When you begin playing the MMORPG Star Trek Online you start off with a basic starship, but as you progress through the game you get access to bigger, better and more specialized ships. Atari has just released a series of videos profiling five of these ships, you can check them out below. Plus we have all the latest STO updates and news, including the schedule of releases for April and May.
Star Trek Online Ship Videos
Nova Class
Saber Class
Galaxy Class
Destiny Class
Envoy Class
April and May Updates
Cryptic has updated the startrekonline.com/calendar page with all the April and May enhancements to the game, here is the full list.
RELEASING IN APRIL
- 8TH-14TH STF: Khitomer Accord
- 8TH-14TH C-Store Items
- C-Store: Klingon Bridge Pack "Bird of Prey"
- C-Store: Fed Escort Variant "Hephaestus"
- 15TH-21ST C-Store Items
- C-Store: Fed Bridge Pack "Destiny"
- C-Store: Fed Science Variant "Nimbus"
- C-Store: Emote Pack 1
- 22ND-30TH STF: Undine Terradome
- 22ND-30TH Season 1.1 Update
- Joined Trill – Klingon Faction
- TOS/MirrorU – Female Outfit Updates
- Difficulty Slider and Death Penalty
- Commodity / Memory Alpha Update
- Exchange Improvements
- Space Auto-Fire
- C-Store: Klingon Bridge Pack "Carrier"
- C-Store: "Pakled" – Playable Fed Species
- C-Store: Fed Cruiser Variant "Nomad"
RELEASING IN MAY
- 13TH-19TH C-Store Items
- C-Store: "Caitian" – Playable Fed Species
- C-Store: Fed Bridge Pack "Prometheus"
- C-Store: Fed Escort Variant "Maelstrom"
- 20TH-28TH Season 1.2 Update
- Accolade System
- Squad System (Sidekicking)
- Episode Replay
- C-Store: Fed Science Variant "Comet"
- C-Store: Emote Pack 2
Star Trek Advisory Council – With TrekMovie.com
Atari has just announced a new ‘advisory council’ (including yours truly) that will consult with the game makers in an ongoing basis. Here is the announcement:
We’re happy to introduce the Star Trek Advisory Council, where we speak to members of the Star Trek and Star Trek Online community to learn more about what our fans want from the game.
The Star Trek Online Advisory Council is an informal group of Star Trek and gaming fans who have been tapped to provide input on the development of STO. Based on Earth in the Sol System, the Council will also become ambassadors for their readers, viewers and followers who want to provide suggestions and tips on how Star Trek Online‘s 25th century storyline might further evolve.
The Star Trek Online Advisory Council charter members are:
Adm. CHRIS FISHER
Adm. JEREMY RANDALL
U.S.S. STOkedAdm. JONATHAN LANE
StarfleetAdm. BERLIN NICCALS
U.S.S. Shut Up, WesleyAdm. ANTHONY PASCALE
U.S.S. TrekMovie.comThe Star Trek Online Advisory Council will add more members in the near future. If you wish to be considered for membership, or if you have any questions, our hailing frequencies are open at bolianbarber@gmail.com.
New Interviews
Star Trek Online Executive Producer Craig Zinkievich has conducted a couple of new interviews, here are the links:
Start Playing
If you want to get into the 25th century and play Star Trek Online it is available at Amazon discounted currently for less than $25 (or $47 for the collectors edition), and that includes a one month subscription.
Hm, what is required for membership?
So umm … all males on the council ? … okay ….
@ 2.
Look closer
Dear Cryptic,
Please add the Excelsior, Ambassador and Nebula classes. Also please add Klingon ships that would be close equivalents to these that don’t look like more giant ‘Birds of Prey’. We have enough of those.
Thanks!
Is Star Trek the only MMO with such an “advisory council?” It sounds like a great public relations feature. I only hope fandom is constructive and civil in it’s content requests.
Gawk I still hate that Envoy!
It’s like an ongoing bad april fool’s joke
Wouldn’t the Galaxy class be a bad idea to pick because by the time STO rolls around the ship is, like, how many years old?
USS Shut Up Wesley? Marvelous. :D
Congratulations on the new gig! Do you have any ideas in mind yet? Or are you not allowed to tell?
@4: Seconded, so very much. Also, maybe the New Orleans and the Nebula? Or the Oberth? (I have strange tastes, so sue me.)
@7: She’s not old, she’s a classic!
Over-designed. Stylized. Video-gamy.
No thanks.
