I am locked into my ships, locked into my build on each of the two toons...and that is really unfortunate.
And this sentence pretty much sums up why people aren't liking DR as much. People used to have multiple toons and builds and rotated them. Now you're stuck with maybe one build per toon and one main toon.
Star Trek Online pretty much had to go F2P. The content drought way back caused the game to bleed players from what was then a very mediocre MMO and there was little reason for them to return. The shift to F2P made good commercial sense from the Devs perspective, even though it would pretty much ruin the game.
As for P2W, STO had that even before the game went F2P. what F2P did is increase the grind dramatically with absurd powers/sets as reward for grinding. Before that the power creep was virtually unnoticeable.
You should go on boards of Star Citizen then, lol.
People there donated USD 50 million combined for a game that might never come out.
Oh it'll come out, there's no real question about. The real question is whether or not it'll be a good game when it is finally released. Given that the PvP is already better than STO's, I'm seeing that as a positive sign.
There aren't kind and generous ways to describe somone who believes he has "invested" in the game.
Taco fangs comes as close as possible, he really understands this.
To the people who disagree. There isn't much to say besides "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."
I think there is a difference between speaking of "investment" when you are reckless with your money, blow huge amounts, and try to justify it to yourself afterwards--and what I was tryng to describe, which is an attitude of caution and moderation to ensure that spending does NOT get out of hand or end up eaten on insufficient time and enjoyment rewards. I don't think I've gotten anywhere near the OP's spend. But if I do spend, I want it to be worth my while.
Christian Gaming Community Fleets--Faith, Fun, and Fellowship! See the website and PM for more. :-) Proudly F2P.Signature image by gulberat. Avatar image by balsavor.deviantart.com.
This game will prosper or fail due to people spending money on it
Jellico....Engineer ground.....Da'val Romulan space Sci
Saphire.. Science ground......Ko'el Romulan space Tac
Leva........Tactical ground.....Koj Romulan space Eng
JJ-Verse will never be Canon or considered Lore...It will always be JJ-Verse
I don't know exactly how much I've spent. I just know that when a Lifetime Subscriber refers to me as a freeloader I get an insane urge to tell him to shut his low-spending pauper face.
theres nothing wrong with being a freeloader, even though i paid for a lifetime sub i still consider myself a freeloader as i have not spent any other money in game and all of my C-store purchases are from exchanging dil for zen including the dyson mega pack and the DR pack.
having said that i deeply appriciate anyone who is willing to spend anything on the game especially the kind of money the OP has, that does not however give any form of entitlement and he has no more say then you or me my friend.
no, i was a freeloader for a good while before buying lifetime and i will be a freeloader for a whole lot longer after and i dont see any reason to feel bad about that.
im just a freeloader with a few extra benifits.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
Oh it'll come out, there's no real question about. The real question is whether or not it'll be a good game when it is finally released. Given that the PvP is already better than STO's, I'm seeing that as a positive sign.
I don't know. Comparing it to what is generally agreed to be the weakest aspect of another game doesn't sound like much to pin your hopes on.
I only know what I've read about it. But when I read what the dev's say. I keep thinking Blue Mars
From January 28th, 2010 to about a month ago (when I stopped), I've spent close to $6800.00 on this game.
That's about $1360.00 a year.
Star Trek (in general) will probably be the ruin of my bank account for the rest of my life.
(it's done a pretty good job so far)
I feel I've pretty much gotten my money's worth up till Delta Rising, so I'm content to let Cryptic do Their thing, but from now on They are going to have to do a lot better to get any more of my funds.
:cool:
STO Member since February 2009. I Was A Trekkie Before It Was Cool ... Sept. 8th, 1966 ... Not To Mention Before Most Folks Around Here Were Born! Forever a STO Veteran-Minion
And this sentence pretty much sums up why people aren't liking DR as much. People used to have multiple toons and builds and rotated them. Now you're stuck with maybe one build per toon and one main toon.
I have at least 4 different builds on 4 ships. I have my PVE FAW DPS, my PVP build, My cannon and torp build, and now my support build with my command ship.
I have at least 4 different builds on 4 ships. I have my PVE FAW DPS, my PVP build, My cannon and torp build, and now my support build with my command ship.
I think you may be in a minority here, assuming you have actually been able to afford to keep all of that upgraded to at least Mk XIV VR and fully competitive.
Christian Gaming Community Fleets--Faith, Fun, and Fellowship! See the website and PM for more. :-) Proudly F2P.Signature image by gulberat. Avatar image by balsavor.deviantart.com.
