Sorry to be the one to start another thread on this considering I already did so in:
November 2014:
https://www.arcgames.com/en/forums/startrekonline/#/discussion/1172899/nova-class-great-upgrade-candidate/p1
March 2015:
https://www.arcgames.com/en/forums/startrekonline/#/discussion/1181939/nova-class-another-great-t6-candidate/p1
August 2016:
https://www.arcgames.com/en/forums/startrekonline/#/discussion/1220004/nova-class-another-great-t6-candidate/p1
October 2017:
https://www.arcgames.com/en/forums/startrekonline/#/discussion/1234908/t6-nova-scout-ship
However, since there is STILL no T6 Nova/Rhode Island in sight I guess it’s about time for my perennial thread on the subject. However, what might be interesting to discuss is why, despite myself and others showing a continued desire to see a T6 Nova class, it hasn’t happened.
Particularly interesting is this poll that was run last October (2017):
https://mobile.twitter.com/BorticusCryptic/status/921547628835323904
Or, if you don't want to click the link:
Which Ship do you most want to buy/fly?
T6 Vor'cha
28%
T6 Nova
31%
T6 Oberth
13%
T6 Ambassador
29%
(and yes, I’m aware that it had a ‘no promises’ disclaimer)
Despite having won that poll, the Devs combined the two next highest votes and made a two-pack instead (the very recent Support Cruiser pack). Which worked out VERY well for fans of the Ambassador and Vor’Cha - and I'll concede those are more popular ships. Doesn't change the fact that that poll question was "which SHIP (singular) do you most want to buy/fly".
‘Teases’ over the years haven’t helped matters either. Who can forget the Rhode Island Admiralty card which many thought was indicative of a T6 Nova in the works? Or Cryptic having Garrett Wang voice Harry Kim, the Captain of the USS Rhode Island, in-game? Neither of these amounted to anything even though it would have made a LOT of sense.
I’ve since come to wonder whether this is deliberate – whether there is some reason the Devs have neglected, even possibly avoided, the Nova class. The model is woefully inaccurate and horribly outdated by the game’s current standards, yet it has been ignored t
ime and time again. And with Discovery content being Cryptic’s new priority I can’t see the Nova class receiving any attention this year either, which is a pity since they managed to squeeze out the New Orleans – a ship that, in canon, was only ever seen (VERY briefly) as blurry wreckage in the aftermath of Wolf-359 (and don’t get me wrong here, I love the N.O in-game – I simply don’t think it should have gotten attention before the Nova).
It sounds vaguely paranoid, I know, but I could be forgiven for thinking that the Devs just don’t like the Nova class. It’s been one hell of a long wait and I’m wondering if/when it’ll ever end. Will I be posting this thread again this time next year?
