Star Trek Online

[Morreion]

Star Trek Online: "Meaningful" Death Penalty Needed (IncGamers)

The lack of any meaningful death penalty in STO is a hot topic among players. Some feel that without any real punishment for being defeated, players are less careful with their ships and characters than they should be in MMOs; you want at least some immersion after all, don't you?

...“I get that people want to feel a sense of risk when they’re fighting in battles, but if the only emotion you feel when you’re playing a game is fear that you’re going to lose some time due to an arbitrary gameplay mechanic, we’re probably not doing something right, ” he said.

Why We Won't De-List STO (MMORPG.com Staff Blog)

First of all, no, we will not be de-listing Star Trek Online because a group of readers feel that it isn’t an MMORPG, and so shouldn’t be listed here on the site. We heard this same argument about Age of Conan when it launched due to its extreme use of instancing. We didn’t de-list Conan, and we’re not de-listing Star Trek.

Yes, I am aware that in his recent column, our own Scott Jennings said the following: “Guild Wars doesn’t call itself an MMO. It may be that Star Trek Online shouldn’t, either.” And I think that he has a point. Star Trek Online (and Age of Conan for that matter) does indeed have far more in common with Guild Wars than, say, EVE Online.

So, why do we list it here at MMORPG.com? Why do we list a number of games that maybe don’t quite fit the exact and rigid definition brought on by what the acronym stands for: Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game?

We don’t do that because it isn’t a hard and fast, rigid definition that we’re looking for. The games that we cover are constantly evolving and developers are always trying new approaches and new ways of doing things. We don’t want this site to impose restrictions and instead shoot for rules that embrace the spirit of what an MMORPG is rather than trying to directly define it.

[Morreion]

Star Trek Online Review (MMORPG.com)

Final Score
6.4
Mediocre

Pros
Casual Friendly
Decent Star Trek game
Great Character Creation

Cons
Communication issues
Not enough to encourage community
Repetitive
Very heavily instanced
Weak Crafting System

Personally, I’m really enjoying my time in STO. I’ve enjoyed its story, and its systems and I’ve enjoyed being able to log in, quickly do a mission or two, and log out again. It’s been a thrill to get to be a part of this futuristic Starfleet, fight Klingons, meet characters I recognize, and take part in uniquely Star Trek experiences.

Still though, the part of my brain that’s been doing this job for five years can’t necessarily see past some of the bigger issues. The game feels a little bit over-instanced to me, and is missing the kinds of features (voice, better grouping, etc.) that it would take to keep me playing month after month. I would have also liked to see more time put in to the game’s “virtual world” making it feel more like a Trek game and less like an MMO with a Trek skin.

So, I’m coming down mostly in the middle of the two extremes I listed above. Average that together and we end up with a score of 6.4. The bottom line with this game though, is that you have to know the kind of game you’re looking for and decide for yourself if this quirky but engaging title is really for you.

Community upset causes Cryptic to make a statement on STO promotion (Massively)

Part of the Star Trek Online community was heaved into an upset recently by an Atari.com promotion that added an extra 30 days of free play time on top of the preexisting 30 days, bringing the total to a whopping 60. (Edit: The promotion added an extra 60 days, bringing the total to a larger 90 days of free time.) Atari.com buyers would also pay $10 less, making it a good deal for anyone still sitting on the proverbial fence. Some players who were unhappy with the sale expressed a feeling of betrayal from Cryptic, saying this was too good a deal too soon after the game's February 2nd launch.

Cryptic has given an official statement on the matter and it appears that the promotion has been removed.

Cryptic seems to have a knack for causing consternation among its player base

[Morreion]

Star Trek Online: Addressing Some Complaints (MMORPG.com)

C-Store

When Cryptic launched their "C-Store" for Star Trek Online, many people were outraged. They felt that asking them to pay a subscription fee and then offering further products for sale on top of that fee was, at the very least, not in the spirit of MMORPGs.

