No.
I count at least 4 of you developer apologists on the forums.
As such it's not a problem you want forum moderator or whatever you are working on, adult attention from the perceived authority - friends with the teacher?
I can dig it, to each his own.
Just where we going to bash heads is when you start denying the game has any problems on any level and developers have zero responsibility and cannot be subject to critisism.
Because that lowers the quality of the game for whatever selfish uncle tom objective you got going on.
As much as you hide your selfish reasons behind being pro-developers you are not in any camp because you ruin it for developers too.
The OP's point was pretty simple to understand but I guess it's easier to split words than to debate reason?
He said ships are not gameplay and additional ships won't matter without new gameplay.
The real question is whether or not ppl keep buying ships. Until now they had a very high percentage of ships from the shows. Now going forward that percentage will go down and we will see more cryptic designs. I know that i have more ships than i want to count and if they start being sup-op with T6 and maybe upgrades coming i'm done and if not i'm still saturated.
It really depends on the number of ppl that keep buying them/new players coming and going and so on. I really hope they move to sell more story content interiors and stuff like that.
They have to make money, or there IS NO GAME.
People need something they can buy that is better, or different in an interesting way, than what they currently have.
People are not lining up to spend $50 on a new ground weapon. I know; I scored a number of the neat xindi ground rifles and they are not worth the key I used to get them. (In EC terms, its a sweet gun in combat terms).
People are not lining up to buy kits either. Also worth a fraction of the key used to get one.
Nope.
What people spend the big dil, $$, EC, lobi, etc on are...
ships.
Cryptic knows this. So they offer new lockboxes with new ships every few months, add a new ship to the store a few times a year, and so on. Because without the ships being bought, there would BE NO GAME. The xindi lockboxes and the JHAS offer combined have generated many 10s of thousands of dollars just from a casual observation of the stream of "joebob got a carrier" messages and "capt'n kyrk got an attack ship" messages and so on. There is a reason we don't see announcements that "noroblad got another xindi kit"...
The OP's concern is that T6 actually narrows the scope. Making it LESS Ships at T6.
Because T6 will prompt people to move out of T5 ships. And there are as stated only going to be 6 or 7 total T6 ships, across the 3 factions.
The dynamic is that it could remove options. Not open them up.
Because the numbers involved suggest something that runs counter to what they've said.
IF T6 is equivalent to T5 then just call it T5. Calling it T6 suggests it is a higher tier than T5. Which means T5 is less. How much less? Who knows. But in the world of MMOs, less is less. And gamers have no patience for less.
I understand the argument, but if that argument had really applied (and been valid) the fans would have raged about Jean-Luc Picard being a wannabe Kirk, only kirks and spock are star trek rage quit i won't watch. and you still have that from the people who think a T-5/6 Constitution is a good thing.
if Star Trek is what brought you to the game, why did you stay after the first day of gameplay? because there is nothing Star Trek about this game. there is no first contact (except kill them) there is no exploration, nothing Star Trek remains except the ships look vaguely like you see in the shows.
just take breath, folks. if you just have to fly Defiant or your panties will twist, then fly Defiant, just don't be pissed off because you don't top the DPS charts.
now if Cryptic was clever, they would take certain ships, like the Recluse, the Bug and the Jemnaught, reskin them into a federation, klingon and romulan ship sell them in the C-store and laugh as the pay the bills for a couple months
I understand the argument, but if that argument had really applied (and been valid) the fans would have raged about Jean-Luc Picard being a wannabe Kirk, only kirks and spock are star trek rage quit i won't watch. and you still have that from the people who think a T-5/6 Constitution is a good thing.
if Star Trek is what brought you to the game, why did you stay after the first day of gameplay? because there is nothing Star Trek about this game. there is no first contact (except kill them) there is no exploration, nothing Star Trek remains except the ships look vaguely like you see in the shows.
First Contact? The Romulan Captain most certainly experiences first contact with the Elachi.
Exploration? Don't you remember when you found New Romulus? Don't you remember when you joined Worf in exploring the Dyson Sphere?
It's all there. Just not in the "repeatable mission" format. But the type of missions we know from Star Trek most certainly exist in STO.
