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POLL - Peace Missions in STO

SystemSystem Member, NoReporting Posts: 178,019 Arc User
I setup a poll to see how many of you feel about Peace Missions in Star Trek Online. Do you want more, less, same?

Question:

How Many Peace Missions Do You Want In Star Trek Online? Peace Missions = Diplomacy, Exploration, Logic, etc.

To Make your vote visit - http://modpoll.com/view/agdwb2xsMmdvcgwLEgRQb2xsGJz3Nww
Post edited by baddmoonrizin on

Comments

  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    I voted but actually what I would really like is to have a few places where you can get repeatable peaceful missions.

    For instance, in STO, you want a space fight, you go to a deep space encounter and shoot. I'd like the same in STO : you go to such star cluster and you have peaceful missions. Don't want them ? You don't enter this star cluster and you won't even see it.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    For my vague ideas on the subject, check out page three of this thread:

    http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=111459&page=3
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    My choice isn't listed.

    "I would like a flexible enough mission system such that I could choose violence or diplomacy/etc to solve many, if not most/all missions."

    I realize that would be monumentally difficult to implement, but we're talking "dream world" here aren't we?
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    Sevok wrote: »
    My choice isn't listed.

    "I would like a flexible enough mission system such that I could choose violence or diplomacy/etc to solve many, if not most/all missions."

    I realize that would be monumentally difficult to implement, but we're talking "dream world" here aren't we?

    I voted 50/50, but this would be my answer too. It might not be as "dream world" as it sounds. There would need to be a minigame of some sort, ideally as robust as the idea in my signature. Then just give us the option to hail "enemy" ships before we close in to weapons range. Bam. Any mission has the potential for diplomacy. Mind you, if that is a borg ship you just hailed... expect the talking to last only as long as it takes them to close into weapons range. :p Hostile enemies would be appropriately difficult (or impossible) to approach diplomatically.

    PS - There is a typo in the poll. One option is listed as 25% peaceful/25% combat.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    Knights of the Old Republic did this amazingly. Dynamic dialogue between you and the good guy or bad guy. If you're a TRIBBLE$ to him then he may attack you, but you can also play it Picard style if you wanted and be mr. diplomatic. It would add a lot more to the game if we felt like we had a choice in the matter, rather than running and gunning...which isn't very Federationy.

    EDIT: The downside to this is that we'd need some way to measure our "diplomacy" in game and a charisma type stat or something.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    I voted 50/50. Right now, I dread combat missions (usually) because the combat feels forced.

    If Cryptic would give us a better reason for fighting (rather than "It's war!"), I'd like it more. In the shows and movies (Abrams movie aside since that was a mindless sci-fi film and not Star Trek), fighting was viewed as a last resort.

    When I'm in an exploration mission and randomly it's "Kill these 3 mobs." I sigh and drop that section. I'd rather have more diplomatic options with choice trees.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    I want more Peace Missions too. I loveed the mission where you inteview miners about their grievances... then report back to The Governor and take a quiz about all you were told. It was a awesome change of pace. Would love to do missions like that and other logic missions. Missions that dont involve me using a phaser.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    I want more Peace Missions too. I loveed the mission where you inteview miners about their grievances... then report back to The Governor and take a quiz about all you were told. It was a awesome change of pace. Would love to do missions like that and other logic missions. Missions that dont involve me using a phaser.

    Yeah, I liked that one too. :)

    I'd like to see the explore/examine/etc type missions expanded as some sort of mini game rather than a single keypress interaction.

    And a detailed diplomacy system would rock. Vanguard has a very good one, implemented as a sort of strategy card game.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    I setup a poll to see how many of you feel about Peace Missions in Star Trek Online. Do you want more, less, same?

    Question:

    How Many Peace Missions Do You Want In Star Trek Online? Peace Missions = Diplomacy, Exploration, Logic, etc.

    To Make your vote visit - http://modpoll.com/view/agdwb2xsMmdvcgwLEgRQb2xsGJz3Nww

    The idea of "peaceful" missions is noble and it is one I often see it floating around the forum in numerous threads. But I have yet to see anyone translate this idea into a real ingame feature that wouldn't be both A) boring and B) exploitable. Also, how could these missions be done in a team?

    If your answer is "dialogue options" then stop right there. That's single player game mentality, not MMO. There is zero skill involved in picking dialogue and be assured that web sites will have the correct path laid out for every mission within days. Googling is not an MMO skill. Not to mention if they are repeatable. People have also said diplomacy could be a skill you dump points into. How will this work? Oh... it unlocks certain dialogue options.

    I just don't see how it could work. At best, peaceful missions would have to involve a time sink. Which would be what? Go collect X of this item to appease the angry chief? We already have missions like this and I bet 90% of the players dump these within 10 seconds. Beam over to the enemy ship and use computer terminals to fix their replicators? Scan rocks?

    Sure... Kirk's corbomite maneuver made for great drama on TV. Picard brokering a peace deal sitting around a table in the conference room is the stuff of legend. But they just don't translate into viable MMO game play. And you know what? Show me an episode's storyline that involves a "peaceful mission" and I bet you anything that phasers are being fired or someone is getting punched in the face at some point.

    I'm not trying to be confrontational. All I'm saying that if this whole "give us peaceful missions" thing is going to continue on and on, then be constructive. Star Trek fans are a pretty creative bunch... so use your brain and come up with a system that won't be boring or exploitable, offers the appropriate risk versus reward and can be done as a team.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    It seems to me that there are so many missions where its just a giant bloodbath.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    Sevok wrote: »
    My choice isn't listed.

    "I would like a flexible enough mission system such that I could choose violence or diplomacy/etc to solve many, if not most/all missions."

    I realize that would be monumentally difficult to implement, but we're talking "dream world" here aren't we?

    I see no reason why there can not be two, three or four chunks of green text the player can select each of which reflects a difference stance you can take (overly agressince, overly diplomatic, subtle threats and neutral as an example) each leading to a different dialouge branch. It would at least mean something more than "Press F to continue" when talking to NPC's.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    Your fourth option is listed as "I want 25% Peace Missions and 25% Combat Missions" when I assume you meant "I want 25% Peace Missions and 75% Combat Missions."
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    I did 50/50, I think that would be a good start.
    I wouldnt mind a non peace non combat quest also.
    Perhaps discovering a strange ship crashed on a planet that leads to a few discoveries, a few crewmen get sick and you have to investigate OR
    your appearance is changed to retieve some computer hardware from a downed satelite on an unknown planet.
    the locals have never made first contact and you musnt let them know who you are. etc
    also, HOLODECK missions/training.. lots of potential there..
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    One last thought. Advancing within a MMO via non-combat game play is viable. It's been around since UO. It's called crafting. This is the system that STO is missing. Crafting always involves a huge time and resource sink which makes it appropriate. It also usually involves creating a highly specialized character. But I've never heard of any MMO where you could walk around talking to people and gain xp/skill points.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    But I've never heard of any MMO where you could walk around talking to people and gain xp/skill points.

    Indeed, it's difficult because except in the main episodic content (and those missions are expansive to produce), you can't create a real dialog system. The only way to make this works in bulk missions IMHO would be to use abstracted diplomacy.

    Several different systems were suggested already.
    • Reputation system : your actions give you reputation points with the other factions, allowing you certain missions or actions (EvE Online)
    • Card game : this was succesfully used in a not so succesful MMO (Vanguard)
    • 2 skills (Diplomacy / Intimidation) allowing you to open a channel and try to negociate with your opponents or to scare them (Mass Effect)
    • Another system suggested by xMentalxLintx here : http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=93215
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    The idea of "peaceful" missions is noble and it is one I often see it floating around the forum in numerous threads. But I have yet to see anyone translate this idea into a real ingame feature that wouldn't be both A) boring and B) exploitable. Also, how could these missions be done in a team?

    If your answer is "dialogue options" then stop right there. That's single player game mentality, not MMO. There is zero skill involved in picking dialogue and be assured that web sites will have the correct path laid out for every mission within days. Googling is not an MMO skill. Not to mention if they are repeatable. People have also said diplomacy could be a skill you dump points into. How will this work? Oh... it unlocks certain dialogue options.

