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Forums > Home› Star Trek Online General Discussion

I still miss the Exploration clusters.

rothgarixrothgarix Member Posts: 12 Arc User
edited March 2015 in Star Trek Online General Discussion
Can we please have them back. I really liked being able to run just a short, quasi-random encounter. I know it's not exploration, but I found them fun. Take out the rewards if you have to. And yes, I know about the Foundry...just isn't the same. Maybe make them PART of the Foundry. Sorry, just my annual post about this.
Post edited by rothgarix on

Comments

  • frontline2042frontline2042 Member Posts: 219 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    I leveled my first guy mainly off of explore missions because it was more fun than the storyline. I miss those clusters, 3rd coolest thing cryptic put in the game behind foundry and duty officers.
    Ignorance is an obstacle not an excuse
    Let the stupid suffer
  • roadghostroadghost Member Posts: 394 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    I miss them as well.
  • captaingalaxy1captaingalaxy1 Member Posts: 202 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    Me too, bring them back, a core part of STO now gone. with nothing to replace it.
    "Omega Class will prevail she cannot be defeated!"
  • ddplattddplatt Member Posts: 83 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    Be great when the sector walls come down to have large areas with randomly generated star system in to explore, at Edge of maps, to replace the old clusters.
  • bcwhguderian1941bcwhguderian1941 Member Posts: 804 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    Another captain who bemoans the loss of our Exploration Clusters. They may have been "buggy",
    and not very difficult. But they were fun, and a great place to make use of low tier ships and
    equipment.

    I truly miss them. :(


    BCW.
  • baudlbaudl Member Posts: 4,060 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    Those missions were as repetitive as working at an assembly belt. Gameplay wise they actually were the lowest form of scripted events ever to be actually implemented in a game. The sector space pockets felt as if they were not part of the galaxy or even the game. Glad they are gone.
    I'm not saying nobody could ever possibly find them enjoyable, but doing more than 3 in a row means the player has some serious mental issues.
    Go pro or go home
  • bcwhguderian1941bcwhguderian1941 Member Posts: 804 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    baudl wrote: »
    Those missions were as repetitive as working at an assembly belt. Gameplay wise they actually were the lowest form of scripted events ever to be actually implemented in a game. The sector space pockets felt as if they were not part of the galaxy or even the game. Glad they are gone.
    I'm not saying nobody could ever possibly find them enjoyable, but doing more than 3 in a row means the player has some serious mental issues.

    Thanks for the caring support. :rolleyes:

    The Clusters weren't hurting anyone, and while you found them a waste, us brain damaged types
    liked them. :P


    BCW.
  • kerfokerfo Member Posts: 0 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    baudl wrote: »
    Those missions were as repetitive as working at an assembly belt. Gameplay wise they actually were the lowest form of scripted events ever to be actually implemented in a game. The sector space pockets felt as if they were not part of the galaxy or even the game. Glad they are gone.
    I'm not saying nobody could ever possibly find them enjoyable, but doing more than 3 in a row means the player has some serious mental issues.

    You're totally right. Even though they had some slight variation to every time you played it, they were still worse than the other things going on in this game that people get a rise out of playing thousands upon thousands of time. You know, patrols, the 100% predictability of all those lovely STFs and various other things. Who wouldn't want to play those things thousands of times and never be bored of doing precisely the exact same thing over and over and over and over and over and over and act like they're a major league gamer and totally boss? I know I would! :P


    More on topic though. I did find them nice. Perhaps (and I emphasis "perhaps" here) after the whole sector space revamp thing they may actually bring it back and make it better. Basically what ddplatt said though. Would be nice in general. For now, seems like just playing random foundry missions is one of the few ways to get away from the monotonous stuff even though foundry can be a bit limited itself.
    STO forum term definitions for newbies: Piloting Skill: That thing you do where you fly around and avoid big scary green plasma balls of death. Pressing F and spacebar may also relate to skill. Taco: A very sacred thing. Do not speak I'll of the Taco or things will happen. Terrible things! Humor: Something not found here. Don't bring it. This forum is serious business. Fun: Something illegal. Don't have it and don't bring it
  • bobbydazlersbobbydazlers Member Posts: 4,534 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    running around empty & deserted installations accessing computer terminals, scanning items on deserted planets, fighting the same enemy you can in any of the regular story missions, playing the same missions over and over and over and over and over and over.

    yeah I miss it to, like I miss the last bout of diarrhea I suffered.

    mind you I still think they should have left them in, so newer players could see how awful some missions could be so they will appreciate the thought that's gone into the regular story missions a bit more.