Lack of Social Interaction

Star Trek Online has often been referred to as an MMO that keeps people separated. Some players have complained that they can progress through entire ranks in the game without ever once interacting with anyone else.

Easy Mode Combat

With Star Trek Online, the question really wasn't to ask why they included combat, especially in space, that was incredibly easy and without much risk. That's an easy question to answer for ourselves, knowing that when anyone is learning a new game, they don't want to end up dead all the time. The real question is why was a decision made to keep the game in easy mode throughout the Lieutenant ranks and into Lieutenant Commander.

"It's Just Not Star Trek"

One of the biggest complaints that we've heard about Cryptic's Star Trek Online has been that there are many players out there who claim that it just "isn't Star Trek" enough. In other words, there are those out there who feel that STO is really just any other generic MMO (specifically Champions Online) with a Star Trek skin on it.

Too easy, solo-oriented with little interaction, cash shop...if this is the trend in today's MMOs, I'm not going to enjoy them very much. To be fair, some of these points they are attempting to address.

[Morreion]

Captain's Log: Three months of Star Trek Online (Massively)

The State of the Game

Today, STO is sailing along well enough, despite some early missteps. Those included the unpopular addition of Ferengi and Klingon as playable Federation races to the C-Store on launch day, and the disastrous Atari.com deal that discounted STO by $10 and offered 90 days of free play time. Although Cryptic said STO had 1 million registered accounts mere days after launch, the company seems pleased with the game's more than 100,000 subscribers.

So with the game settled in after three months, I thought I'd offer a few of my impressions of the game.

Likes:

Space combat is a joy...
Designing your own alien is a kick...
The game's episodic nature is also a big plus...

Dislikes:

Ground combat...
Crafting...

Check out the article for details. There's plenty of links for more info on the current state of the game.

[Morreion]

Star Trek Online Re-Review
MMORPG.com's Patrick Gerard takes a new look at Star Trek Online seven months after the game's release. See what he discovered in our re-review of STO.

Final Score
7.4
Average

Pros
Good Value
Improved Customer Service
Lush Graphics
Solid Sound Effects & Voice Overs

Cons
A One Faction Game
Annoying Mission Bugs
Raiding System is Poor

"Overall, Star Trek Online was a mediocre release that is shaping up to be promising entry in the MMO market, if not waylaid by the initial development team's schizophrenic focus on confusing and underdeveloped mechanics and a second faction which has no compelling reason to exist from a design standpoint."

Captain's Log: Six months of Star Trek Online (Massively)

What needs work- ground combat & Klingons.

There's a good roundup of useful links at this page.

News Discussion » Star Trek Online: Season II: Ancient Enemies (MMORPG.com)

Minigames & weekly feature episodes on the way.

Star Trek Online : Craig Zinkievich Leaving, Daniel Stahl Taking Over (MMORPG.com)

Executive producer is replaced.

Captain's Log: Did Cryptic betray the spirit of Star Trek? (Massively)

This is a hot topic, given the lack of exploration, overemphasis on war, and the superficial treatment of the Klingon player race in STO. Purists are not happy! Plenty of comments to this article full of players with their own ideas.

Captain's Log: Is the state of the game good, bad or ugly? (Massively)

This article uses the latest state of the game letter from the devs to discuss where STO is and where it is going and whether that's a good place or not

[Morreion]

Dan Stahl talks about Star Trek Online's user-generated content (Massively)

Although the tool isn't yet in the game, executive producer Dan Stahl has been discussing it for some time, and he goes into a bit more depth in a recent interview.

Captain's Log: Anticipating STO's future in user-generated content (Massively)

Dubbed the Genesis project (do I really have to explain that one?), the UGC system was originally an internal "iteration tool" that would allow a content designer to create solar systems, missions and the like without needing an artist to make stuff for him.

Star Trek Online preps player-generated content tools (Massively)

"Players can customize pre-made planet surfaces and star systems with their own encounters, objects, and story. They can also create their own star systems from scratch. More map features are planned for future updates," reads the FAQ on the o-boards.

