PLEASE TAKE NOTE BEFORE PURCHASING: As of January of this year, STAR TREK ONLINE is now free-to-play, meaning that you do NOT have to buy this or any other retail product to start playing. Simply visit the official website (sto.perfectworld.com), create an account, and download the game from there. The retail copies are not worthless, though, and I actually think this Collector's Edition is well worth the price for what you get, especially if you end up liking the game.
And apologies for the long-winded review!
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I've been a Star Trek fan for a long time, but STAR TREK ONLINE came around post-WoW and I was not looking for another MMO to get sucked into. In addition, the initial reviews for the game were not all that positive. It was really easy for me write it off. But here we are now and not only has the game gone through a serious overhaul, but it's now free-to-play. I finally decided to take the plunge and I was nowhere near disappointed.
The thing I've noticed since quitting WoW is that most MMOs these days, regardless of how much sense it makes, always try and copy the WoW formula. It worked tremendously well in that instance so, therefore, it must work again, ad infinitum apparently. STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC was the latest one I tried. Fantastic concepts and production values, but what should've been a Star Wars game that played by Star Wars rules, was instead a Star Wars game that played by WoW rules. It was pretty much every MMO I had ever played, but with a Star Wars theme.
STAR TREK ONLINE, on the other hand, doesn't really try to be WoW. It jumps through hoops and tries to be, well... Star Trek. It's for this reason that STO really sets itself apart from other MMOs currently up and running. THE OLD REPUBLIC shouldn't have been paying such close attention to WoW; I'm thinking they should've been looking at STAR TREK ONLINE.
-STARTING OUT-
The game begins, as with any other MMO, with the character creation screen. If you're just starting out, you'll be making a Federation character (Humans, Vulcans, Betazoids, etc.), and this might take some time. The options for STO's character creator are ridiculously in-depth, and comparable to games like SKYRIM. You can tweak every little feature: face, body, and uniform. Not only that, but you can pick the "Alien" race and design a new species of humanoid from the ground up. STO is one of the first MMOs I've played where it's almost impossible to find another player whose character looks similar to yours. And you'll get even more options when you hit level 25 and unlock the Klingon Empire faction (Klingons, Orions, Gorn, etc.)
-TAKING COMMAND-
When that's all out of the way, you're quickly thrown into the opening story/tutorial levels, where you take command of a ship after an unfortunate skirmish with the Borg.
The combat is unlike anything I've seen in an MMO so far, in that it's more comparable to GEARS OF WAR than anything else. (Though, take that with a grain of salt; it's certainly not as refined.) When you enter combat, you aim with your mouse, use your number keys for abilities, and take cover behind obstacles when your shield or health are low. It gives ground combat a more tactical and real-time feel to it. Abilities still have cooldowns, but having to keep an eye out for cover and tumbling out of the way of grenades at the right time makes encounters seem like how a Star Trek firefight should.
You eventually assume command of your first ship and are given a taste of what space combat is like in STO, where the basic strategy is to whittle your opponent's shields down to get a clear shot at their hull. Doing this properly is where more advanced strategies come in. Each ship has its own shield (broken down into four quadrants: fore, aft, port, starboard), turn rate and sweet spots where their weapons are most effective. Knowing the effective area of your fore and aft weapons, and maneuvering damaged shields away from your opponent is key. But each race comes with its own set of abilities, which means adapting to each encounter as it comes.
All of this keeps combat fresh and fun as you progress, and the ability to add new officers to your away team or ship's bridge means that you can hone in on your preferred play style without conflict. The game absolutely encourages experimentation.
-EPISODES and QUESTS-
As you progress through the main story, each main quest is broken up into its own "episode," complete with the trademark title card and everything. The episodes attempt to capture the pace and feeling of the TV series, succeeding for the most part, but barely scraping by in some cases. Some episodes place emphasis on exploration, a few on drama, but most try to get you back into combat as soon as possible. This is probably where the biggest flaw in the game is at this point. The quests/episodes get the job done, but the possibility for compelling stories is definitely there. The game tries its hand at it at times, and you'll wish they would've tried it a little more. This makes the quests feel a little predictable.
Luckily, developer Cryptic Studios solved this with "The Foundry," a kit included with the game that allows players the ability to make their own quests! Yeah! Not only that, but once the completed Foundry quest is uploaded, other players can play through it just like they would any other quest. This allows players to get creative and experiment and receive criticism. Some of the player-made quests I've played so far have blown me away, and it's such an awesome addition to an MMO that I can't believe more games haven't tried something similar.
Cryptic's quests are good enough to see you through to the end of the game, but you won't see many that aspire to be a step above WoW quality. The Foundry, on the other hand, will see you through to the end of the game and keep you there. It should be noted that all episode and Foundry quests are repeatable and playable with friends, regardless of any level difference between you. I breathed a sigh of relief when I found out I didn't have to create a new character to group up with my friends who were just starting out.
