test content
What is the Arc Client?
Install Arc

Are voiceovers hindering content flow?

SystemSystem Member, NoReporting Posts: 178,019 Arc User
Because if they are, drop them.

Seriously, this first DS9 FE episode "Second Wave" could have been put together by any competent Foundry author in less than a week - as absolutely nothing new was added aside from the 'conference room' - AND the absolutely terrible voice overs.

So if adding voice overs to new content is what is causing it to be created/released at a snails pace - please Cryptic, just leave them out except for maybe some cut scene work.
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    I agree 100%. I'm sure later episodes will feature more unique environments/assets, but it shouldn't take you 6 months to produce 1 FE, if most of the missions are as bland as this. I mean really- at this stage at least a full 20% (1 of 5 missions) of the new FE is rehashed from existing assets. How does that translate to 6 months per FE, and that's about the max that the team can produce?

    I saw nothing here that didn't exist before save the conference room. Frankly I too am not all that impressed with the voiceovers. The quality of the voices and dialogue vary greatly between scene and character, meaning the well delivered and well written lines are just dragged down by the subpar dialogue that surrounds them. I wish you could skip the cutscenes in these missions, especially for replay.

    The character movements/animation don't match the voices at all (haha look at the scene where the officer in ops gets killed) and the whole thing feels like it came from a game made 10 years ago. If you drop the voiceovers in favor of stronger stories, more immersive gameplay, and more elaborate missions, then I'm all for it.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    I think it's the lack of employees. The content guy needs to have a systems guy to create any new assets. Since this mission was going to take place at an existing location, they could focus their limited resources on future chapters that required entire new maps.

    The next chapter takes place on Bajor. So it should be more compelling than this one.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    Considering the leaked screenshots, videos etc that were taken from the Featured Episodes, while this 1 mission could of been done with the foundry, I'm betting my entire EC stash on my main char that their is some that couldn't be done :p
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    Stormnnorm wrote:
    I agree 100%. I'm sure later episodes will feature more unique environments/assets, but it shouldn't take you 6 months to produce 1 FE, if most of the missions are as bland as this. I mean really- at this stage at least a full 20% (1 of 5 missions) of the new FE is rehashed from existing assets. How does that translate to 6 months per FE, and that's about the max that the team can produce?
    It did not take 6 months. No one had been working on it for months. Feel free to read the following post by Steven D, which he made in December: http://forums.startrekonline.com/showpost.php?p=3906630&postcount=63
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    Askray wrote: »
    Considering the leaked screenshots, videos etc that were taken from the Featured Episodes, while this 1 mission could of been done with the foundry, I'm betting my entire EC stash on my main char that their is some that couldn't be done :p

    The cinematics and conference room couldn't be done with The Foundry.

    Also, the dialogue behavior does some things that The Foundry can't do.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    It raises the bar from the other missions. It can be skipped through when playing if you don't like it.

    As for mission content taking longer, maybe but they don't plan on exactly cranking these out anyway. If we could get many, many more missions without VO I'd say ok, at least until the KDF mission content is done. But it's not an either/or. It's 9-13 missions per year with voice or without. I'll take voice.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    I really don't think that voiceovers are hindering anything, considering both quality and quantity. Of course I really don't know what is involved in hiring people, recording etc... but, lengthy negoiations and arrangements with good actors doesn't seem to be in place here.

    Other things are at work here i'm sure. Voice over is something that seems to be a "do it right or just don't do it" type of thing. Not someting that can be shoehorned into a game willy nilly because it seems to be the in thing. Done badly can be worse than not doing it at all.

    Some of the voice over is good, some is well...And that isn't to say I could do it better or anything, but the amount and quality of what is there doesn't seem to scream "time investment" to me.

    I hope it evolves into something great. If any mmorpg based on an IP (that thrives on great dialog) deserves incredible voiceover + cimematic work, it is definitely STO.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    The voice overs were supposedly done long before this was released. Those are not what is holding things up at all.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    Cosmic_One wrote: »
    It did not take 6 months. No one had been working on it for months. Feel free to read the following post by Steven D, which he made in December: http://forums.startrekonline.com/showpost.php?p=3906630&postcount=63

    But when he says that it's realistic to only expect 2 FE per year, it implies that ~6 months of work are needed to finish one.

