Star Trek Online Goes Free-to-Play, Trailer

Perfect World Entertainment and Cryptic Studios sent out a press release late yesterday carrying the expected announcement that Star Trek Online has officially moved to a free-to-play business model. To promote the transition, they’ve also treated us to a new 106-second launch trailer that shows off much of what the game has to offer:

And here’s the press release with all the related details:

STAR TREK ONLINE FREE-TO-PLAY NOW LIVE
Update to Popular Sci-fi MMO Offers a Galaxy of Free Gameplay to all Players
(Foster City, CA) January 17, 2012 – Perfect World Entertainment Inc., a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Perfect World Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ: PWRD), and Cryptic Studios, Inc., an acclaimed MMORPG developer, along with CBS Consumer Products, today announced the launch and immediate availability of the highly anticipated Star Trek Online Free-to-Play.
“We couldn’t be more excited,” said Jack Emmert, CEO, Cryptic Studios, Inc. “Updating Star Trek Online to the popular free-to-play model removes those barriers of entry that previously kept fans and casual gamers away. Anyone can download and play Star Trek Online at no cost. There’s no better way to see how sitting in the captain’s chair feels.”
With the launch of Star Trek Online free-to-play, anyone can download and play the game for free without a retail copy or subscription. All players may enjoy Star Trek Online’s many features for free. Players do, however, have the ability to access additional optional features through a virtual store.
In Star Trek Online, the Star Trek universe truly comes to life on a massive scale. Players captain their own starships as part of the Federation or Klingon Empire in a persistent online universe, journey to strange new worlds and take part in epic ground and space missions.
The Universe is Your Only Limit – Play as much as you like for as long as you like at no cost. No subscription is required, nor is payment of any kind required.
Episodic Gameplay – Experience new weekly episodes that feature story-based gameplay and put your captain’s ability to command to the ultimate test.
Your Captain, Your Crew, Your Destiny – Become a captain, seek out new life and new civilizations and encounter hostile beings as you advance to maximum level for free.
Familiar Places, New Experiences – Travel to Starfleet Academy, Deep Space Nine, The First City of Qo’noS and many other iconic locations and notable worlds from the beloved Star Trek universe.
The Foundry – Create and build brand new missions and stories to share with the entire Star Trek Online community. Use the specialized toolset to create missions in space or on the ground. Create custom missions, or design an entire series of episodes from the ground up.
To download and play Star Trek Online, or to join the Star Trek Online community, please visit the official website: http://www.startrekonline.com/
ABOUT PERFECT WORLD ENTERTAINMENT INC.
Perfect World Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Perfect World Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ: PWRD), primarily publishes online games and provides online services in North America. Aiming to provide the best game services to North American players with the highest level of commitment in localization, quality assurance, and user-friendly publishing infrastructure, Perfect World Entertainment has achieved great success and published a number of MMORPGs, including “Perfect World International”, (Ether Saga Odyssey), (Jade Dynasty), (Battle of the Immortals), (Forsaken World), and (War of the Immortals), and a single-player action-RPG “Torchlight). Perfect World Entertainment also licenses and operates popular games, including an action-based MORPG (Rusty Hearts).
ABOUT CRYPTIC STUDIOS , Inc.
Cryptic Studios, Inc. is a leading developer of online games committed to delivering the next level of gameplay. Cryptic Studios, Inc. develops AAA titles for PC and is rapidly diversifying its portfolio of games to expand beyond the traditional MMORPG genre. In addition to its successfully launched (Champions Online: Free for All) and (Star Trek Online), Cryptic Studios, Inc. is now developing (Dungeons & Dragons: Neverwinter) and other unannounced projects. Cryptic Studios, Inc., a subsidiary of Perfect World Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ: PWRD), is located in Los Gatos, CA.