Star Trek Online Advancement: You start with lowbie gear, you end with Lobi gear.
now if Cryptic was clever, they would take certain ships, like the Recluse, the Bug and the Jemnaught, reskin them into a federation, klingon and romulan ship sell them in the C-store and laugh as the pay the bills for a couple months
Actually if they did that, I can see even the hard core cryptic fans getting really mad. It also would solidify peoples distrust for Cryptic and drive new players away and drive old players away. If a new player ask you about the game, people are more likely to talk the bad about it. right? If cryptic does that, the probably first thing they would tell them is, "cryptic cheated me" or "Cryptic ripped so me players off", or "Cryptic pretty much dragged us through dirt". What would that say about Cryptic as a company? Not good I imagine. Also, Lock box ship sells would drop dramatically.
And clever, is implying that the decision was intelligent. That decision would be in no way intelligent.
T5 ships are appropriate at lvl 40-49, just as T1 ships are appropriate at lvl 1-9.
Since the expansion also reportedly includes raising the level cap to 60, another tier of ships would seem appropriate to this.
I don't hear anyone screaming about being "forced" to abandon their starter ship when they hit 10 (well, except for those who bought the T1 Connie and want it to be T5). Nor when you "have to" upgrade to T3 at lvl 20. Why is this particular transition causing so much tsuris?
for me, its the fact that there are 60+ tier 5 ships to choose from and a purported 6-7 T6. i like variety. i dont want to see things look like during LOR when every single person was flying a D'Deridex
I understand the argument, but if that argument had really applied (and been valid) the fans would have raged about Jean-Luc Picard being a wannabe Kirk, only kirks and spock are star trek rage quit i won't watch.
Uh, that is what happened. There was a ton of rage about Picard when TNG debuted. Exactly that kind of criticism. We look back now in the year 2014, and can't fathom how people would criticize the amazing presence of SIR Patrick Stewart. But back then he was just some new guy who many many loyal Trek fans didn't think could replace Kirk.
Uh, that is what happened. There was a ton of rage about Picard when TNG debuted. Exactly that kind of criticism. We look back now in the year 2014, and can't fathom how people would criticize the amazing presence of SIR Patrick Stewart. But back then he was just some new guy who many many loyal Trek fans didn't think could replace Kirk.
The fans did exactly as you state.
I remember it quite well.
I wasn't really around for all the fan reactions. I was just confused, because I knew Star Trek, but something was different, and I didn't know who the characters were supposed to be. "Is the bald guy Spock?"
I was very young.
But in retrospect, yeah, a lot of people didn't like this new crew. Or the new ship. Fans can be so harsh.
Star Trek Online Advancement: You start with lowbie gear, you end with Lobi gear.
What this game Needs most and for most. Is more Story driven content. If I had to choose beteen flying a Tier 6 ship or haveing new story driven missions. I'd pick the missions. I'll even go farther than that. For every Lockbox ship I have. If I could trade 1 ship for 10 new missions. I'd swap everyone I have ever bought out. Including Bug,Scimitar bundle,Odysee bundle,xindi escort you name it. Story driven content is the absolute most important part of STO. If we don't get new story driven missions. We really don't have a game to even play or want to play.
But in retrospect, yeah, a lot of people didn't like this new crew. Or the new ship. Fans can be so harsh.
I didnt like the idea of space cubicle-farm with on-site daycare. And they eventually gave up on it too. Some ideas are obv bad no matter how hard you push on it.
What this game Needs most and for most. Is more Story driven content. If I had to choose beteen flying a Tier 6 ship or haveing new story driven missions. I'd pick the missions. I'll even go farther than that. For every Lockbox ship I have. If I could trade 1 ship for 10 new missions. I'd swap everyone I have ever bought out. Including Bug,Scimitar bundle,Odysee bundle,xindi escort you name it. Story driven content is the absolute most important part of STO. If we don't get new story driven missions. We really don't have a game to even play or want to play.
That is what you are getting though, according to the devs, with Delta Rising.
T5 ships are appropriate at lvl 40-49, just as T1 ships are appropriate at lvl 1-9.
Since the expansion also reportedly includes raising the level cap to 60, another tier of ships would seem appropriate to this.