    I understand that they are also working on other aspects of the game as well, but even assuming it only took ~3 months to create this FE, can you honestly tell me that it seems like a reasonable amount? Again this mission should not have taken more than 1-2 people a week at most to make, (excluding VO work) given the appropriate tools.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    I think the voiceovers add a great deal to the immersion of the story. And the people that audio people aren't slowing down content releases because they are in seperate areas as the art teams. The only thing that would slow down regarding the voice overs are those who are used for the voice overs themselves.


    The only complaint I could have regarding voiceovers is the inability to skip them. (Hey, after repeating the mission a couple of times, in getting accolades or items, it can get annoying. :p)
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    I wish the voice actors would dial down the hamminess just a bit. The moment where Loriss's voice completely changes to add unnecessary menace to the phrase The DOMINION was goofy, though. I felt Obisek's voice actor's performance was well done - and as a DS9 fan myself, I think that it would have been better to take cues from Jeffrey Combs's performance of Weyoun on that show and stick to a bright and cheery attitude than to go in for over the top unrestrained villainy. So mark me down for giving these voiceovers a passing grade so far. We'll see if it improves or not. If the VOs can be elevated in quality then I think they're a great way to make the featured episodes feel more important. If it continues feeling super cartoony at times, then, well... I'll vote for cutting them off. Fantastic as the Trek universe is, from time to time I want it to feel real. Some of these characters' voice actors either unintentionally or were directed to give extremely over the top performances that messed with my immersion a bit.

    I didn't mind Surah though, I thought he did quite well.

    Also, I support a "skip dialogue" button after I've played the level once.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    Stormnnorm wrote:
    But when he says that it's realistic to only expect 2 FE per year, it implies that ~6 months of work are needed to finish one.
    He states right in the post I linked to that it takes the team about 2 months to do a FE series "with full focus." In the Dev Diary Steven said the plan was to get 2 FEs out this year, and possibly a 3rd if he can fit in on the schedule.

    When it comes down to it the STO team is still only 25-30 people. They're working on various weekly things, a new Klingon Mission, some special event things, and working on the Season 6 updates coming in about 4-6 months; plus slowly trying to fix bugs and deal with high volume server strain.

    I'm not saying they shouldn't do more Mission - I have been hounding about the lack of Missions for over a year - but I understand that everyone wants something and they feel they need to try and give a little bit to multiple things needed.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    Stormnnorm wrote:
    But when he says that it's realistic to only expect 2 FE per year, it implies that ~6 months of work are needed to finish one.

    I understand that they are also working on other aspects of the game as well, but even assuming it only took ~3 months to create this FE, can you honestly tell me that it seems like a reasonable amount? Again this mission should not have taken more than 1-2 people a week at most to make, (excluding VO work) given the appropriate tools.

    This is what I was thinking too.

    Aside from the new conference room and Doff mission integration, this FE doesn't have anything that couldn't have been done by any Foundry author - in way less time (and with far fewer bugs most likely :p)

    The only other thing would be the voiceovers, which are heavily used compared to previous FEs.

    Again, if this is what is slowing down producing official mission content, please Cryptic, don't try to compete with SWTOR in this area - you can't do it. The vocal actors are terrible, the animation syncing is horrrible, and the effort to try and get this to work would be much better spent on other things.

    Short voiceovers here and there are fine - especially for cutscenes, but to try to do what SWTOR has done with only a fraction of the budget and staff is actually working against you.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    Chris at STOked has been sayin this for a while, what Cryptic needs to do is hire some people to make Cryptic official Foundry Missions. Use the tools there, take a few people, and make awesome Cryptic official foundry missions, in which they can get done a LOT faster than FE's. Don't stop doing FE's of course, but this will fill in the gaps between FE releases.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2012
    Cosmic_One wrote: »
    It did not take 6 months. No one had been working on it for months. Feel free to read the following post by Steven D, which he made in December: http://forums.startrekonline.com/showpost.php?p=3906630&postcount=63

    Your source isn't exactly the strongest in terms of credibility.

    ;)
Sign In or Register to comment.