This entire argument is nullified because the Ships are available ingame. Just because you do not agree with the pricing does not mean ships should not be offered for instant purchase.
500 emblems is fair, imo, as it at least ensures Cryptic the revenue of one month's subscription of grinding from the player based on a worse case scenario of an inactive account.
I am sorry you feel tired of it, but I for one will buy things I want. Either with cash or time. Given I am continually offered the choice to buy with cash or time I can make an informed decision that suits my needs.
p.s. Just because you feel playing for one hour a day for 33 days is unfair is further proof to me that your perspective on this matter is more jaded towards your view that the price is unfair versus the potential impact of having these ships on the cstore.
IMO, mining (if implemented) will still probably cost you more, in hours of grinding, than it would take to just earn the money to buy it outright. Are you not able to earn money easily? (If so, how do you pay for your subscription?) Do you value your time so little? Or are you just morally opposed to paying real money for game items if you can at all help it?
A hybrid of the two games is what I was going for. More so towards burning Sea if you've played it. I know that there are people that like economy grinding, just like some like diplomacy-type missions. Having variety helps. I can be an engineer that designs engines and you're a tactical that works on weapon systems. You need my engines to build a ship, I need your weapon systems. There, you have a basic economy. Mining is just an option, I would hope it never becomes exactly like EVE.
I value my time and my money very much. I've played other games casually and I get a pretty good sense that I get a lot of game for my time played. That's why I play casually. I am also a fan of Trek and STO. Since launch I was hoping to get a chance to fly ships like the Prometheus from the show and use their abilities. I'm paying a subscription, I don't think it's fair that every new ship asset is so expensive to get.
'Shade just posted on the MVAM thread that they think their time is worth the emblems/Atari point they charge. I have a job too, I can see that. So, does the development team work by commission? I am confused at this. Suppose they were not working on the Prometheus MVAM. What would the be working on? It seems to me like they would be coming to work everyday and work the (I'm sure) 60 hours a week. If they feel like they MUST charge for what they will be doing anyway, then perhaps STO is doing as well as they're trying to say it is subscription-wise.
I work 40 hours a week. When I'm given a task and work extra hard on it to get it done I can't go to my boss and ask for an extra bonus. I get paid my 40 hours and that's it.
If STO the game isn't making enough money and you need my extra $15 for a ship, TELL ME. Cryptic is one of the most open development team I have seen and I will understand. But hiding that need behind promotions and development lingo just doesn't feel quite right.
I have bought already several items from the C-Store, including ships. I am not against it entirely. But as a casual player, I'm not going to enjoy the new ship art assets as much if emblems is my only option. Stahl has posted several times that he has separate teams. The costuming guys can continue making uniforms and such and they can continue to make additional revenue from that.
What about the graphic fixes, what about ships for the KDF. I would love to see that effort that the development team is putting out be siphoned towards that. If that means we may not get C-Store ships for a while, fine. But it will be development effort that we will see without having to pay or grind extra
The emblem grind pretty much is an attempt to drive someone to frustration so that they buy the C-store ship.
I dont know much about the MVA console. Tested it on tribble. It seems it should be a craftable object along with C-Store. Or craftable after a mission. Which would be awesome. Maybe the C-store now and a mission to give you the ability to craft it later? That would be pretty fun.
The emblem grind pretty much is an attempt to drive someone to frustration so that they buy the C-store ship.
I dont know much about the MVA console. Tested it on tribble. It seems it should be a craftable object along with C-Store. Or craftable after a mission. Which would be awesome. Maybe the C-store now and a mission to give you the ability to craft it later? That would be pretty fun.
That's what I'm hoping for. Options. It's suppose to be that way for the Delta Flyer, but I have yet to see any more info on it. I can't wait for it. I was hoping that it would be a catalyst for better options rather than do the same missions 67 times over several weeks. It's one of the reasons Klingon players are upset
I couldn't agree more. I've never been a die-hard opponent of the C-store - things like the melee weapons pack are /exactly/ what it should be used for - purely cosmetic, flashy versions of items available in-game easily via other means.
