Trekkies rejoice! Google has boldly gone where no search engine has gone before.
Google's latest interactive doodle has just arrived in celebration of the 46th anniversary of the original Star Trek television series. On the homepage, you'll note Google's letters have been transformed into the original series' iconic characters, including Spock (letter 'G') and Captain Kirk (a letter 'O'). Clicking on certain parts of the doodle lets users embark on a multi-level adventure through space; some of the scenes take place on the USS Enterprise, and others let you beam onto a remote, alien-infested planet.
WebProNews notes that "people who engineer or design the technology that is currently changing the world" often cite Star Trek as inspiration for their work. We can only hope the Google team has its fair share of trekkies working behind the scenes, throwing Vulcan signs around the office?
But wait...the very first Star Trek episode, titled "The Man Trap," aired September 8th, 1966 according to IMBD. So why launch this Google Doodle a day early? The company told Mashable one of the reasons was "so people would have time to play with it and discover the entire story."
You know what that means: Hardcore fans have two days to click through the Star Trek doodle, savoring every little beep and squeak.
So go "live long and prosper" (we had to!) while trying out Google's latest doodle. Then check out all of the company's past doodles and let us know your favorite in the comments section below, or tweet us at [@HuffPostTech].
The Star Trek-themed logo was preceeded by a slew of previous Google doodle games, including the amazing Pac-Man game from 2010, as well as the addicting sports doodles from the 2012 London Olympics.
Check out the gallery to see some of our favorite Google doodles ever:
