Main thing is obviously that it's a Star Trek game. There's a bunch of games that I play solely because they are Star Trek including STO. BOTF, SFC3, Armada and Armada 2 are my favorites.
Back to STO, the introduction of new ships is the main thing that keeps me going. Playing adventure zones and battlezones is another favorite. Also adding fleet holdings keeps me coming back since I'm a core contributor to our fleets.
Featured episodes are mostly stale at this point IMO which is a shame because you guys do a really good job on the art side of things. The recent episodes are beautiful visually but lack a certain "Star Trek feeling" that I desire. They feel more like generic sci-fi whereas I prefer a sold TNG alien of the week experience or even a good old fashioned "bottle episode." I would LOVE a story mission in which I have to play a series of new mini-games to try and fix an engineering problem or a power problem or a holodeck problem on the ship.
When you see "TRIBBLE" in my posts, it's because I manually typed "TRIBBLE" and censored myself.
The fact that I find the game to be enjoyable on many levels is the main reason I play the game and invest in it by buying zen and the LTS. For me a game must have something unique about it that even if the content is repetitive in nature, the degree by which it is played is not. You never know what kind of PUG you are going to get even though you know the map. The players, and interaction of the players gives STO an alive feeling that all successful games of this type have. The addition of new content, a vast library of content, and unique events all conspire to make STO a fun and highly addictive game for fan of Star Trek in general. That and the visuals, attention to set detail, ship variants, character variants, locations, events, vast size of the map, etc all contribute to why I enjoy playing the game.
What happened to those unique forum ranks I paid for?
well, as i don't play for quite some time anymore i might tell ya why that is the case ;P ^^ (imo much more interesting than asking the way reound u did):
- lack of balance and powercreep allaround since introduction of fleetgear
- no regard to pvp at all, while balancing round pvp would've allowed a way more balanced pve environment and opportunities as well (instead of "add moar hp")!
- no interest staff-side on quality gameplay, rinse/repeat content allaround. this goes for story-missions as well
- removing of essential parts of trek-lore, like exploration
- overboarding rep-, gear-, set-, crafting/upgrading economy which leads to eeeeendless grinds (even more if wanna pvp at the slightest)
- no option at all to upgrade former t5's to t6's. "yay, resell em all". one of the worst decisions ever in here imo, even more with the baited commentary before that they will be "equal"
- pvp baits for years, just to get kicked into "moms basement" by leadstaff, who states "we sell ships". yeah, thats it, rest is beyond meeeh!
... posting such a question imo speaks the language of desperation imo. something like: "we dont get new players, how could we tie the ones we got even stronger?!"
u think i'm salty lol?! no, just a lifer, 5 years of intesive sto while it all went down and out for like 2 years now(!). a few ago i reinstalled to have a look. lasted like 30 mins on my hdd^^..... njoy
this is meant to be honest feedback, not flaming. it is simply what i experienced! u can choose to edit my post and go on as before, or just leave it and finally start to work with!
Everyone is agreeing on the same point. The name, Star Trek. Everything else is secondary to this.
Now, take a moment to ask yourself, "If it wasn't for the name, what do we have in game that would make players want to stay?"
The answer will vary by person. But, you'll come to understand, there's very little in game that actually inspires a player to want to stay.
Especially now, with episodes that hold you hand and lead you through them. You're not doing anything more for these, than being the one that's there to kill stuff, and click something every now and again.
Here's some food for thought. The higher ups keep saying they want to remove the factions. They want to make it all the same. You've done the once already, plasmonic leech comes to mind here. This cost you players back then. The major influx of power creep at Delta Rising, cost you even more players. Now you're asking about retention, when all the evidence that points to player loss, is right there in front of you. Just look at what the developers have put in at each juncture where you lost more and more players. Then, do the exact opposite of that.
This will mean a return to more challenging game play, less focus on power creep, more meaningful stories where you actually feel like you're a starship captain making a difference. This will also mean keeping factions separate and working on the PvP front. Because you have a lot of players that enjoy PvP, it's just not worth the aggravation of how it is now.
Some would say, Star Trek isn't about PvP. Oh, but it is. Star Trek has always been about the factions facing off.
TOS = Klingon War
TNG = Klingons ~>Romulans ~> Borg
DS9 = Cardassian ~> Dominion
Voy = Exploration/Survival ~> Klingons/Borg/Vaadwuar/Hirogen
Which is one thing the game is missing. The factions aren't facing off over anything. There is no contention over how things should be done. There's just "We serve Federation. Good Drone One kills it."
Not much, I don't login to play like I used to. The game itself is a grind that isn't interesting. Unlike games like WoW, tier progression is tied to a cash shop either by direct ship sales or keys. One argues that you can grind out all the stuff via the exchange but that just makes the problem worse honestly. The monetization isn't very well hidden in the fun factor and it kills things for me.
Another aspect that discourages me from playing is bugs. Between missions with broken areas like the Delta Rising one with the catwalks missing a while back to getting a new light engine only to lose day/night cycles that used to make the game more immersive. It's like going to an old amusement park and seeing a lot of boarded up areas that just can't be bothered to fix anymore because of a lack of resources/talent/tools to do so.
Lack luster ground play, I jump in to SWTOR and the ground pounding is amazing there. Here, not so much as it feels klunky. The ship combat feels more robust compared to SWTOR however which is basically a rails type setup over there. So it's not all bad, but could be better.
At this point the only thing that keeps me playing is not the game itself but the in game DJ broadcasts done now and then. The content feels kind of dull/grindy and drives me off more to spend time in other games that "hide the grind" much more effectively than your game does.
Everyone is agreeing on the same point. The name, Star Trek. Everything else is secondary to this.
Your statement is inaccurate. I, for one, have stated more than once that it's the gameplay that brings me back. There are any number of games with the Star Trek name on them that don't appeal to me in the least - Timelines, for instance, or Bridge Commander.
Please do not assume that just because some of the posts agree with you, all of them do.
Everyone is agreeing on the same point. The name, Star Trek. Everything else is secondary to this.
Your statement is inaccurate. I, for one, have stated more than once that it's the gameplay that brings me back. There are any number of games with the Star Trek name on them that don't appeal to me in the least - Timelines, for instance, or Bridge Commander.
Please do not assume that just because some of the posts agree with you, all of them do.
Yeah.. I meant to edit in Most* everyone there. But, I didn't want to forums to eat my post.
Honestly? Boredom and habit. If it weren't Trek and I hadn't already sunk time and money into the game I'd have given it up ages ago, but that can only last for so long.
Some radical ideas* on how to improve things:
Test your new stuff before you release. If you want a particularly egregious example of that not happening take the Railgun that healed enemies on release day. Who knows, maybe you do check things extensively, but it doesn't look that way from this side.
Drop the FE routine. If players didn't care much for the latest mission, they're definitely not going to like having to replay it again twice or more just to try out an item set.
