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Star Trek Online Previews: Preview, Part Three
In the final part of his Star Trek Online preview, Dana Massey discusses key gameplay elements including the game's UI, Itemization and PvP.
By Dana Massey on December 30, 2009
Today marks the final part in my three part preview of Star Trek Online. Today, I'll cover the user Interface, items, grouping and PvP. You can read part one of the preview, here while part two can be found here.
User Interface
User Interface design has to be the most thankless job in gaming. If ever a game company sees someone like me writing about them, that means they've got some work to do. When done right, no one notices. When they're not, everyone has an opinion.
That's not to say that the UI in STO is horrible, it's not, but it's not exactly stellar either and I am certain that Cryptic is aware of it and has put a lot of effort into it. With each build I've seen changes, good and bad, go in and I am absolutely certain that will continue up to and throughout launch. So I preface all of this with: it will all change.
The UI though, as it exists in Beta, is the weakest element of Star Trek Online.
Artistically, it shines. It looks like what I think a Starfleet interface should look like. The big rounded buttons are there and the sounds are pretty good. It definitely succeeds on a visual level, but that's about the only good thing I have to say about it.
The biggest problem is responsiveness. Everyone's played a game like this. One where you hit a button once and feel like it needs to be mashed three more times to do anything. STO is one of those. In some earlier versions you quite literally did. Sluggish is the only word. To their credit, though, in the most recent version this improved markedly. It was still a bit sluggish, but it was no longer rip your hair out annoying.
While artistically it's solid, the way Cryptic has chosen to roll out new elements is the biggest issue. Star Trek Online is not exactly a simple game, but there is no slow reveal in this one. Skills are tossed at you left and right with only moderate explanation of what they are. There is no sorting, lots of confusion and a lack of feedback on whether what you just spent your 100 points on actually did anything. Sometimes I'd think I spent my skills only to realize 20 minutes later that it didn't take or that I'd tossed them into a skill that did something totally different than I thought.
A lot of this can be solved through some careful reading, which might make it my own fault, but the average player is not going to sort through three paragraphs to figure out that yes, that skill does make your phasers pack more punch.
)
The team did a good job of the balance between immersive quest text and walls of chat spew. You can get the feel and not read a book, but the same goals totally failed in skills. The skill names are often non-descript and unclear of whether they're even for space or ground, your crew or you.
I am sure hardcore Trek fans will pick up the difference between a Disruptor and a Phaser quickly, but to anyone who "only" watched all the TV shows and went no further, a lot of this is techno-babble and needs to be more concisely explained.
Looting, in ground or space, is another issue. When you blow up a starship or take out a Borg cube, sometimes they drop stuff. This is represented through a golden orb that glows above the corpse, or a satellite looking box in the wreckage. That's fine, they're even color coded in group situations. Gold means they're all yours, while white means someone else earned that loot.
The problem is picking it up. This is a cursed sci-fi game, so auto loot is more than just convenient, it's explainable. It's possible, mind you, that it's in there, but I looked and never found it. So, much like my auto-attack rant, if they have the feature and someone who wanted them cannot find them in the UI, that is a big problem unto itself. To loot, you need to go near something (very near it on land) and a little window appears in the bottom right corner that says "Take Items." If you see that, you hit the button or press "F." That brings it to the center of the screen where you must hit another button or "F" again. That brings up the loot window where you can click Take All or individual items.
It sounds straight forward in text, but it's the video game equivalent to Windows Vista asking you if you're sure you trust Microsoft products installed on your computer. Just give me the damn widgets already!
The same applies when selling them. A nice feature is the replicator which lets you sell items for slightly less than you'd get at a starbase while out and about. It saves annoying traveling when the inventory gets full. I tend to use it to sell cheaper items to make space for high end loot. Great feature.
The problem is that in their quest to make you come to terms with your science officer you need to look at the guy every time you use the replicator. Instead of just getting a buy/sell window, you get a guy in a blue Starfleet uniform pop up and ask you if you want to visit the store. Of course I want to visit the store!
Cryptic needs to really examine the number of clicks it takes to do each action. It's a huge issue for me in Beta and single-handedly made me log off a few times when I would otherwise have been having a grand old time.
Another issue is navigation in space. The game has 3D space, but not upside down. That sounds good on paper, but can get really silly at times. I understand that the IP always had everyone "facing up," and have no issues at all with that.
The problems start when there is a target you need to get to a long way above or under you. There is a maximum pitch up or down a ship can travel at to keep them on the correct axis. Normally, you see targets coming so you slowly angle down or up to get to them as you close the gap, but when you find yourself directly above an enemy, for example, you quite literally need to "circle the toilet bowl" to corkscrew your way down to them. It's quite silly.
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The final complaint is that Cryptic seems to have gotten a bad case of "move that button from where I expect it to be for no apparent reason" syndrome. Again, to their credit, they've been ironing this out in Beta, but it still needs work. Let's face it, there is a standard means of control and I see no good reason to move hot keys. Yes, I can remap my controls fully, but I'd rather it be set up logically the first time. For example, if you hit "I" for inventory it does bring up your inventory, but it doesn't bring up your paper doll. Why? Who knows. That's bound to the "U" key, of course. It's nothing major, but there is no reason to change that convention.
Finally, there is also just a round of basic things that need to be added. One of the best little UI innovations in MMOs was the side-by-side comparison of equipped items and items in the inventory when you hover over something. It tells you quickly whether your new sword is better than your current sword. STO doesn't have that (yet).
The team has a month and if all the patches lately are any indication, they're more than aware of the problem, but the UI has a long way to go and it's going to be a sprint to get all the annoying things fixed and implemented before launch. Some, like item comparison and responsiveness I am sure will get ironed out, but others, like corkscrew travel up and down in space, will no doubt make it to launch.
First, and thanks.
Thank you for the review.
It underlines that this can be a great game in the future but needs more time to get ready.
the more I hear about this game the worse it sounds. Rushed, shallow and unrewarding gaming experience....
no thanx
Does this game use bind on pickup?
Also, didn't see any info yet on crafting. Any info you can provide?
Thanks
It still looks promising, given time...
Looks interesting. I hope it doesn't bomb.
The interface as described reminds me of CO, which isn't a good thing. Some option to "take all" loot in one click should be on every non pvp full loot game out there today.
This is friggin' Star Trek! Why can't you beam the stuff aboard???
I'm torn here. While I love the premise of the game, I don't like how instanced the game is turning out to be.... knowing me though I'll be picking it up anyway, just to see what all the fuss is about.
Dana,
How familiar are you with Champions online and how did the equipment/ability system in STO seem similar to Champions?
I tried out a Champions for a couple of weekends to see what the buzz was about. Some of my annoyances at the game came from how Equipement was handled and how the Power/Ability system worked.
Here were some of the mechcanical problems I had with Champions:
1) What each power did beyond Damage dealt and Endurance consumed. Reading some of the optional stat blocks I felt like I needed a dictionary for every special status effect. This was at it's worst when trying to determine how a given stat affected a power.
2) Finding proper synergies, you mentioned this with your "bonus to disruptors"-station and your "bonus to phasers"-bridge officer.
