I was actually very interested in the answer to this, so I looked up my purchase history across ARC and Steam. Since I started with FTP, $2400-2500, depending how well I scrolled and counted.
I don't regret it. This is the only game I have time for around RL responsibilities. My days of keeping up with the latest XBox console are over. I enjoy STO, and want to help support it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Don't let them promote you. Don't let them transfer you. Don't let them do anything that takes you off the bridge of that ship, because while you're there... you can make a difference.
-Captain James T. Kirk
About in the £800-£900 range which included LTS though I got the Delta Rising pack as a birthday present. It might be a little more considering I bought a LTS for my best friend too. That was surprisingly easy. She gave me her password and we cooperated to get the PIN emailed to her via ArcDefender since this was a "new" computer then I simply went through the options and purchased the LTS for her with my card.
I dabbled a little bit with lockboxes but most of my purchases went towards ships, bridge officer space unlocks for new characters, race unlocks and stuff like that. I don't regret a penny of it though because I get hours and hours of fun from STO to this day.
I haven't played in months, recently because my computer broke down and I haven't been able to get it repaired yet. I *can* run the WE ship race on my laptop, but don't really feel like playing much since this is a crappy laptop.
But to the guy who went 3rd party? Dumbest thing ever. I always report them when they clog my inbox ingame and never use them. Currency in this game, including zen, is stupid easy to get. I get a lot of my zen from Arc quests. My FTP acct I recently opened gets all her zen from Arc quests. My LTS gets the stipend + Arc quests.
As to real money I've spent. Not sure but probably not more than a couple hundred, if that. And all for zen purchases.
Now a LTS and loving it.
Just because you spend money on this game, it does not entitle you to be a jerk if things don't go your way.
I have come to the conclusion that I have a memory like Etch-A-Sketch. I shake my head and forget everything.
Pre-F2P subscriber fees probably make up the bulk of whatever the total is. I've only spent $50 over the past two and a half years, according to my messages. Anything before that was likely a few costumes and $20 in ship modules for the Fleet Kamarag, so probably at most $100ish on z-store stuff.
USS Sharlin NCC79713 B (part of sheridans access code) - T6, Hestia Class Advanced Escort
USS Babylon IV - T6 Krenim Science Vessel
USS Brakiri - T6 Elachi Escort
"I am Grey. I stand between the candle and the star."
"We are Grey. We stand between the darkness and the light."
I subscribed for 1 month prior to free-to-play. Since then I bought 1 month sub, and 1 ship, so I've spent a grand total of about $50 or $60 on STO in the approximately 7 years I been playing it.
I was also one of the big whales. Spending thousands of euro's. (playing since start). Partly addiction, partly because i wanted to support game development. Due to good job able to afford it.
Since the revamp I am spending nothing anymore. The revamp devaluated lots of items. In all those years I have never received any regognition slash "love" back except for the gold plated ferengi Ship.
STO is like a goldigger girldfriend, wants my money, don't get value for money in return any more ( thats the way I feel). This Cryptic company does totaly not understand that they should give VIP treatment to customers spending a lot.
I still remember the JOB advertisment where Cryptic asked for people to help monetize the game (according to job description). Well the new approaches make me spend zero money now, due to lack of customer satisfaction. Turned from promoter to demoter.
The only thing I now feel guilty about is that I better could have given all that money to charity.
What is really messed up is when you think about all the people in desperate poverty around the world.
Why would thinking about poor people be messed up?
probably meaning all the man baby bed wetters on here burning 1000s of crash on pixels for this game when there actully real world issues that need help. These players are the cesspit of human existence
The time YOU spend playing this game, you could have been out on the streets helping people in need.
No player, no matter how much he spends, deserves "vip treatment". If you dislike the game that much leave, it will be just fine without you.
What a dumb reply in my opinion. It's common in business and customer relationship to give extra's to good customers. Cryptic does not seem to care about people who spend lots of money. So I have stopped spending on this game. Just happily and totaly playing it for free now.