Talk to players. Ask them why, for example, they'd rather create whole new chat channels to idle through a queue than to play it.
Fix broken stuff! We have game-breaking bugs that are years old.
Try something really new. No-one actually looks forward to grinding through yet another rep system.
Come here more often. Not everyone is on reddit. Hell, why not trying logging in, joining a PUG or two and asking what players think of the mission while they're doing it?
*It does one good to have a bit of a rant from time to time.
Probably because it's fun. Well, for the fun, anyway; much of my time in-game ends up being spent grinding for stuff that I would later have an often shorter time actually having fun using.
However, I've gotta say; the bugs really do put a damper on it more often than they should. Would do a lot of good to fix more of those; for instance, Mobulai frigate pets haven't launched their mines for, like, months. The game was more fun when they did, like their tooltips say they can.
Winning.
It's what I do. It's what I just did. It's what I'm about to do again. It's being undisputed emperor of an empire that cannot be disproved as the most powerful intergalactic empire in the entire universe; I always win, and everything I've won will definitely be won again... by me. It's my signature move, and thus, it's my signature. Problem, Sonic? Yeah, I mean you, Sonic, because you're being beat up, despite your being super. You can't even hit Shadow back, can you? Nope, he's too strong for you. Of course, I'm not Shadow, I'm the Super Emerald fueled fox that's pulling the strings; trust me, the fight would only be a few frames long if I were in it personally. Oh, and here's something for all you guys thinking you can win Last Post Wins 3.0; trust me, I'll be around a long while after the sun has already consumed the Earth while I sit out with the forum servers on Titan. Yes, I mean Titan... that comparatively little moon orbiting Saturn. It's a nice little place in a version of our solar system where the sun is a lot bigger. I mean, Mars will last longer than your precious Earth, but by then, it'll be one hot planet... and I figure Saturn's moon will be about the right temperate for a super-powered warlord. Oh, and trust me, I packed a lot of rings, and I mean a lot. Trillions, in fact, so I'll never run out of rings to power my super form. Besides, if I start to run out, I can just chaos control more rings into my reach. It's quite easy, really. You should try it. Granted, you'll never have the 7 Super Emeralds that I have in my possession, nor the Master Emerald that I've got hidden away somewhere... absorbed into my body thanks to Sonic logic, but whatever. I win. Again. I'm not kidding, either. Just check Last Post Wins, and if the last post isn't mine, it soon will be. Very, very soon. You can count on it. Seriously. By the way, if you're wondering, there's a really great Super Tails sprite sheet out there... somewhere... by some guy named shadow_91. These sprites are really great. Like, really good. Quality. Just like what I like to see in a sprite sheet. Also, credit to Joe T.E., his Sonic Battle style Super Sonic sprites have a great palette for a Super Sonic being beat up by Super Shadow, who's palette is from a Super Shadow sheet of unknown origin, but it turns out they were "borrowed" from a better sheet made by a certain Domenico. Oh, and the gif is actually a custom made super version of a similar gif, of which there are only 3 or 4 copies to be found by Google, and even then, evidently of an unknown source. Yep, it's one of those things. Stuff people have made, spread around, only for it to vanish and you to be the only person who still has a copy, not even knowing where it came from... like, literally at all. Oh, and anyone notice that Shadow's little chaos snap blast thingies are red and blue now? Yeah, I changed it. Problem, fans of purple? Yeah, I know you got a problem with that one, but you can just deal with it. After all, according to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly... alright, alright, I'll spare you the entire Bee Movie script, just Google it if you want. By the way, ever wonder how your characters would've ended up if they evolved in another universe? Yeah, that. Think about it. Ok, so you probably didn't bother reading up to here, but whatever, here's a surprise for you guys over at ESD (RP) who were crazy enough to read this: Emperor Nat of the mcfreakin' Terran Empire is gonna be right all along! The universe is gonna go BOOM! *Thumbs up to the insanity*
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
If I were to talk about "retention" in STO, what does that make you think about? What mechanics/systems/content/rewards/progression make you want to keep logging in, and keep playing? What aspects of the game motivate you?
The stories, when they're not trampling on faction diversity, are the big thing to me. Bringing back Martok was interesting. I'm hopeful for the DS9 content. I like having stuff to do that doesn't make me feel like a hamster on a wheel. Making episodes repeatable (like being able to skip cutscenes, or a speech you've heard 30 times, or not inserting an annoying minigame) helps.
There's way too much UI menu-click stuff going on now for me. Admiralty has shifted a great number of people away teaming up, since it's more lucrative (by design) to do so. It sure doesn't help the "why are the queues dead?" dilemma. Another reputation. These are all things that can be skipped, of course, but they are also things that are actively promoted heavily as "content." Broken/bugged/annoying battlezones are deserted, but, we get new menu click stuff to do! I'm obviously in the minority, but I think Admiralty needs to go (I know it never will)- and adjust STFs/missions/battlezone rewards accordingly.
New STFs (or anything else, really) with annoying cutscenes in the middle of fighting something is irritating. Nerfing rewards for playing things, and putting better rewards on clicking the UI menu 5000 times has become tiresome. Can I skip it? Sure. The rewards are better, though...and most count on the menu click farms for their resources, thus lowering the population of people actually doing things. It may not quite be "Admiralty or GTFO," but it's pretty close. It just feels like everything is trying to force you to stay logged in longer, whether you're having fun or not. No thanks. My repetitive grind threshold is maxed out.
I take extended breaks all the time (like right now I have no desire to log in), and it's 90% due to the menu-click "content" that is always being pushed. I get that it's easier than coming up with actual content, but I think the menu grind well has been dry for a while. Announcing more and more of it is like saying you're going to put onions on my sundae. Nah, that's ok. I'll go to another ice cream joint.
Not just bashing away, saying honestly what keeps me (and others with whom I normally play) from logging in as much. Hopefully it's taken as criticism, and not some kind of personal attack or whatever.
TLDR too much menu clicking, cutscenes, and "WE ARE THE FEDERATION, RESISTANCE IS FUTILE" shenanigans
Sadly, like a lot of people, Star Trek and Starships.
If there were a single player or even multiplayer game where I can play as a part of a faction with a deep player ship roster, involved with developing/expanding/defending that faction's interests...in a sort of sandbox-like environment...I would play that game instead. In fact, I play a lot the stellaris new horizons mod, or armada III for that, but you can't be a starship captain. I think I'm like most players that play the faction to be a faction: I'm not really interested in one faction, I just want to experience the game from a variety of ST perspectives, including a favorite. Here, you kind of have to RP it...because it's not really there.
It was my great hope for the game when it launched, and when the KDF was introduced. But it died, and honestly, the community a game like this attracts probably never had a strong enough interest anyway. I hope a developer somewhere will have the will to make a 'Starfleet Command IV' with even more improvements on narrative...but this will never be that game.