I think you may be in a minority here, assuming you have actually been able to afford to keep all of that upgraded to at least Mk XIV VR and fully competitive.
I wont deny it was expensive, I convert zen to dilithium often, but its nice not to be hung up on one ship and one build.
I think that when that's a nicety the majority of the player base can't afford when they previously could, and also lack confidence they will be able to enjoy due to bugs, nerfs, and other problems, that's an issue. :-/
Christian Gaming Community Fleets--Faith, Fun, and Fellowship! See the website and PM for more. :-) Proudly F2P.Signature image by gulberat. Avatar image by balsavor.deviantart.com.
No thats not a stardate. That is the amount I have spent on this game as far back as ARC allows me to see.
I think everyone should post how much they have spent, if they have spent more than this.
I think that if I or anyone else has spent this much, or more, should have a certain amount of rights into the way this game is heading.
I also think that if you have spent this much, or more, you should than have some sort of right on creativity of this game. I am specifically talking about depictions of the ships and stations the game has in it, in regards of scale and authenticity.
I think there should be a FORMALIZED board, that can make those of us that have invested in this game feel a bit more appreciated. A way to make it better for those who have spent money to get what they want out of a product that has the name Star Trek on it.
You can see your purchase history on here, and if it equals or exceeds mine, and you have a gripe with the game, no matter how minor, than post the amount you have spent, and your issue you'd like to see resolved.
I have issues with the authenticity of the Galaxy-class starship. Mainly, its artistic depiction. With the 20th Anniversary of Star Trek Generations I had hopes of a galaxy-class revamp, but once again the ball was dropped.
IT IS CALLED "STAR TREK" ONLINE, not "STAR TREK: VOYAGER" ONLINE.
And dont give me any TRIBBLE about the pole conducted on which series they liked most. Im pretty sure the last STO Head Producer had his own favorite.
JJ ignored alot of Trek too, and so did the last head producer.
OK, took me a while to add it up $6155.00 USD.
Now, let me clarify something here....TL;DR all the replies to the OP. And, I'm probably not going to bother and here is why:
First. OP, you have ZERO rights when it comes to this game and how much you have spent, including if Cryptic decided to shut it down tomorrow. Please read your EULA. If you want to influence STO (or ANY game for that matter), apply for a job with Cryptic. I have spent alot of money on this game and yes, there are times when I feel that the game isn't going in the right direction or I don't agree with the Dev's, but just because I spent all that money, it's gives me ZERO influence. The money I spent was for a Product. Granted, a digital product, but a product nonetheless. When I buy a Mnt. Dew, I don't get to tell PepsiCo how to run their business just because over the last 5 years I have spent $7,000 USD on their products, so why should it be any difference here?
Second. "if it equals or exceeds mine" Seriously? So, your saying that unless people have spent the same or more than you are the only people who SHOULD have a say IF they did things like you suggest? Who are you? What makes you so special and your amount the magic number to be taken seriously? IF Cryptic was to implement something like you suggest, then it should be available to EVERYONE who plays the game. There should be no magic amount of $$$ that you have to spend to be heard. That is just elitism.
Third. No matter what game you play, it's never gonna be perfect. There will always be issues or items in the game that you do not like. Expecting the Dev's to change a ship just because you don't like it or feel that it is under-powered or it doesn't "look" like anything in the shows is just plain silly. FYI, NO ship in this game looks exactly like it did in the series/movie it came from. There are MANY reasons why, but the primary reason is that the technology used in the series/movies is different than the technology used in creating this game. The ship designers/artists in STO are really good and my hats off to them for the job they do, even if I'm not overly fond of a design, they do a tremendous amount of work on these ships to make them as close as possible to the series/movie ships as they possibly can.
Last. Yes, it is called Star Trek Online....however, there is a reason we are in the Delta Quadrant so much recently, which will soon be revealed. They spent a lot of time around DS9 as well, if memory serves and will probably spent a lot of time in the Gamma Quadrant when that gets opened up as well. It's just the newest areas to explore and do missions in.
Keep your shirt on dude. If you feel that you've wasted your money or that you have no voice in STO, either change games or apply for a job with Cryptic. I have spent more than you in this game and you know what? I don't care. I got what I wanted and still enjoy the game. Do I regret it? Not a single penny!
I don't feel I have any right in guiding a company I "invest" in, if by "invest" you mean buying their products. By that definition, I should be on Starbucks' Board of Directors
Having said that - have 7 characters I'd say 90% upgraded to XIV, and an eighth and ninth on the way through the leveling process. A good chunk of that upgrade effort was paid for in part by buying R&D packs and playing the exchange.
