My understanding is that the communications "blackout" is due to the community in general. During the pre-F2P times, there would be "Engineering Reports" that were out every few months. This would list near-term, short-term, and long-term (ideas) that the team had.
The problem came from the community's expectation that these were "promises" and not a "hey, we are thinking about doing this but these are just what we would LIKE to do." The community was upset that XYZ feature was moved off the list that they were "promised" to get previously.
After F2P and around when DStahl left the EP chair the first time, the communications dropped to the Dev Blogs and they only told the community things that are VERY near-term and did not discuss long-term plans as they change.
Matt
Nah the real communications blackout happened after this:
Massively took a private post made by Jeremy, twisted it, and then ran with it. After that the devs fell silent for quite a while. To compare the deafining silence.. it would make the current canned and sanitized press releases from Branflakes feel like family.
I will never ever forgive Massively even though it was a different writer at the time. Their current writer, Terry I think, is well respected even though I still refuse to read. That was the start of the fall of communication... and every time I see Cryptic giving Massively an exclusive, I don't read it and it makes me wrench a little inside.
As for Stephen... he was running the joint when Atari owned Cryptic.... all it was clear to all at the time that STO was cash cow that they pumped for money with little to no investment.
join Date: Sep 2009 - I want my changeling lava lamp!
I sincerely wish Dan and Stephen all the best in their new positions. If they're successful, we gamers are the one's who will benefit.
As far as Cryptic's next project, please please please for the love of all that is holy, let it be on a newly developed engine or at least a higher quality 3rd party engine. One of the many reasons I couldn't get into Neverwinter, was because of it feeling extremely dated for being a supposed brand spanking new game. It's far past time to put that dated engine out to pasture.
I sincerely wish Dan and Stephen all the best in their new positions. If they're successful, we gamers are the one's who will benefit.
As far as Cryptic's next project, please please please for the love of all that is holy, let it be on a newly developed engine or at least a higher quality 3rd party engine. One of the many reasons I couldn't get into Neverwinter, was because of it feeling extremely dated for being a supposed brand spanking new game. It's far past time to put that dated engine out to pasture.
Agreed, and please make the new game have its own server too !
Let us wear Swimsuits on Foundry maps or bridges please! I would pay zen for that.
IIRC D'angelo got saddled with a lot of TRIBBLE that probably wasn't even his fault. He stepped in during a tumultuous period of change, and whoever was in that chair was gonna get hell no matter what. By the same token, I think decisions he made in terms of direction were falsely attributed to Stahl shortly after his return as things within D'angelo's purview began to come to fruition.
I'm just sayin', let's keep in mind that the next, oh, three months* or so, is probably stuff scheduled before he had a say, and if it's TRIBBLE, it's probably got more to do with Stahl than D'angelo.
*number pulled out of aft, intended to seem reasonable but possibly under or over-selling the overlap.
Wow....hold onto your hats, this guy took the fun out of STO, before Dan came back the last time, D'Angelo has much to prove, to earn back my business, I am very, very, very sad to see Dan go, and it is my hope we do not re enter the dark ages of STO, that was felt the last time D'Angelo was at the helm.
I am not sure if this is a good this is good for STO or not, I will say last time it was not..... I hope his vision is more in line with Dan's this time around.... I hope for the best, but it I have lived through the worst in STO, and most of was under D'Angelo's watch. I will try to be optimistic......
Now I know how the TNG crew felt when Edward Jellico was given command of the enterprise
Best wishes Dan!....you will be greatly missed again.......
IIRC D'angelo got saddled with a lot of TRIBBLE that probably wasn't even his fault. He stepped in during a tumultuous period of change, and whoever was in that chair was gonna get hell no matter what. By the same token, I think decisions he made in terms of direction were falsely attributed to Stahl shortly after his return as things within D'angelo's purview began to come to fruition.
I'm just sayin', let's keep in mind that the next, oh, three months* or so, is probably stuff scheduled before he had a say, and if it's TRIBBLE, it's probably got more to do with Stahl than D'angelo.
