test content
What is the Arc Client?
Install Arc

Retiring Lohlunat Pearls

1232426282948

Comments

  • captainkroncaptainkron Member Posts: 123 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    Everybody says "Free Ship" is it really "Free"? More ships to claim "could" mean more ship slot sales. I know I am running out of ships to delete that can be reclaimed. These ships are character bound. I know some people will just put the box in their bank anyway never to look at it again. So what is the big deal. As far as people having the ship day one. That is still going to happen with stockpiles of Lobi. I guess if you want to make a Lobi sink then mission accomplished. So I get my choice of 5 spec points (Rock and Roll) or boat load of upgrade tokens. I personally wanted the ship and then start the grind this year for next year. Its the circle or life.

    IMO, the summer, winter, and anniversary events are a "Hey! Thanks for playing and supporting this game." However, the "Goal Post" keep getting moved back on everything. So for me instead of going in super excited about the summer event a dark cloud will follow me. I understand that is a personal choice/ frame of mind and that not everyone will feel the same way. <Dark Cloud> <Rain>
    CibJ7qu.jpg?1
  • chipg7chipg7 Member Posts: 1,577 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    bluegeek wrote: »
    It's not just "5 minutes". It's time to log in, time to get to the event, time to complete the event. Assuming you do nothing else, it's still more than 5 minutes.

    Agreed. It's first of all very nice that Cryptic gives way more days to complete the event than required. That's a nice hat-tip.

    But it was doubly nice that you could slot the project, fill it as much as you could, and then feel comfortable knowing that you can finish it next event.

    No harm done by keeping that in. Harm done by taking it away.
  • gameversemangameverseman Member Posts: 1,110 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    Hey, if I were in PWRD's shoes, I'd be looking at their stock shares, versus that of their rivals at TYO (Square Enix), which with only two MMOs, vastly outgross them in holdings. Hell Square's holdings have skyrocketed in the years since FFXIV:ARR released. Just look at their TYO market trends.

    You know how you do that?

    Listen to your customers.

    PWRD's knee jerk stock activity looks like a basketball in Harlem over the past 5 years. They used to be a $40 company in 2009. Now they're sub $20, running studios into the ground with their craptastic decisions, the same as LucasArts did to SOE to bodyslam Star Wars Galaxies into oblivion all those years ago.

    I'm noticing a trend, here, and it's ugly. I'd like to say I could threaten Cryptic with my wallet and walk away, but that Lifetime sub paid itself off years ago. So the best I can do is at least try and fight for the little guy, even if it falls on deaf ears.

    Although you are right and I admire your position... be weary of that term because, as of recently, all the recent changes have been "for the little guy" according to Craptic and yet here we are.
    signature.png
  • stararmystararmy Member Posts: 231 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    bluegeek wrote: »
    That is a gross oversimplification of the issue.

    The problem with all of these seasonal events is that you have a limited timeframe in which to log in at least once a day. If for whatever reason you can't log in on enough days, you lose. With this change, that means you've wasted your time (if the ship is the only goal).

    The other issue is that your character needs to be in a certain location in order to participate. Which involves either flying back and forth (takes time) or you're parking your characters at the event door for the entire event and not playing anything else.

    It's not just "5 minutes". It's time to log in, time to get to the event, time to complete the event. Assuming you do nothing else, it's still more than 5 minutes.

    I agree... for a single character, it's not a terribly long time commitment IF you're free to log in on any particular day. Speaking as a family man, that's not a safe assumption.
    You make valid points and I concede to you. I mean, I'm sitting here with 980 autographed Q portraits so I know what it's like to miss too many days. If anything, I guess we're dealing with the symptom of a larger issue, which is that so much of the game is heavily time-gated.
    Zinc: The universe of Star Trek Online is shaped and changed by the actions of the players...expect to see new planets and races discovered that were unknown the last time you logged in."
  • cdiakcdiak Member Posts: 7 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    I can say without a doubt the only people from cryptic i respect as people and danred nice ones to boot is trendy and taco.