For what you have, the battles are enjoyable, and the ship designs are outstanding. The difference and variety are why I'm willing to pay...even if it's all window dressing. I wish the combat balance were more geared toward a variety of armaments, which it really isn't. I think tighter arcs and a real assessment of a deeper combat system would have been useful, but at the current game's progression, there's no going back.
The story is good, but again, lacks perspectives. There's little choice, and the idea that there's only one right way to consider or think about any decision is very strong. The 'nuanced' episodes like the Delta eps and tzenkethi eps are more like battering rams than nuance. The hero/villain black and white is much stronger here than the actual star trek...with the ability to play different races and factions...it's always a small disappointment. The foundry is good for this, but even the foundry seems designed to serve the Fed or KDF structure.
Things I would change? At this point, I would go ahead and fold the KDF and Feds together. A lot of people wouldn't like that, but they are thinking of a game that doesn't exist. The factions should still exist, but in narrative, it's already that way with just the annoyance of being 'separate'.
The little things count, and theres a reason romulans run to their homeworld and klingons to theirs. It would be good to have a lot more going on in the world map, geared to a specific faction, this would actually help the faction feeling that the game is losing. The random encounters are utterly lacking in this regard. It maybe too many resources, but a mission structure developed around a faction that is a little more than a patrol would be nice. Somehow developing the feeling that your really are a member of an empire or republic, during the daily grind, would add a lot to the atmosphere. There are a variety of ways to do that, but I'm long, and honestly not very hopeful I would be taken seriously.
I appreciate your love for Star Trek, and I refuse to get wrapped around the idea that being angry with you will somehow create the game I hoped this would be, but it could use some changes. An even somewhat decent competitor would have me elsewhere long ago.
I think saying that its Star Trek is a very difficult reason to build on.
You have 5 TV series to opt from, all offering something a little different. Now personally I think DS9 was the best series, hence happy to be able to play a Cardassian. But it would be too simple to say I liked every episode, I liked the ones linked to the war, while hearing about how amazing the Bajorian resistance was and the religious episodes bored me. Yeah yeah I get it any Bajorian that joins the resistance becomes a crack shot, able to march for days on no rations....
Ultimately what DS9 gave was a continuing story, sure they had their stand alone episodes but these seemed far fewer that TNG which could have an entire episode devoted to a Holodeck malfunction. But for some the holodeck episodes might have been the most fun.
Now some people may love the federation as a symbol of all that humanity could become, personally I find it very boring. I'd much rather be playing a Cardassian hunting down Maquis on a disputed world, slogging through the ruins of a bombed city than sitting in Paradise debating if their isn't anything a tacyon burst can't do if the writers need it to.
So what aspect of Star Trek appeals, is it that science, diplomacy or high minded morals will win the day, or is that the murder of a few Romulans is a small price to pay to bring them into the war.
"Please do not assume that just because some of the posts agree with you, all of them do."
and all the "don't speak for me!" variations that pop up all over the place really need to be a banned phrase on the forums.
I really hate when people have to get all indignant about something and pulls out this ol' favorite reply. No one who posts 'everyone _____' REALLY means 'everyone'! It'd be like saying 'hi guys' to a group that has females in it and having one of them get all indigent "I'm not a GUY!". It's a figurative saying not a literal saying. Using it is just self-feel-good chest thumping that doesn't help anything but start arguments.
But honestly, a very common reply of why we play STO is 'cause it's Trek'. I'd say it's the most common answer. And it's not really a thing Cryptic would want to hear! Meaning if they didn't have the Trek license, the game probably would have died years ago.
But honestly, a very common reply of why we play STO is 'cause it's Trek'. I'd say it's the most common answer. And it's not really a thing Cryptic would want to hear! Meaning if they didn't have the Trek license, the game probably would have died years ago.
That would be the summation of my feelings. Because this game is Trek. It may not be done very well but it's Trek. Between that and the social interactions I have two nights a week in here going to some online DJs shows there isn't much game wise itself that makes this product all that appealing. Especially when flying the ships you want either has you waiting like some people wanting the T6 Nova class, rebuying where in my case I bought the whole store of Romulan T5 ships only to see T6 come out and things get upgraded at a cost in the store, or classics like the T6 connie where you get told you can't have it. That all drains the fun meter and leaves nothing but grind and boredom. Eventually that outweighs the Trek aspect.
Honestly, I'm searching for reasons to come back. I decided to start over with the PS4 version, but I'm waiting for the Delta Recruit promotion to come to console as I think that will make starting over less of a pain.
This isn't my main account. I lost it because I had it with an ancient e-mail that I've forgotten back when the game launched, but I put in well over 1000 hours, leveled every faction to admiral, and even did the faction grind on one character - and I'm not someone who puts time into MMO endgames normally. I'd much rather play something new usually and I am also not someone who would usually pay $30 for a single ship, but I did so numerous times for STO thinking that it was not unlike paying a monthly fee. I never put up with loot boxes as I hate gambling personally, but I have really enjoyed the game and felt I should pay for it. I'll likely pay for it again when the delta recruit event comes to console.
After that, I don't know. It is getting to be very old. I'm hoping that STO gets a sequel in your new engine after you finish the Magic: The Gathering game because by 2021 (the soonest I think we could possibly see a sequel), I'm certain I won't be playing this anymore. I'm already struggling to find a way to play it.
The sequel would have graphical updates of course, a completely new story that occurs as a new timeline after a big finale event for STO 1, ground combat that is a cover-shooter with Mass Effect 3-esque design (few skills, but they highly effect gameplay as well as many impactful passive choices), ship combat would be similar but with far fewer skills and far more passives with the focus being on positioning, energy control, and tactics rather than spamming all your buffs at once to cut through the baddies like a hot knife through butter (basically, the combat would stay similar to the way it is at Lieutenant and early Captain levels currently but enemies would become tougher and you'd *learn* advanced tactics as a human). Bridge officers would buff these smaller set of skills and a few of them would have unique skills but they'd be rare and special. Plus, their use might be limited - like having a Borg specialist onboard who has a very good skill for fighting Borg but that you'd want to trade out against other enemies. Additionally, your main bridge officers would be customizable in appearance but static in race and gender so that they can be properly voiced. Finally, and most importantly, the game engine would be built to support active-storytelling with bridge officers briefing you *while* you are in transit to the mission site, talking to you on the mission while you fight, etc. There would still be moments that aren't active when NPCs deliver narrative, because sometimes narratives require that, but as much as possible should be told actively and shown rather than told.
So let's paint the situation first:
I originally bought a lifetime subscription when the game was released, but didn't like the game very much (bugs, lack of content, poor gameplay, not interested in Fed or Klingon too much) and quit after a few weeks. Planned to return when the game was in a better shape, but got interested in other online games and never returned until now.
The main reason why I returned was the announcement of Victory is Life, because the Dominion is my favorite faction. When I came back there was a Delta Recruitment event going on so I created a Romulan (also a faction I like) and really started to enjoy playing that character. Since I had over 30k zen I bought three ship packs, some duty officers and upgrades and get going.