Even at the local football club I would got a better treatment (vip) if I would have invested the ammount of money I have invested in Cryptic. Cryptic cares zero and shows zero appreciation for people who have spend thoundends of euro's on virtual items etc.
So you better leave yourself, if you cannot stand other peoples opinions in a forum, it will be just fine without you, to use your own words.
Forget it, they won't do that based upon all the whining and gnashing that went on in these Forums when some unspecified number of players were given the Ferengi GPL Nagus Marauder. And for that matter whenever they send out emails to some players to award them other free stuff.
'But to be logical is not to be right', and 'nothing' on God's earth could ever 'make it' right!'
Judge Dan Haywood
'As l speak now, the words are forming in my head.
l don't know.
l really don't know what l'm about to say, except l have a feeling about it.
That l must repeat the words that come without my knowledge.'
No player, no matter how much he spends, deserves "vip treatment". If you dislike the game that much leave, it will be just fine without you.
What a dumb reply in my opinion. It's common in business and customer relationship to give extra's to good customers. Cryptic does not seem to care about people who spend lots of money. So I have stopped spending on this game. Just happily and totaly playing it for free now.
Even at the local football club I would got a better treatment (vip) if I would have invested the ammount of money I have invested in Cryptic. Cryptic cares zero and shows zero appreciation for people who have spend thoundends of euro's on virtual items etc.
So you better leave yourself, if you cannot stand other peoples opinions in a forum, it will be just fine without you, to use your own words.
Giving VIP treatment to the big spenders maybe the norm in many industry...however it is not one that is widely practiced in MMO games. This is because paying for swag is one thing...paying to get better treatment from the game is quite another. What you are refering to is called P2W...and that is a BAD thing. You seem to be under the mistaken impression that because you spend lots of money, you are all that matters. In an MMO, that is not the case. If they cared just about YOU and other like you who spends thousands, those that don't will get frustrated and leave. And you can't have an MMO if you don't have others to play with. So...yeah what you are demanding being a bad thing ain't exactly an opinion as many MMO have done that and failed with players leaving in droves. So bad idea idea is bad. Past ample examples say so. And if you want to P2W so badly...there are few of them still around you can join and lord over the lowly peasants who doesn't spend thousands of dollar/euro a month. But you'd better hurry...those are dying pretty fast as the modern MMO players won't have any of that...well that or learn to speak, read and write korean. Because they are insane and for some reason thrive on terrible ideas like that.
Several things you said in reply to me are incorrect. Just to name some
You wrote:"You seem to be under the mistaken impression that because you spend lots of money, you are all that matters.". Nonsense I am not saying "I am all that matters". I was talking about customer appreciation to all who actualy spend money in thes F2P game, which is lacking. (without money this game would not exist)
You wrote:"If they cared just about YOU and other like you who spends thousands, those that don't will get frustrated and leave.". I did not say I leave (also I did not say I dislike STO). I said and say "I am not spendeing money anymore on STO, because lacking customer appreciation". And because Cryptic devaluate items and ships after customers have bought them (they call it re-ballancing or revamping, which is actualy do, see all topics about (stealth) nerfing.
You wrote:"And if you want to P2W so badly". I never say I want Pay to Win. P2W and customer appreciation are completely different things. Cryptic could do a lot of things to show appreciation to people who spend (much) money, but they don't. What would you or someone else appreciate if you have spend e.g. thousands to feel a valued customer?
And last: there is a difference between customerts who actualy spend (much) money on this game en people like I did, and people who are not willing to spend any money on this game like I do now because there is no customer appreciation. Imagine no one would pay. How long would this game exist you think?
So from me a big thank you to all the customers who do pay or have payed a lot of money, they are the enablers. But this appreciation should not come from me but from Cryptic.
Comments
On the other hand, the money I spend on booze or drugs over my lifetime: 0 $
The money I spend on Starbuck's Coffee over my lifetime: 5 $ or so.
Are
you
serious?
That gotta be the record here.
I don't regret it. This is the only game I have time for around RL responsibilities. My days of keeping up with the latest XBox console are over. I enjoy STO, and want to help support it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Don't let them promote you. Don't let them transfer you. Don't let them do anything that takes you off the bridge of that ship, because while you're there... you can make a difference.
