Why it may be too late to make the perfect Star Trek game – Reader’s Feature

Two brand new Star Trek games have just been announced but a reader is concerned that they lack the hopeful optimism that used to be the focus of the franchise.

Back in October 2023, Gamexcite announced a licensing agreement with Paramount to develop a video game using established Star Trek properties. Two years later, after that first announcement, a new trailer has been released with the reveal of Star Trek: Voyager – Across The Unknown.

Details are vague, the official Steam Page providing a few clues about the nature of the game, that points towards a resource management style title with roguelike elements. Early images look similar to many mobile and budget bunker building games, such as Fallout Shelter or even the base elements of XCOM.

A 2D representation of Voyager builds on the history of the series, with your ship pulled across the galaxy to the Delta Quadrant, challenging you to rebuild and equip your ship, room by room, to make the long voyage home. It’s a nice use of the history of the show as a premise for the game and what many originally envisioned the series to be.

It brings to mind a fusion between a typical bunker building game and a more narrative driven experience like FTL or The Banner Saga. It tasks you with preparing your starship for the 70 year journey home, prioritising the reconstruction of your damaged ship before encountering the myriad of challenges along the way.

That step up from a static image of the ship certainly is suggestive of FTL and The Banner Saga, as you traverse across a region of space with a time restriction, to create a sense of impending dread at every turn. What that drive to continue forward is at this point in time is unknown, but in the series there was an overarching narrative to get home.

However, the actions of the captain and her crew were more aligned to discovery and exploration, the absence of which wouldn’t be in keeping with the sanguine spirit and tone of this particular Star Trek series.

It’s an interesting reflection on the state of the Star Trek franchise at this moment in time. The recent merger of Paramount and Skydance in the US and a sense of optimism for new series and movies is palpable. So, the decision to focus on a series nearly 30 years old is a curious one.

Voyager on its release had the foundations to tell a more grounded, almost survivalist depiction of space travel, matching the spirit of a game such as The Banner Saga. Instead, it opted for a more optimistic, syndicated style of narrative structure, where there were usually no long-term effects of prior episodes or stories. The possible intention to have a more survivalist approach in the game deviates away from the more sanitised nature of the series.

Across The Unknown is not the only new Star Trek game announced recently, with the reveal of VR title Star Trek: Infection. This game pivots away from the vision of optimism and hope in the 24th century, towards a horror experience, as you embrace the role of a Vulcan officer exploring a derelict Defiant class vessel and encountering an unknown entity that begins to mutate your body.

The reveal of Infection is an interesting and arguably positive example of exploring different genres and styles in this particular franchise, although it does conflict with the fundamental tone and nature of Star Trek, that was always centred around humanity’s exploration of the future, not surviving the monsters and aliens of space. It does also beg the question of who these games are appealing to, using the setting and aesthetic of a series nearly 30 years old.

The decision to use the settings and style of The Next Generation era, and not the modern day series feels like a pointed decision to appeal to a certain demographic of the fanbase. But even younger fans who grew up with these particular series are now in their 40s, as a gamer at that age in life these two titles are a curiosity I’ll try but I can’t imagine the demographic is big enough to sustain a renaissance in new games in that setting.

In the 2000s a handful of Star Trek games were released that were more action-orientated, from first person shooter titles like Elite Force to a Civilization inspired 4X game called Birth Of The Federation. Nearly all the games in that era shunned the spirit of discovery and exploration towards a more action-oriented approach – enjoyable to play but they weren’t commercially viable.

With the exception of Star Trek Resurgence in recent years, that was a more narrative orientated Telltale style release, the temptation is always there to present a more action-oriented experience, even if that approach hasn’t paid off.

With that said, the style and direction of Across The Unknown is an interesting prospect; it appeals to a demographic of fans of Star Trek Voyager who hoped the series would have leaned more into the survivalist nature of the premise of the show, in a similar way to the reimagined Battlestar Galactica. And, interestingly, a new Battlestar Galactica game of a similar nature has been revealed at the same time as the Voyager game.

FTL is a fun roguelike game that rewards perseverance and punishes the risk adverse player. If that’s the direction they have chosen to travel I genuinely don’t know how many gamers will be attracted to this particular setting. But the idea of making different choices is an appealing one, would I still kill Tuvix given the choice? Would Harry be a forever ensign? I’m cautiously looking forward to playing this particular game, I just fear the demographic of gamers that enjoy Star Trek games is diminishing, and shaking up the status quo may be too little too late.

Thank you for reading.

By reader comfortablyadv (Facebook/Instagram/X)

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