Star Trek Online, Epic Fail or Diamond in the Rough?

Recently, I’ve given into my internal closet nerd and picked up a copy of Cryptic Studios new game, Star Trek Online (STO). Having always been a Star Wars fan, I’ve partaken in more than my fair share of name-calling and joking at the expense of the nefarious Trekkie. In a fair fight, I’m confident any Star Wars fan could pummel a Trekkie into the ground.

Let’s face it; Star Trek is the patchouli-smelling lets-all-go-huge-aliens version of sci-fi while Star Wars is all about imperialistic domination and conflict between xenophobic British people and Jar-Jar Binks loving good guys. But I must say, as an impressionable adolescent, I did spend many of my after school hours watching Star Trek, The Next Generation, developing a fascination for the Star Trek spaceships whether it be Federation, Klingon, or Romulan. So naturally, when Cryptic resurrected STO I had to through some money their way to see if this amazing intellectual property translated well to a MMO.

Bottom-line up front, STO is a decent game; note I said decent not amazing, or life altering. I had low expectations going into STO as the game had a sorted past of mismanagement and at one time was completely dropped (at least I am told). However, the game is fairly well rounded with both space and ground content.

Let’s talk space sim. The space aspects of STO are done well. For starters, ships can have numerous tactical, science, or engineering combinations which are supported by attribute enhancing consoles. Picking the right gear can affect your weapon damage, increase your survivability, or give you crowd control abilities. Along with the ship’s items, players can commission the help of Bridge Officers (BO) giving them additional abilities their core class lacks. For example, I play a tactical officer and thus receive damage enhancing special moves. I can pick science and engineer BO(s) to gain healing abilities and increase my resistance to federation weapons. The BO system adds a mature level of complexity that I've been thoroughly pleased with. If you're not careful, one can spend hours training and leveling BO(s) before launching into combat!

STO’s ground combat is a good start; Cryptic has much room for improvement, but the base line mechanics of ground combat work and meet my basic requirements. The ground battles play much like a FPS/MMO hybrid. Collision detection does count, and there is noticeable difference between stand-off capabilities and melee combat. There are also ground PvE instances. The PvE ground action is a great way break up grind of space battles and get lootz. Oh yes, the lootz. STO is a loot based game and with this comes instances of 25 players gearing out a handful of people. I may have to dust off the old DKP site in an effort to keep order when it comes to distributing the fabled purples!

I would like to point out the STO’s game engine does justice to the game. Character shadows and environmental effects are executed superbly. Details from space to player avatars look sharp and Cryptic’s customization engine gives players the ability to create unique looking characters. All of this is quite refreshing in a post-wow cookie cutter era.

There is a bit bad with the good. For starters the Klingon faction is severely lacking in content in comparison to the federation side. Klingon players spend their days flying shield less into the Federation fire in an effort to quickly complete PvP quest. This brings me to my second point, PvP quest. It’s a bit odd to state that the fastest way to level a Klingon player is to die. For some reason Cryptic gives you a substantial amount of XP for merely participating in PvP battles. Since there is little if any Klingon content, PvP (read as suicide) has become the main method of leveling.

STO also lacks an open PvP space zone which I find terriblly disappointing. I’m sure there is one coming down the development pipeline but hopefully we’re not reduced to 5v5 scenarios forever. It’s hard to imagine an STO without some form of open PvP where Feds and Klingons fight over planets, resources, or green women. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for this (the PvP not the green women)!

I’m also going to have to pick on the crafting system. There is none. I’m sure Cryptic will eventually implement some form of crafting but I’m sure it will be unimaginative and similar to WoW. This is apparent from the loot based economy and the traditional use of color (god help us all purple) on item titles to denote rarity and worth. If Cryptic has any self worth, they will at least go with a WAR style of crafting which will provide some variety to the economy.

With these downsides, I still enjoy the game. The core PvP system works, and scenario battles (especially space) can have some heart pounding moments. If you need a break away from the sword-and-board fantasy games, STO is a great pick. Expect to wait a few months while Cryptic hastily polishes the game. The current content on the Federation side is enough to keep any player occupied while the fixes are implemented. If you roll Klingon, just name your ship after a star wars character and go pound on Fed-faces until the new content is released. For me, STO is worth the money, it’s a more or less like a “good” version of Pirates of the Buring Sea that doesn’t suck!