Star Trek Online

[CaptainRAVE]

Bought the deluxe edition from Direct2Drive here.

3 copies might be a little bit of overkill

It has to be said, this game is really starting to look good. Cryptic have been great at listening to us in the beta.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Have they announced the monthly fee yet?

Not that I have seen. I am hoping they will offer lifetime subs.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Havent played since before Christmas, but a few things to mention -

- Ground Combat was pretty rubbish in the beginning and was one of my main worries (along with a lot of previews written about the game). But it has been much improved recently with features such as rolling, an "aim" mode and better team tactics.

- Shields have had a graphical upgrade on ships and space combat is very very cool now! The pace is slow and each fight really does feel epic. Of course, pacing might change and there does seem to be a little bit too much combat.

- The tutorial is actually fun and the voice over by Zachary Quinto works really well.

- Teaming is much easier than it was in Champions with the option for solo or team play when you arrive at a star system.

- Adding to my opinions on teaming, deep space encounters are sooooo much fun. Lots of federation ships warping in and fighting dozens of Klingon ships.

- I haven't gotten to the high level content (I want to keep it for release), but I did warp in to fight some Dominion ships. I got killed pretty quickly, but it was fun nonetheless.

- The genesis content hadn't been added while I was playing, so this is still an unknown for me.

All in all, STO is shaping up to be good and a lot better than I was expecting. It also runs better than Champions did, maintaining 60fps constantly on my setup (the older setup that isn't my sig - with a 4870X2 and the Q9550 at stock).

 

[CaptainRAVE]

This game doesn't have PvP does it?

Yes it does. The Klingons are mostly PvP, and the response has actually been positive from people who have played them (contrary to the outcry on the main forums).

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Cheers rave that was exactly what i was looking for. Another question though, how is the exploration side of things. I was very interested to hear you could travel to places other players will have never visited as planets etc would be dynamically created. In essence the universe would never end, is this still true?

Yes, kind of, but it will be generated on Cryptics side and uploaded to the server. So we wont have content generated individually for us, but it is unlikely we would encounter the same planet as our friends. The genesis system still isn't live though.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

I'm unimpressed by the beta - combat is just too clunky especially the ship based bits which are so slow and boring.

I suspect this will only appeal to fans of the TV series.

But that is how it should be. They are big starships, not fighters. It certainly shouldn't be as deep and simulation based as Klingon Academy or Starfleet Command, but Cryptic have found a good balance imo.

However, they do need to add dorsal and ventral shields since the environment is 3D, but functions as a 2D environment.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

I've read conflicting previews about this, one of the bigger ones states that it is set in the same timeline created by Star Trek XI and Romulous and Vulcan are gone. Also it's set not long after those events but the ubiform shots I've seen seem to indicate TNG era.

http://www.startrekonline.com/startrek_xi (click on the timeline)

Set in the unaltered timeline. Although there are time travel episodes!

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Still a bit guttered i never got into closed beta after buying my 6 month champions sub. Suppose i should preorder.

Yes, I feel your frustration. I didn't get in until end of December (and then went on holiday, so missed some testing). Don't let it put you off preordering! It is shaping up well

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Also, I wonder how many science vessels we'll see... I'd imagine everyone is going to want an Enterprise style ship or a Defiant style ship.

You would think that, but so far I have seen an equal distribution of most ships. Have to admit, I was expecting the same thing! I think the reason is that abilities depend on your bridge officers and that there are much cooler ships on offer

 

[CaptainRAVE]

And for the Klingons:

Ground Combat - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9T_I8fLfUmk

Space Combat - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhRdnVX3ENQ

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Looks goos so far. Im not a fan of MMO's but defo getting this.

Which copy do i get, is the £50 steam deal worth it???

It all depends whether or not you want the bonuses on offer. Many of the item bonuses will be worthless within a few levels. However, there are some cool bonuses like having the NX prefix and the joined trill bonus. I bought mine from D2D. I know quite a few people getting multiple copies (multiple keys stack on one account), but I am not that crazy

Still waiting to see if they offer lifetime subs!

 

[CaptainRAVE]

They stated cloaking will be available for federation vessels for missions only, i think klingons get it as ship equipment... But then there is no PVE content for klingons...

Erm, yes there is . Just not a huge amount at the moment. More than anything there just isn't much of a story. But Cryptic do seem to be very hard at work correcting this!

Im not sure if its worth a monthly sub, partying seems random and the 'loot drops' are just plain weird while partying, like someone can do absoultely no dmg to a ship and yet they get the 'loot' also some of the items need better clarification of what exactly they do.

