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Turn off bloat visuals from ET,ST, and TT, and other buff and de-buff abilities PLEASE!!!

jbessinger0000jbessinger0000 Member Posts: 7 Arc User
I would love a toggle to turn off anything triggered by Boff abilities. Like the sparkles on Kemocite Laced Weaponry. Or the glow from Brace for Impact. Of the gigantic symbols that appear for Engineering Team, Science Team, etc.

When I go into battle I look like a Unicorn on some spastic acid trip, not a Starfleet vessel. Kind of breaks the fun, and it covers up the really awesome looking ship in an explosion of lights and colors that makes no sense.

Is there any way you guys can make this as a setting in the settings menu, you already can with toggling directional shield effects, now can you take one step further and make it for the other visuals that are triggered by buff and de-buff abilities.
Post edited by baddmoonrizin on
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Comments

  • foxrockssocksfoxrockssocks Member Posts: 2,482 Arc User
    I sympathize with the issue for the excessive visuals in game, but the team abilities are not what I consider the big problems. The visual shows up for a second and then is gone.
  • alcyoneserenealcyoneserene Member Posts: 2,412 Arc User
    An option to reduce some or all of the extraneous effects has been asked for over the years both on here and on reddit.

    The only official replies that I recall were 'they are meant to be informative' even if in a crowd it becomes a solid splatter of visual and auditory noise, and 'complain some more' in order to get noticed.

    The trend continues with adding more oversized, longer-lasting, more blinding visual ability effects along with sound effects at an artificially inflated volume relative to the game.

    Suffice to say, there is no hope, and we on both forums probably, as with ship sales, make up a tiny portion of 'relevant metrics' in addition to developer-admitted personal preference decisions.
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  • fleetcaptain5#1134 fleetcaptain5 Member Posts: 4,754 Arc User
    Still supporting this.

    Give us an option to turn off all visual effects from abilities, traits and so on. They're not informative, they don't have any added value most of the time.


    I play this game, I buy the ships I buy and get the gear to fly those ships because I want to enjoy flying my ships. Enjoyment requires that I can SEE my ship without all sorts of spam on it.

    I want to ask Cryptic: if we don't get an option like this to disable all this nonsense, what reason do I still have to play this game and keep purchasing ships? Their continuous neglect of this issue isn't really encouraging me to keep playing, or spending.
    [4:46] [Combat {self}] Your Haymaker deals 23337 (9049) Physical Damage(Critical) to Spawnmother

    [3/25 10:41][Combat (Self)]Your Haymaker deals 26187 (10692) Physical Damage(Critical) to Orinoco.
  • evilmark444evilmark444 Member Posts: 6,950 Arc User
    Recently I've been occasionally having an issue where torpedoes, both my own and enemy torps, sometimes don't render and are completely invisible. I'm not sure if it's because of all the excessive ability FX or if one of the patches broke something, I'm running on max settings with a Ryzen 5 3600X and RTX 2080 Super so it shouldn't be on my end. I used to have this issue many years ago in Borg Red Alerts (would randomly explode due to getting hit by unrendered torpedoes), but until this week I hadn't seen that happen in a very, VERY long time.
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  • fleetcaptain5#1134 fleetcaptain5 Member Posts: 4,754 Arc User
    Recently I've been occasionally having an issue where torpedoes, both my own and enemy torps, sometimes don't render and are completely invisible. I'm not sure if it's because of all the excessive ability FX or if one of the patches broke something, I'm running on max settings with a Ryzen 5 3600X and RTX 2080 Super so it shouldn't be on my end. I used to have this issue many years ago in Borg Red Alerts (would randomly explode due to getting hit by unrendered torpedoes), but until this week I hadn't seen that happen in a very, VERY long time.

    I know what you're talking about. I've been seeing the same thing. It happens in Crystalline entity quite often, probably because all players (and more of them than usual in that 10-player TFO) and their effects are clustered in a small area.
    [4:46] [Combat {self}] Your Haymaker deals 23337 (9049) Physical Damage(Critical) to Spawnmother

    [3/25 10:41][Combat (Self)]Your Haymaker deals 26187 (10692) Physical Damage(Critical) to Orinoco.
  • jennycolvinjennycolvin Member Posts: 1,100 Arc User
    As others have said, we've been asking for such an options for years.
    The answer was just more VFX-heavy abilities that could've been made in any other number of ways - such as the Beacon of Khaless - but weren't because... reasons.

    Iirc, I read something recently about how it would be too much work because "they would have to change every ability by hand" or something of the sort. I imagine if they could think of a way to monetize that, then they'd probably do it. So, business as usual.
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    Not agreeing with someone doesn't give you the right to be an TRIBBLE.

