Hey, Phaserlight here, I've been a part of the Vendetta Online community for 9 years, and I would be glad to answer any questions about the
game or the
Kickstarter.
The sub is currently $10 for 1 month, but it goes as low as $6.67 per month if you buy in longer increments. The KS has some rewards that include access to the game; you can currently get up to 20 months for $50, which is a pretty good deal. This is a limited tier, however. The devs are also
considering adding a "Lite" subscription option for as low as $1 per month. I understand the primary goal for the Kickstarter is to expand gameplay, although the iPad/iOS port were hilighted in the press release. Vendetta Online has a long history, and although I find it's gameplay to be rock-solid, the 4-man team did not have the kind of marketing support a brand new company needs to really take off, and they have been basically keeping their company alive through word-of-mouth and by the community. The Kickstarter is a real chance to make some big gameplay advances happen.
If you are interested in Vendetta Online, I recommend giving the free download (220 MB) and the free trial a try. You get 8 hours that you can use at any time once you leave the starter area. That means you can play 1 hour one week, 3 hours the next week etc. Toward the end of your trial you may want to ask another user for a 2-week friend key that will extend your trial time. At least try this much before deciding if you will support the Kickstarter.
I guess it's because I've been playing for a while, but the interface doesn't detract from the game for me at all. It fills the screen when you are docked at a station or when you bring your PDA up, but you can still see stuff going on in the background (one of my suggestions). When you are launched, it is very minimal compared to many other MMORPGs, and displays only the bare essentials. There are many hotkeys you can use to navigate, and the UI is entirely skinnable, as well. I wouldn't recommend worrying about plugins or skins until you have at least a few months experience with the game, however.
I'm not sure where the errors in the tutorial are... I played through the tutorial and training missions recently and didn't find any (except maybe one spelling error). However, feel free to post a report to the
bugs forum if you find something that needs clarification or something that is incorrect. Most of the playerbase is very helpful, also.
There are a lot of long-term gameplay goals to pursue; you can find a brief description
here in the Wikipedia article. I actually wrote that section, as it stands today.
In summary, I've found it to be an amazing experience that has occupied most of my gaming time for nearly a decade, and I highly recommend giving the free-trial a go before taking a look at the Kickstarter.
