GDC10: New playable faction and more coming to Star Trek Online
by Rubi Bayer 
Mar 11th 2010 at 4:55PM
Filed under: Sci-fi, Classes, News items, Star Trek Online
The most exciting thing was news of a new playable faction in Star Trek Online. We can expect that sometime "within the year", and we as players get to help decide. Borg, Romulan, it's up to you guys. Zinkievich says: There's a huge amount of the dev team right now interested in doing Romulan. I think the Borg would be really interesting as just something totally different, totally different gameplay. There are a lot of really cool mechanics, a lot of really cool things you can do there. Really, if you're in the MMO for the long haul, there are going to be a lot more playable factions, you can't stop with those two. There's Jem'Hadar, you're going to be going to the Dominion, there's Cardassians [...] so many playable factions that we can and will be releasing with the game.
Cryptic is looking at the next big update to arrive for Star Trek Online around July, with another possibly near November: "We know that we just had a player survey when you first arrive at the site, and, like, ship interiors. [Players] want a whole lot more there, want a whole lot more functionality, why are other players coming to my ship, what's going on there? So we're making sure in July that's one of the things that we do. There's a big huge outcry for first contact missions, diplomacy missions, more non-combat within Star Trek, so we're really making sure with that July update we're really focusing on that."
It sounds like we can look for a lot of new content tailored to what the community wants coming with the July update, so we'll be keeping a very close eye out for more information. (There was brief mention of the Horta being a playable race as well. We can only hope.)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Arkanaloth said on 5:04PM 3-11-2010
it would be nice if they add a few more character slots maybe.. most people have two alts I'm sure.. possibly even 3 which would put them at the cap.
Reply
Samael said on 8:51PM 3-11-2010
If they gave you character more slots, why would you buy them from the CStore?
jamenta said on 5:03PM 3-11-2010
Gee I wonder why there weren't playable Factions before STO launched - given it's such a great idea?
But given it's only the Star Trek IP and almost nobody really knows much about Star Trek, I guess it didn't really matter - rushing the MMO out the door. After all - what's quality have anything to do with making a profit when you got plenty of suckers out there to exploit?
Reply
Chris said on 5:45PM 3-11-2010
Jesus tap-dancing Christ, people, the game has launched and they're trying to improve it.
Quit bitching about the launch state already and use this information to decide whether or not you want to play this now or in the future.
Going back and bashing the developer over real or perceived past sins does nothing for anyone, nor does it make you (or them) "teh winnorz".
x(wai)x said on 12:03AM 3-12-2010
"Gee I wonder why there weren't playable Factions before STO launched - given it's such a great idea?"
You know, I'd understand if you were pissed at the lack of Klingon PvE content. But just crying about how there are "only two factions" at launch? WTF?
Chris said on 5:10PM 3-11-2010
How about focusing on improving the current game as it is and working on Klingon aspects, and a Open PvP zone?
Reply
Ingrod said on 4:17PM 3-12-2010
http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=136695
http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=132130
Darkthunder said on 3:17AM 3-12-2010
Yes, I agree 100%. Focus on getting the stuff you have already, working 100% first and foremost. However...
There are more than just ONE group of people within any game development team, each group focusing on different aspects of the game development. What i'm trying to say here, is that theres a difference between the "bug crushing" group, and the "content developer" group. They are not likely the same group, so having 1 group work on creating additional content, doesn't take away from Cryptic's group working on fixing bugs.
Graill said on 5:18PM 3-11-2010
If you look at the original scheduling you will see cryptic had no announcement of the sort planned, when the GDC10 was being setup last year. I wonder how much money they spent to get a spin and plug in on their game on short notice to try and save their hemorraging ip.
To little, to late, like spiderman says, everybody gets ones, they had mine.
Reply
Ari Blackthorne said on 5:19PM 3-11-2010
I'm waiting for a Romulan playable character myself.
Still haven't figured a way to take a decent screenshot though (other than the nasty Windows "print screen" method. How do you guys do it - is there a super-secret-insider key-combo or sumfin?
Reply
Joiry said on 6:39PM 3-11-2010
There is a super secret combo. I pointed out in the forums several weeks back there was no rebinding available in the game options.
The dev response was, why don't you use, and I've kinda forgotten, but its something like "/bind_screenshot_jpg" command to rebind it? Why? Because I didn't know it existed, and pretty much no documentation I know of mentions it in any way. And would it really kill them to include it in the Controls binding screen?
Other fun secrets - holding "control" while double clicking to buy something bypasses the confirm window. Useful for that DS9 mission which makes you spend a ton on commodities, only to give you a reward equal to your typical completion of a single system patrol.
davbran said on 2:05AM 3-23-2010
You know when you hit that Prtscn button it takes a picture that's saved in a screenshots folder in your install directory. The shots are stunning as well.
DylanGrissom said on 5:25PM 3-11-2010
They're pulling a mythic. Not fixing the game at hand but still adding new broken things to end up with a lot of broken content still out there.
Reply
Abriona said on 5:32PM 3-11-2010
New Player faction within the year!Content for that Faction within 3 years!
Reply
Oskiee said on 6:28PM 3-11-2010
More Factions = more loading screens guys!!! they cant go wrong with that equation!!
Reply
Cam said on 7:29PM 3-11-2010
None of this gets past the fact that the very fundamentals of the game aren't going to hold that many people for that long.
- The skills aren't properly explained, and what info there is is presented appallingly.
- Memory Alpha is a waste of time.
- The game has a total of two missions, replicated hundreds of times with little variation and different text ("Kill X-number of Y." Sometimes "Kill X number of Y and click Z after each kill." Or "Run a lap around this map, with no opposition, no strategy, no challenge or puzzle. Click 5 Y.")
- The in-game communication system is awkward as hell to use.
- No noticeable difference between most of the loot.
- Ground combat is tedious and utterly unengaging.
- Space combat is tedious and repetitive.
- Failure - in any meaningful sense at all - is impossible. This reduces the player to an organic component in a simple algorithm.
There are sandbox MMOs with dynamically, player-generated content. There are MMOs that are very pretty, seductive and comfortable Skinner boxes. And then there's the kind of MMO that figures they can save money by not giving a crap about being pretty or seductive or comfortable and just getting down to mining geek-faith for a cash hit.
Fundamentally we're looking at a 3D engine laid atop the mechanics of something that would work just as well as a Facebook game. I don't know if the designers or the accountants made the decision to release this thing in this state, but consequently I don't believe it should be permitted to succeed. Just on principle. It'll only encourage others. So I cancelled my sub after the first month.
Reply
kill-switch-1 said on 6:51PM 3-12-2010
cry me a river. im shur glad you left
Renko said on 7:41PM 3-11-2010
A new faction? Klingon would get my vote!
Reply
CCon99 said on 7:47PM 3-11-2010
I lol'd!
Ari Blackthorne said on 8:18PM 3-11-2010
hahah! Wonderful - thank you.
I'm in STO for the long haul. As long as Cryptic keeps active on it for a couple years I'll feel I got my money's worth.
Reply