    I would like to know how many of the players who say they miss them can truthfully say they actually got all the top accolades for playing them before cryptic removed them.
    that's 30 accolades for 700 missions over 10 clusters, at 3 missions per cluster visit that should be easy for someone who enjoyed these clusters so much.

    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.

  • bbqfatalbbqfatal Member Posts: 17 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    I enjoyed the exploration and spend a lot of time there just wondering around in the pretty environment and hunting anomalies. It was a pleasant change from blowing things up.

    I would like them back in some updated form.
  • coupaholiccoupaholic Member Posts: 2,188 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    That voting poll they did a few months back had exploration as the top thing everyone wanted to see in game so you never know.

    Of course now with this Iconian war on the horizon the universe needs to burn some more first.
  • UnknownUnknown
    edited March 2015
    This content has been removed.
  • captaingalaxy1captaingalaxy1 Member Posts: 202 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    ddplatt wrote: »
    Be great when the sector walls come down to have large areas with randomly generated star system in to explore, at Edge of maps, to replace the old clusters.

    I do like this idea, How much effort would it take to alter the previous scripting to included different mission paths and less of the generic boring feel, yet still create something new to explore and more area's to "farm" R&D materials.
    "Omega Class will prevail she cannot be defeated!"
  • UnknownUnknown
    edited March 2015
    This content has been removed.
  • baudlbaudl Member Posts: 4,060 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    to add to my previous post, I want to add that cryptic rightfully took them out, to show they actually had a sense of dignity as a game developer left. Those missions were a design abomination and I hope they deleted every last copy of it in their office.

    They were not just bad game design, they were making the rest of the game look bad, really bad.
    The concept was so bad, that the only actual explanation I can come up with to why it was even in the game, is that the game itself was released in an early alpha stage and those missions were the generic testing ground developers normaly use for testing unfinished game mechanics. When the release deadline came closer, they simply had to scrap every little bit of playable content together no matter the quality.

    The reason why we still have repetitive patrol missions is probably because there are actually people who think this is good game design. So the developers thought: " Hey, if the players like those repetitive, unpolished kind of "filler" content, we should give it to them! It can't be worse than exploration cluster missions"

    Whatever the future may bring in terms of exploration, I truly hope cryptic does not listen to anybody who thought those missions were good content.
    Go pro or go home
  • UnknownUnknown
    edited March 2015
    This content has been removed.
  • angrytargangrytarg Member Posts: 11,010 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    I also miss them. They were a major selling point for the game and the only thing that came close to open-ended gameplay.
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    ^ Memory Alpha.org is not canon. It's a open wiki with arbitrary rules. Only what can be cited from an episode is. ^
    "No. Men do not roar. Women roar. Then they hurl heavy objects... and claw at you." -Worf, son of Mogh
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  • captaingalaxy1captaingalaxy1 Member Posts: 202 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    angrytarg wrote: »
    I also miss them. They were a major selling point for the game and the only thing that came close to open-ended gameplay.

    Trye^ With the sector space revamp, and the support for them. Cryptic have good reason to devote some resources to a revamp of exploration cluster bring back a much improved version to give players and open ended zone to explore.
    "Omega Class will prevail she cannot be defeated!"
  • captaingalaxy1captaingalaxy1 Member Posts: 202 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    crashdragon wrote: »
    Relax, Cryptic doesn't listen to anyone. :P

    I believe this more than I ever have done before
    "Omega Class will prevail she cannot be defeated!"
  • vifarcvifarc Member Posts: 29 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    captaingalaxy1 wrote: »
    With the sector space revamp, and the support for them. Cryptic have good reason to devote some resources to a revamp of exploration cluster bring back a much improved version to give players and open ended zone to explore.
    Exploration feeling is lacking, mainly for a Fed player. I liked the exploration in Mako vehicle in Mass Effect (I know many don't like this for they know how to drive the Mako).
    I hope for randomized space zones and planets to be (re)discovered.
    Don't this game be called Star Trek??
  • litchy74litchy74 Member Posts: 417 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    The main thing I miss about the exploration mission was strangely there throw awayness (?), while waiting for a the daily PvE to queue up or just a random SFT they filled the time. If you had to quit the mission 10 seconds before you new it was going to be completed I didn't care. They where perfect throw away fillers while waiting for the main course.

    Now most just sit in space looking at the queue timer and moan about the wait. Most episodes and foundary missions being to involved just to quit half way through. I know we have patrols but please how many times can you do the same thing over and over again.

    The old exploration missions where, poor, buggy, sometimes strange, sometimes funny, sometimes great but always a little different from each other and once removed no other system that served the same purpose was introduced. Which ever way you look at it, it was a net loss for the players.

    Rambling wall of text I'll stop.....
    Where ever you go, there you are.......

