‘Star Trek: The Video Game’ Review Roundup
Star Trek: The Video Game was released April 23 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC, probably to build hype for the upcoming Star Trek Into Darkness. See what the critics had to say.
Ever since J.J. Abrams took over directing the Star Trek films, the franchise was never the same. He recast the entire crew of the USS Enterprise and added enough action to even reel in fans who previously thought Star Trek was boring. Of course, as with every successful film franchise, there is bound to be a video game or two intended to cash in on its big brother’s success.
As most seasoned gamers know, movie tie-in video games rarely turn out well.
The beginning monologue of the classic Star Trek TV series doesn’t quite describe this video game when William Shatner or Patrick Stewart talk about going where no man has gone before. Star Trek: The Video Game leaves us feeling like we’ve been there and done that. The two-player co-op missions don’t give much reason to play as either Captain Kirk or Spock. They play pretty much identical. In all, the asymmetric co-op feels weak. While you’re out on the planet surface, you’re doing all of those things you saw on the show, even watching a red shirt bite the big one, but the instant you’re on the Enterprise or in the command base, you feel like you’re on a set. A video game is supposed to make you feel like the character, not the actor.
Star Trek: The Video Game runs with the story of the film, where Spock‘s planet Vulcan gets obliterated out of revenge by a Romulan who can’t forgive him for being unable to keep a promise. In the process of trying to create a new planet using a device called the Helios Machine, the Vulcans rip open a hole in space and time, through which our bad guys pour through. You would think Vulcans would have been prepared for something like that. You know the Gorn, the lizard-like alien that Captain Kirk fought in the scene infamously titled “The Worst Fight Scene Ever”? This video game brings them back and makes them look a little less like men dressed in bad suits. Sadly, that scene is a tad more entertaining than this game is.
The video game basically pits you against velociraptors with ray guns, and you keep shooting them until they give the device back. Repetitive and anything but fun.
Unless you’re a complete Star Trek fan who needs every video game to feel complete, avoid this title.
What do you think of Star Trek: The Video Game?
