In ZAM's recent Q&A with Star Trek Online Executive Producer Craig Zinkievich, we asked about many of the player concerns circulating the community just prior to the MMO's release.

ZAM: The Klingon "Carrier" sounds like a really fun and interesting ship. Can you offer any more details about the mechanics of this ship and its role within a fleet? Will this "Carrier" mechanic be extended to the Federation at some point, in any way?

Zinkievich: Sure, the carrier you're referring to is the Vo'quv, and it represents the latest in Klingon military technology. From a gameplay perspective, it's available only to General-level Klingon players. It lacks some of the firepower of the other high-end Klingon ships, but makes up for it in that it has a significantly larger crew and better-rounded Bridge Officer station setup. It can also release fighters to harass its enemies. It's just a beast of a ship.

As of right now, the Vo'quv carrier is exclusive to Klingon players.

ZAM: One of the most-criticized aspects of ship maneuvering is the "corkscrew spiral" required to increase or decrease altitude. Is this an acknowledged gameplay issue that will be addressed at some point?

Zinkievich: We've definitely taken a look at this. We're currently exploring ways in which we could address this and still keep to our "tall ships" design philosophy.

ZAM: On the topic of ship gameplay; most players agree that Cryptic did a great job a creating a three-dimensional space environment, but the Z-axis seems a bit under-utilized—as if everything "defaults" to the horizontal plane. Was this designed for accessibility's sake, or will the environment mechanics continue to evolve in future patching?

Zinkievich: It goes back to "tall ships." The starships you pilot in STO are massive; even a small ship staffs a crew of 50. They don't move like fighter jets. We felt that the best way to give the ships a feeling of mass was to provide them with an internal equilibrium, so turns feel like turns and so on. Going to a true Newtonian model in which there's no real difference between flying sideways and level, while physically accurate, probably would turn off more people than you'd think.

ZAM: Do you feel that ship combat balance is right where you'd like it to be? Some players love it, while others think it was "nerfed" too much.

Zinkievich: That is a tricky one, right? We'll always be adjusting balance because you don't want something too easy or too hard. So when some players said they loved it and some said we "nerfed" it too much, you have to take both into consideration. You have to look at what was making it just right for these people and what was making it too easy for the others. So we'll always be evaluating player feedback, observing it closely and then try[ing] to make the best adjustments we can so that people feel the gameplay is spot on.

ZAM: How accessible should STO be for the casual players, or those who prefer to play solo? Will they face more difficulty in later gameplay?

Zinkievich: We definitely designed the game to be solo/casual friendly. You're always able to beam down to Away missions with your NPC crew, giving you a full group all the time. But obviously, AIs aren't on par with human intelligences yet. People who do wish to group up and experience content together will enjoy advantages of communication and camaraderie that solo players may not. But we think it's pretty fair to both sides right now.

ZAM: How does Cryptic intend to ensure that STO doesn't end up feeling too "linear" or "railed"? This is the Star Trek universe, after all; exploration is a major draw for 'Trek fans. Can you describe how exploration and diplomacy will be integrated with gameplay to help achieve an "open-ended" feeling to STO?

Zinkievich: One of our [tenets] is to always make sure that players have a choice in the directed gameplay in Star Trek Online. At any given time, the idea is to make sure that players have Episodes they can do, they can do PvP, they can dip into the exploration content and see what the Genesis systems has created. Whatever type of gameplay the player is interested in, it's there for you to try.

ZAM: Finally, is there any one question that you've never been asked in an interview, but always wished someone had?

Zinkievich: I think just about every question regarding this game or Star Trek in general I've been asked at one point or another.

ZAM: (Laughs) Fair enough! You're the first person we've ever heard that from, but when it comes to STO's fan base, we can believe it. Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions, Craig!