But it seems with the MVAM debacle like more and more 'game' is going on there - and there's no two ways about it, new ship classes are very much a core part of the game. One of the primary 'hooks' while levelling is the feeling of upgrading to a new ship... something we're now being asked to pay for.
A two-month plus grind for a single item /is not reasonable/, and neither are the prices being charged.
Btran VA dailies - 4 emblems Non VA dailies - 4 marks of exploration
Defri 3 missions daily - 5 emblems
The daily fleet action - 3 emblems
The daily pvp - 3 emblems
Sha mar distress call - 1 emblem -eta eridani
Allheana distress call - 1 emblem - eta eridani
Sattelite repair - 1 emblem -eta eridani
18 emblems per day or 22 marks of exploration and i think i may have missed 1, though it may be a grind it wont take forever to get them if you can play 5 days a week it will take about a month or less if you repeat the btran daily for 1 emblem per time. I agree the C store is frusterating for some people and they cant get on 5 or more days a week but at least there is an obtainable option other than coughing up the cash alot of games dont have the option to get things ingame.
Also there are usually sales every couple of months, alot of people impulse buy and then regret it my self included I have ships i never use at least if your working your way up to it collecting emblems you can ask a few other players who did getit (they are usually pretty honest) how good it actually is and you will see it in combat if you pvp .
My point is about the functional items that end up on the C-Store and are way too overpriced in-game. I don't think it is fair grind. And the C-Store alternative seems like too much of a cash grab.
The grind isnt fair, 500 emblems each is an insane amount and for the average player it would take well over a month of playing every single day for at least 1-2 hours or something. Its ridiculous, im sick of it.
Since I haven't actually bought anything from the store, I wasn't aware they ran like $15 a pop. Two ships for the cost of an entire single-player game's expansion pack? That's absurd. I thought the stuff was like $2.
And grinding for a month straight for something that's more or less a cosmetic customization option is pretty nuts too, particularly in a game that has its character customization routinely touted as a major feature.
I can understand things that actively break with the setting of the game being grind/C-store just to keep the quantity of them down (i.e. TOS Connie/NX), but things that fit in, especially ships, have no reason to fall under such restrictions.
Since I haven't actually bought anything from the store, I wasn't aware they ran like $15 a pop. Two ships for the cost of an entire single-player game's expansion pack? That's absurd. I thought the stuff was like $2.
And grinding for a month straight for something that's more or less a cosmetic customization option is pretty nuts too, particularly in a game that has its character customization routinely touted as a major feature.
I can understand things that actively break with the setting of the game being grind/C-store just to keep the quantity of them down (i.e. TOS Connie/NX), but things that fit in, especially ships, have no reason to fall under such restrictions.
What many fail to understand is that these are low volume sale items. As such to compare against high volume sale items such as expansion packs or monthly subscriptions is a mistake. The only way they can justify being added for the relative few who have a strong desire to have them is by pricing them accordingly. As your post points out, it isn't really the price that's a factor in who buys them. Or put another way, you wouldn't have purchased a ship from the C-Store if they were only $2 either because that's what you thought they sold for and didn't try to buy one.
Items which are only desired by a relatively small number and aren't going to be desired by a larger number even at significantly lower price, must either be priced high enough to justify adding them for the small number or they just shouldn't be added. The C-Store provides this option for things that a few want that they otherwise couldn't have. And to make it even better Cryptic has made these items available for free through in game means for those who highly desire them but just can't afford to pay for them.
Sure, you can get 15 emblems in a day, but you'd have to play for about an hour and a half every day for over a month. That is NOT casual gaming. Casual gaming is maybe 4 days a week. At a casual level, I could get maybe the ten per day, but that pushes me into the 2~3 months to get any of the ships.
