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An Appeal to WRG and a Proposal to the Community

[GoT] Gabe [GoT] Gabe ✭✭✭✭
edited November 2021 in The Bridge
Hello STT Community!

First, let me apologize for the very long post. My creative juices were flowing and it ended up being a lot longer than originally intended. Bear with me though. It's a good read. I swear.

Some of the forum veterans may recognize the name but, outside of Fleet Central, I haven't really posted here in a long time, so let me introduce myself. My name is Gabe, I'm the Admiral of the Guardians of Tomorrow and have been playing this game since about the first week of launch.

Now that we've got that out of the way, you're most likely wondering why I've decided to decloak and post here. So let's get to it, shall we?

THE RECOGNITION

As a veteran of Timelines, I've seen and experienced it all, both in terms of game features as well as DB's initial administration of this game and then WRG's.

First a shout out to DB and all its staff for creating a Star Trek game that has lasted 5 years.

The fact this game has existed this long is a testament to your vision and passion for not only the original concept of this game but, more importantly, for Trek itself. Thank you on behalf of all of us who play and love this game.

The passing of the torch to WRG in March 2020 came with a mix of uncertainty and nervousness but also hope and excitement for what they could bring to the game.

WRG promised new features and improvements and have delivered, for the most part, with most noticeably the introduction of Crew Retrieval, the Celestial Market, regular collections and simple but important quality of life improvements.

Many of the QoL extras have made the game much more manageable and for those players looking to specifically acquire their favourite cards, WRG has made things so much easier compared to the past when a player had to rely solely on RNG's mercy when opening packs.

So thank you WRG for your dedication and commitment to the game we cherish so greatly.

THE FACTS

However (yeah everyone knew this was coming), the one thing that hasn't changed in the last 2 years of WRG's management, and actually further back into DB's reign, is the actual gameplay.

Let's look at some stats:

- Cadet Challenges: except for eliminating the cool down period between challenges, there have been no changes to gameplay since the game's launch in 2016;

- Battle Arena: a new interface was introduced along with additions of new ship abilities and speed up & auto buttons but the set up and actual gameplay of the arena hasn't changed since it appeared in 2016;

- Shuttle Missions: except for the introduction of the Borg Faction in January 2019, running shuttles has been unaltered since its introduction in 2016;

- Gauntlet: a semi regular introduction of new Gauntlet crew and a recent addition of a speed up button but the mechanics and gameplay have remained untouched since its introduction in January 2017;

- Voyages: exactly the same as it was when it was introduced in September 2017;

- Galaxy Map/Missions: Episode 10 was the last addition to the map and that happened in July 2019;

- Events: Skirmishes were the last new Event type introduced and that happened in May 2018.

So the two major points that stand out are:

1) of the all different areas in the game that involve individual player engagement, the Battle Arena is the one that has seen the most change over the years and yet it's the area that has seen a considerable drop in player involvement.

This is quite visible in the percentage tiers in the ranked rewards. Top 1% is currently 1 - 419 when it used to go into the 900's or slightly higher if memory serves.

2) The most glaring point however is the fact that there has been no new gameplay feature added to Star Trek Timelines in 2 years! I'll say that again for dramtic affect .... 2 years!

Considering that these Galaxy Map episodes are things players only do manually until its full completion and then warp the required missions from then on, it's actually been 3 years, hello there Skirmishes (waves), since we had something that truly engaged the player on a regular basis. 3 years people! 3 years!

The card collecting aspect of this game is important and something that WRG has obviously chosen to focus on since taking over (raise your hand if you remember when DB said early on that this wasn't a card collecting game) but what's the point of continuously collecting cards if you can only use a very small percentage of them in the game.

Furthermore, constantly introducing new collections with their associated rewards is a nice little treat for the players but it's a one and done thing and lacks the most important element to any game .... the fun factor.

Fun is of course a subjective concept as each player will have their own personal ideas on what makes a game fun but I believe we can all agree that no new or fresh gameplay additions in 2 or 3 years makes any game stale, repetitive and boring.

I'm sure many of you reading this have heard these very complaints from Fleet mates who eventually either completely quit the game or started playing very casually. If not for people's love of Star Trek, this game would have seen a mass exodus of players a long time ago.

THE VISION

Note: The following paragraphs were written yesterday before WRG released the video on Objective Events. I thought about changing this section but realized that keeping it the way it was just hammered home the idea I mentioned above. Man I wish I had been wrong. On the bright side, I'm a freakin visionary! Move over Nostradamus, Gabe is in the house!