3) The "Click to pickup, click to take or take all" The only advantage I can see to this system is not losing drops due to full inventories. Although with Champions getting value from clearing out your inventory required a trip to the Auction House, Storage Bank, or Skill store to sell, store, or recycle widgets into resources.
4) How bad is the "Flotsam to Useful" ratio? I found in playing Champions that I received a lot of items that were of limited use and the usable items lasted me quite a while before I found something "similar, but better". I realize the game developers know that the more you reward players the happier they are, but at some point there's going to be a backlash to the endless stream of junk that keeps getting rewarded. Admittiedly, consumables are different since you always need more.
That does remind me: Who thought that it would be a good idea to have a "cooldown" on consumable items in Champions? It made no sense when I had two different types of stim packs that I could only use one every 30 seconds.
It may not be entirely fair to compare STO to Champions, but between what you've described in your article and the video floating around the net seems to indicate they're very similar. I was hoping the sci-fi theme made the system work a little better than the Tech/Magic superhero one or at least getting away from the Heroes Games-ish stat/power system of Champions.
My thing is this: There is a problem in the design if you spend half your gaming time figuring out what the lot does, if it will actually help with what you're trying to do in-game, and if not disposing it in the most beneficial way. It got so bad in Champions I was posting items in the Auction house for just above what selling it to an NPC, just to see if it would move. (Answer: it's a very slow process)
I'm not just ripping on Cryptic though, it seems "inventory management" has become a lost art in RPGs and MMORPGs. I loved playing Mass Effect on the PC, but the inventory system was terrible if you had large numbers of items.
Thanks again for the article, Dana.
I almost spit out my lunch after laughing so hard when you said "Just give me the damn widgets already!" As was mentioned before, that was one of my major issues with Champions Online. The inventory, loot, and skill system was just too messy, too complicated, and too much thrown at a player at one time.
I would really rather STO have fewer items that mean more and have good (and understandable) differences given between the items. You are right, based on CO's beta experience, Cryptic is good at improving small items in a short amount of time, I just hope they are quick enough to improve most of these issues before STO's launch. Many gamers (including me to be honest) have short attention spans and low tolerances for things that are unnecessarily difficult or filled with bugs.
I appreciate you mentioning the group side of things and always appreciate your articles (I really do). Just a quick word though... you mentioned twice in these previews about things you didn't really spend a lot of time with because of your personal play style (reading the lore within the game and grouping). I can definitely understand that, but you are also the eyes and ears for us (who are not in beta) so covering as many aspects of a game (as possible) is often really important for those who may value certain aspects more. So again we do appreciate when you take the time to do so.
As for STO... sounds like the game could use at least another two months in development. But alas, I'm trying hard to support your efforts Cryptic... please give us a really good product at launch. We're desperate for a different type of mmo out here.
The various reviews have been very informative imo, sometimes its a bit hard to filter out real information on things, vs opinion. At the moment, it seems like one of those games thats almost there... kind of.. for me at the moment i would have to say, this isnt quite the game im looking for.... but.. it might turn into it later.. maybe im just crossing my fingers and hoping on this one.. but.. you know.. playing a romulan in a 3 way fight could be fun.. but the game doesnt allow for that .. yet.. who knows.. maybe later on it will, the thing about romulans is.. you never know for sure whose side their on
Great article.
I for one am ready to get my feet wet with STO. Most of the issues outlined are simple fixes. Unlike other games with completely wrecked combat, insanely boring repetitive pve, and cookie cutter factions, these issue can be fixed. It sounds like the actual combat is pretty fun. I'm looking forward to your pvp review.
Can't wait for open beta!!
Wow... didn't realize so many people found CO's "stuff" system as annoying as I did. It's strange that they moved from CoX's autoloot system(completely appropriate in the superhero genre) to the ever clunky "f" system in their "CoH 2.0" game. Again I stress my earlier point; in Star Trek they beam stuff to the cargo hold all the time. Why do you have to approach, "f", click, etc...? Because they just wanted to copy/paste code from CO? It may seem a silly concern, but looting really is a significant portion of gameplay. It slows things down, and I can't see any reason to do this in a game genre where quicklooting can be explained.
I'll definitely be waiting for a trial on this one.
Wow... didn't realize so many people found CO's "stuff" system as annoying as I did. It's strange that they moved from CoX's autoloot system(completely appropriate in the superhero genre) to the ever clunky "f" system in their "CoH 2.0" game. Again I stress my earlier point; in Star Trek they beam stuff to the cargo hold all the time. Why do you have to approach, "f", click, etc...? Because they just wanted to copy/paste code from CO? It may seem a silly concern, but looting really is a significant portion of gameplay. It slows things down, and I can't see any reason to do this in a game genre where quicklooting can be explained.
I'll definitely be waiting for a trial on this one.
Your post reminded me of another of my questions.. but.. why do starships drop loot items ?
i know that might seem like an odd question, but is it really necessary to have to loot stuff in space, i can sort of imagine on the ground games that plot items or whatever might be loot drops, it all seems a bit like the old.. why did this wolf i just killed drop a laser rifle kind of thing..
It's because it's an MMO standard. WoW in a Trek skin.
Why is there an Auction House? Ranged Healing? Same answer.
Your post reminded me of another of my questions.. but.. why do starships drop loot items ?
i know that might seem like an odd question, but is it really necessary to have to loot stuff in space, i can sort of imagine on the ground games that plot items or whatever might be loot drops, it all seems a bit like the old.. why did this wolf i just killed drop a laser rifle kind of thing..
LOL!!! Yeah, LotRO pulls that nonsense now and then... how that Black Bear happened to be carrying a 2 handed poleaxe and 86 copper is anybody's guess! Teenage Mutant Ninja Bear? :P
In space, if they're ship components, I can buy that. Eve does it and it makes sense; they're just the bits that blew off the ship intact. On the ground though, it'll be another MMO faux pas should a klingon drop a phaser battery and some "federation credits" or something...
It's because it's an MMO standard. WoW in a Trek skin.
Why is there an Auction House? Ranged Healing? Same answer.
I was always under the impression that the Federation Military was pretty much socialistic. I don't recall anyone ever having to pay anything for anything, and they have food synthesizers and whatnot. Seems to me, since you have a military owned vessel, that you'd have to use some form of reputation as currency rather than... space bucks, to buy mods and new ships.
Indeed. I could see Federation captains' rep being used to get faster repairs and better crew. The idea of them owning their ships and paying cash for mods is purely ridiculous.
It's just another way in which Cryptic dumps all over the IP.
They have designed the game to appeal to MMO players in general, not Trek fans. Which is why it's clearly IP bait & switch.
Your post reminded me of another of my questions.. but.. why do starships drop loot items ?
i know that might seem like an odd question, but is it really necessary to have to loot stuff in space, i can sort of imagine on the ground games that plot items or whatever might be loot drops, it all seems a bit like the old.. why did this wolf i just killed drop a laser rifle kind of thing..
you destoyed a ship that does not mean there is not wreckage floating about from it you can use
Yes three factions would make for better and more interesting PVP. Romulans would be cool, personally im hoping for Borg.
