Star Trek: Bridge Crew
Platform: Steam
My Game Time: 12 hours
Released: May 2017
Game Description: Star Trek™: Bridge Crew, playable in both VR and non-VR, will immerse you in the Star Trek universe. In co-op, form a crew of four players to serve in the roles of Captain, Helm, Tactical or Engineer. Make strategic decisions and coordinate actions with your crew.
My Summary: A promising game that ultimately fails due to low player base and distinct lack of Star Trek feel. The game has its moments, especially if you can find an engaging crew to play with. Amazing concept only partly delivered. However if you do want to form a crew....Im up for it! This game has the potential for some beautiful moments with the right co-op team.
I love Star Trek. Lets end the review there! Unfortunately having such a passion for a subject matter can lead you to be disappointed by others take on your precious property. When I first heard of this game I was so excited, finding out it was a Virtual Reality only title meant I could not play it on release. I think this was a baffling idea at launch as the game works fine as a PC based game. A few patches later and the game was released with full controller support for non VR systems and I decided to dive in.
The game has a simple set up, you take control of one of four positions on the bridge of the starship; Captian, Helm, Tactical and Engineer. Each has a specific set of duties that can be carried out at their station which enables the running of the starship. This is all controlled and co-ordinated by the captain who primarily takes care of mission objectives and setting the course of the ship. What really makes this game immersive is the fact that to make things happen you need to communicate with the other positions on the ship by voice command. The best crews in this instance are the ones that role play their positions and listen to the captains orders, this is the situation where success is often achieved. Its good to have a laugh along the way but to effectively beat some of the tougher mission you do need to adhere to the hierarchy of control. The main issue here is when your crew is a bunch of squeaky 10 year olds (im sure some are nice), the game quickly loses its immersion and fun factor.
One of the best co-op moments I had with this game was when hilarity ensued, we decided to go with the original Enterprise as our ship. This is somewhat of a challenge as literally none of the buttons are labelled and you just have the controls from the original TV show in front of you. This made for some really funny interactions, like accidentally hitting warp speed as we were being hailed by Starfleet! The crew I had were not taking it to seriously and we ended up having a really good laugh (at the expense of the mission). Moments like this is why co-op gaming is capable of producing the best experiences. It is a shame that most crews do not have this dynamic and you end up with people who wont talk or people just wanting to ruin the experience for others.
The missions themselves are actually very fun and also quite quick to complete, meaning you and the crew can tackle multiple scenarios together. There is a number of set campaign missions and then a set of ongoing voyages that are random encounters with different objectives to complete. This is actually very well done and allows for some longevity in the game play. The graphics are a mixed bag, bright and vibrant in the style of the new Star Trek films, they also have some rather blocky and awkward moments. However we also have to bare in mind that this was designed for the limitations of VR. The sounds are good, but the authentic score is not present from any of the Star Trek franchises which is a huge missed opportunity. As a result the game just feels a little flat when you are in menu's and waiting in the game lobbies. It just does not have that Star Trek feel for me. I will say that the bridge models are excellent and there is the ability to play on the Aegis, Original Enterprise and the TNG bridge (DLC).
The game does include the ability to play single player and even command the bots with your voice. A nice touch, however it is plain to see that it was designed for humans and their ability to co-operate. I have enjoyed playing the game single player at times so this is a way to enjoy the game if you really need to scratch that Star Trek itch. I just feel there was massive missed potential here and could of had a fully acted story with campaign based in the Star Trek universe. What a game that would be! Instead the game is very focused on what it does and is nothing more than that. When all the elements come together there are some great moments to be had playing this game.
Conclusion
I do enjoy this game and its one that is great to jump into and start enjoying missions when you have only a little time available. However as of this time most of the servers are totally empty and finding a crew can be very difficult. This really sinks the game for the long term, but if anyone does want to play then please reach out to me.
Review Score 70/100
I have decided to switch to scoring games out of 100 as it allows me some more flexibility in my approach. If you enjoyed this review please get behind it with your up votes which will enable me to produce more content. Please comment with any games you would like to see reviewed next!
Lrev