I know what you're thinking: "Gabe, WRG is introducing Objective Events in a week or so. That's new. Why post about this now?"

It's a valid point no doubt and I have no inside information about how Objective Events will work but I strongly suspect they will be a variation of Achievement rewards. The name alone says it all and WRG themselves have stated that future Achievement rewards will be connected to these Events.

So what we're looking at is something along the lines of do X number of things to get X number of rewards and guess what these X number of things will be? Run X number of shuttles, send out X number of Voyages, play Gauntlet X amount of times, etc. So instead of actual new content it will simply be about doing MORE of the same old repetitive stuff we've been doing for years. How fun.

Now don't get me wrong. I seriously hope I am wrong about Objective Events and will gladly apologize to WRG on this forum a thousand times over if I am. Whether you've been playing for 1 year, 3 or 5, I believe we can all agree that this game needs something new and fresh that actively engages the player base. I'll say it again, actively .... engages .... the player base!

Which leads me to the actual purpose of this post. And no, busting WRG's chops was not the primary purpose. Well, let's just say it wasn't the only purpose and leave it at that.
The Guardians of Tomorrow
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Comments

  • Options
    CFOHSilverknightCFOHSilverknight ✭✭✭
    Gabe,
    It's been a long while since I've felt the desire to place in the top 1500 but I believe I'm in.
    Silverknight
  • Options
    JimBerlinJimBerlin ✭✭✭
    edited November 2021
    So, main goal is to put pressure for new gameplay on the dev.

    You've proposed both a designated fleet and fleet tags...
    "What a scene it would be to see the UNITED tag populated all over the leaderboard: VIP0-UNITED, KM-UNITED, SSR-UNITED, GoT-UNITED and so on..."
    "Whether we end up with just one United Federation of Players Fleet or multiple..."

    I'm for whatever gets the point across without negatively impacting people's accounts, fleets, or the game overall. I, personally, would favor a tag for fleets, squads, and individuals who want to support this campaign. I have multiple newbies in my squad who don't use discord, the forums, or anything else. So, I actually use game chat way more than I want to.

    I think if you pick one thing you're campaigning for and set a tag, people will fly it. Make a clear campaign (mission statement maybe?) and tag wrg members in the post, if you make another once it's set in stone, and hopefully you'll have a "you had my curiosity, but now you have my attention" scenario.
  • Options
    [Deleted User][Deleted User] ✭
    [GoT] Gabe wrote: »
    The card collecting aspect of this game is important and something that WRG has obviously chosen to focus on since taking over (raise your hand if you remember when DB said early on that this wasn't a card collecting game) but what's the point of continuously collecting cards if you can only use a very small percentage of them in the game.

    *raises hand*

  • Options
    HaBlackHaBlack ✭✭✭✭✭
    [CH] OsirisSonOfGeb wrote: »
    [GoT] Gabe wrote: »
    The card collecting aspect of this game is important and something that WRG has obviously chosen to focus on since taking over (raise your hand if you remember when DB said early on that this wasn't a card collecting game) but what's the point of continuously collecting cards if you can only use a very small percentage of them in the game.

    *raises hand*

    *raises hand*
    PlayingSince: 2016-09-16Can we get some more characters from TAS?We finally have Caitians in the game!Character wishlist:
    • Lieutenant M'Ress - got her
    • Amanda Rogers - got her
    • Admiral S'rrel from Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home - not in the game yet
    • Agmar - not in the game yet
    • M'yra - not in the game yet
  • Options
    t'filt'fil ✭✭✭
    Now I'm very tempted to change fleet tag to Manchester if your plan goes ahead.
    Unfortunately I have the deepest respect for our previous admiral who insists Liverpool remain the only logical choice.
    Ni'Var say Ni'Var as we say on Vulcan.
    I will consult the Collegium of the Academy but I'm certain they will wish to support such a laudable goal. Live Long and Prosper.
    T'fil Vice-Principal - Species Outreach and Xenoarchaeology Vulcan Science Academy

    "There is nothing to gain from haste but error." Surak Second Analects
  • Options
    Bri Bri ✭✭✭✭
    I’m down and will share this with my fleet. Sounds like fun, which is ultimately what we should aim for when we play anything 🖖🏻
  • Options
    [Deleted User][Deleted User] ✭
    edited November 2021
    T'Fil wrote: »
    Now I'm very tempted to change fleet tag to Manchester if your plan goes ahead.
    Unfortunately I have the deepest respect for our previous admiral who insists Liverpool remain the only logical choice.
    Ni'Var say Ni'Var as we say on Vulcan.
    I will consult the Collegium of the Academy but I'm certain they will wish to support such a laudable goal. Live Long and Prosper.

