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The Game Archaeologist: Perpetual's Star Trek Online
If you're among the legions of Trekkies, then you are almost certainly aware of Cryptic Studios' Star Trek Online. Since early 2010, players have boldly gone where no one has gone before in this MMO that blends spaceship battles, ground combat, and faithful tie-ins to the long-running franchise. Star Trek Online appears to be thriving following a free-to-play adaptation and two expansions, and some see it as the only official continuation of the TV series right now. But what players encounter in Star Trek Online is not what it originally started out as. You may or may not know that STO began development under Perpetual Entertainment, which handled the game for several years until it went bankrupt and passed the license and art assets to Cryptic. It's another tantalizing historical "what if?" scenario to think about what this game would look like if Perpetual had taken it to launch and beyond. But what did this version of Star Trek Online look like? Let's investigate.
Cryptic explains Star Trek Online's quick turnaround time
Star Trek Online fans have occasionally wondered whether Cryptic Studios felt pressured to rush the game toward its February 2010 launch date. Recent comments by new executive producer Stephen D'Angelo indicate that the company was under the gun due to a pre-existing licensing agreement between the Star Trek IP owners (CBS) and Perpetual Entertainment (STO's original developer). D'Angelo states that Cryptic acquired the license from Perpetual and had to abide by the original agreement in order to keep it. That meant that the new dev team had approximately two years to crank out an ambitious sci-fi MMO based on one of world's most beloved IPs (and featuring one of the world's most notoriously obsessive fan bases). The comments come during the course of a video interview on the STOked podcast, which you can watch after the break. [Thanks to The Grand Nagus for the tip!]
Captain's Log: Hailing frequencies were, are, and will be open
Captain's Log, Stardate 65018.1... Hello, computer (and players)! While we have all been out and about gallivanting across the galaxy, the development team for Star Trek Online has been busy working on getting Season Four: Crossfire from Tribble test server to the Holodeck live sever, and it looks like the mission was a success as it was finally patched into the game this morning. In between all the bug-squashing, feedback-gathering, and sleepless nights, Executive Producer Dan Stahl found time to sit down and answer some of his players' burning questions about the future of STO. Toward the end of every month, a Cryptic Community Manager creates a new thread in the forums where players can submit questions. While it seems that the policy is "no question is too out there," only a select few are chosen and personally responded to. Whether you are interested in the future of Klingons, wondering when Starfleet Academy will make its debut, or curious to learn if the Romulans will become a playable faction, this month's Ask Cryptic is sure to leave you wanting more. While Dan seems to jump from topic to topic, I thought it would be handy if I put it all together for you in this week's Captain's Log entry. Ensign, warp 11! Yeah, that's right! This is for all the readers who thought we couldn't even go warp 10...
Heatwave shows off new Gods & Heroes screenshots
Gods & Heroes is one of those rare MMORPGs that get a second chance. The game hasn't suffered through a disastrous launch like Age of Conan or been shuttered like Tabula Rasa, but development on Perpetual's mythology-inspired title was shut down in November of 2008. Earlier this year, Heatwave Interactive announced the project's resurrection, and along with a bit of discussion at the recent GDCO convention, has released some new screenshots. Check out our gallery below, where you can view all manner of classical mythology mobs including a minotaur, cyclops, and various and sundry other creatures doing battle with player characters. %Gallery-105482%
GDCO 2010: Heatwave talks Gods and Heroes
MMOCrunch has checked in with an interesting bit of news from GDCO. The off-again on-again saga of the Gods and Heroes IP was the subject of a bit of show-and-tell at the recently concluded convention, courtesy of Heatwave Interactive. Development on the classical mythology MMO stagnated following the demise of project originator Perpetual Entertainment in early 2008 before Heatwave resuscitated the game. Heatwave confirmed that players will still take on the role of a demi-god, pledging their loyalty to the Roman deity of their choice and following a class-based progression paradigm that includes control over various types of pets known as minions. While Perpetual had initially planned on each player's being able to control up to 24 minions, Heatwave hinted at the fact that the team has scaled this number down considerably to a more manageable four minions per player. Read all about the resurrection of Gods and Heroes over at MMOCrunch, and keep your eyes on Massively for more news about the title as it happens.
