Earlier this week TrekMovie reported on Cryptic Studio’s Star Trek Las Vegas Con panel announcement of "Delta Rising," Star Trek Online’s second expansion pack. TrekMovie has now spoken exclusively with Cryptic’s Lead Designer Al Rivera about the new expansion, providing us with more details. We also have high resolution images from "Delta Rising" and video clips of the Vegas panel. Get all the Delta Quadrant goodies below.
Cryptic’s Al Rivera Talks To TrekMovie About STO’s ‘Delta Rising’ Expansion
Cryptic-developed Star Trek Online is set to receive its second expansion, ""Delta Rising," which thrusts players of the Star Trek Online massive multiplayer game into the Delta Quadrant. Numerous species and characters first seen in Star Trek: Voyager will make an appearance. The expansion will include new characters, Voyager alumni appearances, new high-tier classes of starships and equipment, an increased level cap, and numerous story missions that continue Season 9’s story.
The "Delta Rising" expansion is set 30 years following the events of Star Trek: Voyager. Players will be able to "explore the unkowns of the Delta Quadrant." Players will be able to access the Delta Quadrant via a portal discovered inside a Dyson Sphere. Some of the races races seen in "Delta Rising" include Talaxians, the Ocampa, The Malon, The Hierarchy, Automated Personal Units (APUs), and those nasty Kazon.
Ocampans from Star Trek Online "Delta Rising"
The expansion, due in October, will continue the story begun in Season 8: "The Sphere" and Season 9: "A New Accord," focusing around the Alpha Quadrant species facing Species 8472. The expansion will also include new ships and equipment, an expansive, explorable Delta Quadrant, and Voyager alumni guest appearances.
“One of the Voyager alumni you’ll see in "Delta Rising" is Garrett Wang, who plays Harry Kim,” said Al Rivera, lead Star Trek Online designer tells TrekMovie "This [along with other "Delta Rising" content] helps the entire experience feel like you’re in an episode of Voyager.”
Along with Wang, Tim Russ will return as Tuvok, a role he reprised in Season 8 and Season 9. According to Rivera, other Voyager alumni are said to reprise their role, as well, and those will be announced as they get closer to launch.
Garrett Wang with Cryptic’s Al Rivera at Star Trek Las Vegas Con "Delta Rising" announcement
"Delta Rising" features an increased level cap to 60, from the previous maximum of 50, allowing players to further level up their character with new skills and abilities. This change (the first increase in over four years) is a result of the sheer amount of new "Delta Rising" content players will experience. Captains past level 50 will be allowed to train in specializations which will provide new skills.
“Raising the level cap is something we’ve wanted to do for a long time. It is a pretty major endeavor,” said Rivera. “With so much content in ""Delta Rising," we figured it was a good time to rise the maximum level.”
"Delta Rising" content is available only to those who reach level 50. Players will utilize new captain advancement systems to improve their character after level 50, although these system’s details are still under wraps.
Talaxians from Star Trek Online "Delta Rising"
A new Tier 6 starship class accompanies the increased level cap, as well, including a new Federation escort, but Rivera states there are more unannounced ships across all three factions, some of which are part of a new sub-class. The new ships will feature "new capabilities" and promise to be "more powerful" than current ships.
The USS Voyager in "Delta Rising"
“Compared to the Tier 5 starships, the difference in Tier 6 starship power is much like the difference between Tier 4 and Tier 5,” said Rivera. “But they are going to have some new features and a unique bridge officer class.”
Bridge of the USS Voyager from "Delta Rising"
“’Delta Rising’s’ size is certainly on par with The Legacy of Romulus expansion,” said Rivera, referencing Star Trek Online’s 2013 expansion, which added 30 new Romulan-focused levels. “While we only have 10 new levels of content in ""Delta Rising," we’ve spent a lot more time adding new systems; this expansion is more focused on end-game content.”
"Delta Rising’s" story content will be accompanied by new PvE queues and adventure zones, although these details are still classified. There will be no new PvP content in "Delta Rising". Cryptic promises more information about new starships, characters, and equipment leading up to the expansion’s October release.
Kazon from "Delta Rising"
Clips from STLV panel
Cryptic has also just released this video with some clips of their Star Trek Las Vegas Con "Delta Rising" panel.
You can learn more about Star Trek Online and start playing (for free) at www.startrekonline.com. TrekMovie will have more updates on "Delta Rising" as they become available.
"Delta Rising" logo
Nice looking ship. Tell me, how fast can you go with such tiny nacelles?
Looking forward to it! Can’t wait to find out which other cast members of Voyager are also involved!
They should plop voyager onto a bigger starship and just say the voyager class never existed
1. Harry Ballz:
The Warp Core is what generates the power necessary to propel the ship. The nacelles contain the warp plasma required for the warp field. The size of the nacelles, doesn’t effect the speed of the ship.
As for the question: Warp 9.975 (fastest in the fleet, prior to the Prometheus at 9.985).
are these the only images they gave you? I want to see the image of the Intrepid Underside from the panel in high-res haha
Great article :)
@4
Well, thank you, Darkthunder. I think I just had a nerdgasm!
