Star Trek Online (PC – Beta) Review

Space…the final frontier…these are the voyages of the starship “Teen Wolf Too”.  Its online mission; to grind like one of those new coffee machines; to seek out newbs and new bugs; to boldly download the biggest zip file EVAR!

Let’s start this off by saying that yes, this is a beta and there were more than a few bugs that still need to be worked out before release.  OK, OK a crap load of bugs.  Alright, a rent-controlled apartment in Harlem amount of bugs.  Also WTF was up with the size of the client download?  7.8Gig?!

First off, there is the character creation, which if you haven’t played the game before (in the beta anyway) you were restricted to a Federation character. The game takes place during the Next-Generation Era of the franchise.  This meant you could play as a Human, Trill, Bajoran, Vulcan, Andorian, Benzite, Betazoid, Bolian, or Saurian.  All of these species has their own race advantages and disadvantages.  You could also “build your own alien race” and pick which advantages/disadvantages they have.  The advantages range from lucky to telepathic which have bonuses for certain skills.  I chose a Betazoid because I still have some childhood hots for Counselor Troy.  You also have to chose a class, which for the Federation was either Engineering, Science or Tactical (Red shirt).  I chose a science officer.  They then ask you to name your ship.  This troubled me a little, because I didn’t know what the ship even looked like but we’ll address that later.

You then address what your character looks like physically which is where Cryptic really shines.  Their character modeling is really down-pat.  You can pretty much customize the hell out of the head and even make the character’s fingers longer.  If you are an alien race, you get some other sliders to adjust spot color, (Trill) or ear size (Vulcan) and the list goes on.  You can also customize your character’s uniform.  I know, I get the irony of that.  If it is customized it is no longer “uniform”, but we don’t want everyone dressed the same.  Or do we?  They are supposed to be in StarFLEET…

The game then throws you into a scenario which teaches you basic commands and dialog options, inventory controls, etc.  This is pretty standard fare for Cryptic as they did the same with City of Heroes, City of Villians, Champions Online…pretty much any MMO they make.  Not to say that this is a bad thing.  I actually like the scenario they throw you into in which a rouge group of Borg attack a vessel.  The scenario plays out in 3rd person mode, then ship combat mode.  (Yay!  I finally see my ship!)

I was disappointed that my ship was tiny, but apparently everyone starts out with a tiny one unless you pre-ordered or something.  So, I made do.  Anyway, the ship combat is actually quite good and reminiscent of Starfleet Command, only more 3D.  One problem I had however was camera control.  Apparently it has a mind of its own and while it will follow a ship you target, heaven help you if you change your target…at all.

At the end of the scenario you become the captain of your vessel due to your performance (yada yada yada) and also get your first deck officer.  You get to choose from one of the 3 classes of deck officers.  They all have different abilities that can either improve or effect combat.  For example, an engineering officer can route emergency power to the weapons to deliver more damage for a short period of time.  In other words they all have some sort of buff during ship combat as well as increasing certain traits of your ship.  While on the ground, during away missions, you can take them along instead of red-shirts as well.  In this regard, Science officers can buff the party with hyposrays and Tactical officers can use certain special attacks.  I particularly like engineering officers on away missions as they can lay mine fields.

The skill system in the game is a little…complex.  As you complete missions you get skill points that you can dump into skills like Starship Operations and Science Analyst.  The skills aren’t too thoroughly explained and you will probably regret your choices later on as I did.  (PRO TIP-There are more skills for your main character if you SCROLL DOWN.  Didn’t know this until about 8 hours in.)

Ships…I still have my original, although I have customized it a bit looks-wise and with some equipment from drops.  For instance, after destroying a Klingon cruiser, I picked up twin Disruptor Cannons that I promptly slapped on the front of my ship.  Apparently you can’t get a different class of ship until you get to Lieutenant Commander rank (tantamount to level 20, I think.)  So until then, get comfortable with your ship.

Missions-  The missions are what you would expect them to be, patrols, couriers, raids, etc.  The one thing I do like is how the instances are pretty open.  If, for example, you are supposed to go to the Pico system to investigate a distress call and another player does the same thing at the same time you get automatically put on a team with them and are placed into the instance together when you get to the system.  Some may find this annoying and I haven’t tried it while already on a team but I like the interaction of it so far.  During the missions your battle familiar enemies like the Borg, Klingons, Gorn, etc.

As I continue to play the game, I am finding it to be highly grind-tastic and a little on the boring side.  Unless you really get into the social element of the game or are a huge Star Trek fan, you may leave altogether.  There are many social elements that I have not mentioned yet, like an Auction house called “The Exchange” which could redeem the game when it actually goes online.  There is also a sort of crafting element to the game that requires the use of materials you come across during missions.  The actual acquisition of these materials may rely on your science skills, but I’m not sure on that.  Also the amount of materials needed to create even the simplest hypsopray is a little over the top.

In summary, this is a pretty good MMO from a company that makes pretty good MMOs.  The only problem I currently foresee is possible boredom.  However, the Star Trek license may vault them over that obstacle due to the sheer volume of source material.  Hell, fan scripts alone could run this game into the next millennium.  If you are a Trek fan, and have time for an MMO aside from WoW, get this game.

Pricing wise this MMO is on par with the rest $14.99 USD/month for a monthly, $41.97 USD/3month, $77.94 USD/6month, $119.99 USD/year and $239.99 USD/lifetime.  If anyone wants to buy me the last one I would be their friend.  This is a pretty solid pricing structure for what the game offers.  I would not be surprised if it got jacked up a bit in the near future if the game is popular or if the economy stays as it is.

I am actually looking forward to the pro-Star Trek Online/anti-Star Wars Online and vice-versa websites that are sure to emerge.

In game, I’m @adventurene so gimme a buzz if you join in.