I don't hear anyone screaming about being "forced" to abandon their starter ship when they hit 10 (well, except for those who bought the T1 Connie and want it to be T5). Nor when you "have to" upgrade to T3 at lvl 20. Why is this particular transition causing so much tsuris?
actually, there is a big reason they introduced the retrofits and the fleet tier ships of all lower level ships.. because there was a big outcry and push for those ships to be endgame compatable.. they didn't just do it because they felt like it. lol.. remember there is only like 3 or 4 ships that have not had endgame counterparts made, and that is entirely because cbs does not want them at endgame, not because cryptic doesn't want to...
and.. more than half of the ships available at low level, had some sort of endgame counterpart too. less you forget.. the hero ships mainly. also, you have to take into account, that the devs about a year ago had said no to t6 ships, and one of the reasons cited was they didn't want to devalue the current endgame ships..
the introduction of tier 6 ships is no more than a money grabbing gimmick.. especially since every dev that was asked and commented on it just 1 year ago said it made no sense, and it wasn't something they wanted to do.. to play devils advocate for the devs (which I rarely do lol) I bet this decision was not made by the dev team, but the suites who seem to have their hands deep into this game..
Although they'd never admit it, of course, I wouldn't be at all surprised if they're looking at community feedback to determine how much, and if, they can charge for the 'competitive' upgrades of our T5 lockbox ships. Companies are always looking for the edge of 'What we can get away with.'
So, people, by all means, keep raging against high upgrade cost!
Agreed with this, everything with them is mainly focused on, how much can we stand to make, how long can we get them to grind for, how long can we get away without fixes/nerfing/changes, before they eat it up, and spend their money?
It is a simple strategy really, and has worked well for MMORPG's, for quite some time now!!!
The old leave them in the dark bit, than slam them with all the nifty goodies/info, wait for them to spend like mad, than go Oops we need make some changes, in the name of X reason!!!
Seriously? MMORGs need to advance and build to survive. I love all the posts that's state that they are happy with what we have now or that they wish we were back in season 5 6 or 7. I welcome tier 6 ships and level 60. I shows that cryptic is still commited to this game. Furthermore the company running this game is.......wait for it.....a business!!!! If they didn't charge for ships and other stuff they would lose money and the game would die. I for one am looking forward to this expansion. And the ships are the game. they are our sword and our shield and when a better one comes alog you upgrade. I love the iconic ships too but the way I see it its 2410.....there would be new designs in Starfleet. so exeryone just be calm and wait for them to release some blogs. then when we know what is really happening then flame away...lol.
The thing that's pissing me off is the speculation. People talking like they know exactly how this is going to work. The constant jumping to conclusions. Wouldn't it be better to wait and hear it from the horse's mouth rather than some (possible) trolls on a forum or doom and gloom ledge jumpers?
And all the constant threats against cryptic. Real mature.
Defending The Galaxy By Breaking One Starfleet Regulation After The Next.
The thing that's pissing me off is the speculation. People talking like they know exactly how this is going to work. The constant jumping to conclusions. Wouldn't it be better to wait and hear it from the horse's mouth rather than some (possible) trolls on a forum or doom and gloom ledge jumpers?
And all the constant threats against cryptic. Real mature.
The thing that's pissing me off is the speculation. People talking like they know exactly how this is going to work. The constant jumping to conclusions. Wouldn't it be better to wait and hear it from the horse's mouth rather than some (possible) trolls on a forum or doom and gloom ledge jumpers?
And all the constant threats against cryptic. Real mature.
...talking to players is like being a mall Santa. Everyone immediately wants to tell you all of the things they want, and you are absolutely powerless to deliver 99% of them.
The thing that's pissing me off is the speculation. People talking like they know exactly how this is going to work. The constant jumping to conclusions. Wouldn't it be better to wait and hear it from the horse's mouth rather than some (possible) trolls on a forum or doom and gloom ledge jumpers?
And all the constant threats against cryptic. Real mature.
It's Cryptic's own fault, as others have pointed out before, that people have started all this speculation. By announcing some revolutionary game changes on a convention, but not providing any further detailed information, they have not given us any choice but to speculate.
If they didn't want to start all this speculation, they should have remained quiet until they were ready to adress all our concerns. But they didn't, most likely because they're using all the speculation.
There's only one thing not 'mature', and that's a company providing some information, shocking a large amount of their players/customers, and not giving any further details for the next two weeks that followed the announcement. Given these circumstances and this ridiculous attitude, it is quite understandable that people resort to threats like 'I won't pay a single dollar/euro until I know my ship, which I bought with that same euro, won't be worth only 85 eurocents in two months when the new expansion arrives'.
There's only one thing not 'mature', and that's a company providing some information, shocking a large amount of their players/customers, and not giving any further details for the next two weeks that followed the announcement. Given these circumstances and this ridiculous attitude, it is quite understandable that people resort to threats like 'I won't pay a single dollar/euro until I know my ship, which I bought with that same euro, won't be worth only 85 eurocents in two months when the new expansion arrives'.
