It's not an anniversary event, it's just an event same as any other.
It just coincides with the time of year we used to have an anniversary on, we don't have them any more.
QFT! So much wisdom in 2 little sentences.
Am I grinding the ship/event on all of my toons? Yes, because it is part of a set, and because I like having more ships more than I like having less ships.
Besides, what else would I do? Grind more dilithium? Grind more EC? Grind more STFs so I can convert that currency to dilithium?
PS: A little tip for all people having trouble with the "gift" Qs - go to shooter mode (hit "b") when the packages stop moving and point the crosshairs at them. The one showing a cog when you point at it is the one Q is hiding in. Now hit "b" again and select the right color. Do not try to click on the package while still in shooter mode, this seems to select a package at random.
This way you don't even need to pay attention, I usually start 2-3 Qs and then come back to select the result. Saves me from going insane...
I like the anniversary missions like the time travel one and this one but I can't stand Q and his stupid party popper mission. I didn't do it once last time and won't this time either so won't get a ship this time.
And here's the thing.....i remain unconvinced of that.
sure, somewhat better stats, at least on the forthcoming cstore versions, but I'm not overwhelmed by the dual purpose nature of these ships, i don't like how it reverts to sci position every time you jump, the Fed version is not a looker.......the ten console versions are cstore ships alright, but I actually don't think they're universally awesome.
And, remember, we're not grinding for the ten console version, we're doing that for the nine console one and a warp core.
For starters it has a unique warp core with a special power you can't get any other way.
But for more, let's compare it to the Guramba and MVAE... (note: these are STOwiki stats)
Guramba/Nov/MVAE/Solanae
hull: 31500/30000/31000/28500
shield: .9/1.25/.9/1.3
crew: 300/1000/150/400
all of them have 1 commander ranked boff power, 2 LtCom, 4 Lt, and 5 Ens.
devices: 2/3/2/3
all of them have 9 console slots....
turn: 15/12/16/12 *the 12s are in science mode, and turn increases in tac mode.
impulse/inertia: see turn
bonus power: 10w,5e/15/15/15
Then you have the abilities..... Nov/Solanae can revert to a science ship if the situation calls for it... Um, yeah, I think that's an adequate tradeoff for not having the Guramba lance power, or the multivector transformation. Especially when you consider that it gives you a unique warp core too.
So yeah, the new ships are at least equal to a Z-store VA ship.
Having played the FE a few times with the presumably cstore like version, the ship doesn't impress me that much. The "free" version is likely to be less impressive. So I dont really see what was so awesome about this ship that it needed it be given away with a 15 day grind as opposed to just doing the FE.
The switching between science and tactical I found more annoying than useful..
As for the event as a whole, the FE is pretty well done and quite enjoyable. I wish there was more of it added now rather than needing to wait. The party patrol is annoyingly boring.
1: Not the point - the issue people have is that previous anniversaries people only had to run the episode, now they have to come back and do the tasks every day for 2 weeks.
2: While it may be 5 minutes for you, it might be the best part of an hour for others - some people have more than 1 character.
And some people have 20 characters, and maybe even 40 characters. Should we balance the game around them? Should an STF take 30 seconds to complete so that they can run all their characters through without getting carpel tunnel?
They are making a choice to pursue the reward on all those characters. Ignoring that, and using it as a reason against this form of reward attainment is lame in my opinion, but your very welcome to spout it.
For starters it has a unique warp core with a special power you can't get any other way.
But for more, let's compare it to the Guramba and MVAE... (note: these are STOwiki stats)
Guramba/Nov/MVAE/Solanae
hull: 31500/30000/31000/28500
shield: .9/1.25/.9/1.3
crew: 300/1000/150/400
all of them have 1 commander ranked boff power, 2 LtCom, 4 Lt, and 5 Ens.
devices: 2/3/2/3
all of them have 9 console slots....
turn: 15/12/16/12 *the 12s are in science mode, and turn increases in tac mode.
impulse/inertia: see turn
bonus power: 10w,5e/15/15/15
Then you have the abilities..... Nov/Solanae can revert to a science ship if the situation calls for it... Um, yeah, I think that's an adequate tradeoff for not having the Guramba lance power, or the multivector transformation. Especially when you consider that it gives you a unique warp core too.
So yeah, the new ships are at least equal to a Z-store VA ship.
Certainly equal to some. surprised you didn't put the Aquarius in there for comparison as well.
I don't think though that your enthusiasm for these new ships will be something shared by a large proportion of the playerbase for any length of time.
And a big part of your position is that the 9 console ship is the only way to get that warp core.
