Parents' Guide to

Star Trek Online

By Carolyn Koh, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Play as Star Trek character in combat-heavy, open chat MMO.

Game Windows 2010
Star Trek Online Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this game.

  • Star Trek Online Game: Screenshot #1
  • Star Trek Online Game: Screenshot #2
  • Star Trek Online Game: Screenshot #3

Community Reviews

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age 12+

Based on 4 parent reviews

Dustin W.
Dustin W. Adult
February 15, 2023
age 18+

Lack of moderation allows toxic community

I have been a player and supporter for years, but due to lack of moderation, the game has a very unstable, unmoderated, and often toxic crowd in the game's main social area, topics often go sexual and gross. Not a place that is okay for kids, and sadly that's the future of Trek. The ability to block people broke, and they have not fixed it for almost six months. Ps4

This title has:

Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
Liam S.
Liam S. Parent
October 22, 2016
age 11+

I may be free to play but that does not mean it will not cost you money

The current page information for the game is a bit out of date a the time of this review (Oct 22, 2016) as the game is now free to down load from both ARC and Steam with the subscription fee remaining as a gold membership offering in game extras. There is no need to ever spend money on the game unless you truly wish to. There times a year endgame ships are given away for free based on participation in in game events. Even a small monetary investment can reap rewards in game allowing for many hours of play. With younger or more impressionable children it is strongly recommended to simply remove the player chat from the game leaving only NPCs and notification active as with any public space there will be points at which it can be toxic even older children and adults are advised to avoid it as there is little gain to it. There are several in game in game money systems to keep track of which can lend itself to a study of markets in action. The Klingon and Romulan story arcs are vastly more violent than the federation and forces the player to comet war crimes (unwillingly whilst brainwashed on the romulan side) and should be noted as something to be discussed with a younger child if not avoided all together. There are in game groups called fleets which can be of great value as they allow aces to high tier equipment and many are a welcoming environment will to help new players, however as with any gaming group that you would have in a non digital space parental guidance is advised as even if the content is not inappropriate the fleet may have unfair policies in place. The final not is that there are lots of ways to spend lots of money in the game so care must be observed if the game has you information on file and your child is a bit impulsive.

This title has:

Easy to play/use
Too much consumerism
See all 4 parent reviews

What’s It About?

It is the year 2409. The Khitomer accords have broken down and the Klingons are once again at war with the Federation, and the Borg threatens all other life forms it encounters. Based on the Star Trek TV shows and movies, in STAR TREK ONLINE, a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORG), kids start out as an ensign in Star Fleet. As they rush to the rescue of the USS Khitomer, they find that the Borg has killed all its officers. As the highest ranking officer on board, the player becomes its captain. At completion of the tutorial, kids find themselves promoted to captain and gain a starship. In the captain's chair, kids can "boldly going where no one has gone before," exploring space, investigating space anomalies, rescuing survivors of catastrophes, defending planets and allies, and fighting their enemies. They will also beam down onto planets for ground combat, either with a team of computer-controlled bridge officers or by teaming up with other captains. Kids will also be able to play the Klingon side which is Player-versus-Player (PvP) heavy; eventually, both sides will participate in PvP wars in the far reaches of space.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (4 ):
Kids say (7 ):

Kids with an interest in Star Trek will find Star Trek Online compelling as they are instantly thrown into the action in the tutorial. In space combat, players direct their ships and are also controlling their weapons and shields, directing power to where it needs to go. As captain, players also direct their bridge officers and make use of their skills in engineering, tactics or science. They decide to boost phaser power or use powerful tractor beams to hold their enemies. Viscerally, it feels like you are living in the Star Trek universe. It is fun to command an "Away Team" which in the beginning, is filled up with red-shirt wearing "Security Officers" just like the original Star Trek.

There is a bit of a learning curve as there are two distinctly different combat systems to learn. Players can customize their uniforms and ships, and even determine what their alien race looks like and what skills they have, or you can pick a standard Star Trek race. Graphics and environments are beautifully rendered, and missions and events are accompanied by voice-overs. In key scenes and events, they are acted by Leonard Nimoy of "Spock" fame. Zachary Quinto (the young Spock) guides and lead players through the tutorial and missions as the Emergency Medical Hologram. Sounds of lasers and explosions are realistically rendered in combat that can be frenetic at times and which helps with the sense of immersion. This Star Trek Online game is more about war and similar to the later Voyager series than the exploration of the earlier Original and Next Generation series, but anyone even slightly familiar with the Star Trek franchise will enjoy exploring this game world.

Online interaction: Because the game has open chat and player versus player gameplay, kids may encounter negative experiences, but the game is structured to bring players together in open missions where they will work together to accomplish these missions, providing rewards commensurate with the effort each player puts in. The game also provides a default language filter and tools to report and ignore other players.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about managing computer playing time. How long do you expect to play? If you expect you will need half an hour to one hour to play a mission, then how do you plan your play schedule?

  • Families can also talk about Player versus Player violence and sportsmanship. If you win a race or a game in school, do you trash-talk or crow over your opponents? Would you do it over the internet?

  • Families can talk about internet privacy and why kids should not be sharing personal information, account information, or passwords over the net with people they do not know.

Game Details

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