I do use multiple builds for each as well. Mine are selfish; one for grinding, one for DPS runs, and usually another that's almost entirely Space Barbie. Ok.. ok... they're all Space Barbie first, dps and grinding second.
I'm also a ship/console junkie. One of 'those people' who actually try to see if the consoles magically make me OP. Sadly that doesn't happen. OP players are simply really good pilots who understand how to use what they have.
So, I spend money for all of that. It's cheaper than hookers and blow, and far less troublesome.
But I don't expect to get anything other than what I'm already getting. Except whenthey change the games meta and "nerf" the playerbase. The people I grew to become friends with.
I've said it before, and I still believe it to be true:
The game pre-50 is fun, easy to play, and it has numerous difficulty settings and litterally hundreds of hours of non-repeating gameplay (foundry included).
Post 50 is the realm of the dedicated customer, someone who either has the time or willingness to research and learn -or - the money necessary to get what he/she wants. It's space barbie with bigger guns.
Post 50 is not F2P friendly. It's why we've seen such a drop in fleet populations and the death of the queues. They are starting to slowly get some life back, but in all honesty if you're not upgrading you're either a leet skilled player or your leaving the game. It's that simple.
LG is a ritzy part of town. The vast majority of us don't live here. We live in nearby cities. Try comparing to San Jose or Santa Clara. Still not cheap, but probably only 200% over average vs. 300%.
For further proof: Los Gatos, California was recently ranked #50 by Forbes Magazine of the most expensive places to live in the U.S.
Hmm, well Ive been on since launch and never paid an LTS- so I have paid some to this game but even after 5 years.. they've never done anything worth a quarter of what the OP has paid.. We get no say can have no petitions, rights or effect on game content period.. The devs seem to hate us for paying there wages... Admittedly I spend maybe an average of $10 a month on the game a number half of previous years and soon to be at $0.00 unless they fix a LOT and make the game actually playable again.. maybe actually make content instead of just cash grab after last grab before next grab.. they must DE-monetize everything or lose there precious paychecks from this cash cow that PWE would never have been able to make on its own instead they BOUGHT in to something good.. (look at every other PWE low res grind fest - they all suck) So in the end- entitlement? no not even for the whale spenders, the community in general is hated by those it supports- the game will last another 5 years, play to what you can enjoy and expect less and less from the company that pushes the game.
... the game will last another 5 years, play to what you can enjoy and
expect less and less from the company that pushes the game.
DOOM! has been called. We can all go to another thread now. Hey at launch people were saying DOOM in 6 months though. Ten years is pretty good longevity in Star Trek.
I spent some money on this game. I should get a say, too! I haven't spent nearly as much as the OP, so I accept that I won't get as much say, but I should still get a say!
Let's say... one pixel. I get to change one pixel. Sound fair? I think it does. I want to change one pixel, specifically on the borg omega set hull material. I want it to be bright pink and glow in the dark. I don't really care which pixel exactly, or precisely what shade of pink, but I want it! I don't think that's too much to ask, is it?
Star Citizen actually does this. Priority access to customer service and an additional forum.
Star Citizen started as a community founded operation. And at the moment it's little more than a proof of concept. I have little doubt than in 2 years we'll be hearing nasty things about them not involving their customer base in the business side of making decisions.
Cryptic has a customer board for Star Trek online. The don't publicize it, nor does the $$$ you spend play a role in getting on it. Playing the game does. You occasionally see messages on Twitter.
i spend 14 euros on the game itself, collectors edition with a T-shirt and some other goodies. Then i found gametimecards for 10 month for about 5 euros.
Then i subscribed for 4 month worth 45 euros (to get over 400 day subscriber) and got the steampowered package for 9 euros (that was a waste).
So, all in all about 73 euros. Most of that was before the game went f2p though.
I spent some money on this game. I should get a say, too! I haven't spent nearly as much as the OP, so I accept that I won't get as much say, but I should still get a say!
Let's say... one pixel. I get to change one pixel. Sound fair? I think it does. I want to change one pixel, specifically on the borg omega set hull material. I want it to be bright pink and glow in the dark. I don't really care which pixel exactly, or precisely what shade of pink, but I want it! I don't think that's too much to ask, is it?
:P
um, i've spent more money than you and i demand five pixels of my own on that set...... two neon yellows, three white
LTS, Legacy and Delta packs all when on sale, and probably 100-150 eur worth of zen. And during most of those transactions I can probably say that I still thoroughly enjoyed the game. I quickly regretted Delta pack though and haven't spent a penny since, and probably wont ever again.