Which means, as cryptic have set this event up in a very particular way, that players who can only get on at the weekends can not get it for free, even for grinding.
Simply not enough actual days in the event.
Their only route to the ship is to spend lobi.
Making this legendary warp core free to some of the playerbase while designing a system that means it can never be free to another is not what I'd call good game design.
Certainly equal to some. surprised you didn't put the Aquarius in there for comparison as well.
I don't think though that your enthusiasm for these new ships will be something shared by a large proportion of the playerbase for any length of time.
And a big part of your position is that the 9 console ship is the only way to get that warp core.
Which means, as cryptic have set this event up in a very particular way, that players who can only get on at the weekends can not get it for free, even for grinding.
Simply not enough actual days in the event.
Their only route to the ship is to spend lobi.
Making this legendary warp core free to some of the playerbase while designing a system that means it can never be free to another is not what I'd call good game design.
While not ideal, it's the same as the winter/summer event ships.
And some people have 20 characters, and maybe even 40 characters. Should we balance the game around them? Should an STF take 30 seconds to complete so that they can run all their characters through without getting carpel tunnel?
They are making a choice to pursue the reward on all those characters. Ignoring that, and using it as a reason against this form of reward attainment is lame in my opinion, but your very welcome to spout it.
However, against that, I'd put the idea that those with more than the average number of toons spend real money disproportionately on the game.
They have to pay for more slots.
More expansions to inventories of various kinds.
More ships to put them in.
More zen to dilithium to equip those ships.
These are the players that, if STO were a casino, would be called 'whales'.
How long will a casino operate if it actively discriminates against whales?
LOL this thread is funny because not only are half the new features stated so not ready that they didn't even bother to put them in 8.5. The other part is such a grind for these ships that don't look that great and are basically just being used for their new powers.
Then over half of these new doffs are to support powers that do not even work properly lol.
No its not a let down. Mission is awesome artistically and storywise, free ships are awesome and quick equip is uber!
I won't argue that the FE is quite fun (albeit time consuming), and the Undine are FINALLY somewhat of a challenge (that could also be because the ship you are given is out-fitted terribly). However... the ship itself... really not that horribly impressed. Granted I have as of yet to get one and outfit it the way I want to, but I get the feeling I still won't be too impressed with it. It's one of those wait and see things.
I like the anniversary missions like the time travel one and this one but I can't stand Q and his stupid party popper mission. I didn't do it once last time and won't this time either so won't get a ship this time.
Having played the FE a few times with the presumably cstore like version, the ship doesn't impress me that much. The "free" version is likely to be less impressive. So I dont really see what was so awesome about this ship that it needed it be given away with a 15 day grind as opposed to just doing the FE.
The switching between science and tactical I found more annoying than useful..
As for the event as a whole, the FE is pretty well done and quite enjoyable. I wish there was more of it added now rather than needing to wait. The party patrol is annoyingly boring.
It also doesn't help the INSANE money grab they are doing after, with the 3 C-store 3 packs. That's 15000 zen. To get it on all 3 factions. That's $150. Talk about GREEDY. -.- What irks me the most is there are players who will pay that 150, which will make them think it's working and they'll keep on pulling TRIBBLE like that.
And yeah... chase the runner, not so bad (except when it teleports to some random direction and there are 3 or 4 other mini-Qs running away), but the shell game... it's time-consuming and buggy.
It is said the best weapon is one that is never fired. I disagree. The best weapon is one you only have to fire... once.
While not ideal, it's the same as the winter/summer event ships.
But not the same as previous anniversary events.
Thus those who could not take advantage of the winter or summer events had this to look forward to..now they don't.
I just don't think Cryptic monetarising the anniversary event in this way was a stunningly good idea. I think there's a distinct possibility they'll sell less zen than last year.
Because against whatever trend their metrics tell them is there and exploitable, there's the rather palpable sense of damp squib about this event.
This is not a well designed event. And the reward, while certainly not being utter trash, isn't frankly all that.
Despite Cryptic saying they listen but totally ignoring all feedback they don't like, this is still a problem.
They are tracking their own internal stats but as somebody else put it, they are picking the numbers they want to look at without understanding WHY those numbers exist.
At this point it's a self-fulfilling prophecy on Cryptic's part, but for all the wrong reasons...
Cryptic gets a false idea that "players want X instead of Y" because they misinterpret cause and effect. They remove half of Y and remove some of the incentives to do Y, and make X the only gateway to get a certain required currency. Then they look at the numbers after their change and are vindicated to see even MORE people are playing X instead of Y! They were right! Right?