You still do not get it. If - for example - it takes a total of 40 hours to earn enough emblems to buy a ship, it will take 40 hours, regardless of how often you play. It just seems like it takes longer for the casual gamer because those 40 hours are spread out over a longer period of time.
If player A plays 20 hours a day, they earn the ship in 2 days.
If player B plays 8 hours a day, they earn the ship in 5 days.
If player C plays 1 hour a week, it will take nearly a year to get the ship.
Making something that is easy for Player C makes that same item trivial to A or B.
Its not that hard or over the top its only 500 , If you got it for free in a week you would post omg we need more ships I am bored. and if you don't want to grind then buy it nuff said.
A significant number of players have voiced their frustration about the length of the grind to obtain any of these in-game. Just as many have voiced their disappointment over every single new ship art asset hitting the C-Store.
The C-Store provides this option for things that a few want that they otherwise couldn't have.
It's actually more like things that many want. And I'm not sure about the "couldn't have" part, since Devs like CaptnLogan will need something to do, so we would have gotten them eventually. The Devs have made it clear that they want to add as many of the ships from the Series as they can. Are they going to charge us for all of them? That's crazy.
So, the only way for us to get any of the new ships we like from the series is to pay for them or grind them? It doesn't seem fair, at least not at the price they are offered. I feel that they should budget those assets from our subscriptions. Although Frankly, I'd rather have more game content. I'm assuming a huge part of their time goes into the Weekly Series... I'd rather see new ships be introduced in those rather than being sold to us. We are getting Weekly series now every couple of months, so in the development downtime where they don't need the 3D artists for the Season Update, work on a few ships and introduce them as part of the Series rewards, without forcing us to a frustrating grind.
You still do not get it. If - for example - it takes a total of 40 hours to earn enough emblems to buy a ship, it will take 40 hours, regardless of how often you play
True, but we can't keep up with the rate at which they're releasing the ships. By the time I've saved for one there is already two out. It's a direct ploy to frustrate folks into buying them, I really think that is unfair. They come up with flashy new ships that they know people want and after showing it and teasing about it, they're just on the Store with the hefty price tag.
A significant number of players have voiced their frustration about the length of the grind to obtain any of these in-game. Just as many have voiced their disappointment over every single new ship art asset hitting the C-Store.
It's actually more like things that many want. And I'm not sure about the "couldn't have" part, since Devs like CaptnLogan will need something to do, so we would have gotten them eventually. The Devs have made it clear that they want to add as many of the ships from the Series as they can. Are they going to charge us for all of them? That's crazy.
So, the only way for us to get any of the new ships we like from the series is to pay for them or grind them? It doesn't seem fair, at least not at the price they are offered. I feel that they should budget those assets from our subscriptions. Although Frankly, I'd rather have more game content. I'm assuming a huge part of their time goes into the Weekly Series... I'd rather see new ships be introduced in those rather than being sold to us. We are getting Weekly series now every couple of months, so in the development downtime where they don't need the 3D artists for the Season Update, work on a few ships and introduce them as part of the Series rewards, without forcing us to a frustrating grind.
...
There is also probably a very large time component to this. It is too early to tell for sure since the new ships have released after the last major rank/tier advance; but I would expect that over time existing C-Store/emblem ships would be added to the game for free. Afterall there won't be a small market for these Tier 5 ships when we're at Tier 6 max level, there will be a nearly nonexistent market.
Of course the other alternative is they'll just drop new access to these ships in their current form and offer to sell new versions of the same at Tier 6. But, for some reason I don't think that would go over well. :eek:
True, but we can't keep up with the rate at which they're releasing the ships. By the time I've saved for one there is already two out. It's a direct ploy to frustrate folks into buying them, I really think that is unfair. They come up with flashy new ships that they know people want and after showing it and teasing about it, they're just on the Store with the hefty price tag.