What keeps me logging in:
* Playing through the storyline missions, there's quite a lot of them.
* Events, I like doing some fun thing even more if it has a nice reward at the end.
* I like the passive progression of the Duty Officer and Admiralty systems, so I do that on two characters (my new romulan and an original fed character) to level them up.
* Collecting nice bridge officers and kitting them out with stuff.
* Knowing that Victory is Life will come soon.
However there are also some things I don't like:
* Prices of everything in the shop, my 30k zen ran out crazy fast on just a handful of purchases and I'm not really wanting to buy more zen with the prices as they are. I think everything is 3x too expensive. Wasted a bunch of money on lockboxes too and got next to no useful items. Big mistake, didn't expect droprates of nice things to be so abysmally low and the boxes to be so full of useless clutter.
* So much needed stuff cluttering the main inventory. Even with many inventory slots purchased it still fills up crazy fast with all the things needed for duty officer tasks, research upgrade components, and so on. All of that should be in their own infinite inventory like the crafting materials are.
* Almost ran out of storyline missions, not sure what to do after that.
* Getting top tier gear seems next to impossible (I don't understand the crafting system and don't have enough dilithium to do anything and can't afford anything from the marketplace) and my T6 ship feels very flimsy with the T12 stuff from the story and frequently dies to basic trashmobs.
* Worried that the story of Victory is Life disappoints by trying to make the Dominion too likable. What I like most about them is their brutal nature and extreme utilitarianism. They shouldn't be nice at all, and Jem'Hadar should be considered even more disposable than Stormtroopers. If there aren't any missions where I can send my subordinates to their deaths or executing subordinates for lack of discipline and then requesting some replacements, I'll cry. If I see a Vorta or Founder being nice to me and caring about me, I'm not going to be happy, because that's not the order of things.
Honestly, I'm searching for reasons to come back. I decided to start over with the PS4 version, but I'm waiting for the Delta Recruit promotion to come to console as I think that will make starting over less of a pain.
This isn't my main account. I lost it because I had it with an ancient e-mail that I've forgotten back when the game launched, but I put in well over 1000 hours, leveled every faction to admiral, and even did the faction grind on one character - and I'm not someone who puts time into MMO endgames normally. I'd much rather play something new usually and I am also not someone who would usually pay $30 for a single ship, but I did so numerous times for STO thinking that it was not unlike paying a monthly fee. I never put up with loot boxes as I hate gambling personally, but I have really enjoyed the game and felt I should pay for it. I'll likely pay for it again when the delta recruit event comes to console.
After that, I don't know. It is getting to be very old. I'm hoping that STO gets a sequel in your new engine after you finish the Magic: The Gathering game because by 2021 (the soonest I think we could possibly see a sequel), I'm certain I won't be playing this anymore. I'm already struggling to find a way to play it.
The sequel would have graphical updates of course, a completely new story that occurs as a new timeline after a big finale event for STO 1, ground combat that is a cover-shooter with Mass Effect 3-esque design (few skills, but they highly effect gameplay as well as many impactful passive choices), ship combat would be similar but with far fewer skills and far more passives with the focus being on positioning, energy control, and tactics rather than spamming all your buffs at once to cut through the baddies like a hot knife through butter (basically, the combat would stay similar to the way it is at Lieutenant and early Captain levels currently but enemies would become tougher and you'd *learn* advanced tactics as a human). Bridge officers would buff these smaller set of skills and a few of them would have unique skills but they'd be rare and special. Plus, their use might be limited - like having a Borg specialist onboard who has a very good skill for fighting Borg but that you'd want to trade out against other enemies. Additionally, your main bridge officers would be customizable in appearance but static in race and gender so that they can be properly voiced. Finally, and most importantly, the game engine would be built to support active-storytelling with bridge officers briefing you *while* you are in transit to the mission site, talking to you on the mission while you fight, etc. There would still be moments that aren't active when NPCs deliver narrative, because sometimes narratives require that, but as much as possible should be told actively and shown rather than told.
Agreed with this, the game is starting to feel very old. Especially the ground combat being insufferable and clunky even when you compare it to older MMOs, like Guild Wars 2. I personally don't mind the older graphics that much, it's still decent enough for the most part. It's just the gameplay being sluggish, the skills being very dull and everything just being cluttered and overly complicated.
Would really be nice to see a sequel at some point that streamlines the game and removes the clunkiness.
Or even just overhaul the UI, that was an incredibly steep learning curve, with everything being hidden in some tab in some panel somewhere and massive scrollbars hiding buttons everywhere.
A normie goes "Oh, what's this?"
An otaku goes "UwU, what's this?"
A furry goes "OwO, what's this?"
A werewolf goes "Awoo, what's this?"
"It's nothing personal, I just don't feel like I've gotten to know a person until I've sniffed their crotch." "We said 'no' to Mr. Curiosity. We're not home. Curiosity is not welcome, it is not to be invited in. Curiosity...is bad. It gets you in trouble, it gets you killed, and more importantly...it makes you poor!"
Passion and Serenity are one.
I gain power by understanding both.
In the chaos of their battle, I bring order.
I am a shadow, darkness born from light.
The Force is united within me.
Well at least that stupid founder had the decency to dispose of himself, so I hope we're not seeing any more of that nonsense, last thing I want to see is yet another Federation where everything's nice and cute. That was something that disappointed me a bit with the Romulan story arc as well, that we had to play nice cute Romulans instead of the sinister Tal Shiar and go out capturing people and doing very nasty things to them. Basically all the nasty things Hakeev was doing when the player was his prisoner. That's basically what the Romulan arc should've been, just one episode after the other of doing nasty things to people. Fortunately there were a few evil "kill these annoying people that are in my way"-choices in the story here and there, but that should've been the norm rather than the exception.
I'd like the Dominion arc to be more about that sort of stuff, since there were episodes full of that grim nastiness in DS9 with several instances of the DS9 crew being captured and NOT being treated well, with Dominion oppressing the minor races under them, the very nasty things the Dominion does to races that dare rebel, massive collective punishment including genocide, and the Dominion basically treating everyone as a totally disposable asset with the things Keevan did (and the Jem'Hadar happily going along with it) being a prime example.
The story arc with the Founder Leader being freed and the way they've portrayed her still gives me some hope though.
Primarily STO was one of my first mmos. I've been playing since 2012ish and I keep coming back because I still have fun playing it.
Could it be better? Absolutely but what I envision the perfect ST game, mmo to be would require a basically a completely different game. As long as I'm still having fun, I'll keep coming back until the doors close.
1. It's a Star Trek game.
2. It's fun to actually go exploring the sets from the show and the Star Trek galaxy with free-roaming.
3. It's a 3rd person game, I don't like to play 1st person games.
4. It's a sci-fi game, they're not common. At least, good ones are not.
5. Guaranteed endgame gear tokens from queues. This is the most important one, because I really don't tolerate mmos that make you spend days, weeks or months trying to get an item that so rarely drops, it's frustrating and time wasting. What would take us 5 weeks minimum in other mmos is done in 2.5 hours in STO.