No, your opinion does not count more than a random 524 people who spent $10 on the game. They collectively gave more to ARC/PWE than you did.
And a random 100 people who bought the Delta Pack paid in twice as much as you did.
The STO MMO is a business. If they pander to one big spender instead of 1,000 small spenders they will lose money. So they won't. The metrics don't support it, and listening to your idea would be a reporting error
um, i've spent more money than you and i demand five pixels of my own on that set...... two neon yellows, three white
Two lifetime subscriptions and a couple of zen purchases. So I'm entitled to even more. I demand undead Harry Kim wear an evil-Spock goatee! If doesn't then the game is broken! And everyone will quit playing!
Comments
And this sentence pretty much sums up why people aren't liking DR as much. People used to have multiple toons and builds and rotated them. Now you're stuck with maybe one build per toon and one main toon.
As for P2W, STO had that even before the game went F2P. what F2P did is increase the grind dramatically with absurd powers/sets as reward for grinding. Before that the power creep was virtually unnoticeable.
Oh it'll come out, there's no real question about. The real question is whether or not it'll be a good game when it is finally released. Given that the PvP is already better than STO's, I'm seeing that as a positive sign.
Daizen - Lvl 60 Tactical - Eclipse
Selia - Lvl 60 Tactical - Eclipse
I think there is a difference between speaking of "investment" when you are reckless with your money, blow huge amounts, and try to justify it to yourself afterwards--and what I was tryng to describe, which is an attitude of caution and moderation to ensure that spending does NOT get out of hand or end up eaten on insufficient time and enjoyment rewards. I don't think I've gotten anywhere near the OP's spend. But if I do spend, I want it to be worth my while.
Christian Gaming Community Fleets--Faith, Fun, and Fellowship! See the website and PM for more. :-)
Proudly F2P. Signature image by gulberat. Avatar image by balsavor.deviantart.com.
when its all said and done
when the last card is played
This game will prosper or fail due to people spending money on it
Saphire.. Science ground......Ko'el Romulan space Tac
Leva........Tactical ground.....Koj Romulan space Eng
JJ-Verse will never be Canon or considered Lore...It will always be JJ-Verse
theres nothing wrong with being a freeloader, even though i paid for a lifetime sub i still consider myself a freeloader as i have not spent any other money in game and all of my C-store purchases are from exchanging dil for zen including the dyson mega pack and the DR pack.
having said that i deeply appriciate anyone who is willing to spend anything on the game especially the kind of money the OP has, that does not however give any form of entitlement and he has no more say then you or me my friend.
no, i was a freeloader for a good while before buying lifetime and i will be a freeloader for a whole lot longer after and i dont see any reason to feel bad about that.
im just a freeloader with a few extra benifits.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
I don't know. Comparing it to what is generally agreed to be the weakest aspect of another game doesn't sound like much to pin your hopes on.
I only know what I've read about it. But when I read what the dev's say. I keep thinking Blue Mars
That's about $1360.00 a year.
Star Trek (in general) will probably be the ruin of my bank account for the rest of my life.
(it's done a pretty good job so far)
I feel I've pretty much gotten my money's worth up till Delta Rising, so I'm content to let Cryptic do Their thing, but from now on They are going to have to do a lot better to get any more of my funds.
:cool:
I Was A Trekkie Before It Was Cool ... Sept. 8th, 1966 ... Not To Mention Before Most Folks Around Here Were Born!
Forever a STO Veteran-Minion
I have at least 4 different builds on 4 ships. I have my PVE FAW DPS, my PVP build, My cannon and torp build, and now my support build with my command ship.
You are using the word "investment" in a manner different from that used by others.
I think you may be in a minority here, assuming you have actually been able to afford to keep all of that upgraded to at least Mk XIV VR and fully competitive.
Christian Gaming Community Fleets--Faith, Fun, and Fellowship! See the website and PM for more. :-)
Proudly F2P. Signature image by gulberat. Avatar image by balsavor.deviantart.com.
I wont deny it was expensive, I convert zen to dilithium often, but its nice not to be hung up on one ship and one build.
Christian Gaming Community Fleets--Faith, Fun, and Fellowship! See the website and PM for more. :-)
Proudly F2P. Signature image by gulberat. Avatar image by balsavor.deviantart.com.
OK, took me a while to add it up $6155.00 USD.
