Star Trek Online VFX Lead on updating visual style of the IP
IGN recently posted a Star Trek Online dev diary written by the game's VFX Lead Michael Cavallaro. "Creating the visual style ofStar Trek Onlinewas no easy task," said Cavallaro. "You might think that everything we would be creating has already been done, but not only are references several years old but they vary across the board." If you factor in how the effects changed between the various series and movies, you can see how preserving the look of Star Trek as viewers know it posed a challenge for the Cryptic Studios devs.
The idea, Cavallaro related, was for the Cryptic devs to draw upon elements from the original Star Trek series and update that now-retro 60's sci-fi look for a contemporary audience. The trick was to do so while keeping said elements recognizable from the original IP.
For more insight into how Cryptic updated the sci-fi IP's visual style, check out Star Trek Online VFX Lead Michael Cavallaro's dev blog hosted on IGN.