    I just don't see how it could work. At best, peaceful missions would have to involve a time sink. Which would be what? Go collect X of this item to appease the angry chief? We already have missions like this and I bet 90% of the players dump these within 10 seconds. Beam over to the enemy ship and use computer terminals to fix their replicators? Scan rocks?

    Sure... Kirk's corbomite maneuver made for great drama on TV. Picard brokering a peace deal sitting around a table in the conference room is the stuff of legend. But they just don't translate into viable MMO game play. And you know what? Show me an episode's storyline that involves a "peaceful mission" and I bet you anything that phasers are being fired or someone is getting punched in the face at some point.

    I'm not trying to be confrontational. All I'm saying that if this whole "give us peaceful missions" thing is going to continue on and on, then be constructive. Star Trek fans are a pretty creative bunch... so use your brain and come up with a system that won't be boring or exploitable and offers the appropriate risk versus reward.

    Im talking about missions with the miners, missions where you scan objects on the planets and learn about why they are there.

    Alot of really cool Star Trek missions could be taken from Star Trek A Final Unity, which had alot of logic, puzzle, etc. challenges that was very immersive. Missions like that can be done for STO.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    grajin wrote: »
    I did 50/50, I think that would be a good start.
    I wouldnt mind a non peace non combat quest also.
    Perhaps discovering a strange ship crashed on a planet that leads to a few discoveries, a few crewmen get sick and you have to investigate OR
    your appearance is changed to retieve some computer hardware from a downed satelite on an unknown planet.
    the locals have never made first contact and you musnt let them know who you are. etc
    ..

    Thats a GREAT MISSION. Would love to play osmething like that
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    WTB more people taking this survey. I think it's interesting people are favoring the 50/50 split in an MMO.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    Maybe it's time for my old non combat gameplay fav copy / paste :

    Diplomacy

    Several different systems were suggested already.
    • Reputation system : your actions give you reputation points with the other factions, allowing you certain missions or actions (EvE Online)
    • Card game : this was succesfully used in a not so succesful MMO (Vanguard)
    • 2 skills (Diplomacy / Intimidation) allowing you to open a channel and try to negociate with your opponents or to scare them (Mass Effect)
    • xMentalxLintx suggested another abstracted diplomacy system here : http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=93215

    Minigames to simulate actions

    They would simulate the non combat actions. They should be skippable because they could be boring to the most action driven players. Here is a thread with awesome examples of minigames especially designed for STO (with pictures !)

    http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=72963


    With minigames, you can simulate doors unlocking, equipment sabotage, computers hacking, cure creation etc. etc. Used in many MMOs like Runescape and in many RPGs like Mass Effect for instance.


    Games at Quarks


    We could play games at Quarks : dabo, domjot, poker, 3D Chess, fizzbin, darts, whatever, vs AI or other players (that PVP I'd play !). Of course, we would bet energy credits !



    Scanning with tricorders

    Can become a non combat activity on its own. It's another kind of minigame but it is so iconic that it deserves its own category. A powerful tricorders system has been proposed by JP. Just have a look here (with pictures !) :

    http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=59035


    Quick and dirty exploration system

    This would be ADDED to the game, it would NOT replace the star clusters. How does it work :

    1) You can scan anywhere except during fight (tricorder on ground / sensors in space). You get a % of finding something based upon skills, equipment and the location (deep dangerous space = more chances to find something)

    2) Activate scan. Cryptic computes (rolls dice) : did you find something ?
    No ? You cannot scan again before leaving the system or the planet.
    Yes ? What did you find ? Depends on your success, it can be :

    1 - crafting stuff
    2 - Lore info (just informations about the ST universe, for instance an old holodisc or an archeological thing)
    3 - Hidden Klingon's base, let's go get them
    4 - Rare or semi rare gear
    5 - Someone in distress you need to save
    6 - Gateway to the mirror universe
    7 - A cool pet
    8 - The bat'leth of Kahless floating in space ;-)

    etc. etc.

    The good things :

    - it works everywhere, when you want => feeling of freedom
    - Cryptic can add new things to discover easily : any time a dev has an idea, he can add it to the "discoveries" database and release it with the next update. It is a good way to give the players perks for instance.

