More than one way to meld a mind....

Another week of gaming....

 

The post name is not misleading, more on that and Star Trek Online below, below.

Xbox....

While Star Trek Online has seen the most game time on Xbox this last week; I'll talk more on that with the PC version.

 

I'm still trying to plug away with Quantum Break, the more I do the more I get even more 'meh' with it. The game gets caught up in itself far to much for me. Situations are setup more to be able to do fancy things with game mechanics rather than being able to use game mechanics if and when you want to. In that way it's so very predicable and so more a chore than an adventure. So much a better game to see someone play than to play myself. At least I picked it up for only a few Euro!

Still it's got some interesting mechanics/story; And has it's good looking moments. Glad to have watched the Youtube playthrough's when they came out but now in person playing it; It just does not hit the mark for me. It's just not worth the effort in person.

 

Speaking of which.

 

 

 

 

 

Starfield....

Yeah Starfield got uninstalled.... Despite it's updates(so far). So much of the game in person just does not work for me. From in-game mechanics to the game engine itself. I'm less immersed in it than previous Bethesda titles. I've uninstalled it. To each their own.

 

On the other end of the spectrum a game that does really, really do it for me......

Dave the Diver....

So much game in it to play so little time to play it. I've been playing a lot of this game this week. With plenty of screenshots. That said I'm taking my time; Still milking the chapter 3 main story start by not progressing it. So gaining gold, upgrades and items etc. It's a game I've been enjoying just 'doing', as I've said before. So the screenshots:

 

 

 

 

Planet Crafter....

I've continued to potter about with the exporting of assets. I've not been able to even casually Min/Max things to 'just' be active and keep it going without needing some sort of interaction/intervention. 

The drone system is not working properly for me. They either do noting at all or don't act when they should actually do something obvious(like stock a rockets for export) two meters away. It's been frustrating to try and make it all work. In the end I've just about had enough of it but then again I've got 300K currency spare so I've no real need to make it work well. Not unless there's something wildly expensive coming. 

 

 

At the moment my main exports are halted and the remaining 2 rockets are doing the least complex exports are persistently 'on the go'. One with Uranium/Iridium Rod manufacture and export as well as the other with Super food and cloth export. They keep the currency ticking over. Besides the next content release is due sooner than I thought. They really are working their socks off.

 

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1284190/view/5796751463382282271

 

 

 

 

 

 

Star Trek Online....

 

The usual usual goes on. Events are events and dailies are done on both platforms.  

On PC I'm really liking the new episode and story. As well as both new TFO's. Especially Guillotine. It's a blend of doing mini objectives while also face rolling the pewpew key. Players actually co-operating! Who'd have thunk it! So I'm very happy to see players actually making Guillotine a worthwhile TFO to do.

The other new TFO Resistance of Starbase One is pure brain-dead face-rolling. Fun enough but where not even the optional objectives 'happen' by chance it can be a little head wrecking. It's not really important, but when so much more could be done so easily..... This TFO is definitely a teachers "could do better" mark.

I do like that overall the Borg cubes have been put forward as more of a threat. Even if in practice it's much of the same in TFO's. Right direction and with a tweak of two I'm sure things will be better.

 

As for me liking the new Story I think that's because that story is more STO than recent Trek series based. The mirror version of the borg are by far the biggest threat yet in game. Rightly so. But now they 'feel' like they are. I hope that continues and ramps up. They remind me of the Bord aggression like Lore's Borg from the Descent two parter. I even like the trailer. Kim is actually 'good'.

 

'

Star Trek Online
 

The ground map/mission is interesting with these new Borg. I really appreciate the subtle/not so subtle lighting on mission objectives as pointers to progression. But the new red lighting overall is good to see. A change if noting else.

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of my favorite STO characters is Kuumaarke, so it's good to see her in this. Story done well.

I'm also interested in the new race introduced. The Aetherians and their ship.

 

 

 

 

Of things I also like I have to include the Prodigy uniform.... No wonder I've heard that that animated series was some of the best of the current crop of Trek in the last number of years. Pity it got cancelled. Victim of nú Trek's success(I jest, I jest), I can't help but get the jibe in.

 

 

On the Xbox side I've been doing a lot on my recruit characters. Mainly KDF.

The Temporal recruit, my main, has long since had all tasks done. I think I removed an 'ordinary' low level character in order to take advantage of the then new Temporal recruit. So these days there's no 'work' to be done but taking advantage of being a 'main'.

My second character is a Gamma Recruit. This Jem'Hadar was overlooked in recent times, as he has all but one item done on his transponder. He still needs rank 4 in 6 Duty Officer assignment categories. A bit of an ongoing grind but it's getting there. A part of my daily check in on characters before doing the current event daily.

 

On my next character, the KDF recruit, he's seen some big progress in the last few weeks.

Of items left to grind do, are the 150 random TFO queue's, cloaked kills and to finish off the last episode(Delta arc)

 

 

 

 

 

I do like the Delta arc but it's so long. There is fun in it's doing. But it's so long. 18 Missions and the Kobali slap in the middle!

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is fun in Star Trek Online being quirky by being itself..... More than one way to meld a mind! 

 

Then sometimes not so fun in it's quirky behavior. Doing the Kobali front is usually hampered by the open missions that are not needed by the main quest line or the recruit transponder; But also the fact that the main quest line can be done but not recognized as done, out of order. That is a real annoyance... 

Each act, I, II and III have missions they are listed in the quest but those mix-ups of open quests in the same areas as well as those needed for ACT II and III at the same time just screw up and add confusion. Even for me after so many characters on two platform.... It's not that it can be all done out of order, but it's that that order is needed to allow recognition for the transponder unlocking that 'can' frustrate.

Am I even making sense!

 

 

It all seems so easy on the face of fit... One mission, one hand'in and more on.... But the transponder needs a player to do ALL of the Kobali Acts, in order, properly. All 3 acts and all their submissions to complete. 

This time round for me there was one section, with open missions as part of it and because someone else was also doing it 'we' had to interdependently repeat two sections of defense locations twice to count as progress for both of us and to allow us to move on. Quirky. If not for the other player knowing STO as quirky as I did things would have gotten more complex.

Anyway....

KDF aside; After those characters there are 3 more needed to fulfill the Delta recruits transponder needs. Those need, a Federation, Romulan and Klingon character. To go along with the characters I split up some of the tasks needed to make each a bit more useful overall. That said this is unavoidable overlap. Never mind my own long-term do and forget when things are left for years(?). No problem in reassessing progression but it's a bit all over the place.

 

Federation:

 

 

Romulan(my main Delta, if there is such a thing):

 

KDF(Delta KDF recruit is different than a KDF recruit doing the Delta arc, honest!):

Lots done, lots more to do. Whats left may take a while to finalize but as the rule goes it's always the last 10% that takes the longest.