Yes, I agree the loot drops are random. Teaming is excellent though. Seemless and it doesn't feel forced. No Star Trek fan will let this pass by and the response from beta gets better and better with each patch and test.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Firstly, a reminder of the dates for those who don't know:

***Released 2nd Feb 2010 in the USA and 5th Feb 2010 in Europe***
************ Open Beta 1/12/10 – 1/26/10 *****************
************* Head Start 1/29/10-2/2/10 ******************

ah well hush hush, its only a matter of days now anyway

Don't worry, we won't tell

Im really tempted to pick this up tbh. Been waiting for a decent space game and im a fan of star trek so this seems as good as any . As others have said im surprised at how good its looking tbh.

I think most of us are suprised. Firstly, after Champions we were expecting something watered down and not very good. I didn't get into STO beta until late, but so many of us were shocked by how good it is graphically and how Star Trek it feels. Since then (and in a very short period of time) they have released a number of patches with a load of changes - most of which of gone down really well. Unlike Champions that went backwards with each patch, STO is evolving into something special. In addition to this, there is just so much potential.

2nd of Feb, i wish they would hurry up and show the subscription fees to see if there are deals to be had, like 6 month or a lifetime sub.

Same. I would love to get a lifetime sub, but I just can't see them offering these until a few months to a yera down the road. It is Star Trek, so they know they don't need that initial pile of money. Plus, by releasing in Feb Atari are giving them something like a $17 million bonus.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Me and a friend were thinking of Making a fleet.

I would be up for joining a OCUK fleet. As long as it is casual and friendly . Getting sick and tired of guilds and all of the drama that usually comes with it. I think my options are either joining a OCUK or being a lone wolf

Looking good what is PvP like? Is it free for all combat areas or instanced stuff?

PvP instances from what I understand. I think the devs ruled out open PvP zones, although I feel there should be the option to have them in the neutral zone. Haven't really tried PvP yet. From what I have heard it is supposed to be good, but players want more of a story/reason to be PvPing. I have no doubt Cryptic will get this right very soon.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

The shipname contest winners have been announced. Those are some very cool ships. Cryptic have done a great job designing the ships imo.

http://www.startrekonline.com/node/832

Not too fond of the third ship. But then not to bothered since I think it is a science vessel and the ships can be modified anyway

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Dervish sounds a bit meh, the other 2 have been picked pretty well

I thought the same.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Ok guys, sorry I just have a few questions for people..

Is there a level cap in this game? If so what is the max level?
Is it done like eve/df/uo and its skill points?
If you die in a ship what actually happens is it like eve and you could loose millions?
The pvp is there any reason or point to pvp?
Can you pvp anywhere?
Can you pvp your own race and by pvp I don't mean duel I mean flat out gank.

Thanks

Is there a level cap in this game? If so what is the max level? Yes and no. There is the list Pyroblaze showed. You also earn points that you MUST spend to level up. Even after reaching maximum level you can keep earning these until all your skills are full - although they say that could take 300 hours +

If you die in a ship what actually happens is it like eve and you could loose millions? You lose crew that you need to replace at spacedock. This system isn't in place yet though.

The pvp is there any reason or point to pvp? Can you pvp anywhere? Can you pvp your own race and by pvp I don't mean duel I mean flat out gank. There are PvP instances and at the moment they say there is no plan for open PvP (although I would like the option)! As the klingons you can PvP the federation and other klingon houses. Not sure if the federation can PvP each other, but if not I suspect it will be added soon.

Anyway - heads up for anyone testing tonight. There is a big patch with some pretty huge additions - bridges and genesis to name a few

 

[CaptainRAVE]

I've just downloaded the closed beta client, I'd imagine they'll be using the same client and *maybe* just releasing a more patched version for open beta which can most likely just patch from the CB client.

http://www.fileplanet.com/208768/200000/fileinfo/Star-Trek-Online-:-Downloader---Utility

Yup, it'll be the same - just with a few new patches. Wouldn't like to download the patches from scratch at this point!

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Can you PvP them whenever you meet them as you travel, or do they have to be "flagged" for PvP?

Haven't done any PvP, so only know what I have read on the beta forums sorry. Will post if I find out any more info.

Are there plans to have other internal areas of the ships? Would be great to be able to walk around your ship, would be even better if other players could beam over and walk around your ship and vice versa !

Post launch there are plans to extend ship interiors. Tbh it was only a few months ago we found out bridges had been added last minute as a sort of "social hub".


Edit: Small update - Apparently there is a lot of debate at Cryptic at the moment whether or not to add open PvP. They say more info will follow.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

They should definitely allow open PvP imo, open PvP is pretty much a key feature of the Star Trek universe I would say.

I think they will. It is a feature that would please most people. People who want it can go into those zones, people who don't can stay clear. I really think they will add it in parts of the neutral zone.