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Star Trek Online pushes pre-order bonus items to the C-Store
Are you a Star Trek Online player who wants a Borg bridge officer or access to the original USS Enterprise, but missed out on the limited-time offers for them? The good news is that you no longer have to be bereft of the pre-order perks just because you came into the game late. Cryptic is offering a variety of the pre-order items and bonuses on the C-Store as part of a large update to their stock. Among the new items are uniforms for Deep Space Nine and The Wrath of Khan, playable Joined Trill, and of course the original Constitution-class Enterprise. Understandably, there's a fair bit of furor about the new additions to the store. Lifetime subscribers are especially upset about the changes, as some of the additions were specifically aimed at them -- and unlike pre-ordering customers, they didn't pay the same price as everyone else. While the developers are understanding, they've stated repeatedly that they see this as best for the game and the players. It certainly is a net benefit for non-lifetime Star Trek Online players, but it certainly isn't going to tone down the controversy of the game's microtransaction system.
New Star Trek Online patch structure looks forward
While you can fault the team behind Star Trek Online for some things, failure to plan is certainly not one of them. The development team has been very public about their plans for testing and release, which made a few people rather curious when Season 1.2 launched in early June rather than late May. What would that mean for Season 1.3 and the following Season 2 patch? The most recent Engineering Report on the official forums tackles precisely that, explaining that the team has adjusted their schedule slightly and will roll 1.3 straight into the Season 2 patch. That leaves us with an enormous list of features for Season 2, which is aimed at July. Ship interiors and a raise in level cap to 51 are the two most obvious changes, with the former offering a choice from several layouts and the latter promoting a player to the rank of Vice Admiral or Lieutenant General. There's also the addition of minigames, weekly episodes, officer trading, new episodes for the high-level band, a new fleet action, and a general surfeit of improvements to the game. Star Trek Online players are encouraged to check out the official thread and offer any feedback to the proposed changes.
Newest Ask Cryptic for Star Trek Online highlights gaps between series and game
The trouble with making Star Trek Online is that there are a lot of parts that work great in a dramatic television series that don't necessarily work as well in a game. As much fun as it might be to have your bridge officers get together for a poker game, there's a dearth of useful ways to integrate it into gameplay in a meaningful sense. That having been said, the team at Cryptic is clearly interested in trying to add as many iconic elements from the series as possible, as spotlighted in the most recent set of Ask Cryptic answers on the official site. A prime example are individual bridge officer stories -- they want to add them, but there are so many variables that the effort winds up feeling more generic instead of more personal. However, there are ideas and hopeful plans for adding more personalities to bridge officers, as well as the potential to respec your officers (although that also runs into minor problems). There's also some information about the upcoming Diplomatic missions to help spice up exploring the nebulae around the galaxy. Star Trek Online players are encouraged to take a look at the full list of answers, which covers quite a bit of space in both design and lore.
Star Trek Online hosts a play night on the test server
The team for Star Trek Online has been working on cleaning up bugs, deploying new features, and generally getting the game prepped for the upcoming Season 1.2 patch, which promises a variety of additions and improvements to the game. In order to help facilitate the testing of new features -- and to enjoy getting into the mix with the players -- the development team is going to be hosting one of Cryptic's frequent play nights with the general populace. Unlike normal, this night isn't taking place on the live servers, but on the Tribble test server. From 4-6 PM PST (7-9 PM EST) on May 24th, the developers will be on the server, taking part in PvE content as well as on the PvP maps. Whether you want the developers to hear about your great idea for new task forces, want to tell them how much you want the game to have new content, or are just still recovering from the series finale of Lost, any player with an active Star Trek Online account is encouraged to mix it up with the development team.
Captain's Log: Guide to Memory Alpha and crafting in Star Trek Online
Attention, Starfleet! It's time again for Captain's Log, your favorite Thursday Star Trek Online column. After last week's roundup of incoming changes and improvements, let's discuss the latest much-needed upgrade to STO: the Memory Alpha overhaul! I am so excited about this change. Crafting in STO definitely got short shrift at launch. The system itself was not engaging, and progression was a confounding mess. While Cryptic Studios haven't fundamentally altered the former, last week's update to the Season 1.3 patch made such changes to the latter -- it implemented a dedicated crafting window and actual progression -- that I almost don't care. After bidding a brief farewell to the previous system, allow me to explain the basics of crafting: materials, missions and Memory Alpha.