Action --> Reaction.
So when Microsoft and sony announce new consoles months in advance at E3 and don't release details but tease you that's ok? Its no different to what cryptic did. They went out and gave you a broad announcement of upcoming content. we are lucky they did the panels in the first place. they could have done a paragraph announcement with no pictures and no Q&A. would you prefer that?
So when Microsoft and sony announce new consoles months in advance at E3 and don't release details but tease you that's ok? Its no different to what cryptic did. They went out and gave you a broad announcement of upcoming content. we are lucky they did the panels in the first place. they could have done a paragraph announcement with no pictures and no Q&A. would you prefer that?
I don't care about Microsoft and Sony consoles. I don't use those.
As far as I know, there's no competition between someone who uses an older console and a player that uses a new one. If they are playing the same game, they should be able to perform equally well in that same game. So the release of a new console doesn't affect the ability to play the game I'm playing at this moment, does it?
The thing that's pissing me off is the speculation. People talking like they know exactly how this is going to work. The constant jumping to conclusions. Wouldn't it be better to wait and hear it from the horse's mouth rather than some (possible) trolls on a forum or doom and gloom ledge jumpers?
And all the constant threats against cryptic. Real mature.
you seem to be newer here, most of the people jumping to conclusions are doing so with the knowledge of what cryptic has done in the past.. they have a rather strong track record with messing this type of thing up.. as I have said, all the flack that cryptic is getting, is all their own doing..
lets rewind 3 or 4 years ago, these forums were actually pretty easy going, and the devs and the players had a great relationship... now do you think the majority of the players that post on the forums decided to just troll cryptic, or do you think cryptic had a hand in causing the turmoil?.. the fact of the matter is, they have been pushing and pushing the last 2.5 years, and things just came to a boiling point..
if there was only a dozen people upset, you could say it was them.. but.. on the forums currently, and in ingame chat.. a large portion (at least half) of the players are upset, and have negative feelings towards cryptic.. I doubt since everything started off on a positive note, that this is indeed all the players fault..
yes, unfortunately there are some trolls who take the valid arguments, complaints, and critisizm and try to turn it into an opportunity for them to say stupid things. but seriously, there are more people concerned with the changes, than there are people relaxed.. read into that, and don't be so quick to dismiss the people who have experience with cryptic, and their changes...
and the fact that the devs released info about certain things, but have not even finished it, nor seem to know how its going to work, well, that is their own mistake.. you cant tell the player base that your essentially taking all the beloved t5 ships out of play, then say they will be competitive, but not have any info on how it will work, or what not.. again, we draw conclusions from the 4 plus years of experience with cryptic and their changes. they have made their own bed... as far as threats, threatening to leave the game is not a threat, threatening to show up at the studio is... please choose your words carefully..
If you are so upset with Expansion 2 then ignore it. don't play the new content don't upgrade your ships and don't buy their 6. no skin off my back....but there is really no point to griping before all the info is released. but please by all means be a pessimist and troll the forums because the company running STO didn't get your permission to announce a expansion without releaseing every MB of info they have right away. Im sure they sit around a table going, "I wonder what risian will think about this." Change is normal and expected, get off your high horse and adapt.
Also, comparing real life economics with virutal economics isn't a fair comparison. In real life, technological progress must be made before a new product can be released.
To use the car example that has been very popular on these forums: one can anticipate the release of a new car, whereas it's impossible to anticipate the release of virtual ships that don't need any real life technological progress before they can be made.
I can expect self driving cars to be available within the next ten years, so I might decide not to buy a new car or only a cheap one until the self driving ones are available. It's totally different with virtual ships.
Comments
Sad thing is, so would I lol
Defending The Galaxy By Breaking One Starfleet Regulation After The Next.
No.
I count at least 4 of you developer apologists on the forums.
As such it's not a problem you want forum moderator or whatever you are working on, adult attention from the perceived authority - friends with the teacher?
I can dig it, to each his own.
Just where we going to bash heads is when you start denying the game has any problems on any level and developers have zero responsibility and cannot be subject to critisism.
Because that lowers the quality of the game for whatever selfish uncle tom objective you got going on.
As much as you hide your selfish reasons behind being pro-developers you are not in any camp because you ruin it for developers too.
