After the financial problems of Perpetual Studios earlier this year - the original developers of Star Trek Online, it seemed a likely possibility that ST:O would be cancelled.

Today it has been announced, along with a sparkling new website that renowned developers, Cryptic Studios have taken on the project. Known for their work on City of Heroes and their work on the sadly cancelled Xbox 360 exclusive MMO Marvel Universe: Online.

The game itself looks to be based around the Federation and the Klingon Empire, though in what capactiy, we don’t yet know. It would be nice if they managed to keep some continuity between the series and games however, as like any die hard Star Trek gamer/fan will tell you, in the Federation campaign of Starfleet Command 3, the Klingon’s and Federation are allied and build Unity Station together and in short, everyone lives happily ever after.

Players will be able to choose from both races and will also be able to engage in combat both in space and on planets. Not only that, but players will be able to customize their ships and crew to adapt to their style of play.

Cryptic has said that the first gameplay footage will be revealed at the Star Trek convention in Las Vegas on August 10.

The announcement was made with a letter from Cryptic’s Chief Creative Officer, Jack Emmert, to the community. You can check it out yourself after the break!

Star Trek® has been a part of my entire life. Few other of my geeky obsessions can make that claim.

I started watching the original Star Trek when it reached syndication and cult status. I can remember even more vividly where I was for the premiere of every subsequent Star Trek series. For Star Trek: The Next Generation, I watched “Encounter at Farpoint” lying on the floor of my childhood apartment. When Star Trek: Deep Space Nine rolled around, I was a graduate student at the University of Chicago. I watched the first episode in the basement of my dorm with a dozen other students. A few years later, I was at Ohio State and saw Voyager travel to the Delta Quadrant while sitting on a friend’s couch in Columbus, Ohio. And I was thrilled to see the beginnings of Starfleet in Star Trek: Enterprise. At the time, I was just starting out as a game designer, with little to no idea that I’d be jumping into that very universe within several years.

When the opportunity came for Cryptic to obtain the license for Star Trek, we were absolutely thrilled. I realized how many people at Cryptic loved the IP when the possibility of us getting the rights leaked out to the rest of the company. I had more Trekkies in my office asking to work on the project than I ever imagined.

Cryptic would now be given the task of bringing to life this entire universe that has been so brilliantly conceived and executed over years of TV, movies, books and comics. There are few other fictional backgrounds that fit the MMORPG medium so well. After all, Star Trek was never about a single character, ship or even planet; Star Trek was always about an entire universe. And MMORPGs are uniquely suited to create such a thing and allow players to explore every inch.

Admittedly, Star Trek has its challenges. We want to make a game that best captures the real essence of Star Trek. We see Star Trek as much about exploration as combat. As much about the variety of alien civilizations as it is about the core Vulcans, Klingons, Humans, etc. It’s going to be an exciting ride over the coming months as we begin to unveil STO. I can’t wait.

And if you’re really posh, you can check some screenshots out at the official site - at least until we have a gallery to call our own!