*Really* Hoping ship combat is awesome ~

[Manta2015]

We have Eve online, World of Warcraft, Wing Commander, Bridge commander / Legacy.. .so many combat systems and space sims to compete with whether it be style

Seeing the awesomeness of the banner up top with the Defiant, Nova and Akira class ; I largely hope whichever combat system Cryptic chooses for space should be integral to the fun of the game, hopefully being fast paced, strategic and refined as possible.

Here's hoping for holodeck space battles for pvp ~

Fingers crossed guys ~ This post is only showing that my expectations are sky-high. =)


-Manta-

[SuRGe0n]

One question is will it be a 3D space, where ships can go above and below you as well as around you, and how big will that 3D space be? Will there be a floor and a ceiling to that combat space, or will you be able to run away from combat by going straight up or straight down, as well as going forward and backward? I appreciated the realism of the 3D space in Legacy, for example, but at the same time I thought it was really confusing to keep track of contacts on sensors. I'm hoping for a hybrid system that's more or less 2D, but allows enough space for ships to do battle from above and below.

[0wl]

Can't make a large reply right now due to gronic pains and such sorry, but from what i understand space combat will be more like in the "shows" slower paced (depending on ship's size) and very tactical! Ground combat will be faster is all i have heard!

I share both your expectations but for now i think we will have to wait and see how it will be, but i am fairly sure it will most likely be full 3D so up, down and in fact all directions should be possible!

[Paratus6]

I'm hoping for something similar to Bridge Commander, where your NPC bridge crew can do much of the work of managing the various systems or you have the option of micro-managing it yourself.
I would also like to see the attributes of the NPC crew determine how well they do at various stations.
By utilising "prestige", or something similar, I want to be able to train my NPC crew members to specialize in things like Tactical, Conn, Comm, Science, etc., and have their individual native abilities determine how well and how much they can learn and perform.
This way, a Captain would not only be able to trick out his ride, but his posse, too!:D
3D space can be made at a fairly large size nowadays, so I see no problem with having plenty of area to move around in.

[Manta2015]

That would be indeed cool ; Customization of your ship would be very cool as well, working on specific crew abilities etc...

Maybe I'm just looking for a good execution of nicely-sized fleet battles ; it's tough to do, but something on an epic level is what I'm picturing.

I'll always prefer a slower, tactical flow of combat over anything like star wars dogfighting... but then there's always the Defiant class ~

Ah.. guess we'll just have to wait and see.


-Manta-

[47Wasps]

From what I've heard,Bridge Commander is the perfect example of how space battles in Star Trek games should be handled.And I think the BC system would fit in nicely with the way STO is set-up.
I hope Cryptic takes from the best of the Starfleet Command series and BC combat systems,and learns from the mistakes of games like Legacy or Starfleet Academy

[jagerbolt]

Here's some tidbits directly from the developer:

How will ship controls work? Will it be a point-and-click style, like EVE, or will you have full control of your ship?

Players will definitely be given full control. A large portion of starship combat in Star Trek Online is tactical – maneuvering your ship into position so you protect your vital systems as you attack your opponent's weakest side. You need to be “in control” of your ship in order for that to work well and be fun.

Can you provide us with any new information regarding shield/weapons systems? For example, will both shields and weapons drain power from the main power supply, and if so, will the main power supply "recharge" gradually over time, or will it be a more instantaneous recharge?

We’re not using anything like a traditional MMO “mana bar” for energy. Your ship’s Warp Core provides power, and you allocate this power to individual systems – shields, weapons, propulsion, etc. But you won’t “run out” of energy and have to wait to fire phasers. That’s not fun. The more power you allocate to weapons, the more effective your phasers become.

Will diverting power to various systems such as shields detract from the ships offensive capability, or reduce the ships handling/speed characteristics, i.e. unable to attain maximum impulse?

You will be able to divert power to different systems, and that will affect how effective those systems are – diverting power to weapons, for example, means that you can fire phasers longer and do more damage. Increasing power to shields makes them stronger. But to get those boosts, you’ll have to reduce power to another system, which will decrease its effectiveness. It’s up to you to balance those systems throughout combat – you’ll never be able to have both shields and engines at maximum power, but you may increase shields to absorb a hard hit, and then boost your engines so you can maneuver quickly for the best counterattack.