*number pulled out of aft, intended to seem reasonable but possibly under or over-selling the overlap.
That's so true. Last time he pretty much got left holding the bag and a lot of people are still scarred from that. Season 8 brought in some nice additions feature wise it just along with the hit from S7 it hasn't gone so well.
I'm just hoping if they actually do have stuff planned and already worked on for 2014 that its something to kind of repair his reputation even if he's just here again as a temporary EP again.
The great burn of f2p where pretty much all the pre-f2p players got their currencies coverted to dilithium with a heavy heavy hardcap.
Edit: Oh yeah the lockbox issue too because it was misrepresented because the lockbox platform wasn't as well known as it is now. That is why by the time the 2nd and 3rd lockboxes hit and they were barely making any money off them they sent out an email to every player with a survey asking why they weren't buying keys(first one was a present). Soon after that survey they said wait up playerbase flying off in a hurry we got you Stahl back lol.
Welcome back Stephen, hopefully this time you will have a more enjoyable ride in the big chair and be able to add your own flair to the game.
Agreed.
I don't know how to feel about this news frankly. All I'm sure of now is ARC's still breathin down our collective necks.....
Does this mean that all of Dan's plans for STO have stopped development? Has all STO development stopped now in lieu of this new secret project?
How has this impacted STO? Cause we just know this shake-up's gotta have an impact.
Part of me wants to take this information positively, but the other part's like a little kid who just wants someone to tell him it'll be alright.
all the exciting things we've got planned for STO in 2014
mind sharing what those things are?
because i really want something to look forward to with this game that is collecting dust on my SSD ...that i poured so much time and money into and now can't be bothered to play.
I know there is another "expansion" on the way, but if that will be 2014 or 15 idk, and if that means new faction or a big huge content update is another big ??? (i expect another faction, because you guys need more ships to sell and those $200 are of course nice too... but i really would want to see the story of STO continue, rather than be a pure means to introduce the next grind zone or another *viewpoint* of the things that already happened. And seriously, i don't see how you could shoehorn another Faction into the FED and KDF factions without making it utterly unbelievable)
summer and winter event are obligatory at this point
(and at least for me NOT scratching that STAR TREK itch at all. I loved the quality of that Winter PvE Map, that i've played one round in... but at the same time i was totally creeped out how good the atmosphere was... and how much it reminded me of that SHREK movie... instead of STAR TREK...)
sooo... please! something to look forward to?
PS: last time i played my rear speakers were still making those clicking noises that i and many others reported right after the LoR release. I refuse to play this game as long as that bug isn't fixed.
He's "gone" from STO, if that's what you mean, but he's here at Cryptic working on a top secret new project; it's pretty exciting.
And no, what you're guessing is completely inaccurate and you know it
Cheers,
Brandon =/\=
quite a curious coincidence even so, this fugitive appears, cryptic wont confirm or deny its a member of staff at the work place or one kicked out. and suddenly stahl drops out for an exciting "top secret project" within PWE.
T6 Miranda Hero Ship FTW. Been around since Dec 2010 on STO and bought LTS in Apr 2013 for STO.
So Dan left to work on yet another game for Cryptic. Any idea what IP Cryptic got their hands on this time? :P
The Agents of Shield MMO lol
You will hunt down the remaining players of CO because they are too dangerous to be out in the world.
Edit: Oh yeah I also want to be in charge of the KDF production its simple I get no pay, no KDF production, and I get a fancy Cryptic title as an unpaid employee.
quite a curious coincidence even so, this fugitive appears, cryptic wont confirm or deny its a member of staff at the work place or one kicked out. and suddenly stahl drops out for an exciting "top secret project" within PWE.
I wish you luck, new captain, if you want us to like you, you will kill the ARC beast (jaberwacki?) and let us have a dedicated launcher without a bunch of data collection to sell to china and spam for unrelated games or products.
Hrmm, suppose I should start off with the welcome (but c'mon, that's almost cruel to say - offering condolences would probably be taken the wrong way too - ahem)...