Bzzzt! Wrong! The numbers don't imply why people are playing X or Y. Basically Cryptic has made the game less fun, less flexible, less rewarding, and are assuming the game is better than ever.
Like the hourly events being removed for the new once-a-month reward weekends. Surely after REMOVING said hourly events cryptic will find vindication that more people are flocking to their weekend event. Why? LACK of other options! It does not mean we like it. It does not mean we want you to do that. It does not mean we even want to do the event in the first place, but with limited time and meager rewards, it's really the only way to accomplish <fill-in-the-blank>.
And yet, they look at their metrics in the way they want to, and get the answers they already had in their heads before they began looking.
Thus those who could not take advantage of the winter or summer events had this to look forward to..now they don't.
I just don't think Cryptic monetarising the anniversary event in this way was a stunningly good idea. I think there's a distinct possibility they'll sell less zen than last year.
Because against whatever trend their metrics tell them is there and exploitable, there's the rather palpable sense of damp squib about this event.
This is not a well designed event. And the reward, while certainly not being utter trash, isn't frankly all that.
I still disagree. Let's face it.... last year's ship was playable, but not worth buying. This one IS. Even if there's a +1 version coming to the Z-store.
I really don't see it as any more of a monetization than the free Oddy(which can't even use the bridge or consoles from the 3-pack versions). Yes, I remember the people griping about how the 2nd Anniversary mission was a Z-store ad....
I still disagree. Let's face it.... last year's ship was playable, but not worth buying. This one IS. Even if there's a +1 version coming to the Z-store.
I really don't see it as any more of a monetization than the free Oddy(which can't even use the bridge or consoles from the 3-pack versions). Yes, I remember the people griping about how the 2nd Anniversary mission was a Z-store ad....
The free oddy has a unique bridge of its own.
The monetarisation comes in when you look at how they've time gated the grind.
Keys to lobi to qmarks.
By making it hard, impossible or just damn tedious to complete in time they've provided us with the fine pay to win scenario of using lobi to get qms
It's a far more obvious and blatant cash grab than previous anniversary events.
Quick reminder, discussion of moderation is against the rules. That includes thread merges.
We (Volunteer Community Moderators) merge threads because they're redundant, not because we're trying to hide stuff. Even when we do that, we normally leave a permanent redirect behind so you can find where your posts went to.
Legitimate feedback is collected, not thrown out.
A LOT of 4th anniversary threads got created, and I imagine we're probably not done with thread merges because a lot of them are still being created.
This is my attempt to try to explain why thread merges happen, as a courtesy. They are not open for discussion, so please do not reply to this post.
My views may not represent those of Cryptic Studios or Perfect World Entertainment. You can file a "forums and website" support ticket here Link: How to PM - Twitter @STOMod_Bluegeek
The monetarisation comes in when you look at how they've time gated the grind.
Keys to lobi to qmarks.
By making it hard, impossible or just damn tedious to complete in time they've provided us with the fine pay to win scenario of using lobi to get qms
It's a far more obvious and blatant cash grab than previous anniversary events.
I'm actually rather surprised you can't see that.
It's no more a "cash grab" than the last two event ships were. Actually it's LESS so since you only need to repeat the minigame 15 times instead of 25. 15 repeats in 25(or probably more) days? that sounds pretty easy to me... As for tedious... hehe... Anything is tedious after you do it several times.
Oh and I use the free Oddy bridge.... It's technically unique, but easily mistaken for one of the Store bridges(Nomad?). The main difference is that it has an MSD of the Oddy on a few consoles.....
Certainly it can be done in 5 minutes, possibly a little less.
Get mostly runners, don't be on an even half full instance, avoid the (thankfully) small number of griefers who seem to get their kicks trying to obscure the miniQ in the present box shuffle, also avoid the NPCs that can walk straight into a present shuffle and just stand there.
Your time estimate is possible.
However, its not 'tops'.
That would be a lot nearer ten minutes, and while on one toon thats not necessarily a problem, over multiple toons it adds up fast.
As a point of comparison, in previous anniversary player appreciation events, it would take someone 90 minutes to collect the ship on 6 toons. 90 minutes not time gatred and playable at the players convenience at any time during the event.
It now takes northwards of nine hours and the majority of that is time gated, meaning that anyone only able to play at the weekend has no chance of getting the ship for free.
I'm glad you're getting through this in a mere five minutes, but not everyone has as much reason to feel 'appreciated' as you.