@5
EVE Online has a similar sort of council set up, though more democratic with ‘elections’ etc that players can vote in. People can keep their place on the council for 2 years before someone else has a go.
The STO Advisory Council that Crypic has set up would appear to be a far more basic version of Eve’s Counci of Stellar Management.
feel free to offer feedback/vent on topics you think this advisory council should discuss
@7
Remember we’ve had Miranda-class ships for pretty much the better part of a century, Excelsior for around 70-80 in canon. That’s pretty long, but even in the real world ships can be floating for decades or longer; the retirement of many WWII-era ships has much to do with a constriction of naval power and the changing nature of warfare, rather than any issue with upkeep or design per se.
I would like to see more story content in missions and possibly puzzle solving instead of just clicking on a flashing panel to continue. I recommended bringing in people who have written for Star Trek to provide story lines. The STF missions are nice but please add more individual missions. I would hate to think the only time I can play is if I can get 5 people together.
ouch. no love for trekweb. That site used to be relevant. Also thought there’d be a memory alpha representative.
It would be nice to be able to upgrade the Galaxy class ships with a third nacelle and the mega phaser seen in “All Good Things”.
I think my favorite among the ships was the Envoy class. It had a certain mix of classic Constitution class and Sovereign class in one.
I like all the ships in the videos, especially the Destiny class. Now that is an interesting and cool design. I like the Galaxy class, but it looks kinda goofy in the video.
Congrats Anthony!
I don’t know what to ask to add to this game yet, still playing and having a blast at it.
Maybe more complicated stories / episodes, with branching story lines. But I’m not even half way done with the game yet, so no hurry.
They’re adding Caitians? That’s awesome. The joined Trill for the Klingons makes no sense to me though. Couldn’t they have picked something that made more sense?
Also, the Envoy is fugly.
“Atari has just announced a new ‘advisory council’ (including yours truely( that will consult with the game makers in an ongoing basis. Here is the announcement”
Truely?
Truly you jest. =]
The Envoy looks like it was based on the Galaxy silhouette, but made sleeker and leaner. I was never a huge fan of the Galaxy Class design (oh, I’ll admit it–I HATED IT!!), but that never stopped me from loving TNG.
I applaud Atari for creating the advisory council, shows their dedication to the success of the game and no better source than Star Trek fans and gamers!
My advice, just make it a game layered with rewards and recognition and the ability to be a hero. If you shred away all the fancy graphics, we gamers crave gameplay, just look at the phenom of the mobile games such as imobsters. The players are always driven to reach that next level to unlock said item/function and the ability to team up with others and pwn noobs.
You don’t have to make it WOW in space but something along the lines of imobsters, gosh I wish I can play my mobile games on my pc, they are that fun. My PS3 and PC is eating dust thanks to the superb game play of mobile games.
Cheers.
I love my Galaxy-class in-game. USS Odyssey-A. Very happy with it, so despite it’s age and slow turning speed, age doesn’t seem to matter.
@22 I thought I was the only one who hated the Galaxy Class! Whoo-hoo another one!
Seriously, it was one fugly ship: I can’t think of one angle where the thing looked good. And they continually picked the ugliest angle to shoot it from for promo stills, etc: below.
@22 I thought I was the only one who hated the Galaxy Class! Whoo-hoo another one!
Seriously, it was one fugly ship: I can’t think of one angle where the thing looked good. And they continually picked the ugliest angle to shoot it from for promo stills, etc: below.
I think my favourite classes are the Miranda, Excelsior, Defiant and Sovereign.
@ Anthony Pascale: I’m delighted to see that you’re part of the advisory council! What I would like you to propose to Cryptic is simple enough: Make STO more “trekky”. We need (way) more diplomacy missions and quests that can be resolved through dialogue or investigation. Also, please tell them to add an option to disable ships/stun enemies instead of destroying ships/killing enemies. That’s all for now!
Nope, still not interested. This is not Star Trek Online, this is Pew Pew Online. Even the science ships are seen in full conflict. No exploration, no first contact. No adventure. Only mindless shooting.
Pew Pew…
T.’.
Given the advanced construction techniques (mass replication, nanotech, etc., etc.) the idea that Starfleet ships would be built to last makes sense. Now, how their R & D process works is a bit of a puzzle, I mean, do they have “defense contractors” competing on new designs? “Consulting Corporations” ?
T.’.
FYI, they’ve hinted that the Excelsior is coming, as well as the Nebula and Oberth.