...but I want to get in on the What's Dan Doing Now? game!
Based on his previous experience, things said here and there...
Cryptic's going to be coming out with a CCG/MOBA game that's web based...
...or maybe web based Klingon Monopoly!...
...but yeah, back to the welcome thing - hrmm, this isn't a repeat of the interim thing again, eh?
Captain: thank you, this is not my first command you know...
Commander: I am aware of that sir, here is my transfer request...
Captain: what?
Commander: I have served with you before, your style of command is a train wreck that I barely survived last time, between the lack of communication and the deception, I'll skip this rerun back to the dark ages....it was a horrible ride, hold that transport, have my things forwarded to Star Base 139.
Welcome back Stephen "Bring the Grind" D'Angelo....there is no where but up! (I hope)
Comments
Nah the real communications blackout happened after this:
http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/15/star-trek-online-dev-not-concerned-with-losing-global-playabilit/
http://bluekae.com/2012/05/15/this-is-why-we-cant-have-nice-things/
http://www.mmorpg.com/mobile/forums.cfm/forum/1250/forums.tearsofpolaris.com/forums.cfm?ismb=1&threadId=351574
Massively took a private post made by Jeremy, twisted it, and then ran with it. After that the devs fell silent for quite a while. To compare the deafining silence.. it would make the current canned and sanitized press releases from Branflakes feel like family.
I will never ever forgive Massively even though it was a different writer at the time. Their current writer, Terry I think, is well respected even though I still refuse to read. That was the start of the fall of communication... and every time I see Cryptic giving Massively an exclusive, I don't read it and it makes me wrench a little inside.
As for Stephen... he was running the joint when Atari owned Cryptic.... all it was clear to all at the time that STO was cash cow that they pumped for money with little to no investment.
As far as Cryptic's next project, please please please for the love of all that is holy, let it be on a newly developed engine or at least a higher quality 3rd party engine. One of the many reasons I couldn't get into Neverwinter, was because of it feeling extremely dated for being a supposed brand spanking new game. It's far past time to put that dated engine out to pasture.
Qa'pla! yay Qa'pla!
R.I.P
Agreed, and please make the new game have its own server too !
True, I forgot about that. Thanks for the reminder.
Matt
Find us at CovenantofHonor.com. My Twitter handle; @jmattmiracle
Why do I get a sense of deja vu here?
Last time this happened, was before something bad was about to hit the fan.
I would be willing to bet latinum on this something being the launch of the dreaded ARC.
I hope I'm wrong, and that I can stand down from Red Alert, but for now, this ship will remian at Red Alert status....
I'm just sayin', let's keep in mind that the next, oh, three months* or so, is probably stuff scheduled before he had a say, and if it's TRIBBLE, it's probably got more to do with Stahl than D'angelo.
*number pulled out of aft, intended to seem reasonable but possibly under or over-selling the overlap.
I Support Disco | Disco is Love | Disco is Life
I am not sure if this is a good this is good for STO or not, I will say last time it was not..... I hope his vision is more in line with Dan's this time around.... I hope for the best, but it I have lived through the worst in STO, and most of was under D'Angelo's watch. I will try to be optimistic......
Now I know how the TNG crew felt when Edward Jellico was given command of the enterprise
Best wishes Dan!....you will be greatly missed again.......
That's so true. Last time he pretty much got left holding the bag and a lot of people are still scarred from that. Season 8 brought in some nice additions feature wise it just along with the hit from S7 it hasn't gone so well.
I'm just hoping if they actually do have stuff planned and already worked on for 2014 that its something to kind of repair his reputation even if he's just here again as a temporary EP again.
The great burn of f2p where pretty much all the pre-f2p players got their currencies coverted to dilithium with a heavy heavy hardcap.
Edit: Oh yeah the lockbox issue too because it was misrepresented because the lockbox platform wasn't as well known as it is now. That is why by the time the 2nd and 3rd lockboxes hit and they were barely making any money off them they sent out an email to every player with a survey asking why they weren't buying keys(first one was a present). Soon after that survey they said wait up playerbase flying off in a hurry we got you Stahl back lol.