Thanks Dana, I've enjoyed reading your thoughts on STO as it is at the moment.
I look foreward to playing the game on release and possibly reading your 'review' of it in Feb'
KKKKKHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNN !!!!!!
The neutral zone is just a queing system for PvP scenarios? Wow, sounds like another debacle to me.
What was missing in CO was world PvP or atleast zone PvP but it seems like, again, Cryptic didnt get it and offered only PvP scenarios, even in the neutral zone.
Lame.
A really good warts and all review. Be nice if more reviews were like this.
Well I'll keep my fingers crossed I'll get a open beta invite, if not I'll fence sit until the first free trial offer comes around.
I was always under the impression that the Federation Military was pretty much socialistic. I don't recall anyone ever having to pay anything for anything, and they have food synthesizers and whatnot. Seems to me, since you have a military owned vessel, that you'd have to use some form of reputation as currency rather than... space bucks, to buy mods and new ships.
Technically speaking all starfleet officers are paid a salary, although that is of course not necessary in the federation because they do not use currency. The pay is for other societies, which do use money. So Trek lore supports the use of money.
I couldn't quote you the exact reference of this but it was in a star trek official encyclopedia of some sort that I read about 10 years ago. The fact that other societies use money is supported by the official canon primarily in the television series. Considering other societies use currency as a medium of exchange, starfleet and other federation entities are required to use money to trade with other civilizations. It's just the common civilians of the federation that have no need for money (at least for basic goods). Any luxury you'd want to purchase wouldn't be given to you just because your society doesn't have currency. It's just basically a form of socialism.
I was always under the impression that the Federation Military was pretty much socialistic. I don't recall anyone ever having to pay anything for anything, and they have food synthesizers and whatnot. Seems to me, since you have a military owned vessel, that you'd have to use some form of reputation as currency rather than... space bucks, to buy mods and new ships.
Technically speaking all starfleet officers are paid a salary, although that is of course not necessary in the federation because they do not use currency. The pay is for other societies, which do use money. So Trek lore supports the use of money.
I couldn't quote you the exact reference of this but it was in a star trek official encyclopedia of some sort that I read about 10 years ago. The fact that other societies use money is supported by the official canon primarily in the television series. Considering other societies use currency as a medium of exchange, starfleet and other federation entities are required to use money to trade with other civilizations. It's just the common civilians of the federation that have no need for money (at least for basic goods). Any luxury you'd want to purchase wouldn't be given to you just because your society doesn't have currency. It's just basically a form of socialism.
That I did not know. I always assumed they just replicated currency for whatever society they were dealing with. Good information.
I was always under the impression that the Federation Military was pretty much socialistic. I don't recall anyone ever having to pay anything for anything, and they have food synthesizers and whatnot. Seems to me, since you have a military owned vessel, that you'd have to use some form of reputation as currency rather than... space bucks, to buy mods and new ships.
Technically speaking all starfleet officers are paid a salary, although that is of course not necessary in the federation because they do not use currency. The pay is for other societies, which do use money. So Trek lore supports the use of money.
I couldn't quote you the exact reference of this but it was in a star trek official encyclopedia of some sort that I read about 10 years ago. The fact that other societies use money is supported by the official canon primarily in the television series. Considering other societies use currency as a medium of exchange, starfleet and other federation entities are required to use money to trade with other civilizations. It's just the common civilians of the federation that have no need for money (at least for basic goods). Any luxury you'd want to purchase wouldn't be given to you just because your society doesn't have currency. It's just basically a form of socialism.
So, they use other peoples money? kind of weird.. does that mean that klingon currency is the defacto standard unit in the federation as it now appears that the federation has somehow monetarised ???
Perhaps a "debacle" (lol) for some. Everyone's got an opinion.
To me, that's what it comes down to - opinion and taste. Every game's PvP is going to be "lame" to someone. What I've found is that the implementation is more important than the general focus or type of PvP each game has.
Instanced PvP is lame to some - sterile, contrived, "fair", removed from the world. Open world PvP can be just as lame - susceptible to the zerg, griefing, gate-camping, population dependent.
I think I'll wait until I've played it, and experience Cryptic's take on PvP, before whipping out the hyperbole.
Perhaps a "debacle" (lol) for some. Everyone's got an opinion.
To me, that's what it comes down to - opinion and taste. Every game's PvP is going to be "lame" to someone. What I've found is that the implementation is more important than the general focus or type of PvP each game has.
Instanced PvP is lame to some - sterile, contrived, "fair", removed from the world. Open world PvP can be just as lame - susceptible to the zerg, griefing, gate-camping, population dependent.
I think I'll wait until I've played it, and experience Cryptic's take on PvP, before whipping out the hyperbole.
also don't forget this is monster play pvp so likely to be very unbalanced and capped at 10v10 i think it was
Overall, this feels like a mainstream (insert WoW) player's review.
But thanks anyways, I'll reserve conclusions to my own judgement when the game come out.
re: "Federation doesn't use money."
Keep in mind this was said back in the sixties where credit cards weren't as wide-spread as they are now.
It would be more accurate to say "The Federation doesn't use HARD CASH". The Federation probably does use a means of exchange like a "credit" (which has been mentioned fleetingly in odd TOS episodes) to trade for goods and services, however it's all computerized using biometrics (DNA) as identification. That's why you had the "Still using money"-line from Star Trek IV, the Bird-of-prey didn't have a replicator which could make any money.
However that exchange system is offset by replicators and effectively unlimited energy generation (solar, fusion, etc) so on a "developed" world like 23rd-24th century Earth you probably had a much lower cost of living. They also mentioned that's it's relatively easy to tell is something's replicated or not, so there's probably a premium and a desire for non-replicated things/food. Private ownership also still exists otherwise Picard's family wouldn't have owned a Vineyard, Sisko's father wouldn't have owned a resturant in New Orleans. The Ferengi's economy was based on Gold pres Latinium, Latinium couldn't be replicated but it's normally a liquid unless it's bonded to gold, while gold had become worthless in the Galactic Economy.
You also World War III where you had a breakdown of worldwide order and human civilization had to rebuid itself so you had that shared trauma and a desire not to repeat the same mistakes. That's partly why you don't have rapacious human corporations in Star Trek. I think the "system" broke so badly that when they rebuilt Earth they abandoned ideas that people believed in only because they had insititutional inertia not because they were "good" ideas.
So there probably still is a capitalist economy, but it's like trying to explain ATMs and Debit cards to someone from the 1950s or 1960s. It's probably more managed at least within the Federation, or at least if there's an economy to be crashed it's not going to affect people's homes or jobs on a wide scale like the recession is now.
While artistically it's solid, the way Cryptic has chosen to roll out new elements is the biggest issue. Star Trek Online is not exactly a simple game, but there is no slow reveal in this one. Skills are tossed at you left and right with only moderate explanation of what they are. There is no sorting, lots of confusion and a lack of feedback on whether what you just spent your 100 points on actually did anything. Sometimes I'd think I spent my skills only to realize 20 minutes later that it didn't take or that I'd tossed them into a skill that did something totally different than I thought.
