So, as many of you know, I’m not the biggest fan of Cryptic Studios. From where I’m sitting, they strike me as a company that rushes MMOs out the door that desperately need more time to polish. This, as far as I can see, is in the hope of getting some quick cash and avoiding the ‘OMG delay!!1’ response from the interwebz. They’re also not the best with PR or judging their fan base – at least initially. To their credit, they’ve responded to player outcry nearly every time it’s peaked (though, I think the more pressing question is why so much has been allowed to happen that would cause a public outcry in the first place, but I digress…).
It may come as a surprise, then, that I’ve decided to try out Star Trek Online. I didn’t expect to find myself here, even as late as this morning, but there are a few things that made me decide to take the leap.
The first is, well, that it’s cheap and I’m an MMO blogger. This was always the looming reason I felt compelled to give it a go even though Champions soured my opinion of the company. Playing and writing about MMOs is my hobby and this game made a splash, so shouldn’t I know what I’m talking about? If I’m going to criticize a company, I feel better at least having some first hand experience.
My secret hope, though, is that I’ll tap into the same goodness people like Blue Kae, Tipa, and Syp have and I’ll be able to give Cryptic a second chance. I don’t like looking at things in a negative light—I’m a positive guy. So, if I go in, have some fun, my opinion will probably change and educating yourself is always a good thing.
Second, I’m a Star Trek fan and those space combat videos just look awesome. I mean, check this out:
Not only do the environments look absolutely fantastic but those battles could have been taken straight out of The Next Generation. Ground combat, I hear, is pretty clunky. I’m putting that to the side, though, since I’m only in it for the photon torpedoes anyways. Phasers? Psh. Those things always reminded me of overblown thermometers anyways.
Finally, I’m give it a shot because my friends, new and old, are playing. It might sound like a shallow reason, since it has nothing to do with the actual game. But, I’ll be the first person to tell you that I’m a social gamer. The people can make it or break it for me. Right now, I find myself most excited not about exploring the game alone, but about exploring it with people like Kae and Tipa, and the two RL friends who are also in.
You’re looking at someone who wouldn’t have touched this game before his friends joined. If that doesn’t speak to the power of player connections, then nothing will.
I’ve read a lot about the downsides to the game, so I’m aware that it won’t compare to other, bigger, MMOs. You know what though? In the moment, I’m alright with that. My expectations are low for everything but ship combat. I don’t expect to play “Orcs in Space: Universe of Warcraft.” I’ve been there with The Burning Crusade. Here, I’m just looking for a Star Trek experience with some friendly faces.
After all, it’s only a month. If it turns out to be more, than that could only mean something good.
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