"Unfair" is subjective though and depends on the individual. You may feel it unfair and too much to keep up with. Others will find it reasonable so long as they do not have to shell out real cash for it.
I am not saying you are wrong in your opinion and I can empathize with you. I just disagree that Cryptic should not have a C-Store.
What many fail to understand is that these are low volume sale items. As such to compare against high volume sale items such as expansion packs or monthly subscriptions is a mistake. The only way they can justify being added for the relative few who have a strong desire to have them is by pricing them accordingly. As your post points out, it isn't really the price that's a factor in who buys them. Or put another way, you wouldn't have purchased a ship from the C-Store if they were only $2 either because that's what you thought they sold for and didn't try to buy one.
Items which are only desired by a relatively small number and aren't going to be desired by a larger number even at significantly lower price, must either be priced high enough to justify adding them for the small number or they just shouldn't be added. The C-Store provides this option for things that a few want that they otherwise couldn't have. And to make it even better Cryptic has made these items available for free through in game means for those who highly desire them but just can't afford to pay for them.
I do not consider volume to be a factor here. This is a subscription game where new content such as this is developed routinely either way. That is just part of the deal. Most of this stuff is pretty standard Trek fare that one would expect would be part of that routine, such as setting-appropriate ships like Nebula, Delta Flyer, or what have you. If this were not a subscription-based game, wherein the only income generated comes specifically from the item, then I would agree with you on this point.
Further, it's a matter of value. The entire Star Trek Online software package costs less than those ships. Each ship is itself an entire month's worth of game time. It says a lot about a game if the proposed value of the entire game is actually less than one item in the game, particularly if that item is little more than a new skin.
As far as my not having purchased anything, it's not about the price. It's simply there's nothing in there I particularly want. The only item of any interest to me at all is the TOS Connie, but given the setting of the game it would feel odd to fly her, especially since she'll be useless after T1. Beyond that, I'm just generally opposed to paying extra for content unless that content fundamentally improves gameplay, such as an expansion pack that adds new features.
True, but we can't keep up with the rate at which they're releasing the ships. By the time I've saved for one there is already two out. It's a direct ploy to frustrate folks into buying them, I really think that is unfair. They come up with flashy new ships that they know people want and after showing it and teasing about it, they're just on the Store with the hefty price tag.
How dare the Devs offer you things you want, and how dare a business seek profit.
I do not consider volume to be a factor here. This is a subscription game where new content such as this is developed routinely either way. That is just part of the deal. Most of this stuff is pretty standard Trek fare that one would expect would be part of that routine, such as setting-appropriate ships like Nebula, Delta Flyer, or what have you. If this were not a subscription-based game, wherein the only income generated comes specifically from the item, then I would agree with you on this point.
Further, it's a matter of value. The entire Star Trek Online software package costs less than those ships. Each ship is itself an entire month's worth of game time. It says a lot about a game if the proposed value of the entire game is actually less than one item in the game, particularly if that item is little more than a new skin.
As far as my not having purchased anything, it's not about the price. It's simply there's nothing in there I particularly want. The only item of any interest to me at all is the TOS Connie, but given the setting of the game it would feel odd to fly her, especially since she'll be useless after T1. Beyond that, I'm just generally opposed to paying extra for content unless that content fundamentally improves gameplay, such as an expansion pack that adds new features.
Comparing the price of anything to the price of the monthly subscription is unfair. There are reasons why the subscription rate for MMO's hasn't increased over time, and none of them are because the value of money hasn't changed. If they had consistently risen in price as everything else labor based has since the first ones the subscription price would easily be 2-3 times as much. Yes, there are other factors; but, this fixed subscription rate that is unable to cover what's being provided is one of the very reasons for the existence of the C-Store.
Additionally, the $15 monthly subscription rate is so insignificant and so very close to zero that it is one of the large reasons why Free-2-Play is becoming a viable option for quality MMO's. They don't lose all that much subscription revenue while having an increased option to gain the more lucrative C-Store type revenue that hasn't had its pricing held artificially low. Of course, I suppose this is a discussion for another thread.