A lot of this can be solved through some careful reading, which might make it my own fault, but the average player is not going to sort through three paragraphs to figure out that yes, that skill does make your phasers pack more punch.
The team did a good job of the balance between immersive quest text and walls of chat spew. You can get the feel and not read a book, but the same goals totally failed in skills. The skill names are often non-descript and unclear of whether they're even for space or ground, your crew or you.
This sounds annoying. If I remember correctly older COX essentially spawned a "city of data" web site that gave all stats for the ability. If I can't "respect" abilities whenever I need to, then I want to know clearly and concisely exactly what the ability does, and not waste my game time/experience.
So we fly to the neutral zone to fight in some meaningless instanced based PvP?? Whatever for? If we can just que up while we are doing PvE why would anyone ever go to these zones? Is there extra xp for winning them over the other scenarios? This seems to be a significant oversight. Is there any more information on how this works? Or is that for later reviews?
What??? You didn't pre-order?
Why you barnicle ridden Canadian!
Well, I'll show you. When I get to wear TOS uniforms and yell KAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHNNNNNN!!!!! Then we'll see how you feel!
See you in game, my friend. :)
Money not printed by the nation in question is counterfeiting and if done enough would destroy the original nation's economy with runaway deflation of their currency.
Imagine Russia printing American Dollars.
Ya...
I was soooooooo looking forward to STO, I have gone out of my way to not read too much and get too many preconceptions. From all Dana's reviews I've only really read the conclusion.
"While no specifics are yet out there, there is an "STO Store" in the UI, which will no doubt feature cosmetic items and "short cuts" for those who want to toss some real life coin on top of their fee."
Just killed the game for me right there. It was the one and only thing that could have rpevented me from playing this game. Unbelievalbe, so sad now, I feel empty.
In Star Trek currency cant be replicated as the standard currency for alpha quadrant is Latinum which a rare unreplicatable metal. Also there are multiple episodes that refer to the Federation Credit as the federations currency system. Also it should be pointed out that just because Starfleet officers have access to replicators the average citizen does not and they go to actual physical stores to get their goods. Watch DS9 sometime.
Good review....just hope the game can last.
Game sounds bloody awful and I'm sad to say that there is not a single cell in my body that so much as stirs over this project. It gets sucked right into the void that is the painful transition between WoW and all the bodies orbiting it, and the next generation MMO's.
Pardon all the puns.
Kill a borg and loot it.
More you read and see of STO the more you see how they got a MMO on this IP together in 2 years. I got nothing but a sense of the CO foundation layout of the engine ( which STO uses too) having STO put on top of it.
Cryptic really should have created a STO from the ground up here and taken the 4 to 5 years needed using some imagination and innovation. You're just going feel every now and then when you play STO that you're playing CO reskin mod.
Not this copy past code from CO to STO approach they're doing now resulting in a what seems to be mounting up to be a very mediocre MMO experience that has no real long term appeal to players because its so shallow. They're making all the same mistakes they made with CO because of forced unrealistic deadlines imposed by the suits of the company who are not gamers themselves.
This is a great overview of the Star Trek paradigm. One should keep in mind that Star Trek is science fiction in the Utopian sense. Many aspects represent ideals. With that in mind, the philosophy of socialism fits nicely: From each according to his ability, to each according to his deeds. (compare this to a communist philosophy of: From each according to his abiliy, to each according to his needs.) In Star Trek, there is a wholesale rejection, by society, of materialism in the most base sense of the word. People find what they're good at and excel at that -- society rewards them to the extent of their deeds. This is most transparent in the TNG episode "Tapestry." Because Piccard, given a second chance to relive his life by Q, isn't quite good enough, he lives out his secondary life as an Astrophysics officer.
In this sense too, Star Trek is sort of an idealized Meritocracy.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federation_credit
Perhaps a "debacle" (lol) for some. Everyone's got an opinion.
To me, that's what it comes down to - opinion and taste. Every game's PvP is going to be "lame" to someone. What I've found is that the implementation is more important than the general focus or type of PvP each game has.
Instanced PvP is lame to some - sterile, contrived, "fair", removed from the world. Open world PvP can be just as lame - susceptible to the zerg, griefing, gate-camping, population dependent.
I think I'll wait until I've played it, and experience Cryptic's take on PvP, before whipping out the hyperbole.
I have nothing against instanced PvP scenarios, they are a welcome addition and games like Eve could use it, however to ONLY have instanced PvP scenarios and not offer anything else (even in the so called neutral zone) is lame and a cop out to the Star Trek lore.
Even the reviewer noted how lame it is for Klingon and Fed players to chill out in the neutral zone and wait in line to start a scenario.
But that is Cryptic for you, they are the equivalent of fast food joints in MMORPGs. They seem incapable of creating anything with any kind of depth and complexity.
How often did that happen on a Trek show? Salvaging from a friendly ship, yeah . Don't remember a lot of that from enemy ships.
The article states that they have a month to finish patching the game up to a launch state. That's not true. The game may be a month from launch, but they're using the now common preorder-for-open-beta system. Since open beta begins on January 12, they really have just under two weeks to get this game ship shape. (Sorry for the double pun, but it was too good to resist.)
It sounds more and more like Cryptic will see a pretty significant number of canceled preorders out of this game as players get into the open beta and decide to jump ship rather than buy it.
Thanks for the reviews Dana! This is the best preview of a game one could have.
I want to like STO. I love beaming down to a planet and then heading back to space. I have to look at how fast they put this together since they bought the rights to the game from Perpetual as quite a feat. But at this point I will silently root for your studio and wish you the best over at STO.
How often did that happen on a Trek show? Salvaging from a friendly ship, yeah . Don't remember a lot of that from enemy ships.
Arguing against common sense is futile. Don't you have a funeral to attend??
PvP is accessed in two ways. There are global queues in the UI where you simply pick the scenarios you want to wait in line for and a pop-up window beams you in as soon as one kicks off. The second way is through the map itself. Players can fly to the neutral zone and go to sectors on the map that throw them in line for the queue in question.
This is reason enough to delay the game, this is the most god awful excuse for player versus player I have ever read, especially in terms of a space MMO and Star Trek to boot.
Really? It sounds like a "battlegrounds" or "capture the flag" type pvp setup where you can sign up into a queue to join. The only difference is roleplayers have an option now to travel to the neutral zone instead of opening a menu. Sounds nice to me.
And last I checked, battlegrounds/capture-the-flag/scenario type pvp areas are very popular. So what's the "god awful excuse"?
Really? It sounds like a "battlegrounds" or "capture the flag" type pvp setup where you can sign up into a queue to join. The only difference is roleplayers have an option now to travel to the neutral zone instead of opening a menu. Sounds nice to me.
And last I checked, battlegrounds/capture-the-flag/scenario type pvp areas are very popular. So what's the "god awful excuse"?
Well from my point of view this is the most un-Star Trek way to go about things. For one, PvP means little, there is no War here, it’s just mindless pit battles, the opposite of any sort of continuity that you'd have in a real war. Where is the surprise attacks? Where is the feigns, and outflanking that could happen if they simply made the Neutral Zone open for PvP, with objectives to take with real rewards? It just makes the whole thing cartoon like; it won’t feel like a real war, it will feel like a glorified gladiator arena. How is this even remotely like how war would be in Star Trek?? I don’t know I haven’t played the game yet, but by the sounds of it PvP will be a meaningless diversion, like Monster Play in LOTRO. I don’t know about you, but I was really looking forward to sneak attacks on enemy outposts, and even being outflanked and outmaneuvered by skilled opposition. It takes the grand strategy element away in favor of "ease of use".
I want to fly into Federation Space (or Klingon if I'm a Fed) and be terrified, but exited. I want to run to the defense of one of my outposts only to find out it was a ruse, and that the true target was another sector. I want the players to be able to make the PvP experience their own, instead of these lame pre constructed scenarios that totally destroy any sense of continuity and emersion to the world. I don’t mind scenarios, I think they should be in there, but I was really hoping for an open PvP area with objectives. I was planning on playing this game mostly PvP, but now I'm thinking that it’s going to be so lame that I have become skeptical of the whole thing.
I would really like it if Cryptic gave us a lot more specifics of how all this works. I really do want to play a Star Trek MMO.
Obviously, people can use Vent, but I for one want my game to give me all the tools right in it. In the last few years, integrated voice chat has become standard in MMOs. It's a huge hole in the game's social systems.
Good review, except I never got the memo about built in voice chat for MMOs being a standard. The only one I can think of is EVE and you had to pay extra for that. So no, built in voice chat is not an MMO standard.
Your right that EVE has it but.... WOW has it too. As far as i know it is included in the monthly sub.
Your right that EVE has it but.... WOW has it too. As far as i know it is included in the monthly sub.
It's funny that you didn't mention LotRO, since you've listed it as a game you're currently playing. :) It has built-in voice chat as well. Same with DDO.
Interesting read. I hope they fix the UI I never cared for the UI in CO very much, so I am hoping that is one thing they go about changing. Voice doesn't bug me, but I am old school where we had 200+ people raids on Elemental Gods with no voice and had to type it all out.
As for PvP, I am sure it'll change to an extent, but it's NOT Monster Play, there are several reviews that tell us flat out there while there is less PvE content for the Klingons, they can get to max level without ever touching PvP if they so chose.
Admittedly I am hoping they do update the PvP some, but I am REAL sick and tired of all the PvP'ers -still- complaining about it, when we've known what it was going to be like for weeks now. If you don't like it, don't play the game, there's no point at all in continuing to nerdrage about PvP in STO. It's not a 'hardcore' PvP game.
No amount of complaining is going to change that at this point.
Period.
Well from my point of view this is the most un-Star Trek way to go about things. For one, PvP means little, there is no War here, it’s just mindless pit battles, the opposite of any sort of continuity that you'd have in a real war. Where is the surprise attacks? Where is the feigns, and outflanking that could happen if they simply made the Neutral Zone open for PvP, with objectives to take with real rewards? It just makes the whole thing cartoon like; it won’t feel like a real war, it will feel like a glorified gladiator arena. How is this even remotely like how war would be in Star Trek?? I don’t know I haven’t played the game yet, but by the sounds of it PvP will be a meaningless diversion, like Monster Play in LOTRO. I don’t know about you, but I was really looking forward to sneak attacks on enemy outposts, and even being outflanked and outmaneuvered by skilled opposition. It takes the grand strategy element away in favor of "ease of use".
I want to fly into Federation Space (or Klingon if I'm a Fed) and be terrified, but exited. I want to run to the defense of one of my outposts only to find out it was a ruse, and that the true target was another sector. I want the players to be able to make the PvP experience their own, instead of these lame pre constructed scenarios that totally destroy any sense of continuity and emersion to the world. I don’t mind scenarios, I think they should be in there, but I was really hoping for an open PvP area with objectives. I was planning on playing this game mostly PvP, but now I'm thinking that it’s going to be so lame that I have become skeptical of the whole thing.
I would really like it if Cryptic gave us a lot more specifics of how all this works. I really do want to play a Star Trek MMO.
I wouldn't mind seeing specific areas within zones setup with bases designed to attack. Take for example, Anarchy Online. There are suppression areas within each zone. 100% suppression is no attacking at all. 75% is PvE only, though pvp is allowed if you are flagged. 25% is PvP allowed if you are in the area with alignment restriction. 5% is non-restrictive PvP.
To take advantage of this, there are pvp-attackable tower fields in which organizations (player guilds) place towers that buff the respective owners. Also, the more towers a particular alignment owns, the more "bonus side xp" is given to that alignment. It should be noted that the suppression zones aren't just for tower fields....all zones have suppression but not necessarily tower fields.
Now, if you are talking about something like that in a star trek mesh, then cool. I have no problems with that idea. But if you are suggesting being able to just fly around in PvE areas and PvP with any noob at will, then forget about it.
I have a strong feeling that this game is going to be PvE first and PvP last. Reasoning is that all the trekkies are going to be wanting to RP and while PvP is nice, Scenario PvP provides the roleplayer with the right type of PvP. Random 1vs1 epeen PvP and the like isn't something that would fly with a roleplayer (in my mind).
Lastly, at launch, they are probably going to provide for the roleplayer first, pvp'er second, thanks to the IP we are dealing with. I wouldn't be suprised to see starbases or the like that are player owned and that can be attacked later down the road.
Well from my point of view this is the most un-Star Trek way to go about things. For one, PvP means little, there is no War here, it’s just mindless pit battles, the opposite of any sort of continuity that you'd have in a real war. Where is the surprise attacks? Where is the feigns, and outflanking that could happen if they simply made the Neutral Zone open for PvP, with objectives to take with real rewards? It just makes the whole thing cartoon like; it won’t feel like a real war, it will feel like a glorified gladiator arena. How is this even remotely like how war would be in Star Trek?? I don’t know I haven’t played the game yet, but by the sounds of it PvP will be a meaningless diversion, like Monster Play in LOTRO. I don’t know about you, but I was really looking forward to sneak attacks on enemy outposts, and even being outflanked and outmaneuvered by skilled opposition. It takes the grand strategy element away in favor of "ease of use".
I want to fly into Federation Space (or Klingon if I'm a Fed) and be terrified, but exited. I want to run to the defense of one of my outposts only to find out it was a ruse, and that the true target was another sector. I want the players to be able to make the PvP experience their own, instead of these lame pre constructed scenarios that totally destroy any sense of continuity and emersion to the world. I don’t mind scenarios, I think they should be in there, but I was really hoping for an open PvP area with objectives. I was planning on playing this game mostly PvP, but now I'm thinking that it’s going to be so lame that I have become skeptical of the whole thing.
I would really like it if Cryptic gave us a lot more specifics of how all this works. I really do want to play a Star Trek MMO.
I wouldn't mind seeing specific areas within zones setup with bases designed to attack. Take for example, Anarchy Online. There are suppression areas within each zone. 100% suppression is no attacking at all. 75% is PvE only, though pvp is allowed if you are flagged. 25% is PvP allowed if you are in the area with alignment restriction. 5% is non-restrictive PvP.
To take advantage of this, there are pvp-attackable tower fields in which organizations (player guilds) place towers that buff the respective owners. Also, the more towers a particular alignment owns, the more "bonus side xp" is given to that alignment. It should be noted that the suppression zones aren't just for tower fields....all zones have suppression but not necessarily tower fields.
Now, if you are talking about something like that in a star trek mesh, then cool. I have no problems with that idea. But if you are suggesting being able to just fly around in PvE areas and PvP with any noob at will, then forget about it.
I have a strong feeling that this game is going to be PvE first and PvP last. Reasoning is that all the trekkies are going to be wanting to RP and while PvP is nice, Scenario PvP provides the roleplayer with the right type of PvP. Random 1vs1 epeen PvP and the like isn't something that would fly with a roleplayer (in my mind).
Lastly, at launch, they are probably going to provide for the roleplayer first, pvp'er second, thanks to the IP we are dealing with. I wouldn't be suprised to see starbases or the like that are player owned and that can be attacked later down the road.
Then what is the whole point of the back story being that there is war between the Klingons and the Federation? It's like they just shot themselves in the foot.
Well from my point of view this is the most un-Star Trek way to go about things. For one, PvP means little, there is no War here, it’s just mindless pit battles, the opposite of any sort of continuity that you'd have in a real war. Where is the surprise attacks? Where is the feigns, and outflanking that could happen if they simply made the Neutral Zone open for PvP, with objectives to take with real rewards? It just makes the whole thing cartoon like; it won’t feel like a real war, it will feel like a glorified gladiator arena. How is this even remotely like how war would be in Star Trek?? I don’t know I haven’t played the game yet, but by the sounds of it PvP will be a meaningless diversion, like Monster Play in LOTRO. I don’t know about you, but I was really looking forward to sneak attacks on enemy outposts, and even being outflanked and outmaneuvered by skilled opposition. It takes the grand strategy element away in favor of "ease of use".
I want to fly into Federation Space (or Klingon if I'm a Fed) and be terrified, but exited. I want to run to the defense of one of my outposts only to find out it was a ruse, and that the true target was another sector. I want the players to be able to make the PvP experience their own, instead of these lame pre constructed scenarios that totally destroy any sense of continuity and emersion to the world. I don’t mind scenarios, I think they should be in there, but I was really hoping for an open PvP area with objectives. I was planning on playing this game mostly PvP, but now I'm thinking that it’s going to be so lame that I have become skeptical of the whole thing.
I would really like it if Cryptic gave us a lot more specifics of how all this works. I really do want to play a Star Trek MMO.
I wouldn't mind seeing specific areas within zones setup with bases designed to attack. Take for example, Anarchy Online. There are suppression areas within each zone. 100% suppression is no attacking at all. 75% is PvE only, though pvp is allowed if you are flagged. 25% is PvP allowed if you are in the area with alignment restriction. 5% is non-restrictive PvP.
To take advantage of this, there are pvp-attackable tower fields in which organizations (player guilds) place towers that buff the respective owners. Also, the more towers a particular alignment owns, the more "bonus side xp" is given to that alignment. It should be noted that the suppression zones aren't just for tower fields....all zones have suppression but not necessarily tower fields.
Now, if you are talking about something like that in a star trek mesh, then cool. I have no problems with that idea. But if you are suggesting being able to just fly around in PvE areas and PvP with any noob at will, then forget about it.
I have a strong feeling that this game is going to be PvE first and PvP last. Reasoning is that all the trekkies are going to be wanting to RP and while PvP is nice, Scenario PvP provides the roleplayer with the right type of PvP. Random 1vs1 epeen PvP and the like isn't something that would fly with a roleplayer (in my mind).
Lastly, at launch, they are probably going to provide for the roleplayer first, pvp'er second, thanks to the IP we are dealing with. I wouldn't be suprised to see starbases or the like that are player owned and that can be attacked later down the road.
Something like this would be fine with me. I am not a hardcore “must have PvP in all areas" of the open world guy. I hate ganking just as much as the next guy. All I am asking for is some sort of larger scale strategic PvP area, where both sides can tip their toes in and have some meaningful battles without all these pre arranged conditions on everything. Like one big PvP lake like in WAR??
You could get around pop imbalance if you simply introduced some sort of modest attrition rules. These factions would only have so many resources at their disposal; you could set a ship limit for spawning in depending on the particular systems strategic value. A big Starbase can spawn ten ships a minute and the little system closer to the battle might be only able to support one or two ships a minute. You can choose where you spawn, but if you want in closer to where the potential battle is your going to have to wait longer. In the mean time you can PvE or whatever you like. Just an idea I am thinking up right now, but the point is something like this: an isolated PvP area with no pre set conditions that has some sort of battle lines and objectives is all I am looking for. It wouldn’t be that hard to implement, and everyone that wants to just PvE can do so to their hearts content.
I imagine this has been mentioned already, but UI changes quite a bit through beta. And imagine it will change before launch, especially after that article. The kit and equipment thing intrigues me, and would like to play for myself to see how I like it.
One thing to remember Cryptic focuses on Fun not Challenge. Their strong suite is customization not necessarily the game play. However if they can over come that it could be a great game. I imagine this game actually being a peak competitor after about 2 or 3 years, not right out of the gate.
No in-game voice chat for STO? Really Cryptic? Um...it's Star Trek. Please tell me there will be crafting at least. I am still very excited about my pre-order of the collectors edition, however I can do without the KAAAN! emote and the pet tribble for now in exchange for a true Star Trek expirience. I am looking forward to reading more about PVP as well. I hope STO will be a true faction based game as it has been saying. Nothing was worse to me when LOTRO did there Mickey Mouse version of PVP.
Ill be waiting a few months after release before I pick up STO. It seems like they have a lot of work to do still, but that's nothing new as with the release of many mmo's lately.
OK, this is a little ridiculous. While I appreciate the long review and the time taken, the author really apparently does not know anything about MMOs. Voice chat standard in all mmos now? Have to move close to loot? Too busy to read what skills actually do? Some of the points he brings up are valid and useful but nearly all the things that he talks about as deal breakers are pretty stupid things to complain about. His review made me frustrated reading it, and I bet if he actually talked to some people in game, he would find solutions to most of his problems.
Hmmm when I think of Star Trek I don't think about "in-game voice chat". Oh I remember quite well that all they had to do was touch those fancy little badges and talk but, really? This is something to complain about? O.K..
I mostly agree most of the pre order items are kind of ridiculous and it just taps too much into the nerdom over there at Cryptic for my taste (though I am getting the Amazon pre order for the Borg officer).
And my last point would be crafting, while I know Star Trek is a show about ground breaking technology how often did they actually "craft" things as you seem to be suggesting? And that's to say that a crafting system as robust as say a LOTRO or SWG or WOW would not be as representative of the Star Trek Universe as you suggest.
Again I've seen upwards of only ten or more episodes from each series (give or take a few episodes) but again these things you mention don't seem to be very well represented in the world of ST as I see it maybe I'm wrong any Trekkies out there have an opinion?
I guess my biggest problem with this post again is far too often people try to validate there own personal desires by trying to interject there own view points on what a IP is about, and I for one get sick of hearing it since it is much more logical to trust the company actually able to pay for the rights to that IP as the original IP holder is in essence giving them the right to take the IP in either the same or another direction and as fans we don't have that right.