Gods & Heroes returns from the dead
How many here remember Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising? We're hoping most of you, as the highly-anticipated MMO was near completion before it was scrapped in 2007. Perpetual Entertainment, who was also developing the first incarnation of Star Trek Online at the time, officially shut its doors in 2008, presumably killing any chance that Gods & Heroes would see the light of day. Until today. Heatwave Interactive has announced today that it has acquired the intellectual property rights and all assets for Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising to further production and pick up where Perpetual left off. We were able to sit down for a brief interview with Heatwave co-founder and CEO, Anthony Castoro, on this acquisition news. Keep reading after the jump for more information on Heatwave's plans for the game and more like it in the near future.
Star Trek Online fans look back at the Perpetual game-that-wasn't
The Hailing Frequency forum is a self-styled fallout shelter for fans of the now-canceled Perpetual Entertainment game Star Trek Online. Interestingly, the forum has begun a several-part series unveiling never-before-seen screenshots of the game. With Perpetual's demise one would have thought these images would remain locked into fan hard drives forever. Instead, the forum moderators have been given leave by the new owners of the project to "start generating some significant hype for Star Trek Online." Poster Zach Nicodemous offers not only a series of (admittedly fuzzy) images of the project, but offers a great deal of hope to Trek fans everywhere.According to Nicodemous, in the second post of the series, the new developer of STO has yet to make a Sci-Fi game. Just the same, they're looking to aggressively enter the marketplace, exceeding the game Perpetual was looking to make in numerous ways. Be sure to check out the screenshots, which includes hints that the game may have actually included ship interiors - a possibilty the developer initially ruled out.
SOE's John Smedley weighs in on Gods and Heroes, lessons from Vanguard
GamesIndustry.biz continues its week of MMO-related features, discussing the role of partnerships in the business. Sony Online Entertainment has obviously had a number of notable relationships, and company president John Smedley offered up some time to comment on their history with business partnerships. As has often been the trend in recent years, Mr. Smedley talked heavily about the lessons the company has learned through hard knocks and rough launches. One of the reoccuring themes in GI's discussion with the CEO is what can be taken away from Vanguard's horrible launch early last year.Smedley makes no bones about that situation, saying that the company was being "run into the ground", but also noting that the game is now doing very well. He also spends some time talking about their relationship with Perpetual Entertainment and their stillborn collaboration Gods and Heroes. "Behind the scenes ... they were putting on a brave face to customers, but we were giving them advice all the time - which was ignored. At some point you get to this point in development ... in fact with Perpetual that was a direct result of the learnings we got from Vanguard - at one point they wanted to try and put the thing out early, and we said 'Look, we're not interested - we don't care if we lose money, but if you put this thing out there, users are going to hate it, and it's going to be a bad release.'" Also check out the interview for more on the in-development Indian title Ramayan, the changing MMO marketplace, and SOE's role in the future of the genre.
MMORPG highlights from GDC08
The Game Developers Conference of 2008 has ended, but the coverage Massively churned out on current and emerging MMOs lives on. We know you aren't chomping at the bit to wade through the dozens and dozens of articles we published covering the latest developments in the sexy, sexy world of online gaming development. No worries, we've done it for you.From our arrival to our hands-on coverage to our relentless hounding of big name developers, follow us on a magical, mystery tour through best of Massively's GDC08 adventures. Gallery: GDC 2008 Pre-show
Rumor: Perpetual Entertainment closing down
MMO news network Warcry has confirmed via unnamed "multiple sources" that Perpetual Entertainment has closed its doors. The posting corroborates similar information provided to Joystiq from a few secondary tipsters, and the company's web site has recently been replaced with a static contact page, but we're still labeling this one as a rumor until we hear official word from the company.Perpetual has has its share of troubles recently, facing its second round of layoffs in as many years last September, putting fantasy MMO project Gods and Heroes on hold, facing a lawsuit from its PR firm and, last month, giving up the rights to the highly anticipated Star Trek Online.
GDC08: Cryptic's secret project
Jack Emmert, Chief Creative Officer at Cryptic Studios, gave an interesting talk about using episodic content (read: patches) in the morning's (yes, it's still morning in California!) first round of GDC sessions. While we'll be posting a detailed write-up of the session later today, Emmert dropped a tidbit that, like any good piece of gossip, we simply must share. Talking about what Cryptic was working on, Emmert mentioned the recently announced Champions Online as well as what he called "a secret sci-fi project." We could hardly resist squeaking with glee as this bit of information might lend some credence to rumors that Cryptic might be acquiring the Star Trek Online license. Of course, this is all speculation -- it's entirely possible Cryptic is working on an original IP or other sci-fi license. Right now we know: STO developer Perpetual closed up shop and announces the Trek license had been given to an unnamed developer in the Bay area. Cryptic was in talks with Perpetual for... something. We presume they were after some of Perpetual's development team, but no one would confirm or deny whether the STO license was involved. Cryptic is now working on a sci-fi project. This may not be proof, but if you put these pieces of news together it seems highly likely that they've become involved in STO's development in some way.
