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PAX 2009: Penny Arcade Expo

Hands-On with Star Trek Online at PAX 2009

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Posted September 6th, 2009 by Sardu

Exploring a strange new Cryptrek world
Now that Cryptic Studios has the first major MMOG launch of 2009 tucked neatly under its belt with the release of Champions Online, the developer has been ramping up the presence of Star Trek Online in a big way. Ever since Cryptic first revealed that it would be picking up the development reigns on the online incarnation of the Trek universe, it’s been one of the major MMOG’s looming over the launch horizon that sci-fi fans have been itching to get some hands-on time with. Needless to say, when I discovered that STO would be playable at this year’s PAX I couldn’t help but jump at the opportunity like a starship captain into a giant pile of tribbles.

Oh yes, there were definitely tribbles to be found and it was only natural that I led my away team right into the center of the bunch where I proceeded to gleefully scamper around with a big old smile on my rebellious Starfleet captain’s face each time I’d see the little buggers multiply. A passing fan noticed my discovery and heartily exclaimed, “Whoa, are those tribbles?” Executive producer Craig Zinkievich was all too happy to affirm that I had indeed hopped into a small (but rapidly expanding) pile of the things, adding in “Don’t pick one up!” But I’m getting a bit ahead of myself here…

One of the very first things that stood out for me when playing STO is that, if I didn’t know better, I might not have ever realized that the game was being built using the same in-house tools as Champions. It’s no secret that I’ve been spending a good deal of time scampering, tunneling and swinging my way around Millennium City and beyond over the past few months, so I’ve gotten a pretty good feel for how fluid the movement and combat can be on the engine. What’s interesting then, is seeing how tightly controlled movement and combat feel in STO both in space as well as on the ground with your away team. That’s not to say that the pace of combat is slow by any means, but more so that the more tactical approach to combat that’s synonymous with the IP is readily present, which also speaks volumes about what Cryptic is capable of as a developer;  in other words it certainly isn’t just a one-trick, spandex-clad pony of a studio.

STO’s space combat was easily the most talked about gameplay element over the two days I spent on the show floor at PAX. Nearly everyone I spoke to had either played it and had something positive to say about Cryptic’s approach to space combat, or were trying to find time to sneak away from their own booth to get some hands-on time with it. Considering the caliber of the developers and titles on display at the show, the fact that STO’s ship combat was generating such a high buzz factor really speaks volumes about the potential of the game, at least if initial impressions based on a single looped demo mission are any indication.

The playable demo of STO allowed players to experience both ship to ship and ground combat, and while I obviously got a bit overzealous leading my away team to the extreme edges of the playable areas of the mission map, I did also get to take out a few Birds of Prey in my Starfleet ship. I ultimately spent more time with the away team than I did with ship to ship combat, but what I did get to experience of it reminded me of equal parts standard MMOG controls, with tactical elements from titles such as EVE and even some elements drawn from RTS titles thrown into the mix, though at the same time the overall system strikes me as being wholly unique to STO rather than simply being a more polished version of something you’re already familiar with.

With all of that going on you might be surprised to hear that space combat isn’t too terribly complex of a system to get the hang of fairly quickly. Or put another way, Cryptic cut out all of the monotonous micro-management and kept the fun parts. These certainly aren’t faced paced dogfights, although that’s not to say there isn’t plenty of awesome Trek-style action going on in space.

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