Welcome to the 1,231st edition of Loading...

Loading... is the premier daily MMORPG news, coverage, and
commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.

How do you deal with a Klingon? The old joke's punchline - "don't forget to wipe" - seems apropos, since Cryptic Studios wiped out hopes that Star Trek Online's Klingon race would be more than a primarily PvP-oriented playable faction. I'll contend that those disappointed with the news really don't know much about the Klingon mentality and take both Cryptic Studios and the community to task in today's Loading.... The Klingon Kontroversy, or in Klingon: Sujatlh 'e' yImev!

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Cryptic Studios just confirmed that the Klingon faction in Star Trek Online will be PvP-centric and have very little PvE content at launch, prompting some 2,000 mostly disappointed responses in a single thread in the matter of a few days.

Let's not kid ourselves. Klingons and the players that want to play them sorely need a reason to complain. These are not cheery people, and should you google long enough you can probably find a thread complaining that ChiaWorf isn't available for purchase at your local drugstore, but ChiaSpock got at least a spoof page. We should expect this kind of flaming and contention, and we should embrace and nurture it, because by doing so we're helping Klingons become exactly who they were meant to be.

I contend that Cryptic's decision is more in line with the lore than setting Klingons up as a PvE paralell to the Federation. To wax nerdish a moment, Klingons are a timocratic, honor-driven culture that thrives only on warrior prowess. They need enemies like birdies need the very air, and without a worthy opponent to pick a fight with - like the Spartans, like the Romans - they wither on the vine. Without trying to apologize for Cryptic, lore-wise Klingons are PvP, despite the hippy-dippy, post-Praxis impressions that TNG offered.

Klingons love fighting so much they'll fight themselves if given half the chance, which is why you'll always have a fight brewing with Klingon vs. Klingon in STO. Tell me about how that system works. Can Klingon players form "houses"? If a member of a house kills dishonorably, does the opposing house get the "Right of Vengeance" to attack that dishonorable house anywhere, anytime? Will your bridge officers ever attack you (another solid theme from the series) should you show mercy or other "unworthy" attributes on a mission? The possibilities there are far more fascinating to me than what those Federation types, those "ugly bags of mostly water", can do to promote their agenda of science and exploration in PvE play. Who wants to play a peacenik Klingon, really?

I will take Cryptic Studios Chief Creative Officer Jack Emmert to task on one thing, though. In his MMORPG.com interview, he's quoted as saying,
“My own philosophy with MMORPGs is that if you don’t have it at launch, you might as well not bother having it," yet not three paragraphs later, citing Champions Online, he promised that launch is just the basis of more to come: “Take a look at the history of Cryptic Studios, take a look at how much stuff we put out after we launch a game.” Jinkies, which is it, Mr. Emmert? Between Romulans, Cardassians, and countless other potential plot offshoots in the Star Trek universe, there's unsurpassed potential in Star Trek Online for not just expansion content, but expac content people already want to play and won't stop wanting to play, even if only for the evolution of the lore. Here's hoping that Cryptic truly takes the long view with Star Trek Online, as well they should.

Getting back to the 2,000 replies, this sort of forum overreaction embodies what a mockery beta has become. Every gasbag thinks he or she has the complete picture of the game by virtue of focus-testing a small part of the game a few hours each week, then reacts with outrage when the overall reality doesn't fit the picture in their head. What's the endgame? Developers will be increasingly unwilling to talk to anyone about their games in the future for fear of a sales snarling, pre-launch insurrection, and absolutely everything they say will pass through the PR filter. That means less information of any kind, even honest-to-goodness info, in favor of a sliced-and-diced, pre-packaged glib perception of the game prior to launch.

If that's what you all want, keep flaming. Keep interpreting dev comments on in-development games as gospel truth, instead of a snapshot of their current thinking. They're just after your pre-order money and box costs, right? Nevermind that they only make money with ongoing monthly subscriptions, threaten to cancel your pre-orders before you have the whole story. In other words, be the asshats the Internet allows you to be, and see if devs don't give you less of a say in how these games turn out.

Those are my thoughts, you're welcome to share yours in the Loading... forums and, despite all my nerdrage, have yourselves a pleasant weekend!

Klingons Confirmed as Primarily PvP in Star Trek Online

The
jig is up, the news is out...Klingons will be primarily a PvP race in
Star Trek Online and will have no genesis or episodic content. Martuk
posted the news yesterday afternoon and instantly created what I
predict will be an epic thread. Plenty of STO fans had their sights set
on rolling Klingon from day one, and it appears that's not quite how
things are going to play out.

Are you disappointed, or are you unconcerned? Grab your bat'leth and get in on the action!

==============================

Awesome Quotes from the
Epic Thread


"I await the whiney flame fests with much delight... *feeds off their angst* "

- kitsunegirl
==============================



Have you spotted an Epic Thread on our forums? Tell
us!

4 new Ten Ton Hammer MMOG
features today! 85 in December! 2,266 in
2009!

Exclusive
Features and
Guides

• EVE Online: Post-Dominion Interview with CCP's Torfi Frans Ólafsson
  Earlier this month EVE Online players were given an early holiday gift in the form of Dominion, the game’s twelfth expansion overall and second in 2009. Recently, Ten Ton Hammer caught up with Senior Producer Torfi Frans Olafsson to talk about the impact of Dominion on player-controlled areas of space, player reactions to the expansion and whether or not CCP has any other plans for the title that we might see make it in-game prior to the release of DUST 514.
• Star Trek Online: Behind the Scenes with Zachary Quinto and New Klingon Screenshots
  Star Trek Online recently got a new voice with Zachary Quinto, the actor who portrayed Spock in the recent Star Trek movie. This week Cryptic Studios released a behind the scenes video of Zachary doing some of his voice work for Star Trek Online. While he will not be reprising his role as Spock, Zachary will be voicing the tutorial that will help players learn their way around the game.
• World of Warcraft: Pit of Saron Video Walkthrough
  World of Warcraft's Patch 3.3 introduced the Pit of Saron, the second in the three The Frozen Halls instances. Join as us our video walkthrough takes you through all of the quest highlights and all of the bosses. Be sure to stick around as our patch 3.3 coverage continues and have a look at our other Frozen Hall guides here at Ten Ton Hammer.
• Champions Online : Lemuria Crisis Guide
  An ancient undersea civilization that is currently rocked by a bitter civil war, Lemuria is the next zone of adventure after Monster Island. This undersea realm is full of de-evolved Lemurians who serve and worship old gods known as the Bleak Ones. To gain full access to Lemuria, players must first go through the Lemuria Crisis mission chain. Luckily for you, your pals at Ten Ton Hammer are here to provide details on this event.
  

Today's Hottest Content

1. Mass Effect 2
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2. Playing it
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3. EVE Online: Post-Dominion Interview with CCP's Torfi Frans Ólafsson
4. Ten Ton Hammer's
   Star Trek Online FAQ
5. World of Warcraft: Pit of Saron Video Walkthrough
6. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow/guides/sesonal/winterveil">WoW:
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7. Star Trek Online: Behind the Scenes with Zachary Quinto and New Klingon Screenshots
8. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow/guides/general/dungeonfinder">WoW:
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   Guide
9. MMOG
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10. EVE Online
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Thanks for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer
network!

- Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer team