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STO's Dan Stahl fields 30 questions about the Enterprise, Tholians and more
As Star Trek Online grows ever-closer to its one-year anniversary in February 2011, fans of Cryptic's space saga have burning questions about the future of the game. In swoops Executive Producer Dan Stahl to keep the flames under control with a whopping 30 answers in the latest STO Q&A session. As usual, there is no overriding theme to these questions, which range from whether we'll be seeing the 2009 Star Trek movie's Enterprise in the game (only if Paramount gives permission), whether Cryptic is working on more voice-overs for missions (yes), and when we'll be seeing the Tholians (probably not until after Season 4 releases). Stahl emphasizes that the STO team's prime directive is, simply, "More Like Trek," and the devs are working hard to infuse more of a Star Trek feel into every aspect of the game. Meanwhile, the Foundry -- the player-created mission system -- briefly went into beta on the Tribble test server yesterday, but was quickly taken down due to issues with the infrastructure. Stahl has great hopes for it, however: "In all -- the Foundry will open up the ability for the community to create some great (and let's be honest -- not so great) missions that you'll be able to play just like any other mission in the game."
Jack Emmert: Star Trek Online may go F2P yet -- if you play Champions, that is
Talk about whiplash! Ever since last week's announcement of Champions Online's move to a hybrid free-to-play model, all eyes have turned to Cryptic's other MMO, Star Trek Online, as a possible candidate for this treatment. While STO's Dan Stahl said that Champions' move had "no direct impact" on Star Trek's business model, the outspoken Jack Emmert seems more open to the possibility. In an interview with Eurogamer earlier today, Emmert addressed the issue head-on and allowed for a future where F2P STO happened. For now, the company is going to wait and see how Champions fares before making any decisions about STO's future: "We're not sold one way or the other with Star Trek yet. If people want Star Trek to go free-to-play then get in and play Champions and help make it a great success, because that would send a strong message. If we did Turbine's level of success that would certainly merit the discussion!" However, Jack Emmert says the decision isn't his alone and refused to commit one way or the other. He does hint at a fourth project that Cryptic is working on, one which is not fantasy-based and is "close to my heart." For speculation on what a free-to-play Star Trek Online might look like, make sure you read Ryan's column on the subject.
STO's latest Ask Cryptic tackles War Targs, weekly episodes and free-to-play
It's the beginning of a new month, and that means another Q&A session between Cryptic and fans. Star Trek Online's Executive Producer Dan Stahl stepped up for a comprehensive Ask Cryptic that looked deep into the eyes of the void and came back all the wiser for it. The questions run across the board, with a large chunk devoted to future content: More bridge officer features? (Season Four.) New weekly episodes? (January, with more to follow.) Better deep space encounters? (The team is overhauling these after Season Three.) The ability to join factions? (Possible, such as a Ferengi trader faction.) Stahl also admits that there are "too many currencies" in the game at the moment, and the team will be paring those down. One of the most requested features by players is the addition of the classic Enterprise bridge layout from the 1960's series, and it looks as though Cryptic will be delivering: "I can see this getting done in the next several updates." And if you are among the crowd predicting that STO will quickly follow in Champions Online's F2P footsteps, it doesn't appear to be in the works (at least, not yet): "We're very excited to see Champs go F2P but this has no direct impact on Star Trek Online. Our subscription and C-Store model will continue forward without changes."
Dan Stahl talks about Star Trek Online's user-generated content
With its first doses of weekly content a success, Star Trek Online is in a fairly comfortable spot at the moment. But there are still places to expand, including the often-mentioned tools for user-generated content. 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. He also discusses some of the upcoming changes scheduled for the game's later major updates, including interior interaction and bridge officer voices. Among the more interesting issues discussed is the impact of user-generated content on the game's licensing. Everything currently in the game required approval from CBS first, which Stahl states has led to some discussion about how the user toolsets will interact with the canonical fiction. He also discusses several improvements planned for season 4, and the possibility of more interaction with ship interiors starting in season 4 or 5. Star Trek Online players are encouraged to take a look at the newest interview for a clearer picture of the game's future.
Cryptic answers the 29 most pressing STO questions
Star Trek Online's monthly Ask Cryptic features are always something for fans to look forward to reading, but this month even more so as executive producer Dan Stahl goes well beyond the normal handful of queries to accumulate 29 questions and answers to some of the hottest topics among the community. Included in this Q&A session is a sneak peek at the work-in-progress Tholian race (above left), the revelation that Season 4 will primarily focus on retooling repeatable end game content, fleet starbases, passive bridge officer abilities, Season 3 item sets, Memory Alpha improvements, sector space expansion and much, much more. Stahl even explains why he picks the questions he does to answer -- basically, he likes to get into topics that aren't repeatedly touched upon in interviews. Those hoping for a full-fledged STO expansion shouldn't start holding their breath, however: "It is unclear if we will ever produce a paid expansion as the market is leaning away from expansions and more towards smaller microtransactions. However, if we ever did release a paid expansion, it would be a significant update and add some new functionality to the game that would be deemed worth the price of the release."