This is literally the worst direction they could take with this game!
@7 In your opinion
I never liked Voyager as a series, but the concept and some of the species I liked, I’m quite excited for this expansion.
the Voyager series is really underrated
So the Voyager is now more than 30 years old and was never destroyed. Impressive.
Still, the Enterprise 1701 was dismantled when she was “only” over 20 years old ;)
10- The 1701 wasn’t dismantled. It was blown up over the Genesis planet.
12 – Yes, you are right. But it was about to be dismantled.
@3 Voyager class? There’s no such thing. You mean Intrepid class, right?
On topic though… I’ve not played STO for about a year. I got a bit tired of all the low resolution textures on things like walls, control panels, etc… You’d walk up to a wall or control panel, and it would look so blocky you’d think you were back with early 00’s era computing. Has the graphics engine had any work in the past year to warranty my returning?
That ship shown in the thread article just looks weird, out of balance somehow.
@ Harry Ballz
Ha! I always wondered that myself. I believe Intrepid class ships were, at the time they were commissioned, supposedly the fastest Fed starships from a maximum warp perspective. The only thing I can think of is their smaller size but more advanced warp capabilities allowed this.
Still, warp theory aside, the visual aesthetics never made sense to me.
@15
I guess, as they say, it’s not the size, it’s what you do with it!
#15. scotchyscotchscotch – August 9, 2014
When taking about warp drives isn’t it more a question of how fast two points in space can be folded together? The ship itself doesn’t really have anything like what we regard as “velocity” while in warp? Does it?
Supposedly, the “variable geometry” pylons (which evidently only varied by a matter of a few degrees, as they never seem to change angle to a noticeable degree beyond up for warp, horizontal for impulse) allowed the Intrepid class’s nacelles to work far more efficiently than fixed ones; hence how they could be so tiny (in absolute terms and proportionally to the ship) & still allow speeds similar to the larger Sovereign & Prometheus classes’ half-the-length-of-the-whole-ship nacelles.
Hopefully there will be more missions that are less repetitive and while they’re at it they really need to drop the fucking prices on stuff in the game. $25 for a ship are you fucking kidding?!
# 10. Admiral_Bumblebee – August 8, 2014
” Still, the Enterprise 1701 was dismantled when she was “only” over 20 years old ;” — Admiral_Bumblebee
Probably not what you were referring to, but still just as sad:
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:mNbl5AEAwCoJ:www.scribd.com/doc/207387663/S-T-Magazine+&cd=11&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
“This was especially heartbreaking. These ships could not be taken out [from Vegas’ STAR TREK:THE EXPERIENCE] unless dismantled. Basically, the exhibit was built around them, so taking them out in one piece was not an option. We came back one day to find the Refit Enterprise in pieces on the floor. Very disheartening.” — Marian Cordry, CBS Consumer Products’ Manager of Product Development and Archival Materials
WHEN THE NEXT STAR TREK CONVENTION LAS VEAGAS AND HOW much ARE TICKETS.
Is it me or do the environments in STO just seem way out of proportion compared to the players/characters? If the characters were any smaller compared to the rooms, It would be like that DS9 episode where O’Brien, Bashir and Dax in a Runabout were shrunk down smaller than an isolinear chip.
I want to see some new KDF ships. Cryptic has a history of ignoring the KDF players. The Federation already has 46 c-store ships compared to the KDF with just over 20. Most are pretty over powered as it is. Do they really need a bunch over new over powered ships while everyone else gets nothing?
This game is more unbalanced than any I have seen. They have really done a poor job as far as balancing and they do not care one bit. Even to the point that they would rather keep things unbalanced than make money as KDF players as well as Romulan players would gladly buy new ship if they made them available. I think the top brass should be let go and bring in people who want to sell to all sides. It is clear that the people running the show would rather throw away money than balance the game.
This is a great game (if you are Federation), but it so much potential. I know you all will likely bash me because KDF players do not usually comment because of all of the Fed hate they get. But honestly guys, there are NO TIER 5 RAPTORS in the c-store. None at all and you cannot deny that. The best KDF dps ships are not in the c-store and that is a fact. Cryptic has no interest in making money from KDF players.
I feel that they only allow KDF as a playable race because everyone got bored and started to leave. I made a Fed toon and it was so easy I was bored and almost walked away. It was like someone was holding my hand and playing for me. It is just that easy. If you find playing a fed character hard then you need to go back to something easy like Super Mario.
BUT KDF HAS CLOAKS!!! Whine moan. Big deal when your hull is so thin and your shield so worthless that you explode the moment you decloak in PvP.
SO before you all start screaming I am just venting my frustrations because Cryptic don’t care one it and nothing I say to them will matter. This expansion is just like all the others for KDF players. More contents of and suck pvp.
And to top it off every time I kill a fed in PvP they start screaming because they have become so use to being indestructible that they cannot handle it when a KDF player gets a lucky shot.