's edition on pre-order at my local gamestop is so I can play the game. I'm pretty sure a lot of others are in the same boat as I.
i bought champions 6 month offer and i havent got my beta yet.... -_-
Why on Earth would someone buy a Lifetime membership just to be a beta tester on a different game? I've done my share of beta testing and I sure won't pay for that privilage lol. Most betas it more like work lol!
Sorry but it was P.T. Barnum that said that...Barnum & Bailey is the name of the Circus company that came about through a merger. Love ya.