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Al Rivera(STO's first developer/employee) has left Cryptic Studios after 20 years
thegrandnagus1
Member Posts: 5,166 Arc User
Post edited by baddmoonrizin on
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I, too, will shed no tears. I just hope his replacement is a step up.
Maybe the replacement will see the Exploration opportunity in this game that is hiding in plain sight.
Notable missions: Apex [AEI], Gemini [SSF], Trident [AEI], Evolution's Smile [SSF], Transcendence
Looking for something new to play? I've started building Foundry missions again in visual novel form!
I hope professional change for Al Rivera is good for him. And I hope that change is good for Star Trek Online.
That said, this change started months ago for the company. Now if player's of Cryptic Studio games can get more direct press and Executive Producer livestreams to address the elephant in the room? That would be refreshing. Visibility of leadership in game companies is a thing. Even if streaming isn't their thing personally, IMO, it's part of the job in this current age. Step up to it.
I'm tired of Ambassador Kael having to push through STO livestreams with one (or both) hands tied behind his back. Because, apparently, he can't talk about much of anything unless it's game mechanic or near release (the week of usually) content. Community management for ALL of Cryptic Studios games? People wonder why the man gets testy? His critics need to save some of those shoes to throw toward others. It's past time for the executives of Cryptic Studios to step it up. WHO runs the company these days? WHO are the Executive Producers for each game from the studio? This used to be much more common knowledge to excited player's. Some of us know. Most of us don't. We should hear from them every business quarter. Quit evading conversation with their player base. Make themselves available to participate and respond to player's direct questions.
It's set a bad tone and this perception won't improve until they do.
The-Grand-Nagus
Join Date: Sep 2008
https://www.reddit.com/r/sto/comments/1b3g360/an_actual_post_come_say_hello/
The main reason this game has survived is because Trek fans are (perhaps even to the point of irrationality, ironically) very attached to the franchise on an emotional level.
That is not to say that the team has done a bad job or anything - I'm just saying they have a well known name and a loyal fanbase to build on. That has certainly helped keeping the game afloat.
There are just too many signs to ignore this and keep pretending otherwise. Even if we're not very rapidly approaching STO's end, we're clearly already in the process of its demise. I wish I were wrong, but I'm not going to fool myself with those wishes.
From what I've heard Thomas is still with STO, he's just looking around. Doesn't mean he's absolutely going to leave. So lets just be patient and see what happens.
My primary complaint above was lack of communication above the Community Manager position. And I'm pleased the player's are now getting something over nothing. During a delicate - and somewhat tedious - transition.
He hasn't left yet, no. But he most likely has his reasons for reconsidering his future at STO.
Recognising that and everything else that's happened isn't 'doomsaying', it's facing the facts. Which are piling up, note that (besides other devs) JamJamz had already been layed off as well.
When even the ship design team - the people responsible for the thing that brings in most of STO's revenue - is thinning out, things are bad.
Everyone has of course the right to their own opinions and determine their own state of mind, but I doubt the facts can be interpreted any other way:
Absent some radical intervention and a complete turnabout of the current situation, we'll remain on the path that is leading us to STO's end as we currently know it.
Feel free to disagree though, but please don't cling to desperate hope too much. It'll only make things harder. We all share our passion for this game and I'd hate to see any of you experiencing total shock when the final announcement is made.
At this point the best thing is to take a wait-and-see attitude instead of panicking and assuming the worst.
The focus is going to be on what DECA does here but the fact we're looking at a new team with stated invigoration, aligned structurally with the aspirations of DECA to grow, is far from the worst case scenario. If it goes well, STO and NW could have longer lifespans than they might have had under Cryptic (newbies fighting to prove themselves finding new paths that the status quo likely wouldn't). But at the very least it probably bought the games a little more time compared to the worst Embracer could have done.
Overall its a messy situation with any change weighted against the limited options Embracer/the industry provided, and the somewhat decoupled interests of players and STO developers. STO will continue, but the story telling platform the team had is being taken away from them by rough circumstance. They've put so much into the game for so long. The community's been there with the Foundry sunset, with a creative platform for some being lost even as the game continues in a new normal. So even as we push for the game's survival, and potential reinvigoration, there's massive sympathy to throw at the team and the tough choices they're being forced to make re. new development structures and a new company.
All food for thought in community interactions. A balance is needed between mourning an era, helping to build a better future for STO/NW/Champs in eventually interacting with a new set of devs (while some may remain, we're absolutely going to hear from new folks), exhibiting patience with transition issues, while offering emotional support and appreciation the existing devs, and reserving ire for those that really caused this to happen (eg. Embracer, rather than DECA as yet). It's a community test for being human.
Notable missions: Apex [AEI], Gemini [SSF], Trident [AEI], Evolution's Smile [SSF], Transcendence
Looking for something new to play? I've started building Foundry missions again in visual novel form!
It matters as its not just a case of the devs don’t want to work in a different time zone. The STO team are not being automatically transferred as they work at Cryptic which is not being transferred to DECA.
The STO team are staying with Cryptic. People are leaving not because they don’t want to work in a different time zone. They are leaving because they can see what is likely going to happen which is Cryptic is going be sold or shutdown.
It matters as we are going to have an entirely new team. As in a completely different set of people running the game.
I don’t feel its right to say DECA is now Cryptic. When Cryptic is still running as a separate studio with the same staff. (at least for now)
It feels like some people are under the impression this is just DECA taking over with a many of the same STO team still running the game. That is not what is happening. This isn't like the move from when Cryptic left the last people and joined Embracer. Its nothing like that.
Overall I am hopeful and feel positive about the change but I expect the next year+ is going vey bumpy and then over time it will get better then what he have now.