    You're supposed to like trendy and taco. That's basically their job.

    PR flacks.

    Most people don't fall for it, though, right?
  • drakethewhitedrakethewhite Member Posts: 1,240 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    I find this change somewhat mystifying.

    People who grind out extra pearls spend at least a much time playing as those that don't (so that they can be ready for next year) plus what was needed to get ahead in the first place. So it's not metrics.

    All that leaves is preventing someone from getting the ship day 1. I don't understand why that matters? Total play time is the same. The only people disadvantaged are those new to the game and the event, and they can catch up with their first event and be ready for the next one. What's the problem with allowing veteran players a bit of a head start?

    Removing the old ships also makes little sense. The only reason for it that I can see if they are being replaced by T6 versions, but wouldn't it be better to just remove the one they're replacing this year? Or have they decided to replace both this year? Beats me.


    Whatever the reason, I rather have the spec points anyway. And that makes me wonder if they will be keep the store and allow the future use of the new currencies in it? If anything, that could at least tempt me into running the event longer and on more characters.
  • dorsharlbdorsharlb Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    Ppl sure seem to be complaining about this, but do you really want to go back to the old way. Then alts didn't get a discounts, and every character on the account had to pay the full amount. I think this whats being seen as taking advantage of the discount program, ppl are playing CharacterA for the 1000 pearls, buying the new shinny ship, and then going to CharacterB spending 40 pearl out of 1000 to get the "discounted" ship, and then saving the 960 pearls for next year, and then they will start with CharacterB, and then CharacterA will get the discount and have a stash of pearls left.. Would you rather be required to spend 1000 pearl on each and every character that wants the prize?
  • thutmosis85thutmosis85 Member Posts: 2,358 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    dorsharlb wrote: »
    Ppl sure seem to be complaining about this, but do you really want to go back to the old way. Then alts didn't get a discounts, and every character on the account had to pay the full amount.

    No !? ... Context ? You're talking about "A" ... "A" doesn't change, nor was it intended to change ... this Topic is about "B" ... you still have to work for 1000 Pearls or whatever, the same way you had to do it before ...
    dorsharlb wrote: »
    I think this whats being seen as taking advantage of the discount program, ppl are playing CharacterA for the 1000 pearls, buying the new shinny ship, and then going to CharacterB spending 40 pearl out of 1000 to get the "discounted" ship, and then saving the 960 pearls for next year, and then they will start with CharacterB, and then CharacterA will get the discount and have a pile left..

    And how is it any different now ? Nodody took "advantage" of anything ... there are just less reasons to play the Event now ... since any additional "work" you put into it (like some people last year) will just go poof ...
    Patch Notes : Resolved an Issue, where people would accidently experience Fun.
  • painfullylargepainfullylarge Member Posts: 174 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    For background reference, I've been playing since 2012....

    1. I work in a delightful career that has preempted me from playing STO during both previous Risa summer events. ENTIRELY. I was actually looking forward to this year's event, because it would finally give me a chance to obtain THREE new ships for all of my toons. Similarly, I had previously been unable to play ANY winter events until 2014's, where I was able to grind 3 new ships for all of my toons as well. Now we're being told that the previous 2 Risa event ships will be unavailable--meaning that I will NEVER be able to obtain these previous ships.

    2. This game has acquired a MASSIVE amount of grind, beginning with s6, and exacerbated greatly by s9. This takes a considerable amount of time to accomplish.

    3. Nerfing has gotten entirely out of hand. Within the last 6 months alone, for example, at least one area of the game has had rewards reduced by over 50%. This was done gradually, though I cannot say whether that was to lessen blowback or simply because that area had to be RENERFED because it wasn't castrated enough in someone's arbitrary opinion.