There is nothing wrong with wanting more crafting or even a simple feature like voice chat (which as I see it has only been a standard mmo feature in what the last three games released?). But what is the point of trying to hide those desires behind a crazy argument like "Star Trek isn't about this", well yes maybe to you but it means different things to lot's of different people evident by your post.
I also love how people are so quick to complain about the "weakness" of the pvp build because again when I think of Star Trek (as a little more than a casual fan) I don't think of war as quickly as I think of exploration and science. I can see people making these types of complaints about a Star Wars title devoid of war but really Star Trek was it really about war and factional pvp. During the longest running ST series I'm fairly certain therer wasn't even a war between the Fed and Klingons.
Maybe you should think before you post because the first thing that comes to mind is that you are the one that does not understand the MMO industry.
STO is being released in alpha form at best, they have not even fleshed out the 2nd race, the Klingons. There are a lot more serious issues he has neglected to point out in the review, I feel sorry for those that pay to take this game through the beta stage.
Maybe you should think before you post because the first thing that comes to mind is that you are the one that does not understand the MMO industry.
STO is being released in alpha form at best, they have not even fleshed out the 2nd race, the Klingons. There are a lot more serious issues he has neglected to point out in the review, I feel sorry for those that pay to take this game through the beta stage.
The bottom line is that STO is being released with less development time than CO had. They say that it's because they already had the engine developed, thanks to CO, but if you think about it that means that there will be about the same amount of content that CO had at launch. And what was one of the biggest complaints about CO? Lack of content!
What's more, the beta for STO has yet to run on a 24/7 schedule even though it's only 10 days from open beta. Just how much balancing, bug finding and polishing can happen with so little up time?
It seems to me that Cryptic is trying to change the MMO development paradigm They're calling the alpha stage, "closed beta". What they'll call "open beta" is really what has previously been the closed beta stage. And when the game goes live it's at a point that previous companies would have used for open beta. They then count on a percentage of loyal fans staying on to fund continued development in the hope that eventually the game will turn into something. It will take a long time, though. What was the first content expansion for CO? A few repeatable missions. Now THAT'S excitement! Not!
I made the mistake of buying a lifetime sub to CO. I compounded that mistake by giving Cryptic a chance to make the game better, even though I'd stopped logging in a couple weeks after launch. Three months in, I finally realized that the game would never be worth the lifetime fee and tried to get a refund on that subscription and pointed to the fact that I hadn't logged into the game once after the initial 30 days. They refused. I may check it out again once in a while, but so far they have given no indication that the game will ever flourish. I can only imagine what will happen to their subs after DC Universe and Going Rogue are released this year.
You see, the problem with Cryptic's approach is that you only get one chance to make a first impression. When you release a game in beta state, you are almost guaranteeing that you'll be relegated to niche status. (One would think they'd have learned from Vanguard, AoC, WAR and yes... even CO.) When you start open beta in what should be a closed beta state you're practically begging a large percentage of your preorder customers to cancel. Lack of things like integrated voice chat or auto looting are simply another example of how this studio doesn't believe in learning from other MMO's. When I look back at CoX's history, I have to say that Jack Emmert held the game back. It has seen far more innovation in the time since he left than it ever saw while he was on board. Even while he was with the company, there was always the distinct impression that he was going to give players the game HE wanted them to have because his vision was superior to their expectations. Now that he's running the show at Cryptic that same hubris is obvious with both CO and the direction that STO is obviously going in.
It's ironic, but Allods Online is in the best shape at beta of any MMO that I've seen since LotRO... and it's going to be free to play!
What it all boils down to is that this is one CO lifetimer who really wanted to love both games, yet will not even be preordering STO. I also know for a fact that I'm not alone in that.
Hmmm when I think of Star Trek I don't think about "in-game voice chat". Oh I remember quite well that all they had to do was touch those fancy little badges and talk but, really? This is something to complain about? O.K..
I mostly agree most of the pre order items are kind of ridiculous and it just taps too much into the nerdom over there at Cryptic for my taste (though I am getting the Amazon pre order for the Borg officer).
And my last point would be crafting, while I know Star Trek is a show about ground breaking technology how often did they actually "craft" things as you seem to be suggesting? And that's to say that a crafting system as robust as say a LOTRO or SWG or WOW would not be as representative of the Star Trek Universe as you suggest.
Again I've seen upwards of only ten or more episodes from each series (give or take a few episodes) but again these things you mention don't seem to be very well represented in the world of ST as I see it maybe I'm wrong any Trekkies out there have an opinion?
I guess my biggest problem with this post again is far too often people try to validate there own personal desires by trying to interject there own view points on what a IP is about, and I for one get sick of hearing it since it is much more logical to trust the company actually able to pay for the rights to that IP as the original IP holder is in essence giving them the right to take the IP in either the same or another direction and as fans we don't have that right.
There is nothing wrong with wanting more crafting or even a simple feature like voice chat (which as I see it has only been a standard mmo feature in what the last three games released?). But what is the point of trying to hide those desires behind a crazy argument like "Star Trek isn't about this", well yes maybe to you but it means different things to lot's of different people evident by your post.
I also love how people are so quick to complain about the "weakness" of the pvp build because again when I think of Star Trek (as a little more than a casual fan) I don't think of war as quickly as I think of exploration and science. I can see people making these types of complaints about a Star Wars title devoid of war but really Star Trek was it really about war and factional pvp. During the longest running ST series I'm fairly certain therer wasn't even a war between the Fed and Klingons.
1. In-game voice chat is becoming an industry standard for MMO's. STO without it will be sub-standard. Not too big of a deal since many will use ventrillo anyway.
2. How often did they craft in ST? Seriously? Many many episodes revolved around improvising, retrofiting, and improving upon out of neccesity. There is great potential for a full robust crafting system in STO.
3. We have the right to state our opinion and view points on any STO topics we want on MMORPG forums (Keeping within the guidlines). Thats acctually kind of the point in having them. The intention here is not to "smack talk" the game, it is to help improve it as it is being developed.
4. Of corse people are quick to complain about a games weakness. Why would someone complain about a games strong points?
5. As far as war between Klingons and the Federation, have you ever read the new time line for STO and what has been transpiring for when the game launches?
I'm sorry Dana, but to me it's a sad day when a published journalist actually uses the term "WoW killer" in any fashion in an article.
Maybe you should think before you post because the first thing that comes to mind is that you are the one that does not understand the MMO industry.
STO is being released in alpha form at best, they have not even fleshed out the 2nd race, the Klingons. There are a lot more serious issues he has neglected to point out in the review, I feel sorry for those that pay to take this game through the beta stage.
I agree that it seems like STO is releasing too early, and could probably use an extra month or two to really fit more stuff in. My point, though, was that if you read the articles about STO at other sites (Ten Ton Hammer has pretty good ones), they don't complain about standard stuff like moving to loot or how they were too lazy to read about skills.