The OP's point was pretty simple to understand but I guess it's easier to split words than to debate reason?
He said ships are not gameplay and additional ships won't matter without new gameplay.
It really depends on the number of ppl that keep buying them/new players coming and going and so on. I really hope they move to sell more story content interiors and stuff like that.
People need something they can buy that is better, or different in an interesting way, than what they currently have.
People are not lining up to spend $50 on a new ground weapon. I know; I scored a number of the neat xindi ground rifles and they are not worth the key I used to get them. (In EC terms, its a sweet gun in combat terms).
People are not lining up to buy kits either. Also worth a fraction of the key used to get one.
Nope.
What people spend the big dil, $$, EC, lobi, etc on are...
ships.
Cryptic knows this. So they offer new lockboxes with new ships every few months, add a new ship to the store a few times a year, and so on. Because without the ships being bought, there would BE NO GAME. The xindi lockboxes and the JHAS offer combined have generated many 10s of thousands of dollars just from a casual observation of the stream of "joebob got a carrier" messages and "capt'n kyrk got an attack ship" messages and so on. There is a reason we don't see announcements that "noroblad got another xindi kit"...
I understand the argument, but if that argument had really applied (and been valid) the fans would have raged about Jean-Luc Picard being a wannabe Kirk, only kirks and spock are star trek rage quit i won't watch. and you still have that from the people who think a T-5/6 Constitution is a good thing.
if Star Trek is what brought you to the game, why did you stay after the first day of gameplay? because there is nothing Star Trek about this game. there is no first contact (except kill them) there is no exploration, nothing Star Trek remains except the ships look vaguely like you see in the shows.
just take breath, folks. if you just have to fly Defiant or your panties will twist, then fly Defiant, just don't be pissed off because you don't top the DPS charts.
now if Cryptic was clever, they would take certain ships, like the Recluse, the Bug and the Jemnaught, reskin them into a federation, klingon and romulan ship sell them in the C-store and laugh as the pay the bills for a couple months
First Contact? The Romulan Captain most certainly experiences first contact with the Elachi.
Exploration? Don't you remember when you found New Romulus? Don't you remember when you joined Worf in exploring the Dyson Sphere?
It's all there. Just not in the "repeatable mission" format. But the type of missions we know from Star Trek most certainly exist in STO.
Actually if they did that, I can see even the hard core cryptic fans getting really mad. It also would solidify peoples distrust for Cryptic and drive new players away and drive old players away. If a new player ask you about the game, people are more likely to talk the bad about it. right? If cryptic does that, the probably first thing they would tell them is, "cryptic cheated me" or "Cryptic ripped so me players off", or "Cryptic pretty much dragged us through dirt". What would that say about Cryptic as a company? Not good I imagine. Also, Lock box ship sells would drop dramatically.
And clever, is implying that the decision was intelligent. That decision would be in no way intelligent.
for me, its the fact that there are 60+ tier 5 ships to choose from and a purported 6-7 T6. i like variety. i dont want to see things look like during LOR when every single person was flying a D'Deridex
Uh, that is what happened. There was a ton of rage about Picard when TNG debuted. Exactly that kind of criticism. We look back now in the year 2014, and can't fathom how people would criticize the amazing presence of SIR Patrick Stewart. But back then he was just some new guy who many many loyal Trek fans didn't think could replace Kirk.
The fans did exactly as you state.
I remember it quite well.
Reduce selection down to 9.
Profit. Because people will still get the new ones.
I wasn't really around for all the fan reactions. I was just confused, because I knew Star Trek, but something was different, and I didn't know who the characters were supposed to be. "Is the bald guy Spock?"
I was very young.
But in retrospect, yeah, a lot of people didn't like this new crew. Or the new ship. Fans can be so harsh.
Helpful Tools: Dictionary.com - Logical fallacies - Random generator - Word generator - Color tool - Extra Credits - List of common English language errors - New T6 Big booty tutorial
That is what you are getting though, according to the devs, with Delta Rising.