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  • architect13architect13 Member Posts: 1,076 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    They were removed so you could no longer farm for free crafting materials. As someone with several alts, I miss the ability of bridge invites for the exploration cluster doff missions . . . This also nerfed my Cell ship.
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  • shevetshevet Member Posts: 1,667 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    While they were (to put it mildly) not very good, they were the only nod to the concept of "seeking out new life and new civilizations" that we got. Now, the basic theme of the game seems to be "there are nasty aliens! Go shoot them!"

    They were also friendly to casual play - didn't take long, useful source of low-level materials. Overall, I think their removal was a bad thing. (To those who didn't like them... nobody's suggesting you should be made to play them.)

    An improved exploration system would enthuse me much more than yet more claptrap about "ooh, Iconians, scary!"
    8b6YIel.png?1
  • thutmosis85thutmosis85 Member Posts: 2,358 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    baudl wrote: »
    to add to my previous post, I want to add that cryptic rightfully took them out, to show they actually had a sense of dignity as a game developer left. Those missions were a design abomination and I hope they deleted every last copy of it in their office.

    They were not just bad game design, they were making the rest of the game look bad, really bad.
    The concept was so bad, that the only actual explanation I can come up with to why it was even in the game, is that the game itself was released in an early alpha stage and those missions were the generic testing ground developers normaly use for testing unfinished game mechanics. When the release deadline came closer, they simply had to scrap every little bit of playable content together no matter the quality.

    The reason why we still have repetitive patrol missions is probably because there are actually people who think this is good game design. So the developers thought: " Hey, if the players like those repetitive, unpolished kind of "filler" content, we should give it to them! It can't be worse than exploration cluster missions"

    Whatever the future may bring in terms of exploration, I truly hope cryptic does not listen to anybody who thought those missions were good content.

    Too bad they reintroduced them 3 months later with DR Patrols ... except with less Variety ...

    Yeah sure DR Patrols are the players "fault" ... because they liked them so much, if they're so good why remove them in the first place (doesn't make any sense) ... seriously stop sniffing glue ... the only reason we got Patrols is that Cryptic wasn't able (anymore) to release an Expansion with more than 8 Story Episodes ...

    PS : Nobody ever said they were GOOD content ... but they're better than nothing ...
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  • gulberatgulberat Member Posts: 5,505 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    They bored the living daylights out of me, and I only did them for leveling purposes. I realize I am in a minority here but I think Cryptic was in the right to pull them, and did so for the right reason. IMO the Foundry is a far better substitute for an "exploration"-like feel, if you choose the right mission.

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  • damainxdamainx Member Posts: 90 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    Cryptic's answer to all complaints 'Here, have a cookie!' (xp weekend, dil weekend, etc0
  • architect13architect13 Member Posts: 1,076 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    damainx wrote: »
    Cryptic's answer to all complaints 'Here, have a cookie!' (xp weekend, dil weekend, etc0

    You meant "oops, here's half a cookie. If we have you a whole cookie, you would not appreciate when you have half a cookie."
    Have you tried the new forum on your phone?
  • UnknownUnknown
    edited March 2015
    This content has been removed.
  • angrytargangrytarg Member Posts: 11,010 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    gulberat wrote: »
    They bored the living daylights out of me, and I only did them for leveling purposes. I realize I am in a minority here but I think Cryptic was in the right to pull them, and did so for the right reason. IMO the Foundry is a far better substitute for an "exploration"-like feel, if you choose the right mission.

    The foundry is not and can never be a substitute for exploration. This is by design - foundry missions are set missions without replayability. It is the complete opposite of exploration.
    lFC4bt2.gif
    ^ Memory Alpha.org is not canon. It's a open wiki with arbitrary rules. Only what can be cited from an episode is. ^
    "No. Men do not roar. Women roar. Then they hurl heavy objects... and claw at you." -Worf, son of Mogh
    "A filthy, mangy beast, but in its bony breast beat the heart of a warrior" - "faithful" (...) "but ever-ready to follow the call of the wild." - Martok, about a Targ
    "That pig smelled horrid. A sweet-sour, extremely pungent odor. I showered and showered, and it took me a week to get rid of it!" - Robert Justman, appreciating Emmy-Lou
    #TASforSTO
    Get the Forums Enhancement Extension!
  • markhawkmanmarkhawkman Member Posts: 35,236 Arc User
    edited March 2015
    architect13 wrote: »
    They were removed so you could no longer farm for free crafting materials. As someone with several alts, I miss the ability of bridge invites for the exploration cluster doff missions . . . This also nerfed my Cell ship.
    you have a weird definition of free..... I still farm crafting mats constantly, I don't buy them from the Z-store.... that aspect fo the clusters was redundant... to say the least.
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