I've been doing it on average under 5 minutes per character since it started. On the first day, it took a total of about 74 minutes to cycle 12 characters through it all, including character swapping. Since then, I do it in under an hour. If it's taking an average of around 10 minutes, a number that I ascribe to your pulling out of the ether, I can't imagine why, unless of course you are doing other things in the meantime at the academies, in which case, that's not a very fair assessment of how long the event itself is taking, now is it?
But you, a vocal opponent of the design from before it started, making this out to be much more of an ordeal than it actually is doesn't come as much of a surprise.
This is an MMO, not a Star Trek episode simulator. That would make for a terrible game.
I've been doing it on average under 5 minutes per character since it started. On the first day, it took a total of about 74 minutes to cycle 12 characters through it all, including character swapping. Since then, I do it in under an hour. If it's taking an average of around 10 minutes, a number that I ascribe to your pulling out of the ether, I can't imagine why, unless of course you are doing other things in the meantime at the academies, in which case, that's not a very fair assessment of how long the event itself is taking, now is it?
But you, a vocal opponent of the design from before it started, making this out to be much more of an ordeal than it actually is doesn't come as much of a surprise.
The devil is in the details.
Please point out where, in the section you've quoted, I've talked about an average of ten minutes.
I see it talking about how five minutes or less is certainly possible.
I also see it saying how, if unl;ucky, it can take longer.
However, the only thing I see coming out of the aether is your accusation that I wrote of an average of ten minutes.
BTW, that nine hours for six toons? That IS based on the five minute estimate.
Quick reminder, discussion of moderation is against the rules. That includes thread merges.
We (Volunteer Community Moderators) merge threads because they're redundant, not because we're trying to hide stuff. Even when we do that, we normally leave a permanent redirect behind so you can find where your posts went to.
Legitimate feedback is collected, not thrown out.
A LOT of 4th anniversary threads got created, and I imagine we're probably not done with thread merges because a lot of them are still being created.
This is my attempt to try to explain why thread merges happen, as a courtesy. They are not open for discussion, so please do not reply to this post.
not to discuss moderation (merely letting you guys here a thought so you can maybe use it to fix the problem) but...
I have never once seen a redirect on any of the threads I have posted.. I have more than once lost a thread cause I simply do not know where it went.. (and unfortunately the search feature on these forums is about as usefull as a tribble)...
just my feedback on that..
getting back into the heart of this thread, I have purposely taken a few days off from it, as I was posting a lot and wanted to experience the event, and see what my thoughts were..
after having a few days to cool down, I am still angry. everytime I log in and see that anniversary grind, it kind of makes me wish the game was back to the less greedy, more enjoyable, and funner version it was pre pwe.
after playing the ship in the episode (which the episode is fantastic, arguably some of the best content cryptic has produced in my eyes. and tuvoks performance was stellar.. I feel bad for micheal dorn, cause while his voice acting was great, the writing of his lines were not..)..
getting back on track.. the ship was meh.. they said it was supposed to be super awesome and blah blah blah.. well, to be frank, its not worth the grind, especially where it is already out of date before it even launched (meaning the announcement of the c store varients..
on top of that, the new enviro suites is just a disaster.. (they look awesome but a little g.i. joeish to me.).. the problem being that they are an obvious money scam grab.. collect three, to spend a tong of money getting lobi. to upgrade the suites you "just got".. yet another item "given" to us that was already outdated before we even put it on..
cryptic is getting some cash (just what they wanted and the "whole reason" for the long a** grind they want us to do.. as I saw people flying around in that new abomination within the first day of it being released..
like I said, im not against the game (or cryptic/pwe) making money. but, there is a difference between making money, and squeezing the player base.. this event is one such squeeze.. I don't think cryptic (sto) is hurting for money, considering whenever they release anything, I see multitudes of collectors and what not sporting the new fluff/ship/lockbox/lobi releases. not to mention there is (from my tally of seeing threads and posts mentioning it) a ton of people still subbing, and buying lifetimes..
I have payed very close attention to this thread, and I will say that the majority of the forum goers are against this, and we all know that this will probably translate into the ingame player base as well.. (it might not happen tomorrow, but over time, everyone is going to be tired of being squeezed.. ).
I would rather pay 15 dollars a month again (even being a lifer) than have this grind, and meaningless/mind numbing silly content. the game needs more meat and potatoes like the new fe, meaningfull content, with great story line. not this cheap stuff we have been getting..
