Go on a Magic Carpet Ride
If history turns out like Star Trekpredicts, we’ll be meeting the Vulcans for the first time in about forty-six years, after the third or fourth World Wars. In the meantime, though, there’s Star Trek Online, which celebrated the future-anniversary of First Contact Day with a brand new event that also serves as the best use to date of a reference to the film Star Trek: First Contact.
Players get to run around a virtual version of rural Montana collecting parts to conduct a reenactment of Zefram Cochrane’s famous launch of the Phoenix, humanity’s first faster-than-light ship. The kicker comes at the end, though, as players launch their replicas and the song “Magic Carpet Ride” plays, just like it did in the movie. Check out a clip of the relevant scene below. For their trouble, participating players also unlock a custom “rocket launch” novelty emote, and a “holo-emitter” that makes any shuttle they’re flying look like the Phoenix.
Players looking for something a little more substantial can await the next content release coming later in April. Titled “Season 13: Escalation”, the free update promises more story missions, as well as a major rebalance of the game’s space combat aimed at leveling the PVP playing field, as well as introducing more “competitive co-op” content.