Posted by Bigwig Nov 11, 2009. Endless lols over how accurate (not all, but damn close) he nailed it.
I'll start with the usual TRIBBLE, im a long time fan, followed sto since pre-cryptic bla bla bladee bla... I've defended STO many'a time but now for the reality check. Oh, and put the kettle on, its a bit of a read.
Failboat Provisions Checklist - SET SAIL:
* One of the biggest, if not the biggest IP for an MMORPG to date - yet developed in record time, just about two years. Announced in 2008, out by 2010.
* 50 man dev team. Very small for an MMORPG that boasts this sort of magnitude (cost cutting).
* Extremely secretive and shady development process.
* Severe lack of information on fundamental game mechanics.
* Faction VS Faction game-play announced, but second faction completely undeveloped.
* Complete lack of marketing department. I know a fair bit about marketing and i would not be surprised if the game devs were handling it themselves, its that bad.
* No trademark ETA delay. Look at any successful/semi successful MMORPG, i cant think of one that hit its first release deadline without post-poning development to ensure a QUALITY product. We're 3 months away, its too late for a delay now.
* Publishers losing money. On top of all this, and probably the crux of the whole charade, there is pressure to release an incomplete product all because of MONEY.
When STO was announced in 2008 we all had a much bigger picture in mind. We couldn't wait to enter the star-trek universe. Instead its looking less and less like a universe and more and more like a game you'd pay a dime to play in the Arcade. ****, lets face it, it looks just like Legacy and not an MMO.
WHERE is the information? WHERE is the pride in this game? WHERE is the enthusiasm for STO and STAR TREK? There is none.
My STO prediction of 2010
Closed Beta. Nothing to worry about really, it'll be scheduled play-tests lasting a few hours, maybe 3-5 hours every other day until it 'opens up' with a few thousand more Closed Beta testers as a sort of off the record pre-open beta test. The content and testing range will be very focused. They don't want you seeing the rest of the game yet. Remember, Beta is just as much a cheap marketing scheme as it is 'testing' - look at the CO subscribers? Any who. Closed Beta won't achieve much, devs will use it to focus on what matters to them. It won't be a feedback beta, peoples suggestions won't mean squat, it's merely to iron out a few glaring issues and a chance for them to make sure their servers can actually sustain players for their next phase...
Open Beta. It will be tied to some retail deal, IE pre-order bonus and Fileplanet Subscribers. It will be limited to lower levels includinng a tutorial zone (just like Age of Conan). Think of STO as an awesome new theme-park, except 70% of it is still under construction while the other 30% neatly guides you round the park with paths, walls and fences pointing you to the 'complete' rides. It will be limited in such a way that players will be unable to experience and experiment with the true game mechanics. IE - no real class tree to explore, no meaningful progression, no Klingon content, however, you will still get a mild sense of achievement within your chosen class and you will develop that distinctive 'RPG lust' for more before the Open Beta ends.
You'll buy the game, thinking the game is actually quite polished, you liked what you saw - there is still hope! You go through the motions you went through in Open Beta and all is well - but then suddenly you get past the Open Beta content and you start noticing little glitches here and there, annoying bugs and things that make you think ''how the fu- did this escape the beta test?''. Then the integral mechanics begin to shine - not in a good way. Hey why don't my stats do anything? Whats the point in this ship? How am i half way through the game already? Where's the freedom? Why are all the quests the same after 5 rounds on the 'genesis' system? Where the hell are the klingons? When do i get something more interesting than phasers and photon torpedo's? What do i do after i'm Admiral? Why do none of my character choices differentiate me from other players? Haven't i seen this planet before? How can my defiant defeat a negh'var? Why is the AI borderline TRIBBLE? Why do i feel like commiting suicide when i play ground-combat? What do i do after two weeks once i finished all the seasons!? WHERE IS THE STAR TREKKING!? And that's not even including the issues Klingons are set to face... Ouch.
The flood gates will open. Subscribers will drop in the thousands come April, Cryptic will rush around like a headless chicken releasing bi-monthly updates in a desperate bid to hold onto subscribers long enough to secure their pension schemes. The community will get weekly reassuring notes and letters from the 'lead designer' and community reps, ''just subscribe another month and you'll see we've fixed it, no really we have! Its better now!'' they'll be working overtime. Atari will have got what they wanted (initial sales and subscribers) and dumped Cryptic like a girl that dont put out. Cryptic continues scrambling together post-release content promised upon release until 6 months down the line they announce STO INTERIORS(!!!!) bringing back a few thousand die-hards. They get a breather, but then after a month the returnee's remember why they left in the first place ad after sucking the fun out of Interiors they ditch STO again. The game barely hangs on to a 10-20,000 subscriber base of complaicant's, close-knit guilds and star trek enthusiasts (like the guys who still play Bridge Commander). It dies a slow painful death and awaits the inevitable closure, eventually opening up the IP for another company - a successor? Or another failure? We wait. We hope. The vicious cycle begins again...
... Still, thats just my humble prediction. The sad thing is, i'll still buy it, and i'll still play it. But hey, i could be wrong, PLEASE prove me wrong Cryptic, i'll welcome all the hate and abuse that comes with it if it means i get a quality Star Trek MMO. Sadly, thats unlikely, but we'll see... Oh yes we'll see...
P.S If you got this far, well done to you sir, and thanks for reading. Remember this is just my opinion using the facts available to us and the trials and motions many'a previous MMO have fallen to.
I think this is the second time I've heard someone bring up this prediction.
I don't see how it matters much now what someone thought back then.
I predict we're all going to die someday. What do I win?
Why worry about it, if it is going to fail like everyone is saying then it seems that there is nothing we can do. Go enjoy the game and not worry about it.
Why worry about it, if it is going to fail like everyone is saying then it seems that there is nothing we can do. Go enjoy the game and not worry about it.
Must Aquire Tears Of Failness. It's for my Epic collection of FAILDOM. Once I have all the pieces I get the Major Agility Ring of N00bD00m. :P
Anything that wants me to take if seriously will avoid phrases like 'Failboat.' No matter how good the writing is after that, I have already dismissed it as immature crying from 'me first' gamers who view all other gamers as people to be 'pwned' in some e-peen fantasy of theirs.
So like I say to other would be 'gankers, trolls,' and their assorted ilk.
Congratulations, are your 'nether bits' bigger now? Want a cookie?
The game was a flop in 2010. They were over their target subscriptions numbers but it flopped? There are still 7 months left in 2010. So they numbers can still go up. Calling it the flop of 2010 is just a little premature.
Whatever the game does for the rest of the year, it can hardly be called a "flop". It sold 1 millioin subs initally. That is pretty good no matter what they are today or on Dec 31, 2010.
Serioulsy, I think the game will get better and not worse. So the prediction is likely not to make it.
* One of the biggest, if not the biggest IP for an MMORPG to date - yet developed in record time, just about two years. Announced in 2008, out by 2010.
That's a tough call. I think DCUO has a bigger recognizable IP. Superman I think still trumps Star Trek worldwide in terms of clout. Add Batman to that, and ... well ... DC might have the edge here. Not to mention Jim Lee, the rather popular comic book artist, is connected to DCUO's development team. I think DC Comics gets the edge here.
* Extremely secretive and shady development process.
Exactly how secretive is their development process? They have posted videos of their development team at work. Done extensive interviews. You can find posts on this and their other game's forums from their employees giving detailed information on how their work is structured and organized. I've seen them show us peeks behind the curtain far ... FAR ... more often than much larger MMO game designers.
* Severe lack of information on fundamental game mechanics.
This criticism applies well to Champions Online. Where the manual gave no information. And the official site gave next to no information.
They corrected a lot of that with their next game, Star Trek.
* Faction VS Faction game-play announced, but second faction completely undeveloped.
The only aspect of Klingon play that is undeveloped is the PVE aspect. For PVP Klingons were just as developed as the Feds. And had and still have quite a few advantages. Be it powers, bonuses or even just better PVP-centric quests. This so-called fact is rather misleading. Yes, Klingons need a LOT more development. But in the context of Faction vs. Faction PVP ... that's the one aspect of Klingons that WAS developed.
* Complete lack of marketing department. I know a fair bit about marketing and i would not be surprised if the game devs were handling it themselves, its that bad.