    Ci sono tre tipi di giocatori:
    - quelli a cui non va mai bene niente... e vanno sul forum a trollare;
    - quelli che sono talmente imbesuiti da credere a qualunque cosa i dev dicano, perfino che la luna è fatta di formaggio... e vanno sul forum a trollare;
    - quelli che credono a quello a cui è giusto credere, sono d'accordo con quello con cui è giusto essere d'accordo e sono critici con quello che non va;

    Ai giocatori dei primi due tipi, gratis in omaggio un bello specchio lucente su cui arrampicarsi. E una mazzata in testa per la loro poca intelligenza e compassione verso gli altri giocatori che non la pensano come loro.
    Agli appartenenti al terzo tipo, invece, dico grazie. Anche se non sempre si riesce a mantenere la calma, siete quelli per cui vale la pena incazzarsi.
  • garaffegaraffe Member Posts: 1,353 Arc User
    Just take the Summer event ship as an example. After months and years of complaints about excessive visuals, they give the summer ship a console that spawns three gigantic spirling columns of bright lavender. Not as bad as the BoK, but it goes to show that the devs have no interest in listening to player complaints about this issue.
  • alcyoneserenealcyoneserene Member Posts: 2,412 Arc User
    Iirc, I read something recently about how it would be too much work because "they would have to change every ability by hand" or something of the sort. I imagine if they could think of a way to monetize that, then they'd probably do it. So, business as usual.

    Good point, I remember that too now that you mention it, and another forum poster (forgive me, don't recall who) suggested something really smart: tone down any new ability going forward to begin reducing the visual/auditory blinding spam.
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  • jennycolvinjennycolvin Member Posts: 1,100 Arc User
    edited February 2021
    Iirc, I read something recently about how it would be too much work because "they would have to change every ability by hand" or something of the sort. I imagine if they could think of a way to monetize that, then they'd probably do it. So, business as usual.

    Good point, I remember that too now that you mention it, and another forum poster (forgive me, don't recall who) suggested something really smart: tone down any new ability going forward to begin reducing the visual/auditory blinding spam.

    I mean, with the number of times the topic has been brought up and considering how long people have been asking for less visual spam, you'd think that they would take these complaints into account when creating effects for new abilities.

    The fact that they simply ignore it alltogether is nothing new of course, they do it with pretty much the entirety of the playerbase's feedback, but it also serves as confirmation of one simple fact: they do NOT play their own game - or, for the sake of argument, if they do they do it with options that are not available to anyone else, such as one that reduces or eliminate the visual bloat entirely.
    Otherwise, there's no logical reason *why* they'd continue to produce such visual effects.

    Then again, we know that they use humanoid in a cannon-ball shape to attach the VFX for torpedoes... so it might just as well be that they have absolutely no idea how to do anything differently.
    kv1Ohsx.png
    Not agreeing with someone doesn't give you the right to be an TRIBBLE.

    Ci sono tre tipi di giocatori:
    - quelli a cui non va mai bene niente... e vanno sul forum a trollare;
    - quelli che sono talmente imbesuiti da credere a qualunque cosa i dev dicano, perfino che la luna è fatta di formaggio... e vanno sul forum a trollare;
    - quelli che credono a quello a cui è giusto credere, sono d'accordo con quello con cui è giusto essere d'accordo e sono critici con quello che non va;

    Ai giocatori dei primi due tipi, gratis in omaggio un bello specchio lucente su cui arrampicarsi. E una mazzata in testa per la loro poca intelligenza e compassione verso gli altri giocatori che non la pensano come loro.
    Agli appartenenti al terzo tipo, invece, dico grazie. Anche se non sempre si riesce a mantenere la calma, siete quelli per cui vale la pena incazzarsi.
  • robynkaterobynkate Member Posts: 20 Arc User
    Yes I would like a feature like this myself. Right now there certain traits and console skills that causes visual spam in space combat that end up trigger photosensitive responses in me. I know every game technically has a "Don't play if you suffer seizures..." etc. type of statement before playing them.

    Some of the visual spam with
    • science abilities like the pulsating green lightning from gravity wells,
    • the blinding white screen of Plasma Storm
    • the whole in space that pulses out white whatever you call it from some event long ago (seen it still used but don't know its name)
    • other visual effects like the storm effects from the Summer event ship of last summer with its multiple tornadoes...

    All of these effects can trigger things from photosensitive migraines, photosensitive seizures, and motion sickness (all be it a weak form of motion sickness).

    Personally @jennycolvin I'd settle for any option to turn off visual effects such as those listed above. I mean seriously, I like the Star Trek ships and ground combat, but at times visual spam of the space combat and even the bright lights of the various ground pets/combat companions like the elachi walker and the Targ of Grethor can be rather disorientating to say the least.