NOTE: Currently, only subscribing members can use The Foundry, but all players have access to Foundry quests.
-EXPLORE STRANGE NEW WORLDS-
One big thing that I like about STO is that it encourages exploration. Unlike most "theme park" MMOs, you can immediately go pretty much anywhere you want right off the bat. (At least, that's been the case for me so far.) Eventually, the quests will guide you around to all of the places of interest, but you can put them on hold and see what's out there for yourself. Stumbling upon Deep Space Nine and Starfleet Academy was pretty exciting, as was finding Risa, a planet with a tropical resort that has no quests leading to it; it's just there for players to discover and enjoy. I also loved the area that allows you to mine for dilithium on an asteroid with very little gravity. It's stuff like that that makes the galaxy a joy to explore.
In some sectors, there are also unexplored star clusters to check out, which contain dozens of randomized planets and missions. These missions are good for farming XP and dilithium, but can get repetitive in a hurry.
Since the game is divided across dozens (if not hundreds) of worlds, there are only a handful that you'll likely be returning to. Earth Spacedock will be your port of call for much of the game, as will stations like Deep Space Nine and Memory Alpha, the latter of which being where most of the game's crafting will take place. It would've been neat if there were at least a few worlds, like Qo'noS, with a bit more breadth to them, but Star Trek was always about the "Planet of the Week," so I suppose this fits. Regardless, it's always a blast wondering what kind of planet you and your away team are beaming down to next.
-OFFICERS-
Bridge Officers play a huge role in STAR TREK ONLINE, as they act as both your away team (unless you have friends to fill out the party) and your main source of abilities during space combat. There are three types of Bridge Officers: Science, Tactical, and Engineering - each with their own abilities that tie in to their role. Tactical officers supply weapon buffs and teams to defend your crew if you're boarded; science officers supply heals and debuffs; engineering officers supply defensive abilities and can get the most out of your shields.
It falls to you to train up each Bridge Officer in the ways that'll make them the most effective on your bridge and on the ground.
Duty Officers are a whole other system that can be ignored completely, but adds a new layer to the game. Duty Officers are essentially "trading cards." You pick them up every now and then (up to 100) and send them on missions that are completed in real time, ranging from a few minutes to a few days. Everything is done in the background, and sending the right Duty Officers for the right job can net you some decent rewards. Some also have special abilities that can help you in battle. Basically, it's a neat system that allows you to progress, even if you only have a few minutes to spare.
-ROLE-PLAYING-
This was another big element for me. A lot of MMORPGs launch and forget they're supposed to be, you know, RPGs. STAR TREK ONLINE supplies a lot of secondary activities for people who like to be immersed in the world. There's gambling on Deep Space Nine, the aforementioned beach resort, an ice planet dedicated solely to dueling, nightclubs, bars, the remnants of several locations that were destroyed in the series/films (like Romulus and Wolf 359), and the ability to run around inside your own ship. You have your own bridge, lounge/mess hall, engineering deck, transporter room, captain's quarters, and the ability to launch a shuttle (when you earn one).
And since the story takes place a few decades after the latest TV shows, you can see where some of your favorite Star Trek characters ended up years later. My favorite was seeing where the kids born on VOYAGER ended up.
-IN-GAME STORE-
Even though the game is absolutely free, the developers still have to make money. As such, STO has an in-game store that allows you to buy specialty ships and uniforms from the TV series, as well as things like XP boosts. What I like is that, unlike most F2P games, nearly everything available in the store you can earn without paying real money, and there aren't really any items that will give you the edge over other players. Buying the Enterprise from The Original Series won't win you the game or anything, but it's something diehard fans of the show will want to have in their stardock. I highly encourage anyone who decides they like the game to support the devs by checking out the store.
-IN CLOSING-
As I've pointed out, the game may be a little rough around the edges, but since I started playing, it's been fairly difficult to stop. Cryptic put a lot of work into this game, and though it remains to be seen how the endgame plays out, there's certainly enough content here to justify giving this free-to-play MMO a chance. I've already put more into this game than I did SWTOR, and I'm still very much enjoying myself. Picking up the Collector's Edition will get you an art book, a die cast comm badge, and a few in-game trinkets that, in all, are well worth the price. You also get a free month's subscription to the game, which allows you access to The Foundry and other perks.
In a genre absolutely flooded with fantasy MMOs trying to get as close to they can to being WoW, STAR TREK ONLINE is a refreshing change of pace. It's a must-try for Star Trek and sci-fi fans alike. It might not accomplish everything it set out to do in high style, but judging by the recent patches, it's only going to improve. And, really, you can't beat that price.
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