I just disagree that Cryptic should not have a C-Store.
I don't think they shouldn't have either. I think it needs to be revised. Either a second look at the prices, or a revision on the content. I don't think ships belong there.
Additionally, the $15 monthly subscription rate is so insignificant and so very close to zero that it is one of the large reasons why Free-2-Play is becoming a viable option for quality MMO's. They don't lose all that much subscription revenue while having an increased option to gain the more lucrative C-Store type revenue that hasn't had its pricing held artificially low. Of course, I suppose this is a discussion for another thread.
There is a lot of truth to this. The C-Store makes all the sense and a half if STO was Free to play. But not so much in subscription. It seems like they're trying to generate revenue from a F2P system and a subscription system at the same time. Like someone said it feels as if we're charged twice. Or maybe it is just once for new missions and gameplay tweaks and again for all the new ships assets added.
How dare the Devs offer you things you want, and how dare a business seek profit.
I understand that they need business and I support said business with my subscription and eventual C-Store purchase. But it now seems that every time a new ship is added, we are to be charged extra for it. I would like a more refined in-game way of obtaining ships. I strongly support crafting for them.
Most of this stuff is pretty standard Trek fare that one would expect would be part of that routine, such as setting-appropriate ships like Nebula, Delta Flyer, or what have you.
Perhaps I am missing something, but it feels as if the new ship assets should have either come out at launch or have been added over time anyway. With a solid content-rich MMO world, the subscription fee can go in the majority towards advertising for more players, and server maintenance. However, due to the issues at launch, STO has had to work towards a level where it is rich and content-filled. They're not there yet, and they're doing a great job to get there. But why charge us extra along the way?
They're not there yet, and they're doing a great job to get there. But why charge us extra along the way?
Subscription fees only go so far. The C-Store helps Cryptic maintain a larger staff that can crank out more content more quickly than a smaller group could.
Subscription fees only go so far. The C-Store helps Cryptic maintain a larger staff that can crank out more content more quickly than a smaller group could.
I wish they would meet us halfway and lower the price. They will recoup their funds in the long run anyway. Besides, they have the funds from a decent number of lifetime subscribers which many other MMOs do not offer.
Comparing the price of anything to the price of the monthly subscription is unfair. There are reasons why the subscription rate for MMO's hasn't increased over time, and none of them are because the value of money hasn't changed. If they had consistently risen in price as everything else labor based has since the first ones the subscription price would easily be 2-3 times as much. Yes, there are other factors; but, this fixed subscription rate that is unable to cover what's being provided is one of the very reasons for the existence of the C-Store.
That is a really difficult argument to make. The sub rates haven't increased, but a lot of the things that used to be prohibitively expensive cost-drivers are dropping in price (such as server space and bandwidth.) The player market is also considerably larger than it has been over the years, and this particular game has the added advantage of the IP.
Additionally, the $15 monthly subscription rate is so insignificant and so very close to zero that it is one of the large reasons why Free-2-Play is becoming a viable option for quality MMO's. They don't lose all that much subscription revenue while having an increased option to gain the more lucrative C-Store type revenue that hasn't had its pricing held artificially low. Of course, I suppose this is a discussion for another thread.
If it's that insignificant, then there's no reason to charge it unless you're just milking people. But yes, debating their business model is best left for another thread.
Perhaps I am missing something, but it feels as if the new ship assets should have either come out at launch or have been added over time anyway. With a solid content-rich MMO world, the subscription fee can go in the majority towards advertising for more players, and server maintenance. However, due to the issues at launch, STO has had to work towards a level where it is rich and content-filled. They're not there yet, and they're doing a great job to get there. But why charge us extra along the way?
The player market is also considerably larger than it has been over the years, and this particular game has the added advantage of the IP.
I just want to point out that the IP is a 2-edged sword because it comes with its own cost. How much I'm not sure, but I'm betting it's relatively significant.
I just want to point out that the IP is a 2-edged sword because it comes with its own cost. How much I'm not sure, but I'm betting it's relatively significant.
That is true, though I was referring more to the fact that you could probably increase the sub fee and Trek fans are hardcore enough to pay it. They fall all over the C-store after all.
That is true, though I was referring more to the fact that you could probably increase the sub fee and Trek fans are hardcore enough to pay it. They fall all over the C-store after all.
They will likely lose a lot of non-trek fans if that were the case. I guess until the giant popular MMOs increase their fees, STO will not. I guess it is like a norm or unspoken rule, but I'm sure someone will at some point.
I wish they would meet us halfway and lower the price. They will recoup their funds in the long run anyway. Besides, they have the funds from a decent number of lifetime subscribers which many other MMOs do not offer.
The money gained from a LTS only goes so far. Once it is used up, there is no more revenue coming in from monthly subscriptions.
Sure they would recoup the development money they put into the ships in the long run, yet I am sure you are aware that "a dollar today is worth more than a dollar tomorrow". Pretty sure that is one of the Rules of Acquisition too...:p
Comments
500 emblems is fair, imo, as it at least ensures Cryptic the revenue of one month's subscription of grinding from the player based on a worse case scenario of an inactive account.
I am sorry you feel tired of it, but I for one will buy things I want. Either with cash or time. Given I am continually offered the choice to buy with cash or time I can make an informed decision that suits my needs.
p.s. Just because you feel playing for one hour a day for 33 days is unfair is further proof to me that your perspective on this matter is more jaded towards your view that the price is unfair versus the potential impact of having these ships on the cstore.
A hybrid of the two games is what I was going for. More so towards burning Sea if you've played it. I know that there are people that like economy grinding, just like some like diplomacy-type missions. Having variety helps. I can be an engineer that designs engines and you're a tactical that works on weapon systems. You need my engines to build a ship, I need your weapon systems. There, you have a basic economy. Mining is just an option, I would hope it never becomes exactly like EVE.
I value my time and my money very much. I've played other games casually and I get a pretty good sense that I get a lot of game for my time played. That's why I play casually. I am also a fan of Trek and STO. Since launch I was hoping to get a chance to fly ships like the Prometheus from the show and use their abilities. I'm paying a subscription, I don't think it's fair that every new ship asset is so expensive to get.
'Shade just posted on the MVAM thread that they think their time is worth the emblems/Atari point they charge. I have a job too, I can see that. So, does the development team work by commission? I am confused at this. Suppose they were not working on the Prometheus MVAM. What would the be working on? It seems to me like they would be coming to work everyday and work the (I'm sure) 60 hours a week. If they feel like they MUST charge for what they will be doing anyway, then perhaps STO is doing as well as they're trying to say it is subscription-wise.
I work 40 hours a week. When I'm given a task and work extra hard on it to get it done I can't go to my boss and ask for an extra bonus. I get paid my 40 hours and that's it.
If STO the game isn't making enough money and you need my extra $15 for a ship, TELL ME. Cryptic is one of the most open development team I have seen and I will understand. But hiding that need behind promotions and development lingo just doesn't feel quite right.
I have bought already several items from the C-Store, including ships. I am not against it entirely. But as a casual player, I'm not going to enjoy the new ship art assets as much if emblems is my only option. Stahl has posted several times that he has separate teams. The costuming guys can continue making uniforms and such and they can continue to make additional revenue from that.
What about the graphic fixes, what about ships for the KDF. I would love to see that effort that the development team is putting out be siphoned towards that. If that means we may not get C-Store ships for a while, fine. But it will be development effort that we will see without having to pay or grind extra
The emblem grind pretty much is an attempt to drive someone to frustration so that they buy the C-store ship.