Star Trek Online asks players to choose the next ship addition
There have been a lot of ship designs in Star Trek over the years, so it's understandable that not every design was in Star Trek Online at launch. The game's division of ship tiers into customizable batches is no doubt part of the reason, as well. But that doesn't mean that the developers aren't well aware of the gaps in ship classes, and that's the reasoning behind the latest poll on the official site, asking players which ship design they'd like to see enter the game next, quite possibly as a lower-tier ship. Of the classes available, four are past or future designs for the ubiquitous Enterprise lineage, including the often-seen Excelsior class and the rarely-seen Ambassador class. There's also the far-future Enterprise-J design and the far-past NX design, both seen in Star Trek: Enterprise. The other two classes are somewhat less flashy but somewhat more notable omissions -- the Nebula class, a frequently-seen workhorse design that resembles a pared-down Galaxy class, and the Oberth class, a general-purpose medical and scientific vessel from the same area. The Excelsior class is currently in the lead, so Star Trek Online fans are encouraged to vote for their favorites.
Season 1.1 supplemental goes live for Star Trek Online and nukes Memory Alpha
Really, if you play Star Trek Online, you can't possibly treat the wholesale revision of Memory Alpha with anything but glee. (That is, the planetside excuse for a crafting system, not the franchise wiki.) It's been one of the most universally panned portions of the game, and short of it automatically deleting your character any changes would be an improvement. The new Season 1.1 Supplemental patch adds in the large-scale revision of Memory Alpha along with the Undine Terradome special task force as well as several UI improvements and bug fixes. The revised version of Memory Alpha is much closer to a classic crafting system: you level a research skill in one of several categories, starting with Basic and moving on to more specialized research once you've maximized your Basic skill. Basic ingredients are sold by vendors on-site, and there's no longer trading in what amounts to tokens for new items. Progress in the previous system has been preserved as best is possible, although there is a bit of fudging of numbers here and there. It'll take Star Trek Online players a little time to adjust to a crafting system that isn't quite so... special as its predecessor, but we're willing to bet they'll adapt.
Star Trek Online takes a look in the Undine Terradome
First known as Species 8472, the Undine are one of the signature threats of Star Trek Online, a race of shapeshifting creatures with bizarre motives and what seems to be unbounded malice toward other races. While they've not yet moved into center stage, they've followed a steady process of subversion and infiltration through several of the game's storylines. But now they're stepping up their efforts and their intensity, as the newest special task force sees you taking on an incoming invasion of the Undine. As the new lore page reveals, while your mission starts as a simple investigation of some erratic energy signatures, it quickly changes into something else. Fans of Voyager might recognize some of the trappings, but the threat in this case may be something far worse than before. It's up to players to take the fight to their enemies, hopefully preventing a full-scale invasion of space by an undetectable foe. The prior Star Trek Online special task forces have pushed the game's storyline (and difficulty) front and center, and the newest installment seems to be aiming in that direction as well.
Ship interiors planned in the near future for Star Trek Online
It's been an interesting process to watch the growth of Star Trek Online over the past few months, with Cryptic clearly making a concerted effort to pack a great deal more content into the game as fast as possible. They've stated prior that they would like to go no more than three months between major content updates, with smaller updates happening on a monthly basis. In the most recent Engineering Report on the official site, we get more details about what's being planned and worked on for the near future -- and the many players eagerly awaiting ship interiors don't have to wait that much longer. The report outlines the rough plan for the next three months, for the Season 1.2 patch, the followup 1.3 patch, and the Season 2 update planned in July. 1.2 is aiming at adding a "sidekick" system a la City of Heroes, new playable races, and social improvements. 1.3, targeted for June, is adding Dabo, the option to trade bridge officers, and weekly episodes. And as could be expected, Season 2 is packed to the gills with new features -- including Klingon episodes, "neutral" episodes for all factions, and ship interiors. Take a look at the full report for more looks at what's on the table and being tested for Star Trek Online.
Dabo, Klingon missions, and diplomacy heading for Star Trek Online
There are a lot of things to expect out of Star Trek Online, including things that weren't in the game at launch which made some people rather unhappy. The game has passed its three-month mark, however, and seems to be doing fairly well for itself with updates coming at a steady clip. Executive Producer Craig Zinkievich recently sat down for an interview in which he discussed some of the upcoming content for the game, including the ever-popular pastime of any Deep Space 9 occupant: Dabo, the nebulously-defined gambling game that involved large sums of money and attractive Bajoran attendants. Beyond that, the staff is working on Memory Alpha and tweaking the difficulty of the special task forces, which they felt were just about right for the high end and a bit too difficult for the average player. They've also got the beginnings of plans for Season 2, including a raise to the skill point cap, Klingon Episodes, and a Federation diplomatic corps. The next update is tenatively scheduled for July. For more details on what the future is currently slated to hold for Star Trek Online, take a look at the full interview.