As for wishlist items, the number one request is the addition of Ocampans and Hirogen as playable species.
Number two is the addition of Projectile specific weapons slots to ship layouts, so I can use torpedoes and a mine launcher without having to give up 3 beam arrays/energy weapons.
See example here.
Bees like honey, they don't like vinegar.
Everytime someone makes a character that is an copy of an existing superhuman, Creativity is sad
What Keeps me playing: Things i can improve (Gear, Rep Gear, Mission Gear, Fleet Things, Starship's), I dont mind the grind so long as each mission has a bit of diffrence (the best diffrences have people involved).
What i want more of: Gear Combo's, tiny or odd bonus values give rise to new play options and Roles. more ways to customize values for my starships', doffs and boffs. why are there so few Boffs with space traits? why cant Boffs have trait bonuses more like Doffs.
Maybe the best way for me to explaine is in the context of another game (MTG: Magic the Gathering), theres the new content and meta, but there is also a huge archieve of things' dating back years and often the most amazing combinations comes from mixing the very old with the new.
Consumable rewards are kinda of favorite of mine, scorpion fighters is one example, but one i seldom use because i can only get them from one mission...These Things are what keep me coming back, not always the "Big Event" rewards, but the odd little things that individually have little power but when combined might just be playable if you are willing to try it out.
- the story of my toon. every one of them.
- exploring the universe and the small side-missions
- space combat is fun
- events are fun
- dilithium is fun
- fleets are fun
- queues are fun
all in all i am an happy lts camper.
what bothers me?
- empty queues, so i can't get stuff for reputation items
- PVP yeah, just overread this one
- it's becoming too much.. too many traits, too many sets, too many clickies to do before i get to play, on the other hand, better too much as nothing, just stop now
- clumpy ground combat - the toon spirnts in every (im)possible vector, just not the one i would like to have
- last one - why does every romulan ship has to be a raptor? where are new vulcan/andorian ships?
As with everyone else here, well, it's Star Trek! How can anyone not like it on that merit?
I rather enjoy playing through the story missions, as well as Red Alerts, and adventure zones. And then, we have the foundry, so even after you've cleared the "official" content, your story can continue. And then, there is the never ending fun of Space Barbie, with both ship and characters!
As for "wishlist" items, I have some:
A unified colour pallete for pretty much every outfit piece under the sun.
Removal of outfit restrictions, allready! If I want to have my boffs running around in Aloha shirts, I should have that option. As well as mix and match Omega and Iconian components, or anything else that tickles my fancy.
Better hair options in the tailor.
And how about more events akin to Delta Recruit and AoY? Those are rather fun!
23rd century interiors for KDF and Romulan ships?
Resident TOS, G.I. Joe, Transformers and hair metal fangirl.
Comments
Back to STO, the introduction of new ships is the main thing that keeps me going. Playing adventure zones and battlezones is another favorite. Also adding fleet holdings keeps me coming back since I'm a core contributor to our fleets.
Featured episodes are mostly stale at this point IMO which is a shame because you guys do a really good job on the art side of things. The recent episodes are beautiful visually but lack a certain "Star Trek feeling" that I desire. They feel more like generic sci-fi whereas I prefer a sold TNG alien of the week experience or even a good old fashioned "bottle episode." I would LOVE a story mission in which I have to play a series of new mini-games to try and fix an engineering problem or a power problem or a holodeck problem on the ship.
- lack of balance and powercreep allaround since introduction of fleetgear
- no regard to pvp at all, while balancing round pvp would've allowed a way more balanced pve environment and opportunities as well (instead of "add moar hp")!
- no interest staff-side on quality gameplay, rinse/repeat content allaround. this goes for story-missions as well
- removing of essential parts of trek-lore, like exploration
- overboarding rep-, gear-, set-, crafting/upgrading economy which leads to eeeeendless grinds (even more if wanna pvp at the slightest)
- no option at all to upgrade former t5's to t6's. "yay, resell em all". one of the worst decisions ever in here imo, even more with the baited commentary before that they will be "equal"
- pvp baits for years, just to get kicked into "moms basement" by leadstaff, who states "we sell ships". yeah, thats it, rest is beyond meeeh!
... posting such a question imo speaks the language of desperation imo. something like: "we dont get new players, how could we tie the ones we got even stronger?!"
u think i'm salty lol?! no, just a lifer, 5 years of intesive sto while it all went down and out for like 2 years now(!). a few ago i reinstalled to have a look. lasted like 30 mins on my hdd^^..... njoy
this is meant to be honest feedback, not flaming. it is simply what i experienced! u can choose to edit my post and go on as before, or just leave it and finally start to work with!
Everyone is agreeing on the same point. The name, Star Trek. Everything else is secondary to this.
Now, take a moment to ask yourself, "If it wasn't for the name, what do we have in game that would make players want to stay?"
The answer will vary by person. But, you'll come to understand, there's very little in game that actually inspires a player to want to stay.
Especially now, with episodes that hold you hand and lead you through them. You're not doing anything more for these, than being the one that's there to kill stuff, and click something every now and again.
Here's some food for thought. The higher ups keep saying they want to remove the factions. They want to make it all the same. You've done the once already, plasmonic leech comes to mind here. This cost you players back then. The major influx of power creep at Delta Rising, cost you even more players. Now you're asking about retention, when all the evidence that points to player loss, is right there in front of you. Just look at what the developers have put in at each juncture where you lost more and more players. Then, do the exact opposite of that.
This will mean a return to more challenging game play, less focus on power creep, more meaningful stories where you actually feel like you're a starship captain making a difference. This will also mean keeping factions separate and working on the PvP front. Because you have a lot of players that enjoy PvP, it's just not worth the aggravation of how it is now.
Some would say, Star Trek isn't about PvP. Oh, but it is. Star Trek has always been about the factions facing off.
TOS = Klingon War
TNG = Klingons ~>Romulans ~> Borg
DS9 = Cardassian ~> Dominion
Voy = Exploration/Survival ~> Klingons/Borg/Vaadwuar/Hirogen
Which is one thing the game is missing. The factions aren't facing off over anything. There is no contention over how things should be done. There's just "We serve Federation. Good Drone One kills it."
Another aspect that discourages me from playing is bugs. Between missions with broken areas like the Delta Rising one with the catwalks missing a while back to getting a new light engine only to lose day/night cycles that used to make the game more immersive. It's like going to an old amusement park and seeing a lot of boarded up areas that just can't be bothered to fix anymore because of a lack of resources/talent/tools to do so.
Lack luster ground play, I jump in to SWTOR and the ground pounding is amazing there. Here, not so much as it feels klunky. The ship combat feels more robust compared to SWTOR however which is basically a rails type setup over there. So it's not all bad, but could be better.