Well, today's run on Beltran and Chuft took 28 minutes, and I still wasn't hurrying....
you know what.. good for you.. do your thing and do it well..
but... a lot of people who are posting in here have lives as well.. and im not just talking about hanging out at the bar or what not.. but things like
kids or wives, or girlfrinds who are constantly demanding your attention, or a dog or cat who gets in your way while playing.. phonecalls from work.. etc..
not everyone can sit there, and devote a hundred percent of their attention at the computer, or the game.. its why pause was developed in a lot of games..
not to say that this is anyone elses problem but their own, but a gaming company needs to think of the everyday mostions their player is going to go through..
no one designs cars with the radio out of reach of the driver, or the gauge cluster out of site.. they do research, figure out what works best, and the design the car (game in our case) to not just one type of player, but all the possible players..
this game wasn't created just for you or me, or mark, or rinkster. but for a large veriety of people.. and this thread has shown, that the larger numbers are starting to say enouph of the grind, theres too much ingame..
I just started a new character, got him to 50 rigt before 8.5 took the servers down for a day. now.. to get him into fighting form (cause that's all this game is about, killing) I have to run dailys and instances that grant me dilithium (and I needa ton).. I also need to run content that gets me romulan marks, omega marks (which grants me some dil.. and is one of the only ones that grants me more than one of the marks I need in good quantity) and I need nukara marks.. ( I still refuse to run the season 8 content, so I havnt even started my dyson rep).
on top of that, I need fleet cred, which I need a multitude of grinding to get that.. I have to work my doffs, get even more dil, and fleet marks (cause to be honest, these are the only ones that give you a decent return on your time/credits). so that means even more events..
now I don't know about the rest of you, but when my character is lacking in not being the best, I work hard to get it to that point.. its part of the mmo "urge" to complete and better your character.. so everyday, I spend hours just farming stuff for this one character.. completely ignoring my other characters for the time being.
you fan boys cant have your cake and eat it too.. if we complain about cryptic re working "older" content, you usually counter us with "well they are trying to attract new players".. but if they attract new players, then the grind at endgame is a little overbearing.. so if your going to make concessions for the "new" player, you should start with what awaits them at endgame. my friend who just returned after two years was a little shocked and overwhelmed at the grind that awaited him.. so much so, that I havnt seen him on since my first day of helping him through "the grind" lol...
My biggest beef with the grind is that it is so repetitive. If you want marks you have to run the same five or so PvE missions until your eyes bleed. I you want dil, you have to run the same 8 or so dailies. It's all a big hamster wheel. And why are we doing it, so we can get uber gear and do it some more? No thanks, I do not want to grind so I can do more grind.
If they actually awarded exp, skill, dil, marks, and EC for doing Foundry missions, that would at least make it less monotonous. They could even introduce bonuses for trying new missions rather than taking the well-worn path.
Go here and show your support for a better Foundry!
you know what.. good for you.. do your thing and do it well..
but... a lot of people who are posting in here have lives as well.. and im not just talking about hanging out at the bar or what not.. but things like
kids or wives, or girlfrinds who are constantly demanding your attention, or a dog or cat who gets in your way while playing.. phonecalls from work.. etc..
not everyone can sit there, and devote a hundred percent of their attention at the computer, or the game.. its why pause was developed in a lot of games..
If you really have that little time to play..... But later you talk about "hours just farming".... So you DO have that much time apparently....
My biggest beef with the grind is that it is so repetitive.
I find that the main problems with the Rep system is that most of them are PuGs (barf) and the rewards don't come quickly enough to balance the repetitiveness.
The adventure zones over in Neverwinter are quick-ish and tend to give you a lot of goodies each time you play. In a couple of weeks you can be fully dressed in purple gear just doing Dread Ring. If the lair rewards were as good in New Romulus, I think playing those missions would be a lot more enjoyable.
Random moment of clarity as to how to best explain the problem with this Anniversary Event, and the path the game is starting down compared to how it was.
Random moment of clarity as to how to best explain the problem with this Anniversary Event, and the path the game is starting down compared to how it was.
Random moment of clarity as to how to best explain the problem with this Anniversary Event, and the path the game is starting down compared to how it was.
This really sums up the 'grind' problem, and lays out how many players, such as some of the vocal ones here, are likely processing it.
I love that channel, really the devs should watch the whole series...
"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects." — Lazarus Long --->Get the Forums Enhancement Extension!
Random moment of clarity as to how to best explain the problem with this Anniversary Event, and the path the game is starting down compared to how it was.
Comments
QFT! So much wisdom in 2 little sentences.
Am I grinding the ship/event on all of my toons? Yes, because it is part of a set, and because I like having more ships more than I like having less ships.
Besides, what else would I do? Grind more dilithium? Grind more EC? Grind more STFs so I can convert that currency to dilithium?