    I however can count on one hand all of the games that I've ever played that specifically had a reduce visual spam option or feature. And sadly, even the two biggest communities [Star Trek and Star Wars] based games never have had such a feature. Even turning graphics down to lowest settings in either game doesn't really help much. Therefore, I'm not holding my breath waiting for them to release such a feature. Their logic would be that its something to make others envious of those players with it and therefore, more likely to spend money on the game.

    Sadly, I have a 3 of the 4 bullets above and both the Walker and Targ, and I can't use them because of the fear of triggering it. Also, sadly when I'm playing with others that do have them and are using it, if I stay playing with them in a 3 or 4 minute TFO, I'll be sick at the end of it... So I have chosen now to start leaving TFOs when someone uses such a device or skill or trait. Makes the game rather dull to me.
  • robynkaterobynkate Member Posts: 20 Arc User
    garaffe wrote: »
    Just take the Summer event ship as an example. After months and years of complaints about excessive visuals, they give the summer ship a console that spawns three gigantic spirling columns of bright lavender. Not as bad as the BoK, but it goes to show that the devs have no interest in listening to player complaints about this issue.

    Sadly, exactly as to why I mentioned something similar in my previous post to this forum. Would be nice if they'd change it though or at least make an option to change turn it off on client side only. Let others see it still, but the client (my PC for instance) wouldn't show it.

    I'm worried though, in other games, visual spam grows with each passing year. For now its consoles, traits, devices, and pets. What will it be later this year? Skins, particle flashy effects on captains and boffs, or some sort of Q like flash that can be spammed repeatedly?
  • jbessinger0000jbessinger0000 Member Posts: 7 Arc User
    edited February 2021
    I don't mean to say disable all visuals, just most of the ones that are activated so rapidly, like Tactical, Engineering, and Science team, or even the attack patterns, is just disabling those 7 visuals would greatly improve gameplay in my book and so many others. I like some of the visuals, like those of beam abilities like when you click the button for beam overload or torpedo overload. but some are really not necessary. and I've been told well how do you know what's activated, and I've included a picture with the area circled, that for me is all I need to know what is going on.
    https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=3660300164025584&set=g.6577364831

    P.S.
    Oh I was not talking about the space effects like grav well, plasma storm generator etc, just the ones that go off above your ship.
    However, that blinding white light I see almost every time when a huge group goes to fend off the terrain ships after defeating the 3 bases in the badlands, that is ridiculous and needs to be the first thing to go.
  • jbessinger0000jbessinger0000 Member Posts: 7 Arc User
    Recently I've been occasionally having an issue where torpedoes, both my own and enemy torps, sometimes don't render and are completely invisible.
    I hear ya, sometimes when there are just too many ships and visuals of things I get the same thing where my visuals do not go off properly. and I have a RTX 2070 Super, with an i5 9600K, on max, however its rare.
  • sheldonlcoopersheldonlcooper Member Posts: 4,042 Arc User
    Beacon of Kahless - it's too much.

    The one I hate the most is that stupid space tornado. I don't even know what the f it is but it goes on forever and makes it impossible to see anything.
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  • banditse1977#1368 banditse1977 Member Posts: 44 Arc User
    westmetals wrote: »

    One other one I don't see mentioned a lot is the horizontal space-dust planes in the Tzenkethi Battlezone. Those need to at least be more transparent as I often literally can't see ships that are on the other side of it but within weapons range. (I also have bad framerate problems in said battlezone).

    I get the same thing as well there,if there are ships on the opposite side of the plane they don't show up.

    I don't have framerate problems there so that may not be the cause of it.
  • jennycolvinjennycolvin Member Posts: 1,100 Arc User
    edited February 2021
    As others have said, we've been asking for such an options for years.
    The answer was just more VFX-heavy abilities that could've been made in any other number of ways - such as the Beacon of Khaless - but weren't because... reasons.

    Iirc, I read something recently about how it would be too much work because "they would have to change every ability by hand" or something of the sort. I imagine if they could think of a way to monetize that, then they'd probably do it. So, business as usual.

    please dont give them ideas on more cash cows...although i am with you completely that if it was a money dump, they would be on it stat. :)

    Oh believe me, the last thing I want is to give them *more* ideas about how to squeeze us for more money, but there *is* a precedent: the Mirror prefix. They were all "it would be too time consuming" - "every ship would have to be edited by hand" - "yadda yadda yadda"... and then, after years, they added it for 6k with the rest of the Mirror bundle.
    So, yeah...
    kv1Ohsx.png
    Not agreeing with someone doesn't give you the right to be an TRIBBLE.

