What's your favorite thing about Star Traders RPG?

[Cory Trese]

As we get deeper and deeper into the development on Star Traders 2, I'd love to hear your thoughts on what your favorite parts of Star Traders RPG are.

[resistor]

Jan 26, 2016 17:08:04 GMT -5 Cory Trese said:

As we get deeper and deeper into the development on Star Traders 2, I'd love to hear your thoughts on what your favorite parts of Star Traders RPG are.

One thing that really drew me into STRPG was the game's "atmosphere", by which I mean the feeling of the universe I found myself in. The sense of society decaying, the petty political figures who would do anything to cling to their power, etc.

Also one of my favorite aspects of STRPG is the variety of ways to play and things to do. You can role play as an "unlicensed" star trader and never land in urban zones or use credits, a bloodthirsty merchant that never lets the enemy get away when you have the upper hand, an alien hunter who... well you get the idea.

Oh, and let's not forget about the upgrade system! If I couldn't modify my ships, for whatever reason, I might not have even bought the elite version, or subsequently backed ST2. I wonder why this is important to me? Maybe it's because I'm just used to games with modifiable characters/equipment such as the Armored Core series.

Hmm... the question was "What's your favorite thing about STRPG" and I listed 3 things. I have a hard time deciding between them.

[AA]

Everything

[xdesperado]

The fact that no matter how many times I play the game or for how long, I can still find new or different things to do.
Game never gets old and every time I play it's a bit different from any previous play.

[ntsheep]

The fact that I and everyone else but slayernz himself have found a slayernz cruiser. That poor cat. Gets a ship named after him and never gets to fly it.

In truth though, it's hard to pick something I like the most. The game itself is already great. It never gets boring not matter how many times I play it. There's always something new to try.

[johndramey]

Everyone hit on it already, but just the shear variety in the game. It's deep, always changing, and never the same. I can roleplay as a law-abiding merchant, a faction zealot, a sneaky spy, or a berzerk pirate. Every game is different, and every captain is a blast!

[slayernz]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. ST RPG is like an onion. There are sooooOOOOOoo many layers to the game, and mastering one layer doesn't mean you know or even understand the game as a whole.

Anyone can pick up the game, and fly around and do some trading. Heck, there are a ton of those games out there, and have been ever since the days where you played Star Trader type games on the Palm Pilot and even before.

But having a layer of faction politics. A layer of skills and attributes (and the complex maths involved within. A layer of cache strategies, and a layer of rumors. Heck, even the planet types are complex, with multi-dimensional ways of determining planetary size/capabilities.

You have ships, upgrades, officers, contracts, trading goods/routes, factional conflicts, aliens, exploration, bounty hunters, independent (cookie crumbs), and multiple combat techniques.

Additionally, there is a ton of stuff that isn't even visible to the player. Hidden quality values for your torps, armor, upgrades, etc. You have ship signature details, you have captain values that aren't visible.

There is the lore - every faction has its own back story that you actually feel in the game.

You have the passion of the forum. Yes, that's a tangible benefit. Come here, and you really get the enthusiastic support of people who know so much more than yourself.

Finally (and certainly not least) - you have the Trese Brothers. Your responsiveness, care for player opinions (both good and bad), frequent updates, and proven track record of game development whilst still supporting the legacy games.

So back to the game though - yes, layers. Layers = complexity but not being complex. That is, the game is simple - you can master the basics without being overwhelmed. You can learn each of the layers bit by bit and you begin to realize that the game becomes the amazing masterpiece that it really is. If you didn't have the layers, you'd either have an angry birds type game, which is simple to play, but gets boring after a short amount of time, OR you have a full on flight simulator, which is something that is so complex that you have to spend months reading manuals to even figure out how to turn the thing on.

Keep the layers - keep the attention. I haven't been playing ST RPG for 5 years just because it's pretty. I still play it. Name any other mobile game that keeps you playing after 5 years and I'll be shocked (TB games excluded). Okay, AA, you can have MineCraft PE (when you've played it for 5 years, let us know).

[johndramey]

Well I dunno, I like that game where I dial random numbers and some person yells at me. It works every time and, even better, it's always a new person!

Seriously, though, TB games are the bestest. If ST2 is simply just an expanded and beautified ST, it'll sell billions.

[Officer Genious]

I love that even in the classes given, I can have variety. Trade isn't restricted to just legal goods; I can have a trade-loving pirate or any crazy hybrid I want-- my personal favorite being a smuggler that will happily crush ships and swipe the cargo of enemy pirates for trying to give me crap. In other words, I love being able to take classes that don't seem to work together and making something cool out of it. None of it would be possible without the game depth slayernz refers to, and nothing beats a smuggler cackling as an unwary pirate attempts to rob me...

[ntsheep]

Since when do you need a reason to cackle my Queen Officer Genious? Pretty sure I've heard you all the way out here in the mid-west.

[chakravanti]

The unlocks. Gives me an objective before I know what my objective should be so I can formulate a playstyle in a world so open ended that I'd suffer from indecision out of lack of experience and overwhelming choice.

[Cory Trese]

Thanks for all the feedback! Very helpful -- keep it coming!

[Brutus Aurelius]

I've got to say that I love discovering new lore about video games and various sci fi and fantasy franchises. I am a lore whore, and part of the fun is discovering it yourself, wheather that means trolling the Spice Halls for Rumors and flavor text, to straight up asking. And all the things that invite more questions and exploration make my mind blaze with possibilities. Shalun sending a handpicked Battleforce to a forgotten star before the final jump? I want to know more. Hearing hints about the creation of the Alien or Narvidian, or the Templars that fight them? I want to know everything, from how sharp the Xeno claws are to what the Hive Mind of the Narvs is planning for humanity.

I could go on and on about what I live about Star Traders, but I love the universe, the themes of freedom, valor and righteousness among the darkness of the void or the darkness of men's hearts and of course, the wonderful developers.

If there is ever a TBCon, I will most definitely be there.

[Officer Genious]

Jan 27, 2016 6:37:55 GMT -5 chakravanti said:

The unlocks. Gives me an objective before I know what my objective should be so I can formulate a playstyle in a world so open ended that I'd suffer from indecision out of lack of experience and overwhelming choice.

I have to agree-- having some goal to aim for makes me do things and fight in ways I never would've bothered elsewise. The challenge for reaching certain levels with starter Ships was a great way to see how well I knew the rules of the game every difficulty level or so!

[Cory Trese]

This thread is gold and very helpful. You're all making ST2 great =)