C-store opinion

System

Hey, i'm not usually a big person to complain, however i have an opinion about the c-store. i do not feel that most of the stuff on the c-store should be there. i feel that new ship costumes, new personal uniforms, bridge packs, and some of the new ships. should not be placed on the c-store. I know they do this to make more money and all, but more people would play if they didn't have to pay for some of the newer content. i can see why ship slots, character slots, galaxy x, and starship retrofits are there and other things.. i don't want the galaxy x or the retrofits to be there, but i'm okay with it. because you can get one retrofit for free, its just the costumes and bridges. I'm not saying i want to get one costume or bridge pack for free, but that they should not be ever of been put on the c-store, and should of been released with the game, or treated like the costumes/ bridges that were released with the game.

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starfleetcmd wrote: »

Hey, i'm not usually a big person to complain, however i have an opinion about the c-store. i do not feel that most of the stuff on the c-store should be there. i feel that new ship costumes, new personal uniforms, bridge packs, and some of the new ships. should not be placed on the c-store. I know they do this to make more money and all, but more people would play if they didn't have to pay for some of the newer content. i can see why ship slots, character slots, galaxy x, and starship retrofits are there and other things.. i don't want the galaxy x or the retrofits to be there, but i'm okay with it. because you can get one retrofit for free, its just the costumes and bridges. I'm not saying i want to get one costume or bridge pack for free, but that they should not be ever of been put on the c-store, and should of been released with the game, or treated like the costumes/ bridges that were released with the game.

The thing is, nobody needs to buy a single thing on the C-store to enjoy what STO has to offer. The questions isn't whether something is needed vs wanted. If it is wanted, how MUCH is it wanted. If someone really wants something badly enough, they'll pony up a few dollars, buy the C-points and get it.

It's how consumor driven businesses work. And whether you like it or not, Cryptic is a consumor-driven business.

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Galaxicat wrote:

For example, the Klingon side of the game is admittedly unfinished. What is there is rather unpolished and slapdash -- But rather than work on that, dev time/resources are diverted to more shinies for the masses.

The people who do character art aren't the same people who do bug fixes, mission content, etc. It's like saying you own a restaurant and can shift your bartender over to chef just to get food out quicker. You can't. Each person and team at Cryptic has their own duties and can't really jump over to another team.

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Galaxicat wrote:

Then perhaps they need to re-assign who does what, and what portion of their dev team is dedicated to doing each job. Maybe fewer people on the C-Store pumping out baubles and more on the game side fixing what's broken and unfinished?

I disagree. It's all about manpower and income. Let's say it takes 1 person 2 months to make a c-store fluff bauble like a new ship skin. Let's say that person makes 40k a year so 2 months of his time costs Cryptic $6,500.00. Let's say the item costs 240 Cryptic Points ($3.00). They only have to sell 2,200 to break even. If they only sell 5,000 not only did they pay for his 2 months time but they've paid for 2.5 months of someone else's time to work on some of those borken and unfinished things. Fluff pays for a lot of the advances we see in this game.

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how do i even use the stuff i bought from the c store

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You unlock it per character from the c-store in game. If you know how to go to your bridge then you know what tab you need to click that's on the right side of the mini-map. One of the options there is c-store. Look around under special unlock for something you bought to unlock it there. If it's a ship skin you do that at the ship customization station in sol.

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I'm really confused
i'm after buying a bunch of stuff from the c store and i don't know how going to the bridge will happen

the things have already been bought though the c store i bought a bunch of ships
i just don't know how to use them could it be because of my rank?

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Where you get the item entirely depends on what you purchased. Different items are gotten different ways. For example, the TOS Constitution needs to be unlocked from the c-store. You do that by logging into the game and going to the c-store via the tab on the right side of the mini-map and unlocking the TOS Constitution. Other items, like the Comet ship skin, you get simply by going to the shipyard and editing your ship design. Some other things, like the Excelsior, need to be picked up in the shipyard store - the same place you get new ships when you level up.

Most small things, like Liberated Borg BOs, Photonic BOs, and such you need to unlock in the c-store via the tab above.

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ok so still a little confused i got a ship so where on earth space dock would i find that

sorry don't mean to be stund but really lost

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i think i figured it out thanks everyone

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Let's start easy. Which ship did you get?

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i figured it out!

thanks!

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Galaxicat wrote:

I see other MMOs out there with more content and less fluff, fewer bugs and far less unpolished. I feel Cryptic can and should do better with the resources it has, especially with a major IP such as Star Trek -- Add that to the backing of Atari and there is no excuse for this game to be as unfinished and lackluster that it is this far out. IMHO the C-Store is just an excuse to fleece its customers for every penny it can, and I seriously doubt much of the money goes back into fixing the game.

It's a bit hypocritical to buy something you want from the c-store (Caitian) and then complain when others buy something they want, don't you think? The c-store isn't just about what you want or what I want. It's about trying to make everyone a little happy with limited manpower.

However Cryptic fans will always disagree with any nay-saying about this company, its policies and its games so we'll just have to agree to disagree -- However those are the same sort of defenses that will continue to allow Cryptic to continue in the vein that it is in now and will move it to being a niche game once a certain other famous Sci-Fi IP gets their game out the door next year.