    @T'Fil

    5-0.

    Numbers don't lie.

    I think Ole is doing a great job! (see if you can guess which of those two great cities I'm from 🤣 )
  • Options
    Wide BrimWide Brim ✭✭
    [GoT] Gabe wrote: »

    What I'm suggesting is that members from this community, from all the Fleets, join together temporarily under one banner, the United Federation of Players, to work together to achieve the goal of finishing 1st in an Event or possibly multiple Events.

    QUESTIONS
    So, for those fleets losing 1, 2, 3, or 4 people for almost a week, they could have a struggle for completion of dailies, Starbase construction (if needed), and their own squadron and fleet rankings in an event?

    What happens to a player who joins? Are they temporarily joining a fleet with a Level 134 Starbase - or less? Won't their skill %'s lower if less? If an established fleet - whose fleet is it and what happens to the current members?
  • Options
    Bri Bri ✭✭✭✭
    edited November 2021
    Manchester, my hometown of 30 years. I’m now living 10,000km away in Taiwan. But i never miss a game, and hope Ole stays at the wheel forever CTID 💙 (lifelong City fan).
  • Options
    Bri Bri ✭✭✭✭
    Wide Brim wrote: »
    [GoT] Gabe wrote: »

    What I'm suggesting is that members from this community, from all the Fleets, join together temporarily under one banner, the United Federation of Players, to work together to achieve the goal of finishing 1st in an Event or possibly multiple Events.

    QUESTIONS
    So, for those fleets losing 1, 2, 3, or 4 people for almost a week, they could have a struggle for completion of dailies, Starbase construction (if needed), and their own squadron and fleet rankings in an event?

    What happens to a player who joins? Are they temporarily joining a fleet with a Level 134 Starbase - or less? Won't their skill %'s lower if less? If an established fleet - whose fleet is it and what happens to the current members?

    I think the logical system is we record the ins and outs and send replacements to compensate for players leaving for the event.
  • Options
    Veterinary PhloxVeterinary Phlox ✭✭✭✭✭
    [GoT] Gabe wrote: »
    Most games pin alliances against each other. The stronger ones becoming ever more so by attacking the weaker ones.
    Opportunities for cooperation between fleets, and as a whole community, do sound like a lot of fun.

    I may not be understanding your proposal, but a larger coalition of fleets competing in an event sounds exactly like a stronger alliance becoming moreso by attacking (or at least, elbowing out) the weaker ones. Maybe I have the wrong end of the stick?

    A while back we had an event with special resource gathering goals for the entire community. The numbers proved too high, but with some iteration I think this could work. And if it does, it could be expanded. "Species 8472 is attacking! Donate casings, polymatter, and starbase components to build defenses! We need X total donations by the end of the week to complete these, and the more high level components the better the community reward."

    Six degrees in Inter-species Veterinary Medicine. Treating all manner of critters, from Tribbles to Humans.

    Starport
  • Options
    [Deleted User][Deleted User] ✭
    I thought Gabe meant we add it to the beginning of our names so;

    United [CH] OsirisSonOfGeb
    United [SSR T⁰⁰] Legate Bri

    Etc etc.

    No need to leave fleets
  • Options
    Wide BrimWide Brim ✭✭
    [CH] OsirisSonOfGeb wrote: »
    I thought Gabe meant we add it to the beginning of our names so;

    United [CH] OsirisSonOfGeb
    United [SSR T⁰⁰] Legate Bri

    Etc etc.

    No need to leave fleets

    To me, it looks like joining a new "Super" Fleet from a few different comments, including:

    This is not meant to be a permanent situation for any player. Participate in the Event(s) of your choosing, have fun, maybe make new friends, but eventually go back home to your original Fleet.

    The tag would show what fleet you were "on loan" from.
  • Options
    AviTrekAviTrek ✭✭✭✭✭
    Wide Brim wrote: »
    [CH] OsirisSonOfGeb wrote: »
    I thought Gabe meant we add it to the beginning of our names so;

    United [CH] OsirisSonOfGeb
    United [SSR T⁰⁰] Legate Bri

    Etc etc.