I just don't get it. Do you not visit the front page of the web-site? For either of their games? You may take issue with the marketing they do. And that's fine. But you can visibly SEE that they have actual marketing people that are hired for this company. It's not the devs handling this. They have marketing people. You may think they do a bad job ... but ... then again, if you can't even notice what stuff they have posted ... I wonder how valid that criticism is.
When STO was announced in 2008 we all had a much bigger picture in mind.
Star Trek Online was announced long before 2008.
Cryptic wasn't part of the equation when Star Trek Online was announced.
That bears a lot more consideration. But obviously doesn't support the criticism you'd like to level at the game, so, you know, don't worry about it.
This is not the way to make your voice heard. We welcome feedback, even - nay, especially negative feedback - so long as it is constructive, and presented in a civil manner.
I'm closing down this thread. If you'd like to voice your feedback, please feel free to start a new thread, in the appropriate subforum, where you respectfully present specific criticisms and feedback on what you think can be improved.
Comments
I don't see how it matters much now what someone thought back then.
I predict we're all going to die someday. What do I win?
Why worry about it, if it is going to fail like everyone is saying then it seems that there is nothing we can do. Go enjoy the game and not worry about it.
Either the games works for you or it doesn't.
Release.......The banhammer!!!! :eek:
how does this help the community or the forums
[Spots a moderator]
Oh, Officer... A moment of your time please?
I remember seeing this posted in the forums several times before launch, and a couple after launch.
Honestly......who cares if some random person on a random site made a prediction about STO?
Must Aquire Tears Of Failness. It's for my Epic collection of FAILDOM. Once I have all the pieces I get the Major Agility Ring of N00bD00m. :P
WAit... WAIT WAIT... What?
.....must......find.......precious........
...
Sorry, had to do it
I wish it would mow my lawn.
Maybe it needs tightening.
So like I say to other would be 'gankers, trolls,' and their assorted ilk.
Congratulations, are your 'nether bits' bigger now? Want a cookie?
I'm a lifer. STO rocks! Champions rocks (I'm not a lifer there, though.
Serioulsy, I think the game will get better and not worse. So the prediction is likely not to make it.
That's a tough call. I think DCUO has a bigger recognizable IP. Superman I think still trumps Star Trek worldwide in terms of clout. Add Batman to that, and ... well ... DC might have the edge here. Not to mention Jim Lee, the rather popular comic book artist, is connected to DCUO's development team. I think DC Comics gets the edge here.
Exactly how secretive is their development process? They have posted videos of their development team at work. Done extensive interviews. You can find posts on this and their other game's forums from their employees giving detailed information on how their work is structured and organized. I've seen them show us peeks behind the curtain far ... FAR ... more often than much larger MMO game designers.
This criticism applies well to Champions Online. Where the manual gave no information. And the official site gave next to no information.
They corrected a lot of that with their next game, Star Trek.
The only aspect of Klingon play that is undeveloped is the PVE aspect. For PVP Klingons were just as developed as the Feds. And had and still have quite a few advantages. Be it powers, bonuses or even just better PVP-centric quests. This so-called fact is rather misleading. Yes, Klingons need a LOT more development. But in the context of Faction vs. Faction PVP ... that's the one aspect of Klingons that WAS developed.
I just don't get it. Do you not visit the front page of the web-site? For either of their games? You may take issue with the marketing they do. And that's fine. But you can visibly SEE that they have actual marketing people that are hired for this company. It's not the devs handling this. They have marketing people. You may think they do a bad job ... but ... then again, if you can't even notice what stuff they have posted ... I wonder how valid that criticism is.
Star Trek Online was announced long before 2008.
Cryptic wasn't part of the equation when Star Trek Online was announced.
That bears a lot more consideration. But obviously doesn't support the criticism you'd like to level at the game, so, you know, don't worry about it.
There are only 3 guarantees in life that my Father taught me long ago:
1. You're gonna pay taxes
2. You're gonna die
3. You're gonna stay whatever race you are.
--Cirdi
last one is a lie.
I'm closing down this thread. If you'd like to voice your feedback, please feel free to start a new thread, in the appropriate subforum, where you respectfully present specific criticisms and feedback on what you think can be improved.