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Those familiar with the City of Heroes mission creator have most likely heard of Star Trek Online's Foundry tool set. Created to allow users to make their own missions and episodes, it's a fairly significant addition to what was once a struggling MMO. This trailer outlines a lot of the developer purpose behind the tool set, the specific things players can do with them, and where the developers want to go with the feature. It's a good behind the scenes trailer for those that are interested in that sort of thing.

Download Star Trek Online 'Foundry' Gameplay Trailer
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As promised earlier this fall, Cryptic Studios has now released a major update, Season 3, for its sci-fi MMO Star Trek Online. The big new edition in this update is the launch of the beta version of Foundry, the game's mission creator. Players will now be able to create their own Star Trek adventures and share then with all of the other game's players.

Other additions in Season Three include being able to go back and replay earlier missions (and gain some new rewards in some cases), the ability to install Borg-based tech on your in-game ships, a revamp of the game's Sector Space and more.

The final frontier is getting a little more crowded in Star Trek Online. Developer Cryptic Studios' MMO is preparing to launch some new content under the "Season Two" banner and today they released a new trailer that shows off what players can expect to see in the free content update. It looks like there's going to be a whole lot of space battles and quite a bit of Klingon conflict if the trailer is any indication.

You can check out more info on "Season Two" at the official Star Trek Online web site. The update will raise the current level cap to 51, add more Klingon missions, and introduce some new missions dealing with the alien Undine (also known as Species 8472). It also has addition of mini-games (remember Dabo from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine?). Players can head to the "Tribble" test server this weekend to try out "Season Two" before it goes live.

Download the HD version of Star Trek Online Season Two at Big Download

We've been waiting to hear about any kind of Collector's Edition for Star Trek Online and now GameStop's web site has delivered with the details on this special version of the upcoming MMO from Cryptic Studios and Atari. The $79.99 Collector's Edition will ship on February 2 at the same time as the regular edition.

The Collector's Edition will come in special packaging with a "high quality brushed aluminum finish" and some kind of "futuristic 3dX holography". The contents will include a special version of the game's manual that will be hardbound and will also contain artwork from the game. A cast metal version of the game's badge-communicator is also included as is three guest passes to allow friends to play Star Trek Online for three days. You also get special in-game uniforms from The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine TV series. Finally there's a special in-game item; the Red Matter Capacitor which in the game can give your ship's equipment extra energy for a short period. The Red Matter Capacitor was a key part of the current J.J. Abrams-directed Star Trek movie.

As we already reported, GameStop has a pre-order bonus for Star Trek Online that will give players access to a old-school Constitution Class starship as well as access to the game's open beta and an early access to the game's launch. Amazon.com has their own pre-order bonus that also grants access to the beta and adds an exclusive Borg Bridge Officer to the game.

Today's announcement of id Software's acquisition by ZeniMax Media (owner of Bethesda Softworks) took most people by surprise. Yet it's not the only time that a big independent game developer has been bought out by a publisher. Sometime the new relationship works out for both companies and sometimes it doesn't.

Big Download decided to look back at just some of the major acquisitions between PC game developers and publishers and see how they fared. Which ones bore fruit? Which ones failed to live to their potential? And which one resulted in the developer shutting down operations even after a successful run of major PC game hits?

Click on the image above to continue reading about the big PC game developer acquisitions.

If you're looking forward to jumping headlong into the comic book world of Champions Online, then this wallpaper pack should help ease the pain of waiting for a while longer. The high-resolution wallpapers individually feature the major Champions Online characters and come in both standard and widescreen varieties.

Download the Champions Online Wallpaper Pack (10 MB)

Like most zones in Cryptic Entertainment's Champions Online MMO, Snake Gulch is a big place. The Gulch used to be a thriving desert town-themed amusement park manned by friendly cowboy robots whose gun-slinging shenanigans combined perfectly with exhilarating rides to bring visitors from far and wide to the famous park.

Now, Snake Gulch sits abandoned. The mine cart ride creaks and groans along its tracks, its buggies devoid of riders, its wheels squeaky and wobbly, its tracks rusted and misshapen. Former hot spots sit dry and barren. Wind whistles a lonely cry as it escorts billowing waves of dust through dirt streets, all empty save for the robots marching rhythmically, their eyes no longer wide and friendly but blank, their hands not waving in greeting but dipped toward guns resting in holsters. Their leader: ASCII Oakley, a rootin', tootin', mean ol' cuss who, like her mechanical subordinates, has been reprogrammed by the VIPER organization to respond with hostility instead of grace to any who dare venture into Snake Gulch.

Despite the town's impressive size, a group of mild-mannered journalists who recently attended a Cryptic press event decided that the town wasn't big enough for ASCII Oakley and the rest of us. Sorry, lass: VIPER's reprogramming wasn't your fault, but you've got to go down, and hard.

The official Star Trek Online FAQ, available on StarTrekOnline.com, has been released, revealing several bits of information that players have doubtlessly been inquiring about.

Some of the questions, such as "What is an MMORPG?" are quite basic, though others, such as confirmation of player-versus-player gameplay as well as how it will function, will probably be relevant to players interested in specific gameplay mechanics. PvP, for example, will be allowed on the same servers as traditional player-versus-enemy, though only designated space areas will allow for hostile combat.

Given the diversity of the Star Trek universe, coupled with all the unique races which inhabit it, a custom economy seems certain, and the FAQ confirms this as well. "Since the Federation has explicitly done away with money, expect bartering and trading of goods to be an important part of the economy," reads the FAQ.

For more details, be sure to check out and bookmark the FAQ, as it will doubtlessly be updated as further Star Trek Online information becomes available.

Download HD Star Trek Online Trailer

An Associated Press Entertainment writer has published an interview with Cryptic Studios creative director Jack Emmert concerning the recently announced Star Trek Online MMO.

Always a fun part of MMOs, Star Trek Online's character creation will allow players to pick and choose various aspects of their make-up from a number of Star Trek species. Post-character creation, players will find themselves captaining either a small Starfleet or Klingon Empire vessel. Progression will beget new ranks for the player, as well as more ships in their fleet.

In terms of size, Emmert promises that players will explore entire galaxies and make startling discoveries. "You'll venture through space exploring new civilizations and life-forms," said Emmert. "You'll also beam down to planets and have adventures inside your ship."

For more details, including how Cryptic acquired the rights to develop and publish Star Trek Online, as well as if players can expect sightings of notable ships such as the Enterprise, you can read the entire interview at Yahoo.com.

As cool as it would be to see Batman swinging across rooftops or Spider-Man slinging web, you couldn't pay me to live in a superhero's city. Sure, they do their best to protect civilians, but one could argue that Gotham, Metropolis, New York City and others were somewhat better off before friendly neighborhood heroes moved into town. When villains are on the loose, chaos never ends: buildings explode; cop cruisers and lavishly decorated villain and hero mobiles speed through residential areas and across highways; your stock as a hostage is raised considerably if you're female; and if you're an average Joe, women will forever compare you to the local sexy stud wearing colored tights.

The heroes of the Champions Online universe have recognized the vulnerability of their mortal charges and have done their best to assemble many of the world's most dangerous beasts in one exotic location: Monster Island. At a recent Cryptic Studios press event, Chief Creative Officer Jack Emmert gave attending journalists a tour of the isle's dangerous flora and fauna.