I dont know much about the MVA console. Tested it on tribble. It seems it should be a craftable object along with C-Store. Or craftable after a mission. Which would be awesome. Maybe the C-store now and a mission to give you the ability to craft it later? That would be pretty fun.
But it seems with the MVAM debacle like more and more 'game' is going on there - and there's no two ways about it, new ship classes are very much a core part of the game. One of the primary 'hooks' while levelling is the feeling of upgrading to a new ship... something we're now being asked to pay for.
A two-month plus grind for a single item /is not reasonable/, and neither are the prices being charged.
Defri 3 missions daily - 5 emblems
The daily fleet action - 3 emblems
The daily pvp - 3 emblems
Sha mar distress call - 1 emblem -eta eridani
Allheana distress call - 1 emblem - eta eridani
Sattelite repair - 1 emblem -eta eridani
18 emblems per day or 22 marks of exploration and i think i may have missed 1, though it may be a grind it wont take forever to get them if you can play 5 days a week it will take about a month or less if you repeat the btran daily for 1 emblem per time. I agree the C store is frusterating for some people and they cant get on 5 or more days a week but at least there is an obtainable option other than coughing up the cash alot of games dont have the option to get things ingame.
Also there are usually sales every couple of months, alot of people impulse buy and then regret it my self included I have ships i never use at least if your working your way up to it collecting emblems you can ask a few other players who did getit (they are usually pretty honest) how good it actually is and you will see it in combat if you pvp .
The grind isnt fair, 500 emblems each is an insane amount and for the average player it would take well over a month of playing every single day for at least 1-2 hours or something. Its ridiculous, im sick of it.
And grinding for a month straight for something that's more or less a cosmetic customization option is pretty nuts too, particularly in a game that has its character customization routinely touted as a major feature.
I can understand things that actively break with the setting of the game being grind/C-store just to keep the quantity of them down (i.e. TOS Connie/NX), but things that fit in, especially ships, have no reason to fall under such restrictions.
What many fail to understand is that these are low volume sale items. As such to compare against high volume sale items such as expansion packs or monthly subscriptions is a mistake. The only way they can justify being added for the relative few who have a strong desire to have them is by pricing them accordingly. As your post points out, it isn't really the price that's a factor in who buys them. Or put another way, you wouldn't have purchased a ship from the C-Store if they were only $2 either because that's what you thought they sold for and didn't try to buy one.
Items which are only desired by a relatively small number and aren't going to be desired by a larger number even at significantly lower price, must either be priced high enough to justify adding them for the small number or they just shouldn't be added. The C-Store provides this option for things that a few want that they otherwise couldn't have. And to make it even better Cryptic has made these items available for free through in game means for those who highly desire them but just can't afford to pay for them.
You still do not get it. If - for example - it takes a total of 40 hours to earn enough emblems to buy a ship, it will take 40 hours, regardless of how often you play. It just seems like it takes longer for the casual gamer because those 40 hours are spread out over a longer period of time.
If player A plays 20 hours a day, they earn the ship in 2 days.
If player B plays 8 hours a day, they earn the ship in 5 days.
If player C plays 1 hour a week, it will take nearly a year to get the ship.
Making something that is easy for Player C makes that same item trivial to A or B.
It's actually more like things that many want. And I'm not sure about the "couldn't have" part, since Devs like CaptnLogan will need something to do, so we would have gotten them eventually. The Devs have made it clear that they want to add as many of the ships from the Series as they can. Are they going to charge us for all of them? That's crazy.
So, the only way for us to get any of the new ships we like from the series is to pay for them or grind them? It doesn't seem fair, at least not at the price they are offered. I feel that they should budget those assets from our subscriptions. Although Frankly, I'd rather have more game content. I'm assuming a huge part of their time goes into the Weekly Series... I'd rather see new ships be introduced in those rather than being sold to us. We are getting Weekly series now every couple of months, so in the development downtime where they don't need the 3D artists for the Season Update, work on a few ships and introduce them as part of the Series rewards, without forcing us to a frustrating grind.