At this point the only thing that keeps me playing is not the game itself but the in game DJ broadcasts done now and then. The content feels kind of dull/grindy and drives me off more to spend time in other games that "hide the grind" much more effectively than your game does.
Please do not assume that just because some of the posts agree with you, all of them do.
Yeah.. I meant to edit in Most* everyone there. But, I didn't want to forums to eat my post.
Some radical ideas* on how to improve things:
*It does one good to have a bit of a rant from time to time.
However, I've gotta say; the bugs really do put a damper on it more often than they should. Would do a lot of good to fix more of those; for instance, Mobulai frigate pets haven't launched their mines for, like, months. The game was more fun when they did, like their tooltips say they can.
Winning.
Oh, now don't tell me you want in on all this! Well, ok. Look this that Egg Pawn hanging outside your window, pointing his laser rifle at you, waiting for my next order. He's doing his part. He helps conquer the weak-minded. He roboticizes the weak-bodied. Heck, he even helps keep the useless people from causing any trouble, but you know what? Join. Find the closest Nataran Empire roboticization center near you and join the ranks, before the ranks find you. Oh, I know, you figure it must be so satisfying to know I basically rule the world now, and you know what? It is, but do you want to know the true definition of satisfaction? Well, let me tell you a little story. One day, you see a brand new event. They're giving out boxes that give old event stuff. Your dilithium is plentiful. You buy a whole lot of Phoenix packs on your main, and open them all. You get one epic token. Then, you decide, that since you have all the Breen ships and don't give a damn about the others, you exchange it for an ultra rare, and grab yourself a Jem'Hadar Attack Ship and for the hell of it, a Voth Bulwark. You open both, leaving the Bulwark in your vast masses of starships as you jump into the bugship and deck it out, deck by deck, into the most awesome Jem'Hadar ship you can. You fly it. You enjoy it. Eventually, you get bored and leave, leaving the old Bulwark never flown... until later. Your main is long complete. Your new alt main, based off some character you pulled out of nothing just to explain away some starship being in service without the command of your dear admiral, is also complete. Mostly. Their reps and doffs are hard at work, getting you stuff. You realize the potential, and head back for your dear admiral, pull the most Voth themed build you can out of thin air, and suit up in your giant ship in the shape of you know what. You head out... and cause all sorts of havoc. Enemies scream out your name as their very life is drained away by your swarms of Aceton Assimilators. They complain to the devs of your OPness when you revive yourself from death every time you die. Do you show any form of mercy? No. After all, this isn't the United Federation of Planets, this is mother frakkin' Starfleet, where you explore strange new worlds and kick butt never kicked before. Oh, and you realize that I just wrote another speech rivaling your own signature. Cool. Oh, wait, that's just the original draft, it is part of my signature now. Oh, and yes, I am aware that I have become a Canadian Regent; one day, sooner than you'd expect, we'll suddenly decide to take over the world and declare an "alliance", and I shall become it's Regent. You know, like the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance in the mirror universe of our beloved Star Trek. Oh, who'll we be taking over with? I dunno, maybe [REDACTED], or maybe aliens from outer space. Guess you'll have to wait and find out, won't we? Until then, don't ask too many questions, or else my Breen allies on Titania might pick up on your -- [REDACTED BY BREEN CONFEDERACY FOR REASONS] Also, psst... keep an eye out for flying Tribbles! Also walls. Big, great walls, separating entire continents apart. Walls patrolled by Tribbles. Flying Tribbles. Flying Nukara Tribbles. Don't worry, it's not like they were on Venus with a herd of Tholians or anything, they just like the extreme heat and brutal weather like acid rain and hurricane force winds as the norm. Oh, and definitely keep your eye out on any two-tailed foxes, because if they ain't glowing, they're definitely an imposter. Possibly an Undine, we caught one of those once in my place once. Oh, and if you find a two-tailed fox that doesn't like the cold... most certainly ask him to say sorry. If he refuses, DESTROY HIM WITH A DOOMSDAY MACHINE, BECAUSE THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH AGAINST SUCH AN OVERPOWERED IMPOSTER!
tr;dr, I am winning last post wins 3.0. Thank you for your time.
The stories, when they're not trampling on faction diversity, are the big thing to me. Bringing back Martok was interesting. I'm hopeful for the DS9 content. I like having stuff to do that doesn't make me feel like a hamster on a wheel. Making episodes repeatable (like being able to skip cutscenes, or a speech you've heard 30 times, or not inserting an annoying minigame) helps.
There's way too much UI menu-click stuff going on now for me. Admiralty has shifted a great number of people away teaming up, since it's more lucrative (by design) to do so. It sure doesn't help the "why are the queues dead?" dilemma. Another reputation. These are all things that can be skipped, of course, but they are also things that are actively promoted heavily as "content." Broken/bugged/annoying battlezones are deserted, but, we get new menu click stuff to do! I'm obviously in the minority, but I think Admiralty needs to go (I know it never will)- and adjust STFs/missions/battlezone rewards accordingly.
New STFs (or anything else, really) with annoying cutscenes in the middle of fighting something is irritating. Nerfing rewards for playing things, and putting better rewards on clicking the UI menu 5000 times has become tiresome. Can I skip it? Sure. The rewards are better, though...and most count on the menu click farms for their resources, thus lowering the population of people actually doing things. It may not quite be "Admiralty or GTFO," but it's pretty close. It just feels like everything is trying to force you to stay logged in longer, whether you're having fun or not. No thanks. My repetitive grind threshold is maxed out.
I take extended breaks all the time (like right now I have no desire to log in), and it's 90% due to the menu-click "content" that is always being pushed. I get that it's easier than coming up with actual content, but I think the menu grind well has been dry for a while. Announcing more and more of it is like saying you're going to put onions on my sundae. Nah, that's ok. I'll go to another ice cream joint.
Not just bashing away, saying honestly what keeps me (and others with whom I normally play) from logging in as much. Hopefully it's taken as criticism, and not some kind of personal attack or whatever.
TLDR too much menu clicking, cutscenes, and "WE ARE THE FEDERATION, RESISTANCE IS FUTILE" shenanigans
Where else online can you get to command most of your favorite starships from the star trek universe,in a star trek setting.
One thing none of us unfortunately will ever do for real.
We were born way to early.
If there were a single player or even multiplayer game where I can play as a part of a faction with a deep player ship roster, involved with developing/expanding/defending that faction's interests...in a sort of sandbox-like environment...I would play that game instead. In fact, I play a lot the stellaris new horizons mod, or armada III for that, but you can't be a starship captain. I think I'm like most players that play the faction to be a faction: I'm not really interested in one faction, I just want to experience the game from a variety of ST perspectives, including a favorite. Here, you kind of have to RP it...because it's not really there.
It was my great hope for the game when it launched, and when the KDF was introduced. But it died, and honestly, the community a game like this attracts probably never had a strong enough interest anyway. I hope a developer somewhere will have the will to make a 'Starfleet Command IV' with even more improvements on narrative...but this will never be that game.
