There's something in here for every trekkie

Dec 8, 2009 08:55 GMT  ·  By

Few slices of the gaming industry pie-chart are as competitive as the MMO ones. Ever since World of Warcraft proved that it could recruit an army for itself, every other developer has been wanting one too. As such, it's no wonder that Cryptic Studios and Atari have not only announced special incentives meant to convince people to jump on their Star Trek Online, but also that these incentives are so many and varied in shape and form that they could change the actual gameplay experience significantly.

Any pre-order will grant dedicated fans access to the open beta for STO that will start on January 12 and end on January 26. Those who pre-order will also get a jump on the competition, as they'll be able to access the servers faster than the rest, on Friday, January 29, instead of waiting until the official launch on February 2.

Both digital distributors as well as standard physical ones are in on the deal, and, while some offer a less appealing in-game pet, others go as far as tempting us with special skill packs, the original USS Enterprise and even a Borg Bridge Officer. The entire list of pre-order incentives is found below, so take your time and browse through them at your leisure and decide what start-up kit you want for your online Star Trek experience.

GameStop -- GameStop customers receive the ability to command the exclusive and always classic USS Enterprise from Star Trek The Original Series.

Best Buy -- Best Buy is offering their customers a fun in-game pet. As a Federation Captain, players own a famed Tribble of Star Trek lore that will accompany them on their travels into the final frontier. As a Klingon commander, players control the boar-like Targ, a beast found on the Klingon home world of Qo'noS.

Amazon -- Amazon is offering an exclusive 'Liberated Borg' Bridge Officer. This bridge officer, who comes with unique nanotechnology augmentations, assists in missions and gains experience as the player does.

Wal-Mart -- With the Wal-Mart Bonus Skill Points package, receive addition skill points that enable players to improve their characters quickly.

Target -- Target customers who preorder Star Trek Online receive a unique ground weapon, a TR-116. This rare projectile weapon is used in dampening fields and other challenging environments; it is also modified with a micro-transporter which beams the fired projectiles to targets at close range so that a user can fire without a direct line of site.

Direct2Drive -- Direct2Drive customers receive an exclusive Multi-Spatial Personal Shield. This advanced personal shield system is based on Borg technology, which constantly regenerates itself and the health of its wearer.

Steam -- STEAM is offering customers Chromodynamic Armor. This armor is based on technology brought back from the Delta Quadrant by U.S.S. Voyager improves the damage and critical hits of energy weapons.