Uh guys...it's exactly like EVE Online, which is like the third most played MMO in the world. Believe it or not, they don't have chunks, extensive battle damage, and everyone starts out as a captain. And they do fairly freaking well.
Stop comparing STO to Excalibur. They are completely different genres of games and as such have totally different directions in terms of art and technology. Not to mention this is WIP footage.
Since you used Eve Online as example, and used a very appropriate arguement as well I felt the need to quote the entire post:
"They are completely different genres of games"
Exactly. And as such, STO should NOT be compared to Eve Online, and Star Trek is nothing alike Eve other than that both involve spaceships and exploration.
- Eve Online is primarily about conquest and all out war (in pretty much all of the "low security" sectors anyways).
- Star Trek is primarily about the peaceful exploration of space, and at the same time exploring the human condition.
Star Trek has never been 100% focused on combat and war, other than the rare occasions when the need demanded it.
- Romulan/Earth War, the Romulans were stirring up trouble between different species, essentially trying to derail any chances of a peaceful alliance.
- Dominion War, due to our exploration of the Gamma Quadrant, the Dominion caught wind about us and decided to "purge" our quadrant and bring order to the galaxy. We as the mighty Federation could not sit idly by and allow the Dominion to conquer us.
Both STO and Excalibur are the same genre: Star Trek. While Excalibur indeed are going for a more photo-realistic graphical style, they both share the same concept that this is supposed to be Star Trek. As such there are certain principles that SHOULD be adhered to within the genre:
- No engine trails (this is purely used as a "dumbing down" effect), not a part of the Star Trek genre
- Phaser charge-up effects (Galaxy Class and beyond). The only "point" defense type phasers in TNG-era Trek were the Defiant's Pulse Phasers. All other ships with phaser strips had/should have the phaser charge-up design which was first introduced with TNG and the Galaxy Class.
Even if you intend to go with a more "stylized realism" (aka partially cartoonish), you should still try to stick to some of the more basic design elements that makes Star Trek, Star Trek and not just another sci-fi shooter combat game. Virtually all Star Trek games have for some dumb reason been aimed primarily at combat and war, instead of exploration, science, first contacts etc.