    4. Because of #2 & #3, the time investment to accomplish various goals within the game has become obscene. Outfitting a ship with mk14 gear (regardless of quality) is a grueling enterprise in obtaining dilithium, only to turn around and fire it in large quantities at the upgrade system. Of course, lately there have been a few "event upgrades" available to assist with this, but 2 per delta toon, and ~8 smaller ones account-wide, is simply insufficient to upgrade 4 main pieces of ship equipment, 9 consoles, and 6 weapons (let alone ships requiring more gear than this). And even having done that, you have used ALL account-wide upgrade bonuses, and none of them offers a quality upgrade chance.

    5. Because of the above, numerous players--myself included--have expended considerable effort to procure--in advance--tokens for next event's ships. This historically offered the benefit of obtaining event equipment, while not requiring a significant commitment of time to obtain them. Naturally, this is appealing to a playerbase who has had to invest ever-increasing amounts of time in "grinds" to achieve anything from upgrading fleets or personal gear, to obtaining skill tree points.

    6. Even despite #5, a large amount of players who CAN purchase event ships on day 1, still spend the entire event grinding tokens. Succinctly, they are still playing the event--as Cryptic has decreed--just not necessarily doing so in said fashion that Cryptic believes that everyone should be forced to use.

    For those who can't be bothered to read this all....it translates into Cryptic giving--among others--military members who play STO a GIGANTIC middle finger.
    ---

    Now there's a few easy fixes here.

    1. Allow previous ships to be earned. Period.

    2. Do not enact these changes until Summer 2016 event, which allows people to "prepare" for the fallout caused by making a newly-volatile currency for these events.

    3. Allow currency to be unbound. That way, those who have the extra time to grind more than required, can sell it before event end--instead of losing it. Alternately, this allows those who can't grind every day, to make up for a few missed tokens that might be needed.

    4. Cued projects should stay cued. Permanently...until the project is complete or the player cancels the project.
  • wallyhoustonwallyhouston Member Posts: 5 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    I do have a real life outside of this game. I like new events and being able to play but many of these events happen when I am away from home for work. Being able to build up allowed me to use my time to play when I had time instead of not being able to complete these projects during the time I'm not at work. Some of the events have only lasted a few weeks and I've missed them completely. I do like special events happening but I need these to last like 90 days to be able to have the time to complete and I know I'm not the only one.
    Because this is Star Trek there are going to be more players who are older and have other responsibilities like our jobs (many players I know travel for work, like I do) and kids (which means that our time is also going to the kids and for those who have some grand-kids). I like the long game and that's why I don't care for LoL. I've always lived so that my life does not revolved around the TV, I will record shows I want to watch and fit them to my schedule. I've liked that in general I can play STO semi-casual and still feel accomplished please stop the trend to make the game more restrictive.
  • chipg7chipg7 Member Posts: 1,577 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    dorsharlb wrote: »
    Ppl sure seem to be complaining about this, but do you really want to go back to the old way. Then alts didn't get a discounts, and every character on the account had to pay the full amount. I think this whats being seen as taking advantage of the discount program, ppl are playing CharacterA for the 1000 pearls, buying the new shinny ship, and then going to CharacterB spending 40 pearl out of 1000 to get the "discounted" ship, and then saving the 960 pearls for next year, and then they will start with CharacterB, and then CharacterA will get the discount and have a stash of pearls left.. Would you rather be required to spend 1000 pearl on each and every character that wants the prize?

    I think you're missing the core of the change.

    Savings 960 pearls for next year will no loner be an option, as the pearls will be discontinued every year and replaced by a new currency.
  • captainkroncaptainkron Member Posts: 123 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    The conversion is for Pearls, they will not be handing out anymore pearls. So why do folks think they will be stockpiling for a conversion. You either have pearls or you don't. And they are changing the currency each event in the future, right. So this is a one time conversion per event currency. I can only guess that is what they will do for the winter and anniversary event or maybe not. The point to this is no more stockpiling for future events, not a easy path to spec points. Gawd ppl.
    CibJ7qu.jpg?1
  • captinjacksparowcaptinjacksparow Member Posts: 114 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    crunn2 wrote: »
    Check your options, almost everything, including the majority of windows and all the combat numbers junk can be disabled.
    You can strip it back to a pretty clean looking experience.
    Sure there are things, that intelligence targeting thing for example is horrible.

    One non-disableable thing that still ticks me off is "Blah@Blahblah has acquired a fancy new ship" flashing across my screen every 2mins.
    Fair enough if it was just a couple times an evening, no bother. but the often rapid fire frequency of it is verily irking.
    You can disable that. I believe it's somewhere in the chat options.


    Oh, and Cryptic, I'm very disappointed with this, but I guess I should've expected another nerf. Glad I was able to get the Risian ships for my alts before they get removed. :mad:
  • saurializardsaurializard Member Posts: 4,385 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    Also, if it's really all about "Our goal for this change is to ensure that everyone participates on equal footing for the release of each year's new ship", here's an idea of an alternative that is already in the game:

    Make it so people can only claim the ship starting from 25 days after the beginning of the event, you know, like those weekly rewards of the recent featured episodes.

    This way, everyone would be on equal footing too, they get the ship at the same time and those who save(d) up aren't penalized (except in bank/inventory slots).

    But nooo, that'd be having fewer people to grind because they'd patiently wait and/or enjoy their vacation time, and that'd be bad for the metrics.
    #TASforSTO
    Iconian_Trio_sign.jpg?raw=1
  • thatcursedwolfthatcursedwolf Member Posts: 1,617 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    bjornfried wrote: »
    Bluegeek thats censoring and in my country, that is even a crime.

    Are the servers hosted in your country?
    This is my Risian Corvette. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
  • bogyokillerbogyokiller Member Posts: 24 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    tbh i didnt care if i had to grind out the 1000 pearls on more toon tho. But i cant see the point in retiring the existing ships. I have the cruiser, and i also have the corvett in slot. But not on the collector character and its sad, that i wont be able to get out the corvett on the character i wanted it to. I was super-ever-excited about the event, i was waiting for this since winter event. I dont care much of the free ships, i mostly using C-store ships, but still i want them cause they looks cool (or not), and even usefull too. i have 30 ship active on the collector toon inc 3 shuttles, and 1 T5 ship when i turned lvl 40 on him. others are lobby, C-Store or free ships from events etc., and now they cutting my chance to obtain the 1 is missing from collection. At least they could make it available to acc wide if you have it in slot already :/
  • bluegeekbluegeek Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    cdiak wrote: »
    You're supposed to like trendy and taco. That's basically their job.

    PR flacks.

    Most people don't fall for it, though, right?

    Off topic, but...

    Trendy's job is part customer relations and part website management. Anything that engages and informs the players, outside of the actual game itself, both in terms of communications and technology. She's also a wonderful player advocate behind the scenes. There's a good reason we like her as a Community Manager. Can you imagine any of our previous CM's going to the lengths she's gone to in order to address the lag issues? I can't.

    Taco's job is NOT PR. He's a Dev artist who works on Environmental Art. He doesn't have to engage the forums at all. He does it because he wants to, because he cares about the players and the game. Again, there's a reason why he's well liked.
    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
  • dorsharlbdorsharlb Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    No !? ... Context ? You're talking about "A" ... "A" doesn't change, nor was it intended to change ... this Topic is about "B" ... you still have to work for 1000 Pearls or whatever, the same way you had to do it before ...



    And how is it any different now ? Nodody took "advantage" of anything ... there are just less reasons to play the Event now ...


    I agree there is less reason to want to play the event, not sure how to really resolve that i guess.. i don't really see a problem in the first place about ppl stockpiling, but now players will only grind 1 characters, and all his alts will only have to run the event once to get enough to get the discount, after the main buys at full price, your absolutely right this will drastically reduce players incentive to play daily across multiple characters
  • captinjacksparowcaptinjacksparow Member Posts: 114 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    Also, if it's really all about "Our goal for this change is to ensure that everyone participates on equal footing for the release of each year's new ship", here's an idea of an alternative that is already in the game:

    Make it so people can only claim the ship starting from 25 days after the beginning of the event, you know, like those weekly rewards of the recent featured episodes.