PS: A little tip for all people having trouble with the "gift" Qs - go to shooter mode (hit "b") when the packages stop moving and point the crosshairs at them. The one showing a cog when you point at it is the one Q is hiding in. Now hit "b" again and select the right color. Do not try to click on the package while still in shooter mode, this seems to select a package at random.
This way you don't even need to pay attention, I usually start 2-3 Qs and then come back to select the result. Saves me from going insane...
When I ground my dilithium to sell as keys, I bought a ship that's just under fleet ships.
I'm gonna grind the anniversary, and my reward will be a ship on par or slightly under my Mirror Universe ship that I bought for 15,000 EC..
Something is amiss here and I don't like it.
But for more, let's compare it to the Guramba and MVAE... (note: these are STOwiki stats)
Guramba/Nov/MVAE/Solanae
hull: 31500/30000/31000/28500
shield: .9/1.25/.9/1.3
crew: 300/1000/150/400
all of them have 1 commander ranked boff power, 2 LtCom, 4 Lt, and 5 Ens.
devices: 2/3/2/3
all of them have 9 console slots....
turn: 15/12/16/12 *the 12s are in science mode, and turn increases in tac mode.
impulse/inertia: see turn
bonus power: 10w,5e/15/15/15
Then you have the abilities..... Nov/Solanae can revert to a science ship if the situation calls for it... Um, yeah, I think that's an adequate tradeoff for not having the Guramba lance power, or the multivector transformation. Especially when you consider that it gives you a unique warp core too.
So yeah, the new ships are at least equal to a Z-store VA ship.
My character Tsin'xing
The switching between science and tactical I found more annoying than useful..
As for the event as a whole, the FE is pretty well done and quite enjoyable. I wish there was more of it added now rather than needing to wait. The party patrol is annoyingly boring.
And some people have 20 characters, and maybe even 40 characters. Should we balance the game around them? Should an STF take 30 seconds to complete so that they can run all their characters through without getting carpel tunnel?
They are making a choice to pursue the reward on all those characters. Ignoring that, and using it as a reason against this form of reward attainment is lame in my opinion, but your very welcome to spout it.
Certainly equal to some. surprised you didn't put the Aquarius in there for comparison as well.
I don't think though that your enthusiasm for these new ships will be something shared by a large proportion of the playerbase for any length of time.
And a big part of your position is that the 9 console ship is the only way to get that warp core.
Which means, as cryptic have set this event up in a very particular way, that players who can only get on at the weekends can not get it for free, even for grinding.
Simply not enough actual days in the event.
Their only route to the ship is to spend lobi.
Making this legendary warp core free to some of the playerbase while designing a system that means it can never be free to another is not what I'd call good game design.
My character Tsin'xing
However, against that, I'd put the idea that those with more than the average number of toons spend real money disproportionately on the game.
They have to pay for more slots.
More expansions to inventories of various kinds.
More ships to put them in.
More zen to dilithium to equip those ships.
These are the players that, if STO were a casino, would be called 'whales'.
How long will a casino operate if it actively discriminates against whales?
Then over half of these new doffs are to support powers that do not even work properly lol.
I won't argue that the FE is quite fun (albeit time consuming), and the Undine are FINALLY somewhat of a challenge (that could also be because the ship you are given is out-fitted terribly). However... the ship itself... really not that horribly impressed. Granted I have as of yet to get one and outfit it the way I want to, but I get the feeling I still won't be too impressed with it. It's one of those wait and see things.
Oh cmon marc... you can do it!
It also doesn't help the INSANE money grab they are doing after, with the 3 C-store 3 packs. That's 15000 zen. To get it on all 3 factions. That's $150. Talk about GREEDY. -.- What irks me the most is there are players who will pay that 150, which will make them think it's working and they'll keep on pulling TRIBBLE like that.
And yeah... chase the runner, not so bad (except when it teleports to some random direction and there are 3 or 4 other mini-Qs running away), but the shell game... it's time-consuming and buggy.
But not the same as previous anniversary events.
Thus those who could not take advantage of the winter or summer events had this to look forward to..now they don't.
I just don't think Cryptic monetarising the anniversary event in this way was a stunningly good idea. I think there's a distinct possibility they'll sell less zen than last year.
Because against whatever trend their metrics tell them is there and exploitable, there's the rather palpable sense of damp squib about this event.
This is not a well designed event. And the reward, while certainly not being utter trash, isn't frankly all that.
They are tracking their own internal stats but as somebody else put it, they are picking the numbers they want to look at without understanding WHY those numbers exist.
