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Star Trek Online: Audio Interview with Daron Stinnett
Dana
Member Posts: 2,415
The Executive Producer for Star Trek Online comes on the Game/On Audio Interview to talk to Senior Editor Dana Massey about Perpetual Entertainment's eagerly awaited project.
You can listen to the podcast here.
Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios
Comments
very well done interview, I am very interested in seeing how this game plays out. one of my biggest disappointments in EVE is no avatar combat. I know they are adding avatars soon but just for spacestation and socializing.
I also hope this game is more twitch based than anything.
Two things I'm not pleased to see in this interview were the avoidance of addressing the question about grinding and the lack od detail that is planned for player controled ships.
It is obvious that this game will still require grinding ( repetative completion of boring actions ), and the planned lack of detail of player ships bothers me.
If I'm in command of my own ship, I want to be able to walk around in the interior and actually command from the bridge. From the interview, I get the impression that you will "only" be able to view player ships from an "exterior" view like that of EVE.
"Don't corpse-camp that idea. Its never gonna rez"
Bladezz (The Guild)
I do *NOT* like twitch based games. They tend to support power gaming in mind wihle leaving the casual player who logs in for entertainment in the back corner.
On the other side, I think starship flight in Star Trek should be "point & click" for the larger ships with a "twitch" based control feature on the smaller ones. If the controls were dependant upon mass we could see "twitch" as a blanket application to all ships whereas the larger ones would be more supportive of a "point and click" contorl system due to their slugish manuevering. Balancing this so the largest ships are more supportive of the "p&c" where as heavy emphasis is placed upon the fighters and frigates being real time twitch based craft would simply rock!
The only games I like that are twitch based are UnrealT2k and BF2. UT2k has been uninstalled for a long time and I play BF2 less then 2-3 hours a month. I've tried a lot. I just don't like that type of game play. Looking at the "New Game Enhancements" in Star Wars Galaxies is another realm of "how *not* to do it".
Now, to support "fps" stylized twitch based controls I would say "do it right!" One area that I see that could support twitch based play mechanics is through portable or manned weapons. Set up a weapon then use twitch based controls for targeting. That, I would love! Any other introduction into basic player controls would push me away from the game.
As for EVE Online, the absolute absence of a twitch based control interface *is* what I like about it. Even though flight controls could be an extension of a "twitch" interface since you have to direct your point of view then select the direction or bearing of your ship for navigation and click to instagate a change of course. That's the extent of "twitch" that I can handle.
I am 110% glad there's no intent to add avatar combat in EVE. The character representation in an MMO facilitates social interaction and roll playing. EVE's combat is facilitated through ship-to-ship combat for the most part even though many other aspects to various forms of PvP are present. The primary feature that's missing in EVE is a dynamically functioning character that can be manipulated and controled outside of a starship. This also supports the dynamic player polotics that players experiance in EVE.
I'm beginning to sway on the side that this game is pretty much going to end up as vaporware in a couple years.
I haven't seen their own Star Trek Online webpage updated in almost a year and it seems like all of their communications are happening on a third party web site basis.
I could be wrong, but I think this game is now becoming a publicity stunt to get more people on their Gods and Heroes MMO.
2 years in the making and only 6 hypothetical screenshots and a 10 month old Dev blog on their site with no forums.
Hmm....how hard is it to slap up a few more screenshots?
My wife is adamante that she thinks it is going to end up as a game the DEVs will scrap and at first I disagreed with her. Now, I am not too sure. The interviews are virtually the same on every fan site and the podcasts are the same old 2 year answers we've heard since the start.
I hope it doesn't turn out that way. I would LOVE to play a STO game. I think it would rock, but I think these developers have their heads so far up their a**es to realize they could make 100 million in the first quarter after release.
True, developers should take their time to do a game right. But a year without any updates? Smells like a scrap game to me. Even the MMORPG.com front page pic is an old screenshot. The DEVs didnt even have a new one to give them
People who have to create conspiracy and hate threads to further a cause lacks in intellectual comprehension of diversity.
God, I could go for a different MMO. All this fantasy stuff is just wearing me thin.
People who have to create conspiracy and hate threads to further a cause lacks in intellectual comprehension of diversity.