Yup. Until I have proof otherwise.
actually, there is a big reason they introduced the retrofits and the fleet tier ships of all lower level ships.. because there was a big outcry and push for those ships to be endgame compatable.. they didn't just do it because they felt like it. lol.. remember there is only like 3 or 4 ships that have not had endgame counterparts made, and that is entirely because cbs does not want them at endgame, not because cryptic doesn't want to...
and.. more than half of the ships available at low level, had some sort of endgame counterpart too. less you forget.. the hero ships mainly. also, you have to take into account, that the devs about a year ago had said no to t6 ships, and one of the reasons cited was they didn't want to devalue the current endgame ships..
the introduction of tier 6 ships is no more than a money grabbing gimmick.. especially since every dev that was asked and commented on it just 1 year ago said it made no sense, and it wasn't something they wanted to do.. to play devils advocate for the devs (which I rarely do lol) I bet this decision was not made by the dev team, but the suites who seem to have their hands deep into this game..
Agreed with this, everything with them is mainly focused on, how much can we stand to make, how long can we get them to grind for, how long can we get away without fixes/nerfing/changes, before they eat it up, and spend their money?
It is a simple strategy really, and has worked well for MMORPG's, for quite some time now!!!
The old leave them in the dark bit, than slam them with all the nifty goodies/info, wait for them to spend like mad, than go Oops we need make some changes, in the name of X reason!!!
Praetor of the -RTS- Romulan Tal Shiar fleet!
And all the constant threats against cryptic. Real mature.
Defending The Galaxy By Breaking One Starfleet Regulation After The Next.
I agree dude...100%
Welcome to the forums, friend.
It's Cryptic's own fault, as others have pointed out before, that people have started all this speculation. By announcing some revolutionary game changes on a convention, but not providing any further detailed information, they have not given us any choice but to speculate.
If they didn't want to start all this speculation, they should have remained quiet until they were ready to adress all our concerns. But they didn't, most likely because they're using all the speculation.
There's only one thing not 'mature', and that's a company providing some information, shocking a large amount of their players/customers, and not giving any further details for the next two weeks that followed the announcement. Given these circumstances and this ridiculous attitude, it is quite understandable that people resort to threats like 'I won't pay a single dollar/euro until I know my ship, which I bought with that same euro, won't be worth only 85 eurocents in two months when the new expansion arrives'.
Action --> Reaction.
So when Microsoft and sony announce new consoles months in advance at E3 and don't release details but tease you that's ok? Its no different to what cryptic did. They went out and gave you a broad announcement of upcoming content. we are lucky they did the panels in the first place. they could have done a paragraph announcement with no pictures and no Q&A. would you prefer that?
I don't care about Microsoft and Sony consoles. I don't use those.
As far as I know, there's no competition between someone who uses an older console and a player that uses a new one. If they are playing the same game, they should be able to perform equally well in that same game. So the release of a new console doesn't affect the ability to play the game I'm playing at this moment, does it?
you seem to be newer here, most of the people jumping to conclusions are doing so with the knowledge of what cryptic has done in the past.. they have a rather strong track record with messing this type of thing up.. as I have said, all the flack that cryptic is getting, is all their own doing..
lets rewind 3 or 4 years ago, these forums were actually pretty easy going, and the devs and the players had a great relationship... now do you think the majority of the players that post on the forums decided to just troll cryptic, or do you think cryptic had a hand in causing the turmoil?.. the fact of the matter is, they have been pushing and pushing the last 2.5 years, and things just came to a boiling point..
if there was only a dozen people upset, you could say it was them.. but.. on the forums currently, and in ingame chat.. a large portion (at least half) of the players are upset, and have negative feelings towards cryptic.. I doubt since everything started off on a positive note, that this is indeed all the players fault..
yes, unfortunately there are some trolls who take the valid arguments, complaints, and critisizm and try to turn it into an opportunity for them to say stupid things. but seriously, there are more people concerned with the changes, than there are people relaxed.. read into that, and don't be so quick to dismiss the people who have experience with cryptic, and their changes...
and the fact that the devs released info about certain things, but have not even finished it, nor seem to know how its going to work, well, that is their own mistake.. you cant tell the player base that your essentially taking all the beloved t5 ships out of play, then say they will be competitive, but not have any info on how it will work, or what not.. again, we draw conclusions from the 4 plus years of experience with cryptic and their changes. they have made their own bed... as far as threats, threatening to leave the game is not a threat, threatening to show up at the studio is... please choose your words carefully..
To use the car example that has been very popular on these forums: one can anticipate the release of a new car, whereas it's impossible to anticipate the release of virtual ships that don't need any real life technological progress before they can be made.
I can expect self driving cars to be available within the next ten years, so I might decide not to buy a new car or only a cheap one until the self driving ones are available. It's totally different with virtual ships.