So, at the time of writing this review, I have about 190 hours on record in the game.

I want to start off with a simple review before I go into details:
I find this to be a more fulfilling MMO experience than Final Fantasy 14, and that should be saying alot of somethings!

Hands down, this is the premier Star Trek experience.
Is there Micro Transactions and are some of them staggeringly priced? Yes.
Are all Micro Transactions that you "need" reasonably priced? -YES-.

Let's look at it this way. There is no upfront cost to play the game, and there is NO monthly subscription fee. And honestly, now that I think about it, 200 hours in and ABSOLUTELY NONE of the cash store/zen store items are actually necessary to have a full, fun time in the game.

"But what about those 30-60 dollar ships?" You mean the ones that the game gives you 100% off Cash Store coupons to acquire for free once every 3 months? Those ships? Yea, they give away Tier 6 ships regularly. And let's say you join right after they finish one give away and you gotta wait the full quarter, what then? Well, play the game to earn Dilithium -> Use Dilithium to buy Phoenix Prize Packs -> Open until you get a T6 ship.

I'm not lying when I tell you -this game does not require you to give it money in any way, shape or form unless you specifically decide you like the game and merely WANT to give money to the devs to keep it going.-

Also, this story is SO GOOD, Paramount should consider it canon. Hell, this is better than Disco for sure.

I can say that I like the game I have been playing it for 14 years now

While I appreciate that someone did develop and maintain a Star Trek based MMORPG, I have to say, revisiting this in 2025 was shocking to witness. The graphics engine needs serious updates to bring this title into a more modern era of gaming, everything from the ships themselves, to the characters need a serious overhaul. Personally, I'm not a big fan of micro transactions as well, I believe that if you buy the game, you've done enough. If you do put more hard earned cash towards it, it should be for DLCs, and that's it. It was fun goofin' around, getting a new starter ship and doing a few missions, but I really think this game has fallen into obscurity for the most part. If it wasn't for the fact that it IS Star Trek Online, I don't think it would have much going for it. Newer games, No Man's Sky, Empyrion, Star Citizen, Elite Dangerous, all have a serious leg up on it and offer a much more immersive experience. Fun to play, it is Star Trek Online, but I wouldn't dump any money into it in 2025.