Hi, long time lurker here. I would love to start playing SoaSE MP but I get scared by threads like these and other threads explaining how SoaSE is based around singleplayer and how the MP in Rebellion won't get much love, some even citing the devs themselves. At the moment I'm not even wasting my time trying to play the MP in Rebellion because apparently it isn't functional (desyncs/minidumps) but please just let me say that if I wanted a fleshed out single player experience in a strategy game, SoaSE would be far from my #1 choice. This is a great game being limited by its own design scope. The multiplayer has a lot of potential simply because it bridges the gap between depth and accessibility that so few RTS games have successfully crossed.
I hate to say this, but at this point in time I regret preordering because it seems like they're adding game content to trinity simply for content's sake, without as much regard to how it affects the gameplay. Seems like this is great for "comp stompers" because it adds short term replay value (raw content), but heavily detracts from the depth/balance/multiplayer aspects which could keep me coming back.
A "stand-alone expansion" should expand on more than just raw content because it's an opportunity to go back and fix/update/overhaul the things that were on the SoaSE To Do list and then sell the final result. It bothers me that the To Do list apparently consisted of "Add Bigger Ships and Update GFX." I wish I could bring myself to start playing the rebellion beta but the devs don't seem to care that much about the MP and act almost like the community is some sort of sick deviant group that shouldn't be taken seriously.
I think maybe there are other lurkers with a similar outlook. I come from a somewhat competitive FPS background and while I enjoy the RTS genre, I typically enjoy it for the "S" (strategy) because the "RT" usually comes across as sort of a gimmick. Games like Starcraft bore me because they're "clickfests" (I saw someone on this forum call it that and I agree) - A HUGE part of the game is micromanagement and it detracts from the actual strategy aspect
When you compare starcraft, quake, UT, and other games that most people consider "competitive" they're really all similar games on much different playing fields - the Starcraft playing field just always seemed unintuitive and awkward to me. Anyway, what I do know is this: SoaSE is different in a good way.The only reason the MP scene never took off is because the devs don't seem to realize it can fly.
edit: walls of text are OP, nerfed post by adding paragraphs