[amb]

I've got a bad feeling this will turn into a Legacy combat style. if STO will be released for console too they don't have a choice to do it much different as arcady. I can't say if this is good or not I need to experience it first. But I don't like the idea. Legacy was the worst game I've ever played. From that perspective it has to become better :P

[nicah64]

I like the aspect of controlling and managing your power consumption. That feature is implemented in Starfleet Command I. II and III and I think it is realistic and presents a good challenge to players. Glad to hear that it will be in ST:O.

[Manta2015]

I guess I might be asking too much when I thinking of something "fresh, well paced and addictingly fun" for ship battles. I was hoping for something.. innovative, not something we've done before -- or maybe my standards are just too high :P

Great ideas though, guys ~ the feedback is greatly appreciated =)


-Manta-

[SuRGe0n]

I've got a bad feeling this will turn into a Legacy combat style. if STO will be released for console too they don't have a choice to do it much different as arcady. I can't say if this is good or not I need to experience it first. But I don't like the idea. Legacy was the worst game I've ever played. From that perspective it has to become better :P

Yeah, Legacy was fail.

Maybe the same system could work better with improvements, but I don't see how. Personally, I thought the full 3D battleground was horrible. It turned me off right away. I mean, like I said, I appreciated the realism, but it was way too hard keeping track of contacts. Most of the time I was in that game I spent my time being completely lost, going in the wrong direction, looking for the enemies who were shooting at me, etc.

[marrinhas]

well this is my opinion.

i don't know if you know pirates of caribbean online, ( old game)
but in the game
we are a pirate and we have our ship.
and we have full control of the ship, ( movement, cannons and we can capture others ships, and in 1 vs1 pvp a smaller ship can defeat a bigger ship) the controls in the ship are basic and easy and that it is what i want to see in sto nothing to difficult, just something easy to control, but

withour lossing full control of our spaceship




sorry for my bad english. i hope you understand what i'm trying to say here :P

[Manta2015]

Full control is a must, agreed ~

I guess I would mostly want skill and smart thinking during battles to be rewarded, not just spamming the same tactic over and over and winning based on a very certain criteria.

Fun factor included of course =)


-Manta-

[callsign11b]

3d space combat is the way to go.
the game will be slowed down so it will envolve more tactics than run and gun style play.
a 2d system would be to boring. can only engage from the 4 sides front rear and the sides, not very star trek.
as well this is not going to be a fighter sim style fast play.
so its better to have a 3d space. as for too many sensor contacts to keep track of, thats a good type of problem you have to use tactics and prioritize your contacts from most dangerous to lease.

[admriker444]

We have Eve online, World of Warcraft, Wing Commander, Bridge commander / Legacy.. .so many combat systems and space sims to compete with whether it be style

Seeing the awesomeness of the banner up top with the Defiant, Nova and Akira class ; I largely hope whichever combat system Cryptic chooses for space should be integral to the fun of the game, hopefully being fast paced, strategic and refined as possible.

Here's hoping for holodeck space battles for pvp ~

Fingers crossed guys ~ This post is only showing that my expectations are sky-high. =)


-Manta-

The thing that will set STO apart from all other MMO's wont be combat. It has to be the non-combat stuff like exploring, crafting, hanging in a cantina, etc.

Players are tired of wow and its theme park MMO's where combat is the sole focus of the game.

MMO's are suposed to be virtual world simulators where every playstyle can find its place. If STO can make a decent virtual simulator it will be a hit. If it tries to emulate wow with its simplistic linear design it will fail

[admriker444]

as long as combat isnt twitch-based with crosshairs Im fine with whatever combat design they implement

[ianb4all]

One question is will it be a 3D space, where ships can go above and below you as well as around you, and how big will that 3D space be? Will there be a floor and a ceiling to that combat space, or will you be able to run away from combat by going straight up or straight down, as well as going forward and backward? I appreciated the realism of the 3D space in Legacy, for example, but at the same time I thought it was really confusing to keep track of contacts on sensors. I'm hoping for a hybrid system that's more or less 2D, but allows enough space for ships to do battle from above and below.

Eve space battles where awesome- unlimted space so if you wanted to run away- go in any direction and get away
unless the other ship is faster and catches you up - or if you got a warp point - click on it and get away super fast :P - i always made a random warp point i could access if i got in trouble in eve - jsut warp away before they destroyed my ship :P and pray i wasnt in a bubble :P