STAR TREK (PS3)
Given the disappointing history of movie adaptations, the underwhelming nature of 2013’s Star Trek was hardly surprising, though it had seemed to offer more promise than most. Spending longer in development than most film tie-ins and with an extensive collaboration involving many of those who worked on the films, as well as an experienced developer in Digital Extremes, you’d have hoped the final result would turn out better. While parts of this space adventure show promise and competency, too many technical issues and mechanical missteps doom it to the depths of space, left to drift with the many other failed tie-ins throughout gaming history.
Serving as a new story within the rebooted universe following the eleventh Star Trek film, this co-op shooter follows the USS Enterprise as the crew undertakes a seemingly simple mission that soon escalates dramatically. This involves the return of the Gorn, a reptilian-like threat not seen since the days of Enterprise, and a boilerplate plot involving a device that could end the entire galaxy. But the story does have one distinct feather in its cap: the entirety of the movie cast reprises their roles. Whether it’s the banter between Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg’s quirky humour, or Karl Urban nailing another performance as Bones, their involvement adds a tremendous amount of authenticity and enjoyment to the story. For fans of the new films, it proves appetising.
Star Trek uses co-op to good effect, but it's undermined by serious technical issues
However, while care was taken with the story and characters, the rest of the game falters under the usual ills of movie tie-ins. Using the third-person shooter, cover-focused template popular during the seventh-gen, Star Trek sees you guiding either Kirk or Spock. Levels are relatively linear affairs, sometimes replacing tight spaceship corridors for planet visits. The gameplay offers a melange of shooting, platforming and puzzle elements, interspersed with story. There’s also a hefty dose of stealth gameplay, which in fairness is optional, but sees the player trying to avoid detection and take down infected crew mates via non-lethal means. These usually tie in with commendations, which reward bonus XP for upgrading your primary weapon or tricorder upon the completion of special objectives. It’s around eight hours long and feels pretty conventional at a glance.
The problem is that no gameplay element feels refined, making everything feel rickety. Shooting lacks fluidity and lining up shots proves troublesome. You can acquire a slew of weapons along with the Phaser, including Gorn firearms, and though all offer secondary fire, combat suffers from lacklustre AI and low-impact fights. Stealth is often a crap shoot as the AI can bug out or detect the player without visibly spotting you, but at least it doesn’t punish you with instant failure: just more respawning goons. Platforming too feels uneasy, with stiff movement and unresponsive jumps seeing you wrack up plenty of deaths through falls. Puzzles seemingly take inspiration from Snake, of all things, and these hacking mini-games grow rote fast. Lastly, one level has you manning the Enterprise’s weapons in a space fight, and it’s over so quickly it barely registers any impact. Nothing feels exemplary here, and some technical deficiencies induce more frustration than fun.
The problem is that no gameplay element feels refined, making everything feel rickety. Shooting lacks fluidity and lining up shots proves troublesome. You can acquire a slew of weapons along with the Phaser, including Gorn firearms, and though all offer secondary fire, combat suffers from lacklustre AI and low-impact fights. Stealth is often a crap shoot as the AI can bug out or detect the player without visibly spotting you, but at least it doesn’t punish you with instant failure: just more respawning goons. Platforming too feels uneasy, with stiff movement and unresponsive jumps seeing you wrack up plenty of deaths through falls. Puzzles seemingly take inspiration from Snake, of all things, and these hacking mini-games grow rote fast. Lastly, one level has you manning the Enterprise’s weapons in a space fight, and it’s over so quickly it barely registers any impact. Nothing feels exemplary here, and some technical deficiencies induce more frustration than fun.
FOCAL POINT: A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION
Star Trek ends up leaving a bitter taste in the mouth overall, but it does present a rather solid opening. As the crew responds to a distress call from space station Helios, this level offers a tantalising taste of what might have been. More polished and interesting than what follows, the mission focuses on exploration and cooperative puzzle solving, easing you in with the game’s mechanics. One part has Kirk and Spock working together as one scans to expose a Core ring while the other must shoot the breaks. It feels fitting to the relationship established between the two protagonists and it’s decent fun with another player. Everything looks decent, from the cut-scenes to the environments and the animations, the highlight being the outer space sequence with a stunning solar shield that sways between deep blues and the brilliant yellow of solar flares that damage your shield. It’s a very solid beginning, followed sadly by content that’s nowhere near as strong.
Star Trek starts to unravels as you progress, with bugs and technical issues piling up. In-engine cut-scenes often bear stilted animations and dodgy lip-synching, and sometimes characters don’t show when required, leaving them talking while not present. Seeing the Gorn redesigned for the reboot universe is cool, but models often appear low-poly and particularly ugly in cut-scenes. Some environments benefit from great lighting and detail, while others look dull. Performance is erratic, fluctuating between fast and slow depending on what’s happening and leaving shooting even more awkward. Other bugs include doors refusing to unlock, AI partner’s becoming stuck in the environment and glitched trophies. It smacks of a rushed development, despite spending longer than most in production.
The only blessing, perhaps, is that you can bring a friend along for the misery. Fully playable in co-op, either split-screen or online, you can also play with an AI companion, although they can lack intelligence and prove little aid in combat. A few sequences also feel tailored for co-op, such as manning both guns on the aforementioned space combat level or brawling with each other in a Gorn arena. You might have trouble convincing a friend to join though, as the game can swing between uninteresting and frustrating with a hiccup. Exploding enemies which respawn until you destroy their nest, tedious encounters with a charging Gorn elite and space dives which have little room for error – and instant death if you catch an object – might just strain your friendships rather than enhance them.
The only blessing, perhaps, is that you can bring a friend along for the misery. Fully playable in co-op, either split-screen or online, you can also play with an AI companion, although they can lack intelligence and prove little aid in combat. A few sequences also feel tailored for co-op, such as manning both guns on the aforementioned space combat level or brawling with each other in a Gorn arena. You might have trouble convincing a friend to join though, as the game can swing between uninteresting and frustrating with a hiccup. Exploding enemies which respawn until you destroy their nest, tedious encounters with a charging Gorn elite and space dives which have little room for error – and instant death if you catch an object – might just strain your friendships rather than enhance them.
Star Trek ends up another tie-in rushed to meet a film premiere, but it proves more saddening because the few bright spots do shine. The story and characters have been transitioned from the movies with little compromise, offering the key relationships and banter you’d want. Sadly, once you try to play this one, numerous issues with gameplay and a stark lack of polish bury these high points under frustration and disappointment. Unless you’re seeking to digest all things Star Trek, this one is best left into darkness.
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VERDICT
"Despite authentic characters and banter, Star Trek is buried under numerous gameplay issues and a stark lack of polish. Its positives are lost to frustration and disappointment." OVERALL: 4/10 |