Replay episodes or make your own with STO's Season Three (Massively)

In a preview of December's Season Three, Cryptic reveals a trio of significant re-dos: a revamp of the visually lackluster sector space, the ability to replay your favorite episodes, and the beta of STO's player-created mission feature, The Foundry.

Star Trek Online's C-Store goes as basic as possible (Massively)

The original NX-01 Enterprise as well as the uniforms of the prequel series (and its mirror-universe counterparts) are now available for purchase.

Captain's Log: Supplemental on STO's treatment of canon (Massively)

Surprising no one, Jef also mentions STO's relation to Star Trek canon -- an ongoing point of contention among, like, everyone who's ever encountered the game. Certain aspects of STO's gameplay, particularly currencies, are "directly at odds with the utopian ideals of the Federation," he writes.

Captain's Log: Pros and cons of Season 3 (Massively)

STO lets us revisit and replay our favorite episodes, which is pretty neat. I would enjoy getting my hands on the old Past Imperfect storyline again, for example, if only to get some decent screenshots this time. The fact that some missions will include new, episode-specific rewards elevates this from a fun novelty to a welcome feature.

[Morreion]

Rise and Shiny recap: Star Trek Online (Massively)

While combat was everything from bland to on-the-edge-of-my-seat exciting, it still needs a lot of love. Ground combat in particular can feel very clumsy and unsatisfying. I imagine that, as it is most of the time, group combat is a lot more engaging. Missions were a blast most of the time but could use more variety. One of the most common complaints I have heard or read about the game is the lack of variety, so I imagine I would start seeing that more once I leveled.

Captain's Log: Foundry-friendly resources and tips (Massively)

The Foundry is still in open beta, which means you need access to the Tribble test server. Players who haven't used Tribble before need to sign up for and copy a character to the test server. Log in to the STO website and select "Public Test" in the dropdown menu under "Support," which you can see at the top of the front page.

Captain's Log: Creating my first mission in the Foundry (Massively)

The editor is complicated, at least for someone like me who has never created content elsewhere. I frequently hit points where I don't know what I'm doing, and the editor interface offers little direction in those situations.

It's also time-consuming. I needed five hours on Sunday to craft a mission that takes about five minutes to complete -- and that's without even touching the "Costumes" tab. A lot of the problem falls to my having no idea what I was doing half the time, but even so, the Foundry in its current state likely won't appeal to really casual players.

Captain's Log: STO was the best MMO of 2010? (Massively)

STO claimed top honors for the year's best MMO in our readers' poll this year, handily beating out second-place finisher None of the Above. In fact, STO showed up quite a lot in the poll:

* Best launch of 2010
* Second-place in best crafting of 2010 (just behind None of the Above)
* Best capacity for roleplay
* Biggest surprise hit
* Best overall MMO of 2010

Color me surprised!

Ask Cryptic: January 2011 (STO official site)

A major feature of Season 4 is the Fleet Actions queue (very similar to the current PVP Queue) which will not only allow Fleets to create private instances of Fleet Actions, but it will also allow players to visibly see what Fleet Actions are currently running, how many players are in them, at what levels, etc. At that time we'll also be looking into the level banding issue to ensure competition and rewards are fair, while allowing the maximum number of people to participate.

Captain's Log: Facing the future of Star Trek Online (Massively)

I know the folks in charge keep flirting with the idea, but STO really needs to go freemium. Except for WoW (and who knows, maybe Star Wars: The Old Republic), free-to-play is the future (at least until someone comes up with a better alternative payment model). STO doesn't need to switch immediately, but sooner is better than later. I would almost suggest switching when the team is ready to take the Foundry live, because that would be the kind of major content addition on which to hang the publicity hat.

Star Trek Online marks first anniversary with in-game events, discounts, and new Feature Episode (Massively)

Includes a 2:24 video.

Cryptic releases new Star Trek Online Featured Episode (Massively)

Includes a video trailer.