For what you have, the battles are enjoyable, and the ship designs are outstanding. The difference and variety are why I'm willing to pay...even if it's all window dressing. I wish the combat balance were more geared toward a variety of armaments, which it really isn't. I think tighter arcs and a real assessment of a deeper combat system would have been useful, but at the current game's progression, there's no going back.
The story is good, but again, lacks perspectives. There's little choice, and the idea that there's only one right way to consider or think about any decision is very strong. The 'nuanced' episodes like the Delta eps and tzenkethi eps are more like battering rams than nuance. The hero/villain black and white is much stronger here than the actual star trek...with the ability to play different races and factions...it's always a small disappointment. The foundry is good for this, but even the foundry seems designed to serve the Fed or KDF structure.
Things I would change? At this point, I would go ahead and fold the KDF and Feds together. A lot of people wouldn't like that, but they are thinking of a game that doesn't exist. The factions should still exist, but in narrative, it's already that way with just the annoyance of being 'separate'.
The little things count, and theres a reason romulans run to their homeworld and klingons to theirs. It would be good to have a lot more going on in the world map, geared to a specific faction, this would actually help the faction feeling that the game is losing. The random encounters are utterly lacking in this regard. It maybe too many resources, but a mission structure developed around a faction that is a little more than a patrol would be nice. Somehow developing the feeling that your really are a member of an empire or republic, during the daily grind, would add a lot to the atmosphere. There are a variety of ways to do that, but I'm long, and honestly not very hopeful I would be taken seriously.
I appreciate your love for Star Trek, and I refuse to get wrapped around the idea that being angry with you will somehow create the game I hoped this would be, but it could use some changes. An even somewhat decent competitor would have me elsewhere long ago.
You have 5 TV series to opt from, all offering something a little different. Now personally I think DS9 was the best series, hence happy to be able to play a Cardassian. But it would be too simple to say I liked every episode, I liked the ones linked to the war, while hearing about how amazing the Bajorian resistance was and the religious episodes bored me. Yeah yeah I get it any Bajorian that joins the resistance becomes a crack shot, able to march for days on no rations....
Ultimately what DS9 gave was a continuing story, sure they had their stand alone episodes but these seemed far fewer that TNG which could have an entire episode devoted to a Holodeck malfunction. But for some the holodeck episodes might have been the most fun.
Now some people may love the federation as a symbol of all that humanity could become, personally I find it very boring. I'd much rather be playing a Cardassian hunting down Maquis on a disputed world, slogging through the ruins of a bombed city than sitting in Paradise debating if their isn't anything a tacyon burst can't do if the writers need it to.
So what aspect of Star Trek appeals, is it that science, diplomacy or high minded morals will win the day, or is that the murder of a few Romulans is a small price to pay to bring them into the war.
"Please do not assume that just because some of the posts agree with you, all of them do."
and all the "don't speak for me!" variations that pop up all over the place really need to be a banned phrase on the forums.
I really hate when people have to get all indignant about something and pulls out this ol' favorite reply. No one who posts 'everyone _____' REALLY means 'everyone'! It'd be like saying 'hi guys' to a group that has females in it and having one of them get all indigent "I'm not a GUY!". It's a figurative saying not a literal saying. Using it is just self-feel-good chest thumping that doesn't help anything but start arguments.
But honestly, a very common reply of why we play STO is 'cause it's Trek'. I'd say it's the most common answer. And it's not really a thing Cryptic would want to hear!
That would be the summation of my feelings. Because this game is Trek. It may not be done very well but it's Trek. Between that and the social interactions I have two nights a week in here going to some online DJs shows there isn't much game wise itself that makes this product all that appealing. Especially when flying the ships you want either has you waiting like some people wanting the T6 Nova class, rebuying where in my case I bought the whole store of Romulan T5 ships only to see T6 come out and things get upgraded at a cost in the store, or classics like the T6 connie where you get told you can't have it. That all drains the fun meter and leaves nothing but grind and boredom. Eventually that outweighs the Trek aspect.
This isn't my main account. I lost it because I had it with an ancient e-mail that I've forgotten back when the game launched, but I put in well over 1000 hours, leveled every faction to admiral, and even did the faction grind on one character - and I'm not someone who puts time into MMO endgames normally. I'd much rather play something new usually and I am also not someone who would usually pay $30 for a single ship, but I did so numerous times for STO thinking that it was not unlike paying a monthly fee. I never put up with loot boxes as I hate gambling personally, but I have really enjoyed the game and felt I should pay for it. I'll likely pay for it again when the delta recruit event comes to console.
After that, I don't know. It is getting to be very old. I'm hoping that STO gets a sequel in your new engine after you finish the Magic: The Gathering game because by 2021 (the soonest I think we could possibly see a sequel), I'm certain I won't be playing this anymore. I'm already struggling to find a way to play it.
The sequel would have graphical updates of course, a completely new story that occurs as a new timeline after a big finale event for STO 1, ground combat that is a cover-shooter with Mass Effect 3-esque design (few skills, but they highly effect gameplay as well as many impactful passive choices), ship combat would be similar but with far fewer skills and far more passives with the focus being on positioning, energy control, and tactics rather than spamming all your buffs at once to cut through the baddies like a hot knife through butter (basically, the combat would stay similar to the way it is at Lieutenant and early Captain levels currently but enemies would become tougher and you'd *learn* advanced tactics as a human). Bridge officers would buff these smaller set of skills and a few of them would have unique skills but they'd be rare and special. Plus, their use might be limited - like having a Borg specialist onboard who has a very good skill for fighting Borg but that you'd want to trade out against other enemies. Additionally, your main bridge officers would be customizable in appearance but static in race and gender so that they can be properly voiced. Finally, and most importantly, the game engine would be built to support active-storytelling with bridge officers briefing you *while* you are in transit to the mission site, talking to you on the mission while you fight, etc. There would still be moments that aren't active when NPCs deliver narrative, because sometimes narratives require that, but as much as possible should be told actively and shown rather than told.
I originally bought a lifetime subscription when the game was released, but didn't like the game very much (bugs, lack of content, poor gameplay, not interested in Fed or Klingon too much) and quit after a few weeks. Planned to return when the game was in a better shape, but got interested in other online games and never returned until now.
The main reason why I returned was the announcement of Victory is Life, because the Dominion is my favorite faction. When I came back there was a Delta Recruitment event going on so I created a Romulan (also a faction I like) and really started to enjoy playing that character. Since I had over 30k zen I bought three ship packs, some duty officers and upgrades and get going.
What keeps me logging in:
* Playing through the storyline missions, there's quite a lot of them.
* Events, I like doing some fun thing even more if it has a nice reward at the end.
* I like the passive progression of the Duty Officer and Admiralty systems, so I do that on two characters (my new romulan and an original fed character) to level them up.
* Collecting nice bridge officers and kitting them out with stuff.
* Knowing that Victory is Life will come soon.