    No need to leave fleets

    To me, it looks like joining a new "Super" Fleet from a few different comments, including:

    This is not meant to be a permanent situation for any player. Participate in the Event(s) of your choosing, have fun, maybe make new friends, but eventually go back home to your original Fleet.

    The tag would show what fleet you were "on loan" from.

    From the proposal:
    If there's enough continued interest, we can cycle players in and out based on the next Event and their interest in participating in it. This is not meant to be a permanent situation for any player. Participate in the Event(s) of your choosing, have fun, maybe make new friends, but eventually go back home to your original Fleet.

    Here clearly means for people to leave their fleets.

    Also two giant posts with one long section on proposal and another on implementation and still a confusion on what he's even asking is part of the problem. My guess is most players never got past the first post without getting bored of reading it. I appreciate the intention, but giant manifestos are not the best way to generate high participation rates.

    For something like this to succeed it needs a short bullet point TL/DR.
    If you want to participate:
    • Do X
    • Do Y

    But overall this is leaving me confused. The game is stale, so everyone should go and compete to rank in an event so the developers see people are active and no new changes are needed? The called for action seems to be going against the intention of the post.
  • Options
    Navarch Navarch ✭✭✭✭✭
    RexoGroucho wrote: »
    Here’s an idea. How bout for the month of December, no one spends a dime on the game. No LTO’s. No DYC. No campaigns. Everyone suspend their monthly card.

    We all know that TP is going to have their end of year sales. Let them fall flat on their faces.

    Spend the money on loved ones. On yerself. Give to the Salvation Army. Buy a homeless person a coat. In the end, give yer money to to someone deserving of yer time.

    This would definitely get TP’s attention. If you want to change the game, a boycott or spending freeze would do it. Of course, there’s a chance that the game would just go away.
  • Options
    RexoGrouchoRexoGroucho ✭✭
    edited November 2021
    Navarch wrote: »
    RexoGroucho wrote: »
    Here’s an idea. How bout for the month of December, no one spends a dime on the game. No LTO’s. No DYC. No campaigns. Everyone suspend their monthly card.

    We all know that TP is going to have their end of year sales. Let them fall flat on their faces.

    Spend the money on loved ones. On yerself. Give to the Salvation Army. Buy a homeless person a coat. In the end, give yer money to to someone deserving of yer time.

    This would definitely get TP’s attention. If you want to change the game, a boycott or spending freeze would do it. Of course, there’s a chance that the game would just go away.



    Not sure that one month would shutter the building, but it would send a message that the stagnation is reaching the point that maybe we just might have to keep our money.
    Jesus Christ, car companies throw improvements into their product more than TP does.
  • Options
    Wide BrimWide Brim ✭✭
    RexoGroucho wrote: »
    Jesus Christ, car companies throw improvements into their product more than TP does.

    Navarch = Jesus Christ? Does Mrs Navarch know?
  • Options
    Navarch Navarch ✭✭✭✭✭
    Wide Brim wrote: »
    RexoGroucho wrote: »
    Jesus Christ, car companies throw improvements into their product more than TP does.

    Navarch = Jesus Christ? Does Mrs Navarch know?

    Does Navarch know?
  • Options
    PeetsPeets ✭✭✭✭
    It's better to show a positive signal then a negative signal. We don't want them to respond negative and in the worst case stop the game.
  • Options
    Navarch Navarch ✭✭✭✭✭
    Peets wrote: »
    It's better to show a positive signal then a negative signal. We don't want them to respond negative and in the worst case stop the game.

    The problem with that approach in this case is that there are thousands of players. The actions of a few could easily be interpreted as noise and cause no change.

    We know from experience that turning off spending makes TP change.
  • Options
    Selene 7Selene 7 ✭✭✭✭
    What I find especially frustrating is that despite the numerous posts on this topic in many threads, WRG never bothers to answer or comment on these concerns.

    That said, the proposed "protest" (?) sounds a bit cumbersome.
  • Options
    Sashenka Sashenka ✭✭
    Problem is events are the worst part of this game. They are more like torture than anything enjoyable. I can hardly find motivation to do them, other than maybe full faction events, and when I do the Galaxy or Skirmish, every second feels like a tedious chore and I count the minutes until I can reach the 130,000 and then stop. How anyone can enjoy sitting and tapping on their phone for hours and hours, unless they are bedridden, is beyond me.
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