I agree that it seems like STO is releasing too early, and could probably use an extra month or two to really fit more stuff in. My point, though, was that if you read the articles about STO at other sites (Ten Ton Hammer has pretty good ones), they don't complain about standard stuff like moving to loot or how they were too lazy to read about skills.
I don't recall him saying that he was too lazy to read about skills. I recall him saying that in many cases the skill descriptions are vague, confusing or even misleading. The names don't help much, and the tooltips do little to improve that.
It's an important difference.
I actually have to wonder why Champions Online introduced the Power House so that you can test out and see the results of your choices before committing to them, yet STO has no Holodeck to accomplish the same purpose?
Not enough demand for paid respecs in CO?
Here is a preview about STO by a group who is in beta. Some of the things they cover follows:
- How space works, flying around
- Pause Button
- Combat Missions
- Ground Combat/Away teams
- Non-combat missions/Star Trek Lore
- Episodes (Quests) how they work
- Ship gear and equipping
- Pvp/pvp maps
- Star Trek Knowledge advantage
- Grouping (sidekick feature: if you group with your friends that are say... higher level/rank you will be pushed up to their level/rank while within a certain range for that mission/quest)
- Sounds effects and Music
- Fleet Actions/grouping
- Skilling learning via other players, other players can teach you skills their officers know and vice versa.
By a group called STOked, they come out with a podcast every tuesday I believe.
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/3554473
There is no Dana only Zool!
Don't hold your breath, you'd be dead very shortly. This is not the game your looking for. (pun intended) This is as shallow as they get. It's Champions/Warhammer/AoC all over again. They will sell a bunch of boxes (only because Star Trek is on the Box) and well over 1/2 won't go beyond the first 30 days. 2/3 after 60 will cancel. When Atari bought Cryptic, in their contract was certain goals that cryptic had to make in order to get paid. They HAVE TOO meet certain sales goals and release dates. If they do not Atari just bought one cheap company. This IMHO this was the worst possible deal cryptic could have made. I'd fire the lawyers for this one. They obviously were desperate for cash NOW. They sold their soul to do it.
This is the link to the buy out (see below). In the last paragraph it says that an additional 20 million dollars will be paid out for hitting the aforementioned goals. This is why I believe STO is being pushed out of the door much too early, and why they slapped the old City of Heroes engine on this project. Projects like this will become more and more common, because you buy it. Companies like Bioware and Lucasarts are spending massive amounts of money on The Old Republic. This will be the LAST big budget MMO for many many years to come. The rest will be just good enough. It's all about ROI. The art form is long gone. The suits have finally won and will demographic the MMOs to death. This nearly killed Disney with Michael Eisner running the company before pixar took it over (thank god the creatives are in charge of Disney again,yea John Lassiter). Now the suits will ruin MMO development for years as companies are more concerned with short term (slap it out get your first days sales, shut it down after a year. Rinse repeat) gain and not long term success.
www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/atari-acquires-cryptic-studios
1. In-game voice chat is becoming an industry standard for MMO's. STO without it will be sub-standard. Not too big of a deal since many will use ventrillo anyway.
Ventrillo is much better anyways then the ingame crap they call "voice chat" e.g. Right after the ingame voice chat for WOW launched, it sucked and still does.
2. How often did they craft in ST? Seriously? Many many episodes revolved around improvising, retrofiting, and improving upon out of neccesity. There is great potential for a full robust crafting system in STO.
I read an article somewhere that they might introduce starship design as a crafting system. Again rumor.
3. We have the right to state our opinion and view points on any STO topics we want on MMORPG forums (Keeping within the guidlines). Thats acctually kind of the point in having them. The intention here is not to "smack talk" the game, it is to help improve it as it is being developed.
Agreed.
4. Of corse people are quick to complain about a games weakness. Why would someone complain about a games strong points?
As for pointing out the weakness of a game, especialy if its still in beta or on the PTRs, it helps the devs create new stuff or fix the problems. But it is human nature to find faults regardless of the context.
5. As far as war between Klingons and the Federation, have you ever read the new time line for STO and what has been transpiring for when the game launches?
This will forever change the face of the Star Trek franchise... like Worf isnt part of the enterprise crew at all or the dominion war could have gone the other way for the federation...meaning the klingons would be at war with the federation. To many varibles in this situation to explain.
Um, I missed the ui, any pictures? or was I not paying attention?
There is going to be a lot of upset with this one. I'm reminded of other famous IP MMO's which fell flat on release and could never quite pick themselves up.
LOTRO for one, terrible mmo on release, 2/3 years later however its awesome! - but will never be popular now due to its initial crash. Others include DDO, AoC & Warhammer.
Its just getting boring now, its the same story every single time, released too early, fails, very few re-sub, never recovers. The crying shame this time is that Cryptic will destroy such a good IP as startrek.
I was hoping STO would be the new game that would draw me in for some time, but the instanced only PvP will keep me from buying it.
If you’re going to have a war as your premise, and you’re going to include a fully fledged PvP based faction revolving around that premise, you need to have a full fledged PvP area in which to fight over stuff. Not mindless scenarios, but large-ish strategic areas in which to fight over resources or victory conditions. If you can't figure out how to balance it, hire some people with creative skills (try some old time PnP guys, they are not so set in their ways as these Post-WoW thinkers) and try something new. I don't know about everyone else but I would prefer an unbalanced "needs some work" open PvP war zone like what was originally promised then mindless scenarios that have no effect on the game world at all.
That’s the essential problem of instances. It solves technical problems for you, but it basically makes the whole open dynamic persistent world “illusion” disappear. We are at war, but nothing we do matters. Nothing we win counts for anything other than xp. Can you say GRIND?? This could all be solved with some creative and original approaches to these things.
Unfortunately I will likely play this game anyhow, just because it’s Star Trek. I have been waiting for a game like this for a very, very long time. I will try it, and I will give it the benefit of the doubt. However, how long I stay is going to depend a great deal on what they do, or don’t do with PvP. I want to play Klingon, but if there is no persistent open world fight, I won't be playing this for very long.
since the team is very community focused... i can already imagine the team scrambling to get some of the suggestions into the game....
I am looking forward to playing this game but if all those things need to be ironed out then DO NOT RELEASE this game Cryptic until it is mostly polished. Otherwise you will have an excited crowd to buy the first game and then all leave after a few months in frustration. I will be one. Life is short and i certainly do not want to pass up other P to play games while you fix this one. I like star trek themes a lot and have high hopes for this but polish polish polish first. God bless. Happy space travels !!!
Does anyone else get the feeling that EVE is more like Star Trek than STO?
Just throwing it out there...
In what ways?
I only played EvE for a couple of days on a trial, but it is heavily about money, and that doesn't match the Federation way of doing things.
Controlling ships definitely seemed more like Trek than STO is handling it.
It's not really the money, but more the heavy focus on interaction and relationships between players rather than on 24/7 combat. With all the downtime between fights in EVE it does remind me of the build-up to large battles like in Star Trek - I keep thinking of DS9.
STO seems like it's trying to force combat a little too much. I see EVE as a long scifi movie with a lot of dialogue and drama, leading up to a climactic battle scene at the end which is caused by all the personal relationships before. STO is more like an action movie with tons of explosions but no real substance.