Now, let me clarify something here....TL;DR all the replies to the OP. And, I'm probably not going to bother and here is why:
First. OP, you have ZERO rights when it comes to this game and how much you have spent, including if Cryptic decided to shut it down tomorrow. Please read your EULA. If you want to influence STO (or ANY game for that matter), apply for a job with Cryptic. I have spent alot of money on this game and yes, there are times when I feel that the game isn't going in the right direction or I don't agree with the Dev's, but just because I spent all that money, it's gives me ZERO influence. The money I spent was for a Product. Granted, a digital product, but a product nonetheless. When I buy a Mnt. Dew, I don't get to tell PepsiCo how to run their business just because over the last 5 years I have spent $7,000 USD on their products, so why should it be any difference here?
Second. "if it equals or exceeds mine" Seriously? So, your saying that unless people have spent the same or more than you are the only people who SHOULD have a say IF they did things like you suggest? Who are you? What makes you so special and your amount the magic number to be taken seriously? IF Cryptic was to implement something like you suggest, then it should be available to EVERYONE who plays the game. There should be no magic amount of $$$ that you have to spend to be heard. That is just elitism.
Third. No matter what game you play, it's never gonna be perfect. There will always be issues or items in the game that you do not like. Expecting the Dev's to change a ship just because you don't like it or feel that it is under-powered or it doesn't "look" like anything in the shows is just plain silly. FYI, NO ship in this game looks exactly like it did in the series/movie it came from. There are MANY reasons why, but the primary reason is that the technology used in the series/movies is different than the technology used in creating this game. The ship designers/artists in STO are really good and my hats off to them for the job they do, even if I'm not overly fond of a design, they do a tremendous amount of work on these ships to make them as close as possible to the series/movie ships as they possibly can.
Last. Yes, it is called Star Trek Online....however, there is a reason we are in the Delta Quadrant so much recently, which will soon be revealed. They spent a lot of time around DS9 as well, if memory serves and will probably spent a lot of time in the Gamma Quadrant when that gets opened up as well. It's just the newest areas to explore and do missions in.
Keep your shirt on dude. If you feel that you've wasted your money or that you have no voice in STO, either change games or apply for a job with Cryptic. I have spent more than you in this game and you know what? I don't care. I got what I wanted and still enjoy the game. Do I regret it? Not a single penny!
LLAP \\//
Having said that - have 7 characters I'd say 90% upgraded to XIV, and an eighth and ninth on the way through the leveling process. A good chunk of that upgrade effort was paid for in part by buying R&D packs and playing the exchange.
I do use multiple builds for each as well. Mine are selfish; one for grinding, one for DPS runs, and usually another that's almost entirely Space Barbie. Ok.. ok... they're all Space Barbie first, dps and grinding second.
I'm also a ship/console junkie. One of 'those people' who actually try to see if the consoles magically make me OP. Sadly that doesn't happen. OP players are simply really good pilots who understand how to use what they have.
So, I spend money for all of that. It's cheaper than hookers and blow, and far less troublesome.
But I don't expect to get anything other than what I'm already getting. Except whenthey change the games meta and "nerf" the playerbase. The people I grew to become friends with.
I've said it before, and I still believe it to be true:
I know. I live in Los Gatos.
Star Citizen actually does this. Priority access to customer service and an additional forum.
DOOM! has been called. We can all go to another thread now. Hey at launch people were saying DOOM in 6 months though. Ten years is pretty good longevity in Star Trek.
Let's say... one pixel. I get to change one pixel. Sound fair? I think it does. I want to change one pixel, specifically on the borg omega set hull material. I want it to be bright pink and glow in the dark. I don't really care which pixel exactly, or precisely what shade of pink, but I want it! I don't think that's too much to ask, is it?
:P
Star Citizen started as a community founded operation. And at the moment it's little more than a proof of concept. I have little doubt than in 2 years we'll be hearing nasty things about them not involving their customer base in the business side of making decisions.
Cryptic has a customer board for Star Trek online. The don't publicize it, nor does the $$$ you spend play a role in getting on it. Playing the game does. You occasionally see messages on Twitter.
Then i subscribed for 4 month worth 45 euros (to get over 400 day subscriber) and got the steampowered package for 9 euros (that was a waste).
So, all in all about 73 euros. Most of that was before the game went f2p though.
um, i've spent more money than you and i demand five pixels of my own on that set...... two neon yellows, three white
Two lifetime subscriptions and a couple of zen purchases. So I'm entitled to even more. I demand undead Harry Kim wear an evil-Spock goatee! If doesn't then the game is broken! And everyone will quit playing!