Less then 2 weeks to launch, Cryptic held a Meet and Greet event at the Swig bar in San Francisco. Lots of people showed up and had a great time relaxing, meeting with the Cryptic Star Trek Online team, and of course talking about Star Trek Online.

sto meet n greet

Swig's bar offered the perfect location for Star Trek Online players to meet and chat with the cryptic team in a casual environment. Many Cryptic team members were present, including Marcom Manager Ivan Mulic, Sr. Game Designer Zeke Sparks, Lead Writer Christine Thompson, QA Tester John Thompson, Combat System Designer Steve Nix, Lead Character Artist Matt Highison, and more.

Matt Highinston
(Matt Highinson, Lead Character Artist)


christine john thompson
(Chrisitne Thompson, Lead Writer and John Thompson, QA Tester)


sto steve nix
(Steve Nix, Combat Systems Designer)


Computer stations were set up so people who have not gotten the chance to play in the beta, could try the game out:
sto meet n greet



This station had the tutorial loaded:

STO Meet and Greet

And here is one showing a Klingon Ship:
STO Meet and Greet


sto meet greet
(A player having a good time at the Meet and Greet)

Cryptic's team members were kind enough to provide an interview to RarityGuide.com

Ivan Sulic, the Marketing Communications Manager, gave us an update on the status of Beta and launch.
RG: A common complaint is that there isn't enough Klingon content
Ivan:
Klingons are focused on PvP. Players should see Klingons as an additional way to play the game. For example if someone plays Halo they don't have to decide they will play either Single Player OR Multiplayer. They can play both ways. Same in Star Trek Online. You can play as federation, and you can play in a different way, more PvP oriented, as the Klingons. But what is great about this game is that we listen to what the players want. Some companies release a game then go on vacation. But Star Trek Online is constantly evolving. Players want more Klingon content? We will add Klingon content. Players want new races? We will add races. We want to work together with the community to bring about the best Star Trek game.
Read the full interview with Ivan Sulic Here

Matt Highison, Lead Character Artist, revealed information on some new races that would be added:
RG: You see more playable races being added in the future?
Matt:
Certainly. We have made the alien creator expandable so it fully supports the addition of new playable races. In fact, there are 2 new playable races coming in the near future!

RG: Can you tell us what races and when will they be added?
Matt:
The first race to be added will be the Catians, very soon after launch. probably in a month or two. After that you can expect to see the Tellarites added.
Read the full interview with Matt Highison Here

John Thompson, QA Tester, gave us an update on the bugs:
RG: Compared to the state Champions Online was 2 weeks before launching, how does Star Trek Online look in term of bugs and stability?
John:
Star Trek Online is in a much better shape then what champions online was the same time before launch.
Read the full interview with John Thompson Here

Zeke Sparks, Sr. Game Designer told us about the Genesis System:
RG: I've heard complaints that there is not enough exploration in Star Trek Online
Zeke:
There is a lot of exploration to do in the game. We have the Genesis System that allows us to quickly create new star systems with places to explore using systematic algorithms.
RG: So with this "Genesis System", is the Star Trek Online universe pretty much inifinite?
Zeke:
Not really infinite, but it is very big, and with the Genesis engine we can keep adding new locations so that the players have plenty of places to explore.
Read the full interview with Zeke Sparkes Here

Christine Thompson, Lead writer, explained about the writing process:
RG: What's involved in writing a story for Star Trek Online?
Christine:
A lot. I work with many other people, including artists and designers. There are at least a dozen team members involved in getting a story out.
Read the full interview with Christine Thompson Here

Steve Nix, Combat Systems Designer, told us about the mechanics of combat:
RG: Are there different roles like in other MMORPG? For example a tank, a controller and a healer?
Steve:
Yes. We have the Tactical officer who does the most DPS (Damage per Second). Engineering is the tank, while the Science Officer is the support.
Read the full interview with Steve Nix Here

We also interviewed a player, playing an MMO for the first time in his life:
RG: You not afraid to get so addicted to STO you will lose your friends and all contact with the outside world?
Chris: (Laughs) That's probably what is going to happen. For example, today I went to sleep at 7:30 in the morning

RG: When did you get up?
Chris:
3:00 in the afternoon. That's how my life is going to look like once Star Trek Online comes out.
Read the full interview with Chris Here