    This way, everyone would be on equal footing too, they get the ship at the same time and those who save(d) up aren't penalized (except in bank/inventory slots).

    But nooo, that'd be having fewer people to grind because they'd patiently wait and/or enjoy their vacation time, and that'd be bad for the metrics.
    That is actually an excellent idea. I'd vote for it.

    Sadly, it will never fly with the Cryptic machine.
  • bluegeekbluegeek Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    bjornfried wrote: »
    Bluegeek thats censoring and in my country, that is even a crime.

    And discussion of moderation is against forum rules and the servers aren't in your country.

    I wouldn't push that too hard if I were you.
    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
  • toratareltoratarel Member Posts: 20 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    Lets be honest, you did not have to grind more last year. Plus that playtime was last year - they're looking to get people in game this year! Regarding over playing as you knew you could use it next year - sorry but it was never specified that would happen only assumed - yes I know it is an assumption based on what they previously did, but things change!

    I will add, that I did exactly the same thing as well - I have plenty of pearls that have been sitting in my bank for nearly a year - but I'll just trade them in for Specialization points instead.

    Pleas just stop posting. You are not helping the situation you are making it worse. I feel insulted more and more by every post you make in this thread.

    If this event wont have an awesome T6 trait i will just skip it. I fear for the winter event. I need the ship from 2013 for my 2014 Carrier. If i cant get that i will be more than pi**ed.
  • rikwesselsrikwessels Member Posts: 367 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    bluegeek wrote: »
    Off topic, but...

    Trendy's job is part customer relations and part website management. Anything that engages and informs the players, outside of the actual game itself, both in terms of communications and technology. She's also a wonderful player advocate behind the scenes. There's a good reason we like her as a Community Manager. Can you imagine any of our previous CM's going to the lengths she's gone to in order to address the lag issues? I can't.

    Taco's job is NOT PR. He's a Dev artist who works on Environmental Art. He doesn't have to engage the forums at all. He does it because he wants to, because he cares about the players and the game. Again, there's a reason why he's well liked.

    besides the fact it's decidedly unwise to attack the few people who actually bother to communicate with playerbase ...
  • willamsheridanwillamsheridan Member Posts: 1,189 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    I think its a double screwup especially for casual and new players again:

    1: All new Players and all new toons all Delta Recruits can't get the old risa ships. Even if they were not T6 i have seen them ingame and they are cool and strong.

    2. Anyone who didn't participate in the last event or anyone who only got the ship can't benefit from the buyback store but anyone who had the time to grind a lot ot the money to buy Pearls can now also get extra spec points which take a casual player a long time to get.

    I hope the only thing they do to the winter Event is release the Chell grett with Cruiser Commands as T6 and that this years Summer Ship is a helluva Ship. Maybe a Bettlecruiser win a Lt.Cdr Sci slot so something for everyone. (My Tac and Eng wwre not so happy with the Carrier. I prefer 8 weapons over 6 and 2 Hangars)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    Our goal for this change is to ensure that everyone participates on equal footing for the release of each year's new ship.

    What you're really saying is, a bunch of people whined that they couldn't get the new shiny as quick as some of the older players, so you're gonna TRIBBLE us over to appease them.

    Not cool...
  • shevetshevet Member Posts: 1,667 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    I don't think much of this development.... Retiring the corvette and the cruiser is a bit of a kick in the teeth for newer toons, I think. They were pretty good ships - the corvette is maybe a bit specialized (its main selling point being Goes Real Fast, which is something you need to play well if you're going to take advantage of it), but the cruiser is a rock-solid ship, thoroughly effective. I wouldn't at all mind having one or both on my Delta Recruit... but apparently that won't be possible.