However there are also some things I don't like:
* Prices of everything in the shop, my 30k zen ran out crazy fast on just a handful of purchases and I'm not really wanting to buy more zen with the prices as they are. I think everything is 3x too expensive. Wasted a bunch of money on lockboxes too and got next to no useful items. Big mistake, didn't expect droprates of nice things to be so abysmally low and the boxes to be so full of useless clutter.
* So much needed stuff cluttering the main inventory. Even with many inventory slots purchased it still fills up crazy fast with all the things needed for duty officer tasks, research upgrade components, and so on. All of that should be in their own infinite inventory like the crafting materials are.
* Almost ran out of storyline missions, not sure what to do after that.
* Getting top tier gear seems next to impossible (I don't understand the crafting system and don't have enough dilithium to do anything and can't afford anything from the marketplace) and my T6 ship feels very flimsy with the T12 stuff from the story and frequently dies to basic trashmobs.
* Worried that the story of Victory is Life disappoints by trying to make the Dominion too likable. What I like most about them is their brutal nature and extreme utilitarianism. They shouldn't be nice at all, and Jem'Hadar should be considered even more disposable than Stormtroopers. If there aren't any missions where I can send my subordinates to their deaths or executing subordinates for lack of discipline and then requesting some replacements, I'll cry. If I see a Vorta or Founder being nice to me and caring about me, I'm not going to be happy, because that's not the order of things.
Agreed with this, the game is starting to feel very old. Especially the ground combat being insufferable and clunky even when you compare it to older MMOs, like Guild Wars 2. I personally don't mind the older graphics that much, it's still decent enough for the most part. It's just the gameplay being sluggish, the skills being very dull and everything just being cluttered and overly complicated.
Would really be nice to see a sequel at some point that streamlines the game and removes the clunkiness.
Or even just overhaul the UI, that was an incredibly steep learning curve, with everything being hidden in some tab in some panel somewhere and massive scrollbars hiding buttons everywhere.
too late, a founder caring about their jem'hadar troops already happened
see http://forum.arcgames.com/startrekonline/discussion/1240214/the-missing-link
#LegalizeAwoo
A normie goes "Oh, what's this?"
An otaku goes "UwU, what's this?"
A furry goes "OwO, what's this?"
A werewolf goes "Awoo, what's this?"
"It's nothing personal, I just don't feel like I've gotten to know a person until I've sniffed their crotch."
"We said 'no' to Mr. Curiosity. We're not home. Curiosity is not welcome, it is not to be invited in. Curiosity...is bad. It gets you in trouble, it gets you killed, and more importantly...it makes you poor!"
YUCK!
Well at least that stupid founder had the decency to dispose of himself, so I hope we're not seeing any more of that nonsense, last thing I want to see is yet another Federation where everything's nice and cute. That was something that disappointed me a bit with the Romulan story arc as well, that we had to play nice cute Romulans instead of the sinister Tal Shiar and go out capturing people and doing very nasty things to them. Basically all the nasty things Hakeev was doing when the player was his prisoner. That's basically what the Romulan arc should've been, just one episode after the other of doing nasty things to people. Fortunately there were a few evil "kill these annoying people that are in my way"-choices in the story here and there, but that should've been the norm rather than the exception.
I'd like the Dominion arc to be more about that sort of stuff, since there were episodes full of that grim nastiness in DS9 with several instances of the DS9 crew being captured and NOT being treated well, with Dominion oppressing the minor races under them, the very nasty things the Dominion does to races that dare rebel, massive collective punishment including genocide, and the Dominion basically treating everyone as a totally disposable asset with the things Keevan did (and the Jem'Hadar happily going along with it) being a prime example.
The story arc with the Founder Leader being freed and the way they've portrayed her still gives me some hope though.
Could it be better? Absolutely but what I envision the perfect ST game, mmo to be would require a basically a completely different game. As long as I'm still having fun, I'll keep coming back until the doors close.
2. It's fun to actually go exploring the sets from the show and the Star Trek galaxy with free-roaming.
3. It's a 3rd person game, I don't like to play 1st person games.
4. It's a sci-fi game, they're not common. At least, good ones are not.
5. Guaranteed endgame gear tokens from queues. This is the most important one, because I really don't tolerate mmos that make you spend days, weeks or months trying to get an item that so rarely drops, it's frustrating and time wasting. What would take us 5 weeks minimum in other mmos is done in 2.5 hours in STO.
As for wishlist items, the number one request is the addition of Ocampans and Hirogen as playable species.
Number two is the addition of Projectile specific weapons slots to ship layouts, so I can use torpedoes and a mine launcher without having to give up 3 beam arrays/energy weapons.
See example here.
Bees like honey, they don't like vinegar.
Everytime someone makes a character that is an copy of an existing superhuman, Creativity is sad
What i want more of: Gear Combo's, tiny or odd bonus values give rise to new play options and Roles. more ways to customize values for my starships', doffs and boffs. why are there so few Boffs with space traits? why cant Boffs have trait bonuses more like Doffs.
Maybe the best way for me to explaine is in the context of another game (MTG: Magic the Gathering), theres the new content and meta, but there is also a huge archieve of things' dating back years and often the most amazing combinations comes from mixing the very old with the new.
Consumable rewards are kinda of favorite of mine, scorpion fighters is one example, but one i seldom use because i can only get them from one mission...These Things are what keep me coming back, not always the "Big Event" rewards, but the odd little things that individually have little power but when combined might just be playable if you are willing to try it out.
IDIC for the WIN!!
2) Space combat's still fun, and different ships play really differently.
3) The episode format makes for a more coherent story than sort of telling a story through the queues.
- the story of my toon. every one of them.
- exploring the universe and the small side-missions
- space combat is fun
- events are fun
- dilithium is fun
- fleets are fun
- queues are fun
all in all i am an happy lts camper.
what bothers me?
- empty queues, so i can't get stuff for reputation items
- PVP
- it's becoming too much.. too many traits, too many sets, too many clickies to do before i get to play, on the other hand, better too much as nothing, just stop now
- clumpy ground combat - the toon spirnts in every (im)possible vector, just not the one i would like to have
- last one - why does every romulan ship has to be a raptor? where are new vulcan/andorian ships?
I rather enjoy playing through the story missions, as well as Red Alerts, and adventure zones. And then, we have the foundry, so even after you've cleared the "official" content, your story can continue. And then, there is the never ending fun of Space Barbie, with both ship and characters!
As for "wishlist" items, I have some:
A unified colour pallete for pretty much every outfit piece under the sun.
Removal of outfit restrictions, allready! If I want to have my boffs running around in Aloha shirts, I should have that option. As well as mix and match Omega and Iconian components, or anything else that tickles my fancy.
Better hair options in the tailor.
And how about more events akin to Delta Recruit and AoY? Those are rather fun!
23rd century interiors for KDF and Romulan ships?
And knowing is half the battle!
21 'til I die!