Agreed.
I don't know how to feel about this news frankly. All I'm sure of now is ARC's still breathin down our collective necks.....
Does this mean that all of Dan's plans for STO have stopped development? Has all STO development stopped now in lieu of this new secret project?
How has this impacted STO? Cause we just know this shake-up's gotta have an impact.
Part of me wants to take this information positively, but the other part's like a little kid who just wants someone to tell him it'll be alright.
console gaming, big whoop!
Add a big fat red Qapla'! for Dan from me as well for keeping that part of the promise and completeing the Klingon faction.
I hope the new-old EP continues the positive trend that Dan started this past year towards the KDF, but I'll miss him nevertheless.
welcome back @ F2P-EEPH,
maybe now you can get to those "i call three featured episode series a year an epic win" that we talked about?
mind sharing what those things are?
because i really want something to look forward to with this game that is collecting dust on my SSD ...that i poured so much time and money into and now can't be bothered to play.
I know there is another "expansion" on the way, but if that will be 2014 or 15 idk, and if that means new faction or a big huge content update is another big ??? (i expect another faction, because you guys need more ships to sell and those $200 are of course nice too... but i really would want to see the story of STO continue, rather than be a pure means to introduce the next grind zone or another *viewpoint* of the things that already happened. And seriously, i don't see how you could shoehorn another Faction into the FED and KDF factions without making it utterly unbelievable)
summer and winter event are obligatory at this point
(and at least for me NOT scratching that STAR TREK itch at all. I loved the quality of that Winter PvE Map, that i've played one round in... but at the same time i was totally creeped out how good the atmosphere was... and how much it reminded me of that SHREK movie... instead of STAR TREK...)
sooo... please! something to look forward to?
PS: last time i played my rear speakers were still making those clicking noises that i and many others reported right after the LoR release. I refuse to play this game as long as that bug isn't fixed.
quite a curious coincidence even so, this fugitive appears, cryptic wont confirm or deny its a member of staff at the work place or one kicked out. and suddenly stahl drops out for an exciting "top secret project" within PWE.
Been around since Dec 2010 on STO and bought LTS in Apr 2013 for STO.
The Agents of Shield MMO lol
You will hunt down the remaining players of CO because they are too dangerous to be out in the world.
Edit: Oh yeah I also want to be in charge of the KDF production its simple I get no pay, no KDF production, and I get a fancy Cryptic title as an unpaid employee.
My guesses...
My Little Pony MMO?
Hello Kitty Fight Club?
I have a feelin there is an unspoken truth here.
Is there a game afoot ?
Welcome Stephen D'Angelo the ship is yours.
Its going to be intresting watching Star Trek Online develop over 2014.
I think Gazillion would call dibs on that one
btw. i'm playing with my F2P Iron Man over there in that other corner of the Internet (and Heretic plays content designer over there too!)
can it wait for a bit? im in the middle of some calibrations. :P
Been around since Dec 2010 on STO and bought LTS in Apr 2013 for STO.
still, stop in for a visit every once in a while? perhaps join us in-game for an STF every once in a while?
WE DON'T TALK ABOUT FIGHT CLUB!!!~
...but I want to get in on the What's Dan Doing Now? game!
Based on his previous experience, things said here and there...
Cryptic's going to be coming out with a CCG/MOBA game that's web based...
...or maybe web based Klingon Monopoly!...
...but yeah, back to the welcome thing - hrmm, this isn't a repeat of the interim thing again, eh?
Been here since beta, and they never said that.
Captain: thank you, this is not my first command you know...
Commander: I am aware of that sir, here is my transfer request...
Captain: what?
Commander: I have served with you before, your style of command is a train wreck that I barely survived last time, between the lack of communication and the deception, I'll skip this rerun back to the dark ages....it was a horrible ride, hold that transport, have my things forwarded to Star Base 139.
Welcome back Stephen "Bring the Grind" D'Angelo....there is no where but up! (I hope)