Captain's Log: Guide to the Klingon tutorial
Captain to engineering! We've been hit! How bad is it? Our graphics card is shot to oblivion, you say? Of all the dratted luck! Divert auxiliary power to onboard graphics processors. Oh, no, you're right, that's awful. Wow. Yeah, no, it's like an old-school Lucasarts game up in here. Oh, hey there, everyone. Welcome to a woefully damaged edition of Captain's Log, Massively's weekly column on all things Star Trek Online. Sadly, a Terran Federation attack knocked out our graphics card, and the U.S.S. Bob Wiley has seen better days. So while we limp to our nearest starbase for repairs -- Lieutenant Newegg assures me we'll have a new card replicated within three business days -- I'll hand this week's column over to our Klingon ambassador, Captain Trout. As we've already covered the Federation tutorial, he'll explain the basics of the Klingon beginner's experience.
Star Trek Online offering veteran rewards and free trials
Star Trek Online players and former players got a little surprise in their inbox this morning -- the promise of rewards if you were still playing, and the chance to get back in if you stopped. Quite apart from the recent update to the game's first large content patch, Cryptic is rolling out three new features to players: Veteran Rewards, a demo, and an upcoming free trial weekend. The demo, not quite available yet but promised in the very near future, will work along the lines of the Champions Online demo: unlimited time, but gameplay itself limited to the first few missions and areas. For lapsed players or new players who prefer limited time and unlimited content, there's a free weekend coming up starting on May 7th. Again much like its sister game, there are no limitations on gameplay, just time: May 7th at 10 AM PST until May 10th 10 AM PST. Of course, if you're an extant player none of these options are terribly engaging to you -- but the newly-added veteran rewards most likely are. Rolling in each 100 days, the rewards allow another free respec each interval, special costume pieces, and a small skill point buff on low-level characters. Take a look at the full page for all the rewards, which are the latest in a large dose of good news for Star Trek Online fans.
Star Trek Online's Season One gets a booster shot
It's been three months since the launch of Star Trek Online, and the developers haven't been sitting on their hands in the interim. With the large Season 1 patch still fresh in player's minds, the team has made a quick turnaround on the followup Season 1.1 patch. While not boasting the wide-reaching expansions that the prior patch did, this patch addresses several quality of life issues, including death penalties, mission difficulty, and the dreaded "commodity missions" receiving an overhaul. Players will have three difficulty options for battles -- Normal, Advanced, and Elite. Normal is unchanged from the present, while Advanced and Elite get progressively harder, incorporating the game's death penalties and strengthening enemies in exchange for more drops of higher quality. As a boon to players who prefer the current difficulty, Normal challenges are still free of any penalties for death. There are also improved spoils from badge vendors, and a buff to the reward and procedures of missions asking you to ferry supplies. With an extensive list of bug fixes, balance tweaks, and small improvements, any Star Trek Online player is sure to get some benefits out of the latest patch.
Captain's Log: Three months of Star Trek Online
Welcome, one and all, to another edition of Captain's Log, our weekly column on everyone's favorite Star Trek MMO, Star Trek Online. I'm afraid I must renege once again on my promise to tackle the Klingon beginner experience. But I forgot that Cryptic Studios' latest MMO will be 3 months old this Sunday! That's right! STO launched a whopping three months ago, on Feb. 2, 2010. Why, it feels like just yesterday that my newly created Bajoran Science Officer took his first laggy footsteps on Earth Starbase in search of Commander Sulu. As we are wont to do with our favorite games here at Massively, let's look back at STO's first few months and take stock of its past, present and future.
Captain's Log: More beginner's guide to Star Trek Online
Hello again, space cadets! Welcome back to Captain's Log, where I pretend each week to know a photon torpedo from a warp core. They both blow up sometimes, so what's the difference, right? Last week we discussed starting out in Star Trek Online, from creating a character to beginning the tutorial. Let's jump right back into it this week. I'll run you through the rest of the Federation tutorial, adding a few helpful hints as we go. By the end, you'll be ready to set sail in your very own ship ... even if it does look awfully similar to everyone else's ship.
A Cryptic sale with new items for Star Trek Online
Tax day has come and gone for US residents, which means that several of us are either feeling the pinch of paying the government or looking forward to a nice big refund. Oddly enough, there's one thing that brings together both people wanting to save money and those looking to spend it: a nice sale. Which is no doubt why Cryptic is running an after-tax sale on the controversial C-Store in both Champions Online and Star Trek Online. It's not a little sale, either -- all items in both stores are 25% off until Monday, April 19th. If that alone isn't quite enough, a new pack of add-ons have just gone on sale for Star Trek Online: a new Admiral science vessel (to compliment the escort and cruiser models already released), a new Bridge Pack, and the first Emote Pack. Champions Online doesn't get any new items for the weekend, but their C-Store is fairly well-expanded as it is. Worth noting is that the price of the points used to buy items is the same -- that is, you still get the same number of points for $10, they just buy more. And in all practical terms, it spells a good opportunity for players of both games to get some new flair at a lowered price.
Captain's Log: Beginner's guide to Star Trek Online
Avast, me hearties! Shiver me timber beams, and raise the mainsail matrix! The weather in the Beta Ursae Sector Block has been so nice lately that the crew of the U.S.S. Bob Wiley has a little spring fever. We've been hanging out in the holodeck re-enacting a trio of historical recordings about Caribbean pirates, and the parlance has rubbed off on me a bit. Welcome to another edition of Captain's Log, ye olde Massively column on the vagaries of Star Trek Online. With the Bajoran lilacs in bloom, patrolling seems like such a drag. And with the solar winds wafting so lightly through the Rolor Nebula, spreading diplomacy throughout the sector blasting Cardassians into oblivion has lost some of its luster. Spring is a time of new beginnings. (Your humble captain assumes that the rest of the galaxy experiences spring at the same time as the Eastern Seaboard of Planet Earth's United States.) So let's take a look at the beginner's experience in Star Trek Online.
Star Trek Online launches "Khitomer Accord" mission
When the United Federation of Planets and the Klingon Empire put an end to their longstanding hostilities, the document signed was known as the Khitomer Accords. In Star Trek Online, that peace has largely evaporated, but the game's newest special task force is named for the historic treaty anyway. After all, whatever conflicts pass between the two powers, they have a history of getting back together when the need arises. And when there's a threat from the enigmatic Borg that both need to respond to, it seems more than likely that both sides will need to work together. Calling back to the introductory missions of the game against strangely-damaged Borg ships, the mission takes place in the Vega system, where chronometric particles have been detected en masse. The last time something like this was seen, it signaled a concentrated push by the Borg to rewrite human history (in Star Trek: First Contact). If you'd been waiting for the resolution of the threads from the tutorial, everything should be coming to light. With the promise of purple-quality Admiral gear and a fight against a "well-known" ship that's been assimilated, Star Trek Online players can begin enjoying the newest bit of endgame content immediately.
PvP questions answered for Star Trek Online
One of the oft-raised issues that Star Trek Online has faced has been PvP and its implementation. With a faction almost wholly devoted to PvP, some iffy use of maps and missions, balance problems and other concerns... people might argue it's not the biggest issue, but it's certainly a sizable one. So the most recent installment of Ask Cryptic for the game has centered around the time-honored art of facing down your virtual opponents. It starts off with a couple of small disappointments for some: open PvP regions and one-on-one combat are something the development team would like to implement, but it's not as high on their priority list at the moment. Good news is included, however. There are plans for better rewards for PvP, both including a wider variety of weapons and improvements to earning consumables in both space and ground combat. There are plans to try and expand team sizes for PvP maps as well as helping to distinguish between allied and enemy ships. Most importantly, there are balance changes coming to fix certain ships (such as Science Vessels) that are holding up a little too well in PvP. Take a look at the full list of questions, which should be of interest to any Star Trek Online player that enjoys mixing it up with other players.
Captain's Log: The advisory council and fan service in Star Trek Online
Hard to port! Disruptors on full! Fire the tachyon beam! Oh, hello again. Welcome back to Captain's Log, Massively's weekly -- y'know what, hang on. These Cardassians are being a real pain in the toukas. Yes, Ensign, some torpedoes would be fabulous right about now. And you wonder why I haven't promoted you. Sorry about that. This is Captain's Log, where I administer your weekly dose of Star Trek Online news, analysis and meaningless conjecture every Thursday. At least until the Massively overlords relegate me to the spice mines of Kessel. Oh, wait... After discussing Season One and the joy of Fleet Actions, I have two items on this week's agenda. First, I thought I'd introduce myself! It's silly to read the Captain's Log without knowing who the captain is, right? After that I'll discuss STO's hot topic du jour, the Advisory Council, and whether fan service will kill or save Cryptic's spacefaring MMO.