Kohnke drops its lawsuit against Perpetual
The breakup of Perpetual Entertainment has been a messy, messy affair. The death of Gods and Heroes, the uncertainty over Star Trek Online, and former Perpetual PR representatives Kohnke's lawsuit were all signs of MMO development gone horribly wrong. Thankfully, it seems as though these threads are quickly sorting themselves out. After Perpetual made some cranky throat-clearing noises early yesterday, saying the whole thing was "ambiguous and unintelligible", they must have decided it wasn't quite that ambiguous after all. Shacknews is reporting that Kohnke has dropped its suit after the two parties found some sort of mutual resolution. As might be expected, the particulars of the agreement are not forthcoming. The initial suit was for some $300,000, and with its conclusion that sounds like it may be some of the last news we'll hear about Perpetual for the time being.
Rumor: Cryptic only wants talent from Perpetual, not a license
Put another checkmark in the evidence column for Star Trek Online not going to Cryptic Studios. Trekmovie.com reports that while Cryptic was in talks with Perpetual, they very likely were only trying to pick up new talent for their work on Marvel Universe Online, not looking to pick up a whole new license.Of course, this doesn't confirm or deny anything-- Cryptic hasn't said they aren't doing it, and the truth is that there may not be someone chosen to do it yet. We're still in the rumors and speculation mode (and isn't it fun?). But the original report-- that the license is going to a developer in the Bay Area-- still stands.Meanwhile, Star Trek fans have to keep holding their breath, and hoping that this game gets made by the right people to make it.[Via CSG, who's right-- whoever's doing it, at least it's not Perpetual]
Star Trek Online MMO switches to new developer
P2 Entertainment -- formerly known as Perpetual Entertainment -- will no longer be developing the Star Trek Online MMO. Instead, the IP has been passed on to an as-yet-unnamed California-based studio, who will be continuing development while P2 refocuses on the casual games market.WarCry reports that the unnamed studio will be receiving rights for the Star Trek IP, and the game's content, but will not have access to the code previously developed at P2. This will inevitably slow development of the MMO even further, as the new studio must start from scratch with the title's back-end.Star Trek Online was the only title currently in development at P2, following news of Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising being placed on "indefinite hold." P2 is also embroiled in a legal battle with former PR firm Kohnke Communications, who are suing for finances owed them after the effective cancellation of Gods & Heroes. Coupled with news of Spacetime's MMO cancellation, we're beginning to think that it's not a good time to be a MMO developer (unless, of course, you're Blizzard).[Via Massively]
Perpetual plot thickens: lawsuit filed
For a minute there, we thought Perpetual Entertainment was clear of the post-Gods & Heroes-cancellation mess and that Star Trek Online would enjoy (relatively) smooth sailing from here on out. It turns out that drama isn't over yet. There's been a new development that raises new concerns and sheds light on what's been going on over the past two months.A few days ago, Kohnke, the PR firm that promoted Gods & Heroes, filed a lawsuit against Perpetual. Kohnke believes Perpetual owes it up to $280,000. Just prior to the cancellation of Gods & Heroes, the bigwigs at Perpetual sold Star Trek Online to another company they owned. So in other words, Perpetual sold STO to itself. Kohnke has accused Perpetual of doing this so as to avoid paying up -- which would be a violation of the law.We here at Massively are game journalists, not lawyers, so don't take this as an expert opinion, but it looks like the worst case scenario for Perpetual is that it'll have to sell STO in order to pay Kohnke. Alternatively, Kohnke could settle for a stake in STO as payment, or Perpetual could find another investor for STO to make paying Kohnke easier. All that assumes that Kohnke wins the case, though. If it doesn't, it'll be just another day for Star Trek Online.If only Perpetual existed in Star Trek's 24th century, in which there is no such thing as money -- except for Latinum, of course!