True, but we can't keep up with the rate at which they're releasing the ships. By the time I've saved for one there is already two out. It's a direct ploy to frustrate folks into buying them, I really think that is unfair. They come up with flashy new ships that they know people want and after showing it and teasing about it, they're just on the Store with the hefty price tag.
There is also probably a very large time component to this. It is too early to tell for sure since the new ships have released after the last major rank/tier advance; but I would expect that over time existing C-Store/emblem ships would be added to the game for free. Afterall there won't be a small market for these Tier 5 ships when we're at Tier 6 max level, there will be a nearly nonexistent market.
Of course the other alternative is they'll just drop new access to these ships in their current form and offer to sell new versions of the same at Tier 6. But, for some reason I don't think that would go over well. :eek:
"Unfair" is subjective though and depends on the individual. You may feel it unfair and too much to keep up with. Others will find it reasonable so long as they do not have to shell out real cash for it.
I am not saying you are wrong in your opinion and I can empathize with you. I just disagree that Cryptic should not have a C-Store.
I do not consider volume to be a factor here. This is a subscription game where new content such as this is developed routinely either way. That is just part of the deal. Most of this stuff is pretty standard Trek fare that one would expect would be part of that routine, such as setting-appropriate ships like Nebula, Delta Flyer, or what have you. If this were not a subscription-based game, wherein the only income generated comes specifically from the item, then I would agree with you on this point.
Further, it's a matter of value. The entire Star Trek Online software package costs less than those ships. Each ship is itself an entire month's worth of game time. It says a lot about a game if the proposed value of the entire game is actually less than one item in the game, particularly if that item is little more than a new skin.
As far as my not having purchased anything, it's not about the price. It's simply there's nothing in there I particularly want. The only item of any interest to me at all is the TOS Connie, but given the setting of the game it would feel odd to fly her, especially since she'll be useless after T1. Beyond that, I'm just generally opposed to paying extra for content unless that content fundamentally improves gameplay, such as an expansion pack that adds new features.
Comparing the price of anything to the price of the monthly subscription is unfair. There are reasons why the subscription rate for MMO's hasn't increased over time, and none of them are because the value of money hasn't changed. If they had consistently risen in price as everything else labor based has since the first ones the subscription price would easily be 2-3 times as much. Yes, there are other factors; but, this fixed subscription rate that is unable to cover what's being provided is one of the very reasons for the existence of the C-Store.
Additionally, the $15 monthly subscription rate is so insignificant and so very close to zero that it is one of the large reasons why Free-2-Play is becoming a viable option for quality MMO's. They don't lose all that much subscription revenue while having an increased option to gain the more lucrative C-Store type revenue that hasn't had its pricing held artificially low. Of course, I suppose this is a discussion for another thread.
Subscription fees only go so far. The C-Store helps Cryptic maintain a larger staff that can crank out more content more quickly than a smaller group could.
That is a really difficult argument to make. The sub rates haven't increased, but a lot of the things that used to be prohibitively expensive cost-drivers are dropping in price (such as server space and bandwidth.) The player market is also considerably larger than it has been over the years, and this particular game has the added advantage of the IP.
If it's that insignificant, then there's no reason to charge it unless you're just milking people. But yes, debating their business model is best left for another thread.
I agree entirely.
I just want to point out that the IP is a 2-edged sword because it comes with its own cost. How much I'm not sure, but I'm betting it's relatively significant.
That is true, though I was referring more to the fact that you could probably increase the sub fee and Trek fans are hardcore enough to pay it. They fall all over the C-store after all.
The money gained from a LTS only goes so far. Once it is used up, there is no more revenue coming in from monthly subscriptions.
Sure they would recoup the development money they put into the ships in the long run, yet I am sure you are aware that "a dollar today is worth more than a dollar tomorrow". Pretty sure that is one of the Rules of Acquisition too...:p