Newest Ask Cryptic focuses on Star Trek Online's weekly episodes
The Breen might be backstabbing frozen monsters, but they've been a part of something wonderful in Star Trek Online. Not in the sense that they've stopped being backstabbing frozen monsters, but in the sense that you'd be hard-pressed to find a player unhappy with the new featured episodes. And with the ongoing plan to add a new episode every week, there's going to be a lot more content to enjoy in short order. The most recent Ask Cryptic feature, unsurprisingly, has focused on this new aspect of the game, with Dan Stahl fielding player questions on the weekly feature. Perhaps most interesting for players will be the fact that Stahl talks about using the prototype version of user-generated content tools to develop some of the patrol missions seen in-game, reminding players that the option to make your own episodes is coming with time. There's also re-affirmation of the episodes becoming permanent features of the game and scaling to all levels, allowing players to take off the rails of the previous leveling structure and chart their own course. View the full article for a deeper look inside the newest part of Star Trek Online, and really, don't turn your back on a Breen.
Cryptic discusses user-generated content and future improvements for STO
As Star Trek Online concludes its shakedown cruise of the recent Season 2.0 update, players have turned their eyes to the future and pondered, "What's next?" Coming to their aid is STO's executive producer Dan Stahl, who fields a large number of questions about upcoming features and works in progress in the latest Ask Cryptic article. One of the inquiries covered was user-generated content, which Stahl confirmed would be coming -- at least in beta form -- with Season 3. "We aren't discussing our specific plans just yet, but we do want the tools to be easy to use so that players can begin to create their own missions and episodes," he said. "This may or may not be the big secret project we are working on." Other questions into the future development of Star Trek Online included customizable ship interiors, the PvP system, bridge officer promotions, expanding the Sol System, the ability to play as a holographic character, and bridge officer voices. And for those standing at the edge of their captain's chairs, eager to sit down, don't fret: Cryptic is hard at work on the long-awaited "sit in chairs" feature. You can read the full Ask Cryptic over at STO's website.
Dan Stahl highlights more of Star Trek Online's future direction
Star Trek Online's Dan Stahl has been fairly vocal since he took the executive producer post at the beginning of last month. We had our own chance to speak with him recently, where he discussed everything from the then-upcoming Season 2 content to the rumors about the game adopting a free-to-play model. His most recent interview at ZAM covers several of the same pieces of territory, but as one would expect with the time elapsed and the release of Season 2, there are several new pieces of information within. The weekly episodes are one of the major points of discussion, with the first one premiering in late August. Stahl discusses the episodes focusing around the Deferi, a race with ties to both the Federation and the Klingons, but not explicitly allied with either. He also discusses plans for an overhaul to exploration, likening the current system to "a small box where you fly around and go through random doors," something that the team is planning on changing for Season 3. The full interview is well worth a read for what it contains -- nothing earth-shattering, but more signs that Star Trek Online's direction is getting progressively stronger.
STO celebrates six months of interstellar conflict in the latest State of the Game
While Captain Kirk and the original crew of the Enterprise had an initial five-year mission to explore the cosmos, Star Trek Online players have had a mere six months to do the same. In this span of time, a lot has happened for STO -- some good, some bad, some controversial, and some radically different. As the game heads into its second six-month tour of duty, executive producer Dan Stahl threw open the doors for STO's Season 2.0 update, entitled "Ancient Enemies." In the latest State of the Game report, Stahl looks back at the additions, changes and accomplishments of the STO team since launch. The bullet point list he lays out is impressive indeed, listing 32 big ticket items that have been implemented into the game. He then looks at the immediate present with the launch of Season 2.0, which Stahl sees as a direct response to player requests and demands. "Season Two is filled with additional features and updates that you asked for, and in some cases even helped us design, specifically minigames," Stahl writes. Finally, the State of the Game looks at the future of the title and the many improvements that are slated for delivery, including an upgrade to ground combat, more ship options for both factions and rethinking exploration. You can read Dan Stahl's full State of the Game report over at Star Trek Online's site.
Our interview with Star Trek Online's executive producer Dan Stahl
There's a lot going on with Star Trek Online at the moment. Not only does the game have a major update fast approaching and the occasional microtransaction controversy popping up, but it's also recently been given a new executive producer. Daniel Stahl has had the reins for a little under a month, but that's still enough time to have a notable influence on both the direction of the upcoming update and the overall direction of the game. We recently had a chance to sit down and talk with the new executive producer about his work on Star Trek Online, the game's strengths and weaknesses, and where development is headed for the future. There's a new direction in store for the game, or perhaps it'd be more apt to say a new focus. If you're interested in the game's past and future, or even just in the various rumors that started flying about the game going free-to-play, take a look past the break for the full interview.
Dan Stahl talks Star Trek Online
Eurogamer Portugal had the good fortune to chat with Cryptic's Dan Stahl, the producer of Star Trek Online last week for an overview of the highly-anticipated MMO. The interview covered some ground we've seen before, some we have not, and gave his perspective about the creation of STO. Eurogamer and Stahl talked about his view of things like ship customization vs. remaining true to the Star Trek "look", combat styles on the ground and on ships, and general content. His enjoyment and pride on the game shines through clearly and makes the interview a fun read. "I really think that people who play the game for the first time will look at the game and say 'Wow, they nailed it.'" The translation of the article can be read courtesy of Google Translate, with the original here. As a little extra bonus, Eurogamer treated us to a beautiful new gameplay trailer which can be viewed here. Star Trek Online is scheduled for launch in February 2010.