Star Trek Online dev sued by PR firm
Dark days are ahead for Perpetual Entertainment. After placing their mythology-based MMO Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising on indefinite hold, the Star Trek Online developer is being sued by their former PR company, claiming thousands of dollars worth of unpaid invoices, breach of contract, as well as several charges of fraud against the developer and its employees.The public relations firm Kohnke Communications had been in charge of marketing for Gods & Heroes, and is now claiming over $10,000 worth of unpaid invoices for their work, in addition to bonuses that would have been due to Kohnke upon the release of the MMO. In total, Kohnke seeks to claim between $70,000 and $280,000, which, according to the law document, are reflective of what Kohnke would have earned after Gods & Heroes' launch, depending on sales numbers and other factors.Kohnke alleges that Perpetual Entertainment took steps to directly avoid paying the PR firm for services rendered on the canceled title. Perpetual placed Gods & Heroes on indefinite hold following numerous delays and layoffs. After acquiring new investors, the company shifted focus to Star Trek Online, taking the sci-fi MMO in a more casual direction.
Star Trek MMO going 'more casual'
There was some crazy financial news recently for Perpetual, the publisher of long-in-development Star Trek Onine. The practical upshot is that the company is in new hands, and, according to Shacknews' source, they're taking the game in a new, more casual direction.That doesn't necessarily mean you'll have to match three dilithium crystals to engage your warp drive, but there is a possibility the game may shed subscription fees in favor of asking players to pay real-world cash for in-game items.Perhaps this move is for the best though. With a new Trek film still a ways off and no versions of the series getting new TV episodes, we'd imagine that the place on the Venn diagram where hardcore gamers and Trek fans intersect is getting smaller every day.
Star Trek Online goes casual?
Earlier today we brought you the news that Perpetual Entertainment may be disbanding. An update to a story on the Shacknews site indicates the company (along with the Star Trek Online project) may have been purchased outright. Along with that purchase, it seems, there will also be a change in the game's basic concept.Here's the core of the update: Perpetual has been acquired by new ownership, reportedly a media company looking to use Star Trek Online to make its first major inroads into the video game market. Along with the acquisition comes a partial retargeting of Star Trek Online to what our source describes as a "more casual" experience, one which may potentially eschew subscription fees in favor of the practice of charging real money for optional in-game items, a practice popularized by various Korean MMOs.The site says it has some evidence backing this up, in the form of a letter passed between certain groups. There's also been word of some Perpetual employees leaving the company because they're uninterested in the direction the new owners are looking to take the property. Only time will tell what kind of game will get made with the Star Trek license, but in the meantime which media company do you think this is? Is it one of the big networks - perhaps CBS looking to reacquaint itself with a familiar property? Or maybe one of the 'new media' giants like Yahoo! looking to branch out?
Perpetual disbanding, STO in jeopardy [Updated]
South Korean company Gravity was forced in a mandatory SEC report to spill the beans that Perpetual Entertainment is seeking liquidation of all its assets and will soon cease to exist as a company. Gravity had to disclose this information in compliance with US law to inform its shareholders that it stands to lose $9 million in investments in Perpetual Entertainment due to the company's failure. Perpetual Entertainment filed for liquidation on the 10th of October, just a day after it announced the cancellation of its Gods & Heroes project. While appearances are that Star Trek Online has remained in some kind of development (however limited) in the short term, Perpetual will soon be forced to sell all its assets to pay off its debts.That means that either Star Trek Online is due for cancellation, or the project will be sold to a new development studio. Perpetual's continued work on STO is evidence that it at least hopes to keep the project alive by handing it off to another company. We don't know if Perpetual already has a buyer lined up or which company that buyer would be.[EDIT: WarCry's Razor has suggested that the SEC report is misleading and that this was just a part of the process of ending development of Gods & Heroes. His suggestion might be worthy of consideration, but there is not yet enough evidence behind it for us to call this a false alarm. We've sent an e-mail to our press contacts at Perpetual Entertainment for clarification and when/if we get a statement, we'll let you know.]
STO fan video depicts the way of the warrior
We know almost nothing about Star Trek Online's ground combat. We haven't even seen any screenshots of it yet. However, we do know that Star Trek fans are a passionate bunch. In this case, they were passionate enough to make their very own concept video of what Star Trek Online's ground combat might look like.It's pretty amusing, and if you're a fan it will probably make you even more anxious to finally learn what the combat really looks like. It also ought to make you a bit nostalgic about how awesome Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's "The Way of the Warrior" episode was. Hardcore Trekkies (or Trekkers) will surely get a kick out of the fact that the combat text for Klingons is actually in Klingon. To the zealous fan(s) who made this video, we say "qapla'!"