    All this does exist already in an MMO (EvE Online), in a much more complex system. I realize that STO is not EvE (fortunately) but we can keep it very simple and it would help the "exploration feeling" a great deal IMHO.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    Delazure wrote: »
    Maybe it's time for my old non combat gameplay fav copy / paste :

    Diplomacy

    Several different systems were suggested already.
    • Reputation system : your actions give you reputation points with the other factions, allowing you certain missions or actions (EvE Online)
    • Card game : this was succesfully used in a not so succesful MMO (Vanguard)
    • 2 skills (Diplomacy / Intimidation) allowing you to open a channel and try to negociate with your opponents or to scare them (Mass Effect)
    • xMentalxLintx suggested another abstracted diplomacy system here : http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=93215

    Minigames to simulate actions

    They would simulate the non combat actions. They should be skippable because they could be boring to the most action driven players. Here is a thread with awesome examples of minigames especially designed for STO (with pictures !)

    http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=72963


    With minigames, you can simulate doors unlocking, equipment sabotage, computers hacking, cure creation etc. etc. Used in many MMOs like Runescape and in many RPGs like Mass Effect for instance.


    Games at Quarks


    We could play games at Quarks : dabo, domjot, poker, 3D Chess, fizzbin, darts, whatever, vs AI or other players (that PVP I'd play !). Of course, we would bet energy credits !



    Scanning with tricorders

    Can become a non combat activity on its own. It's another kind of minigame but it is so iconic that it deserves its own category. A powerful tricorders system has been proposed by JP. Just have a look here (with pictures !) :

    http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=59035


    Quick and dirty exploration system

    This would be ADDED to the game, it would NOT replace the star clusters. How does it work :

    1) You can scan anywhere except during fight (tricorder on ground / sensors in space). You get a % of finding something based upon skills, equipment and the location (deep dangerous space = more chances to find something)

    2) Activate scan. Cryptic computes (rolls dice) : did you find something ?
    No ? You cannot scan again before leaving the system or the planet.
    Yes ? What did you find ? Depends on your success, it can be :

    1 - crafting stuff
    2 - Lore info (just informations about the ST universe, for instance an old holodisc or an archeological thing)
    3 - Hidden Klingon's base, let's go get them
    4 - Rare or semi rare gear
    5 - Someone in distress you need to save
    6 - Gateway to the mirror universe
    7 - A cool pet
    8 - The bat'leth of Kahless floating in space ;-)

    etc. etc.

    The good things :

    - it works everywhere, when you want => feeling of freedom
    - Cryptic can add new things to discover easily : any time a dev has an idea, he can add it to the "discoveries" database and release it with the next update. It is a good way to give the players perks for instance.

    All this does exist already in an MMO (EvE Online), in a much more complex system. I realize that STO is not EvE (fortunately) but we can keep it very simple and it would help the "exploration feeling" a great deal IMHO.

    Really like these ideas, especially The games at Quarks !
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    I like most of that but strongly disagree on the 'quick and dirty exploration' concept. It sounds likea botter's paradise. No thank you.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    Really like these ideas, especially The games at Quarks !

    And the games at Quark are 100% MMO : I bet a lot of us would spend huge amounts of time playing vs other players there :D
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    Delazure wrote: »
    And the games at Quark are 100% MMO : I bet a lot of us would spend huge amounts of time playing vs other players there :D

    Oh, I'm all for mini games like that - Dabo, poker, Tri-D Chess, Dom-jot, etc. Heck, I'd even play a few rounds of Fizzbin or bet a few thousand quatoos on scantily clad, green haired gladiators :)

    That's just polished content. Give the game time and I'm sure stuff like this will be implemented.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    supported.

    i have so far encountered one (1) diplomacy mission, and one (1) mission where you had a chance to choose between two outcomes.

    would love to see more of this.

    besides that, it would add greatly to exploration.
    "kill ship x, then ship x's reinforcements, then depart system", "click item x, then click item x's friends, then depart system" and "kill peep x, then peep x's reinforcements, then beam up to your ship and depart system" gets boring considering thats pretty much all pve endgame that is out there.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    For the players interested in non combat gameplay in STO, have a look at this new thread, it's full of good news !

    http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=113754
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    I voted for 50% peace and 50% combat.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited February 2010
    bump for a cool poll
This discussion has been closed.