    As to the other changes... well, I may be in a minority, here: I actually enjoy the "Flying High" mini-game. (So I did it a lot, and so I have piles of pearls to trade in.) However... there's no denying it's repetitive gameplay, and continually repeating the same bits of play - grinding - is, generally speaking, not fun. And I want the game to be fun. Indeed, I see no reasonable point in playing it if it isn't fun.

    So... the changes here effectively mean everyone has to grind if they want the new shinies. I can't swap those piles of pearls for the new ship on day 1 (which means, incidentally, that I can't show it off in sector space, and can't make any other players think "hey, that ship looks kind of cool, I'd like to get one of those!"), I have to play 25 sessions of collect-whatever-the-new-thing-is, first. This is a move towards Grind and away from Fun. It is, in short, a Bad Thing.

    This is my personal view. It may be that there are plenty of players out there who think that Grinding is Fun. Or who are prepared to drop large-ish quantities of real money to buy Lobi and bypass the grind. I'm not in either of those categories, myself, so... I don't care for this change.
    8b6YIel.png?1
  • jarekcyphusjarekcyphus Member Posts: 65 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    bjornfried wrote: »
    TRIBBLE the Military. Its a waste of life. Literally. But you have other things to do, than to go online for sto all the time. Even when you are unemployed. Maybe you do some workout, to stay fit, or you ´study or whatever. Fact is. Cryptic wants to be "the most important thing in our live's" but they fail even by the simplest task, to do so. To listen to the player's especialy the long timers.

    That's your opinion, but I'm proud of my service, and I'm proud to fight for your freedom to share your thoughts with me. I'd do it all over again, too. Not out of blind loyalty to the government (and anyone subscribing to the idea that we're all thoughtless drones at the beck and call of the POTUS is a loon and needs their heads checked; that's not what patriotism is), mind you, but of love of land, people, and country. I've seen our country and its people do some great things, and some terrible things. I live, breathe, sweat, and bleed to see as much of the great as I can.

    Putting my—admittedly—pedantic anecdotes of military service aside, I otherwise completely agree with you. Like I said in a previous post: if I could threaten with my wallet and walk away, I would. But that LTS paid itself off years ago. The best I can do is try and fight for the little guy, relate what good experiences I've had in this game (back when the borg components dropped in STFs, not reputation, for example), and keep fighting the good fight, if that's even such a thing here, anymore.
    STO-sig3.jpg~original
  • gazurtoidgazurtoid Member Posts: 423 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    bluegeek wrote: »
    That is a gross oversimplification of the issue.

    The problem with all of these seasonal events is that you have a limited timeframe in which to log in at least once a day. If for whatever reason you can't log in on enough days, you lose. With this change, that means you've wasted your time (if the ship is the only goal).

    The other issue is that your character needs to be in a certain location in order to participate. Which involves either flying back and forth (takes time) or you're parking your characters at the event door for the entire event and not playing anything else.

    It's not just "5 minutes". It's time to log in, time to get to the event, time to complete the event. Assuming you do nothing else, it's still more than 5 minutes.

    I agree... for a single character, it's not a terribly long time commitment IF you're free to log in on any particular day. Speaking as a family man, that's not a safe assumption.

    This is a fair point. I think Cryptic could douse some of the flames generated by this move by extending the Summer event, by say another 5-7 days. That way, people are less likely to be impacted by the "Sorry! You only earned 960 neo-pearls - all progress erased! Have a nice day!".

    As it stands, if you go on holiday for a week during the event (as many will do during the summer), you are really scrambling to make up for it.

    Its a simple step - it doesn't defeat the objective of the event - and would help dampen the flames.
    yjkZSeM.gif
  • drake122svkdrake122svk Member Posts: 731 Arc User
    edited May 2015
    Personally, I can't be bothered. Summer is the time when people go out and have fun. They can stick their precious metrics where the sun don't shine, I won't be doing any sort of grind no matter how OP broken TRIBBLE ship they release.
This discussion has been closed.