The STO Story

The upcoming Star Trek Online didn't quite know what to expect from Cryptic Studios; the company acquired the rights to develop the MMO in 2008, after its original developer folded. The community found solace in the notion that Star Trek Online was finally in capable hands, yet Cryptic kept a tight-lid on its newfound development. It wasn't until last summer that even the smallest details began coming in on a regular basis, presumably in response to J. J. Abrams' movie reboot, Star Trek. Around the same time, we published a feature-editorial about the relationship between the MMO, the original series and the "parallel timeline" explored in Abrams' new movie. Executive Producer Craig Zinkievich confirmed that Star Trek Online would, as fans expected, follow the original timeline last seen in Star Trek: Nemesis. However, many events in Abrams' reboot will affect the "prime" universe/timeline of the MMO as well.

In early autumn, Cryptic finally put an end to the absolute secrecy surrounding Star Trek Online and started releasing tangible media and gameplay details. After being left in the dark for five years, the 'Trek community has gleaned a wealth of information in just the last few months. If you haven't been following the news since then—or you simply need a little help in piecing it all together—this installment of ZAM's "What We Know So Far" takes an updated look at Star Trek Online's unfolding story.

Despite the first closed beta already underway and a scheduled release date of Feb. 2, 2010, Cryptic hasn't fully explained the story that will drive STO at launch. Small bits of information were gradually released in developer videos and a fiction series, called "The Path to 2409," throughout the past few months. But these are just fragments of a bigger story; one that will ultimately piece together the history of the Star Trek universe since we last saw it in Nemesis.

What we do know is that, by the year 2381, the Romulan Star Empire was in disarray, approaching a civil war between the Romulans and Remans. Intent on liberating a homeworld of their own, the Remans found themselves at odds with the Romulans. Meanwhile, the Klingon Empire exploited the brewing civil war by launching an assault to reclaim the Khitomer sector, an area it had long-since lost to the Romulans.

The Federation denounced the attack, but the Klingons—being Klingons, of course—didn't give a damn. By 2392, the Klingons and Romulans were engaged in total war, and the Federation's relationship with the Klingon High Council had rapidly deteriorated. Meanwhile, from seemingly out-of-nowhere, the Nausicaans and the Gorn (the big lizard-looking race first seen in the original series) attacked a Klingon-occupied planet while the Klingons' backs were turned, just as they did to the Romulans.

The Klingons were fighting a war on two fronts; against both the Romulan Empire and the Gorn-Nausicaan alliance. The Federation has lost control of diplomatic relations, and the Klingons eventually claimed substantial Romulan space. But in 2395, the plot thickened when the Klingon Empire discovered that an unknown race of shape-shifting aliens had been pulling the strings all along; these shape-shifters infiltrated the Gorn by disguising themselves as high-ranking officials, and instigating the war.

These are the events that set the stage for STO's launch; the Klingons have joined forces with the Orions, Gorn and Nasicaans after discovering the shape-shifters' role in manipulating recent events. It was only recently revealed STO's "Klingon faction" will consist of these four races. By 2406, the Klingon faction had become aggressive, paranoid and xenophobic because of the shape-shifting alien threat. The Klingon Empire began encroaching Federation space, ordering it to evacuate various Klingon-claimed territories.

In 2409, when STO begins, the Federation and Klingon Empire have presumably declared war on each other, or are extremely close to doing so. The "rub" is the unknown alien menace; a race of shape-shifters who might have been orchestrating these events all along. Cryptic has also dropped hints that "Species 8472," the beings discovered in "fluidic space" by the Voyager crew in the Delta Quadrant, play a role in STO's story. And that's only the beginning of a bigger story that draws inspiration from every Star Trek series ever produced.

To find out more, you can read the complete "Path to 2409" fiction series to see the direction in which Cryptic has steered the IP. Most Trekkers won't be disappointed when they find an abundance of familiar names, places and events in Star Trek lore that the developers used to build STO. You can also watch the main story events play out with developer commentary and in-game footage by checking out the two-part "Future Past" video series.

In our next STO-related installment of "What We Know So Far," ZAM will cover the gameplay aspects and features of the MMO, including ship combat, away missions and character progression. Also, be sure to keep an eye on our STO portal site to read our ongoing "Exploration" series from the closed beta; last week, we previewed the character creation system.