First of all, I am probably just having an anxiety attack. I certainly have plenty of time on my hands to think, worry and post!

I've been thinking about what I think I know about STO. I am not in beta. I've only seen videos on youtube and other sites. So, I've tried to think through the information I have available and using my observations, here are the things worrying me.

I've noticed that ships are always exactly relative to each other. In space, the ship approaching you could look completely upside down because there is no up or down, except in relation to yourself (up being above your head and down below your feet). In the game, there is a clear up and down. This is predictable because of the Champions Online client. In essence, you are flying as if you are a superhero above the city landscape. This is why your ship can climb or dive, but always "levels out". I do not like this. I don't think it's really a deal breaker, but it is hurting my sense of what's real. The only comparison I can make is knowing how Company of Heroes works. In that game, even though you appear to be on a hill the game sees no elevation, just obstacles between. So, shots appear to hit the ground somewhere between you and your target but they actually hit. Once you know how it works, the sense of realism is lessened.

I also worry about the scale. I admit I am not familiar with Star Trek distances. For example, what's the range of a ship's phaser? Because of the game engine used, the ranges seem artificial or wrong. It looks more arcade-like in the videos I've seen. Assuming the ranges are either supposed to be small or are reduced for game balancing reasons, the scale still makes things seem smaller than space should be. In other words, the planet you are near is actually only a few times the size of your ship, not millions of times your ship size, or larger.

Having said these things, I still think the game will be fun. I still think it's worth buying and playing. I'm not trying to be a kill-joy. I'm just thinking out loud about what I've seen. My biggest worry is how the engine is going to feel to me and whether I will be bothered by it.

Oh, and the crafting/economy. I hope there is more to do than fly around and shoot stuff.

#2 Phasers are beams of photon light right? Well.. im sure your aware the further away an object is... the less amount of photons reach it.. so if you shine a torch at the wall infront of you.. then walk back ten paces and shine it again, the second time the amount of light hitting the wall is much weaker.. same applies to phasers.