The Destiny class is odd looking, but it is unique. The Envoy class looks like a drunken frat boy’s version of the Galaxy class.
NOT CANNON! Half of them look like they were designed by a wanna be who works at a game studio..oh wait..!
Destiny Class: Ok lets slice of the front half of Voyager, the nacelle’s from the E and add a few random engines and call it good! Where’s my paycheque mr.game studio head boss lol!
Wait wait wait. Death Penalty? I hope they dont mean your ship blows up, you start back at Earth/Qo’nos/wherever ur home base is but you lose all your equipment and have to start from scratch or something similar. If thats so and they really are doing that, well then I know about 20 people who’ll be cancelling their subscriptions including myself.
Mikey mikey mikey, don’t panic! I am sure it won’t be as severe as loosing your ship.
But, what if there were missions out there, that if you fail, you loose a member of your crew? And you knew it before you started it? Or maybe loose one of your weapons or stations?
I think that would up the ante and give it some real excitement. So long as it was an interesting mission, not just a slugfest.
Of course, along with the greater risk, MUST come the greater reward.
@#27
The game does still feel like 80% Pew Pew and %20 exploration to me too (not that I mind). But you are right, they should be working on the exploration angle more. I can see that coming in the future, they seem to be laying the groundwork now. Upgrading my ship and crew is INCREDIBLY fun. (sigh, only LC1 right now)
Lame
I applaude their efforts but most TNG era starship designs simply don´t appeal to me, except maybe the Defiant… :(
As many have said before, my favorite ships would be the Constitution, Miranda and Excelsior classes… plus the classic Klingon Bird of Prey… :)
#27 said “No exploration, no first contact. No adventure. Only mindless shooting.”
There is exploration. ‘First contact’ missions seem to exist but they are procedural and therefore predictable in how they work. And there are missions where there is no shooting (or any kind of violence) done by anyone… they are just rare. And I’ve been on some rather good adventures that had some intelligent story lines.
Yes there is a lot of combat and we can see it highlighted in these short sample videos. But these videos are not the sum total this game has to offer. Combat in video games is to be expected even in a Star Trek game (see Elite Force). But I do think you have a point. The game should have a clear path to finding missions that need not involve combat for those players not interested in constant “Pew Pew Pew”.
Does the Galaxy Class come with a Kindergarten and children running around during space battles like in the Next Gen??
If so can the kindergarteners be used to repel boarding parties?
I hate the model they made for the Galaxy Class, looks horrible. And as far as it being old, well think of how big of a ship it is, and the oldest of the bunch would only be in their 40’s. Seems reasonable that they’d still be around to me. I mean think of the Excelsior’s, those things were used forever.
Anthony,
The “Advisory Council” comes off as a joke (“USS Shut Up Wesley,” etc.), and does no service to this game as part of a real business serving customers.
If these people are over the age of 12, they should either take the idea of customer feedback seriously, or go back to watching Spongebob.
Star Trek fans are older, and it’s no secret. And it’s the fault of CBS that they don’t market to a younger demographic (or anyone, for that matter). When we spend money on a product, and the producers of the product try to pass themselves off as poor comedians instead of businessmen, it’s just not funny.
I’m waiting for the cascade of wonderful reviews before I buy this product. Not one yet.
Congratz to Anthony and the rest of that council. It is a great idea!
@34&37
Thank you for the nuance. Indeed, a more balanced story would be (very) nice. Trek is a little bit pew pew, in the context of adventure. Not in the context of WW1 trench warfare.
#34 – How can one be “loosing your ship” or “loose” a crew?
Ships and crews are neither tight nor loose.
PS: it’s “lose”…why do so many people add another “O” to these words? What the heck are they teaching in schools these days???
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Cryptic should not be allowed to design starships
Wow, look at that polygon count! I guess they want to make sure this game’ll run on peoples’ toasters.
I still want an NX-class.
I’d be jazzed if the Nexus somehow pops up in STO. It was supposed to re-appear around this time, Data said so in Generations.
@47 that is a good idea, you are right! I had to cancel my subscription because there just isn’t anything to do anymore. You can do your daily exploration missions but those are all the same. I loved the game up until the end where theres nothing to do though. I’ll definitely resubscribe in a little bit after there’s more stuff out for it.
god there are some ugly ships in this game though.
44.
I haven’t been to school in 25 years, find it in your heart to forgive me. When I get excited about something I don’t check my posts very well, and (as you pointed out) its a common mistake.
But, I am sure everyone got the point though.