At this point it's a self-fulfilling prophecy on Cryptic's part, but for all the wrong reasons...
Cryptic gets a false idea that "players want X instead of Y" because they misinterpret cause and effect. They remove half of Y and remove some of the incentives to do Y, and make X the only gateway to get a certain required currency. Then they look at the numbers after their change and are vindicated to see even MORE people are playing X instead of Y! They were right! Right?
Bzzzt! Wrong! The numbers don't imply why people are playing X or Y. Basically Cryptic has made the game less fun, less flexible, less rewarding, and are assuming the game is better than ever.
Like the hourly events being removed for the new once-a-month reward weekends. Surely after REMOVING said hourly events cryptic will find vindication that more people are flocking to their weekend event. Why? LACK of other options! It does not mean we like it. It does not mean we want you to do that. It does not mean we even want to do the event in the first place, but with limited time and meager rewards, it's really the only way to accomplish <fill-in-the-blank>.
And yet, they look at their metrics in the way they want to, and get the answers they already had in their heads before they began looking.
This is the future of STO.
I really don't see it as any more of a monetization than the free Oddy(which can't even use the bridge or consoles from the 3-pack versions). Yes, I remember the people griping about how the 2nd Anniversary mission was a Z-store ad....
My character Tsin'xing
The free oddy has a unique bridge of its own.
The monetarisation comes in when you look at how they've time gated the grind.
Keys to lobi to qmarks.
By making it hard, impossible or just damn tedious to complete in time they've provided us with the fine pay to win scenario of using lobi to get qms
It's a far more obvious and blatant cash grab than previous anniversary events.
I'm actually rather surprised you can't see that.
Quick reminder, discussion of moderation is against the rules. That includes thread merges.
We (Volunteer Community Moderators) merge threads because they're redundant, not because we're trying to hide stuff. Even when we do that, we normally leave a permanent redirect behind so you can find where your posts went to.
Legitimate feedback is collected, not thrown out.
A LOT of 4th anniversary threads got created, and I imagine we're probably not done with thread merges because a lot of them are still being created.
This is my attempt to try to explain why thread merges happen, as a courtesy. They are not open for discussion, so please do not reply to this post.
Link: How to PM - Twitter @STOMod_Bluegeek
Oh and I use the free Oddy bridge.... It's technically unique, but easily mistaken for one of the Store bridges(Nomad?). The main difference is that it has an MSD of the Oddy on a few consoles.....
My character Tsin'xing
I've been doing it on average under 5 minutes per character since it started. On the first day, it took a total of about 74 minutes to cycle 12 characters through it all, including character swapping. Since then, I do it in under an hour. If it's taking an average of around 10 minutes, a number that I ascribe to your pulling out of the ether, I can't imagine why, unless of course you are doing other things in the meantime at the academies, in which case, that's not a very fair assessment of how long the event itself is taking, now is it?
But you, a vocal opponent of the design from before it started, making this out to be much more of an ordeal than it actually is doesn't come as much of a surprise.
The devil is in the details.
Please point out where, in the section you've quoted, I've talked about an average of ten minutes.
I see it talking about how five minutes or less is certainly possible.
I also see it saying how, if unl;ucky, it can take longer.
However, the only thing I see coming out of the aether is your accusation that I wrote of an average of ten minutes.
BTW, that nine hours for six toons? That IS based on the five minute estimate.
Ten minutes would make it twelve hours.
My character Tsin'xing
not to discuss moderation (merely letting you guys here a thought so you can maybe use it to fix the problem) but...
I have never once seen a redirect on any of the threads I have posted.. I have more than once lost a thread cause I simply do not know where it went.. (and unfortunately the search feature on these forums is about as usefull as a tribble)...
just my feedback on that..
getting back into the heart of this thread, I have purposely taken a few days off from it, as I was posting a lot and wanted to experience the event, and see what my thoughts were..
after having a few days to cool down, I am still angry. everytime I log in and see that anniversary grind, it kind of makes me wish the game was back to the less greedy, more enjoyable, and funner version it was pre pwe.
after playing the ship in the episode (which the episode is fantastic, arguably some of the best content cryptic has produced in my eyes. and tuvoks performance was stellar.. I feel bad for micheal dorn, cause while his voice acting was great, the writing of his lines were not..)..
getting back on track.. the ship was meh.. they said it was supposed to be super awesome and blah blah blah.. well, to be frank, its not worth the grind, especially where it is already out of date before it even launched (meaning the announcement of the c store varients..