    Ci sono tre tipi di giocatori:
    - quelli a cui non va mai bene niente... e vanno sul forum a trollare;
    - quelli che sono talmente imbesuiti da credere a qualunque cosa i dev dicano, perfino che la luna è fatta di formaggio... e vanno sul forum a trollare;
    - quelli che credono a quello a cui è giusto credere, sono d'accordo con quello con cui è giusto essere d'accordo e sono critici con quello che non va;

    Ai giocatori dei primi due tipi, gratis in omaggio un bello specchio lucente su cui arrampicarsi. E una mazzata in testa per la loro poca intelligenza e compassione verso gli altri giocatori che non la pensano come loro.
    Agli appartenenti al terzo tipo, invece, dico grazie. Anche se non sempre si riesce a mantenere la calma, siete quelli per cui vale la pena incazzarsi.
  • meimeitoomeimeitoo Member Posts: 12,587 Arc User
    An option to reduce some or all of the extraneous effects has been asked for over the years both on here and on reddit.

    The only official replies that I recall were 'they are meant to be informative' even if in a crowd it becomes a solid splatter of visual and auditory noise, and 'complain some more' in order to get noticed.


    Once allegedly meant for PvP. But who cares nowadays whether you actived Tactical Team?! Big whoop! Besides, the pseudo-excuse despite, the real reason for all the visual spam, let's face it, is simply because bling sells.

    While abilities showing over your ship is not itself an issue, their scale, however is. Kemocite looks grossly overscaled on say, Jem bug ship.
    3lsZz0w.jpg
  • alcyoneserenealcyoneserene Member Posts: 2,412 Arc User
    All the effects must sell for sure. They don't get that an option to hide effects would sell even better, by making the 'minority forum dwellers' happy too.

    Even if they (probably) have next to zero handle on their own game to make this an easy process, go in, one by one, beginning with the most offensive blinding ones (beacon of kahless), set the code to NOT trigger it on the condition an option in the graphics menu is checked.

    It must be many times harder to track down obscure bugs than to isolate specific graphics effects and write a line that omits the visual on the condition of an option being checked.
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    Devs: Provide the option to Turn OFF full screen flashes from enemy ship explosions
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  • alcyoneserenealcyoneserene Member Posts: 2,412 Arc User
    https://www.reddit.com/r/sto/comments/lrus9x/ten_forward_weekly_22421/
    Disabling player effects in space is a big process because some effects you need to see like gravity well/space tornado so you can know why ships are getting pulled. Game has 25,000 effects that would need to be gone through manually to determine if its essential or not.

    To me, this translates as, we admit to having no handle on our own game code, don't play our own game to understand which effects have or don't have a purpose, won't even try despite the feedback, and won't do anything going forward with new visual effects.
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    Devs: Provide the option to Turn OFF full screen flashes from enemy ship explosions
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  • dragon#2626 dragon Member Posts: 253 Arc User
    The reasoning given for the visual spam is specious at best. How, exactly, does a motley riot of color make it easier to keep track of which buffs you have active, etc.? Doesn't make a lick of sense, and does negatively impact immersion.
    I swim through a sea of stars. . . .
  • garaffegaraffe Member Posts: 1,353 Arc User
    https://www.reddit.com/r/sto/comments/lrus9x/ten_forward_weekly_22421/
    Disabling player effects in space is a big process because some effects you need to see like gravity well/space tornado so you can know why ships are getting pulled. Game has 25,000 effects that would need to be gone through manually to determine if its essential or not.

    To me, this translates as, we admit to having no handle on our own game code, don't play our own game to understand which effects have or don't have a purpose, won't even try despite the feedback, and won't do anything going forward with new visual effects.

    Frankly, I find it rather arrogant for the devs to be telling me what I need to see when playing the game. I think I have a better understanding of what I need to see and what I don't need/want to see.
  • garaffegaraffe Member Posts: 1,353 Arc User
    valoreah wrote: »
    garaffe wrote: »
    Frankly, I find it rather arrogant for the devs to be telling me what I need to see when playing the game. I think I have a better understanding of what I need to see and what I don't need/want to see.

    I struggle to understand their reasoning as well. If there are 25,000 effects, how is adding more helping the situation? We are honestly at the point where team content essentially is nothing but a wash of color and VFX so dense and over saturated you cannot see your ship. It strains credibility for them to say they are playing their own game. I cannot imagine someone looks at all the VFX firing off at once in team play and saying "that looks good."

    Well, according to the Devs, it's not about looking good, it's the fact that all these effects give us necessary and obligatory information, without which we completely lose the ability to fly our ships.
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