Rather then attacking a segment of the fan base who might not agree with me I'll only say that each person has their own priorities for the game. Some people think Caitian hair is a priority and get frustrated that they don't have it yet when they want it. Other people think Androids are a priority and get frustrated they don't have it yet when they want it. Still other think new ships are a priority and get frustrated when they don't have it yet. The list of wants goes on and one. Cryptic is the one who has to decide how many of those wants will be fulfilled and how many will be rejected.

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Galaxicat wrote:

So I have to agree with the OP, many of the things on the C-Store should be gratis simply for having to put up with what is still an unfinished and buggy game, almost a year out from its launch.

Almost a year? Feb. 2 release date... You posted on Nov. 21... I still count 2 and a half months til the game is a year old, with a major content update in about 2 weeks. Don't exaggerate for the sole purpose of making a point. It makes your comment weaker.

Cosmic_One wrote: »

Rather then attacking a segment of the fan base who might not agree with me I'll only say that each person has their own priorities for the game. Some people think Caitian hair is a priority and get frustrated that they don't have it yet when they want it. Other people think Androids are a priority and get frustrated they don't have it yet when they want it. Still other think new ships are a priority and get frustrated when they don't have it yet. The list of wants goes on and one. Cryptic is the one who has to decide how many of those wants will be fulfilled and how many will be rejected.

Here here. We're a community and communities never have identical priorities and beliefs. Cryptic is the governing body who has to disseminate the feedback its given and release content based on that.

The game will be a year and a couple months old when Season 4 is scheduled to release with even more content. I think Cryptic is doing an excellent job considering the game was very unfinished at launch. They need the cash from microtransactions, and if people are willing to pay for content that hardly affects gameplay, then allow that as long as that content team can't be used on improving current gameplay and fixes.

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Galaxicat wrote:

Actually it is the fact that the Caitians were released with no hair, and at the time there were promises and statements made by Cryptic to the effect that they were in the works and coming soon -- I know of people who bought the Caitian race based on the promise of hair forthcoming. That promise has not been kept, and based on the company's track record in other games (City of Heroes comes to mind as does Champions.) Cryptic tends to make such promises lightly and fulfill them very late, if at all -- Which to me seems like a highly dishonest and an unethical business practice.

Here's Dstahl's actual post about Caitian hair:

one thing to note - you may have noticed the new hair tech used in the caitian beards. The team is planning to go back over all the hair in the game in the future to retrofit the older hair tech to this newer tech. When that is done, you can expect more hair options for the Caitians. There is also plans for more color variations and patterns in a future update.

I don't see anywhere in that post something saying "coming soon" or giving a specific time for when it's coming. All I see is a promise that it will be in a future update. The only one assuming it was "coming soon" was apparently you. I'm sorry you've had to wait 5 months for hair. Heck, Klinks have had to wait longer for new clothing options. Things get done when they get done. They don't get done simply because you want them now. We all want something now, and it's different for all of us.

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Let me start my post by saying that I am nowhere near a Cryptic apologist, nor am I a huge supporter of the C-Store. With that said, here's my take on it:

Currently, there is nothing that is a MUST HAVE up there. And the only things up there that have any measurable amount of game enhancing abilities can be gotten through other means in-game (i.e. the refit ships...with the exception of the Excelsior). I would love to see everything else earnable via other means, but it's not exactly ruining the game. And, yes, that's the only major problem that I have with it...if you really want it, just hand them a few dollars and it's yours. I'd rather work and earn my new ship skin or bridge or captain race.

While I agree that the new hair tech needs to be implemented ASAP, Cryptic only has so many resources available to them. And you can't just pull a ship/character artist and toss him in debugging. He's not trained for that. What apparently so few people understand is that nobody there can do everything.

As a huge supporter of the KDF, I went ahead and purchased the Vor'cha alternative skin, despite vowing never to buy another item off the C-Store. I had hoped that the funds would go to continuing development of that faction. Did it? Maybe, maybe not. I do know that a lot of much needed attention is coming our way, most of which looks awesome.

And I also plan on finally getting the Caitian race during the Black Friday sale...hair or no hair. Besides, I've still got a few CP left over from my last purchase, so it's not exactly like I'm giving them more money, anyway.

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Galaxicat wrote:

This was made at the time that Caitians were introduced in the C-Store. Trying to turn the discussion into an implication that I am simply saying "I want it now." is simply false. I am stating that Cryptic has a track record of putting new C-Store shinies before long standing bugs, incomplete content and game playissues, furthermore they are willing to shove even more C-Store options, unfinished, out the door with empty promises of fixing it 'later'. I would be satisfied with a progress update on the hair, and in fact have a post elsewhere asking for such, which to date hasn't been responded to.

Have you ever considered that maybe the new hair tech is a lot trickier to implement than they originally thought it would be? Not really trying to give an excuse here, just playing devil's advocate. And if that IS the case, it would be nice to be told that it's taking longer than estimated.

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Galaxicat wrote:

Which would be great. But I have seen this company sweep things that they promised then couldn't/wouldn't implement under the proverbial rug, never to be seen again. They have the money from the folks who bought Caitians in good faith, there is nothing really holding them to their promise now to finish them.

Under the old management I would have agreed with you 110%. However, with Dan Stahl at the helm, we're getting a much more transparent look into the development of the game. We're still getting delays and buggy content, but we're still getting this stuff eventually. The new KDF ships may not be the most spectacular, but they did arrive (albeit months after first promised). It will be the same with the new hair tech. For all we know, it's a surprise that'll come with the launch of Season Three.

As the saying goes, hope for the best but expect the worst.