on top of that, the new enviro suites is just a disaster.. (they look awesome but a little g.i. joeish to me.).. the problem being that they are an obvious money scam grab.. collect three, to spend a tong of money getting lobi. to upgrade the suites you "just got".. yet another item "given" to us that was already outdated before we even put it on..
cryptic is getting some cash (just what they wanted and the "whole reason" for the long a** grind they want us to do.. as I saw people flying around in that new abomination within the first day of it being released..
like I said, im not against the game (or cryptic/pwe) making money. but, there is a difference between making money, and squeezing the player base.. this event is one such squeeze.. I don't think cryptic (sto) is hurting for money, considering whenever they release anything, I see multitudes of collectors and what not sporting the new fluff/ship/lockbox/lobi releases. not to mention there is (from my tally of seeing threads and posts mentioning it) a ton of people still subbing, and buying lifetimes..
I have payed very close attention to this thread, and I will say that the majority of the forum goers are against this, and we all know that this will probably translate into the ingame player base as well.. (it might not happen tomorrow, but over time, everyone is going to be tired of being squeezed.. ).
I would rather pay 15 dollars a month again (even being a lifer) than have this grind, and meaningless/mind numbing silly content. the game needs more meat and potatoes like the new fe, meaningfull content, with great story line. not this cheap stuff we have been getting..
you know what.. good for you.. do your thing and do it well..
but... a lot of people who are posting in here have lives as well.. and im not just talking about hanging out at the bar or what not.. but things like
kids or wives, or girlfrinds who are constantly demanding your attention, or a dog or cat who gets in your way while playing.. phonecalls from work.. etc..
not everyone can sit there, and devote a hundred percent of their attention at the computer, or the game.. its why pause was developed in a lot of games..
not to say that this is anyone elses problem but their own, but a gaming company needs to think of the everyday mostions their player is going to go through..
no one designs cars with the radio out of reach of the driver, or the gauge cluster out of site.. they do research, figure out what works best, and the design the car (game in our case) to not just one type of player, but all the possible players..
this game wasn't created just for you or me, or mark, or rinkster. but for a large veriety of people.. and this thread has shown, that the larger numbers are starting to say enouph of the grind, theres too much ingame..
I just started a new character, got him to 50 rigt before 8.5 took the servers down for a day. now.. to get him into fighting form (cause that's all this game is about, killing) I have to run dailys and instances that grant me dilithium (and I needa ton).. I also need to run content that gets me romulan marks, omega marks (which grants me some dil.. and is one of the only ones that grants me more than one of the marks I need in good quantity) and I need nukara marks.. ( I still refuse to run the season 8 content, so I havnt even started my dyson rep).
on top of that, I need fleet cred, which I need a multitude of grinding to get that.. I have to work my doffs, get even more dil, and fleet marks (cause to be honest, these are the only ones that give you a decent return on your time/credits). so that means even more events..
now I don't know about the rest of you, but when my character is lacking in not being the best, I work hard to get it to that point.. its part of the mmo "urge" to complete and better your character.. so everyday, I spend hours just farming stuff for this one character.. completely ignoring my other characters for the time being.
you fan boys cant have your cake and eat it too.. if we complain about cryptic re working "older" content, you usually counter us with "well they are trying to attract new players".. but if they attract new players, then the grind at endgame is a little overbearing.. so if your going to make concessions for the "new" player, you should start with what awaits them at endgame. my friend who just returned after two years was a little shocked and overwhelmed at the grind that awaited him.. so much so, that I havnt seen him on since my first day of helping him through "the grind" lol...
If they actually awarded exp, skill, dil, marks, and EC for doing Foundry missions, that would at least make it less monotonous. They could even introduce bonuses for trying new missions rather than taking the well-worn path.
My character Tsin'xing
Bought Keys, opened boxed, got Lobi, got Bastion Lock Box Ship, sell Bastion, buy more keys, get more Lobi...
I find that the main problems with the Rep system is that most of them are PuGs (barf) and the rewards don't come quickly enough to balance the repetitiveness.
The adventure zones over in Neverwinter are quick-ish and tend to give you a lot of goodies each time you play. In a couple of weeks you can be fully dressed in purple gear just doing Dread Ring. If the lair rewards were as good in New Romulus, I think playing those missions would be a lot more enjoyable.
Extra Credits: Intrinsic vs Extrinsic
This really sums up the 'grind' problem, and lays out how many players, such as some of the vocal ones here, are likely processing it.
Thanks for posting that. Now I understand in my head what I have been feeling about this game for a while now.
The funny thing is, it is only the original STF missions that I actually play for fun. Weird, did they have different writers back then?
I love that channel, really the devs should watch the whole series...