-Captain James T. Kirk
About in the £800-£900 range which included LTS though I got the Delta Rising pack as a birthday present. It might be a little more considering I bought a LTS for my best friend too. That was surprisingly easy. She gave me her password and we cooperated to get the PIN emailed to her via ArcDefender since this was a "new" computer then I simply went through the options and purchased the LTS for her with my card.
I dabbled a little bit with lockboxes but most of my purchases went towards ships, bridge officer space unlocks for new characters, race unlocks and stuff like that. I don't regret a penny of it though because I get hours and hours of fun from STO to this day.
But to the guy who went 3rd party? Dumbest thing ever. I always report them when they clog my inbox ingame and never use them. Currency in this game, including zen, is stupid easy to get. I get a lot of my zen from Arc quests. My FTP acct I recently opened gets all her zen from Arc quests. My LTS gets the stipend + Arc quests.
As to real money I've spent. Not sure but probably not more than a couple hundred, if that. And all for zen purchases.
Why would thinking about poor people be messed up?
USS Sharlin NCC79713 B (part of sheridans access code) - T6, Hestia Class Advanced Escort
USS Babylon IV - T6 Krenim Science Vessel
USS Brakiri - T6 Elachi Escort
"We are Grey. We stand between the darkness and the light."
– Grey Council greeting
Since the revamp I am spending nothing anymore. The revamp devaluated lots of items. In all those years I have never received any regognition slash "love" back except for the gold plated ferengi Ship.
STO is like a goldigger girldfriend, wants my money, don't get value for money in return any more ( thats the way I feel). This Cryptic company does totaly not understand that they should give VIP treatment to customers spending a lot.
I still remember the JOB advertisment where Cryptic asked for people to help monetize the game (according to job description). Well the new approaches make me spend zero money now, due to lack of customer satisfaction. Turned from promoter to demoter.
The only thing I now feel guilty about is that I better could have given all that money to charity.
The time YOU spend playing this game, you could have been out on the streets helping people in need.
What a dumb reply in my opinion. It's common in business and customer relationship to give extra's to good customers. Cryptic does not seem to care about people who spend lots of money. So I have stopped spending on this game. Just happily and totaly playing it for free now.
Even at the local football club I would got a better treatment (vip) if I would have invested the ammount of money I have invested in Cryptic. Cryptic cares zero and shows zero appreciation for people who have spend thoundends of euro's on virtual items etc.
So you better leave yourself, if you cannot stand other peoples opinions in a forum, it will be just fine without you, to use your own words.
l don't know.
l really don't know what l'm about to say, except l have a feeling about it.
That l must repeat the words that come without my knowledge.'
Several things you said in reply to me are incorrect. Just to name some
You wrote:"You seem to be under the mistaken impression that because you spend lots of money, you are all that matters.". Nonsense I am not saying "I am all that matters". I was talking about customer appreciation to all who actualy spend money in thes F2P game, which is lacking. (without money this game would not exist)
You wrote:"If they cared just about YOU and other like you who spends thousands, those that don't will get frustrated and leave.". I did not say I leave (also I did not say I dislike STO). I said and say "I am not spendeing money anymore on STO, because lacking customer appreciation". And because Cryptic devaluate items and ships after customers have bought them (they call it re-ballancing or revamping, which is actualy do, see all topics about (stealth) nerfing.
You wrote:"And if you want to P2W so badly". I never say I want Pay to Win. P2W and customer appreciation are completely different things. Cryptic could do a lot of things to show appreciation to people who spend (much) money, but they don't. What would you or someone else appreciate if you have spend e.g. thousands to feel a valued customer?
And last: there is a difference between customerts who actualy spend (much) money on this game en people like I did, and people who are not willing to spend any money on this game like I do now because there is no customer appreciation. Imagine no one would pay. How long would this game exist you think?
So from me a big thank you to all the customers who do pay or have payed a lot of money, they are the enablers. But this appreciation should not come from me but from Cryptic.