Star Trek Games Need Better Developers
I’ve never purchased any Star Trek games for my PC (when I used to have one) or my console systems (Sega Genesis, Xbox, Xbox 360). However, I’ve always wanted to buy a Star Trek game; but whenever I looked at the description of the game, I realized how lame the game will be.
Many Star Trek games have decent graphics and passable plots. What they all lack is the ability to capture the true essence of the series that Gene Roddenberry had envisioned. Star Trek was never envisioned to be a story about constant battles with other species in the galaxy. Rather, it tackled philosophical and political issues from a very unique and progressive perspective.
I read an article in Kotaku about why there hasn’t been a truly great Star Trek game. I agree with the author that most Star Trek games try to mimic combat activities and promote combat as the focus point of the game. The true essence of Star Trek was never combat. Rather, the soul of the series focuses quite a bit on tackling decisions that influence a person’s character.
If you ever watch Star Trek: The Next Generation (TNG), you will realize that Captain Picard and his crew frequently obsess over the various actions they could execute rather than the actual execution of their actions. And a truly great Star Trek game will always emphasize the actual decision making process of the series rather than the fighting.
That’s why Star Trek games need developers that understand the actual complexities of decision analysis to code a game that rewards players for making decisions. In every episode of TNG, there are always a set of decisions that the crew of the Enterprise must make. And any great developer will know that capturing those set of decisions for various situations can become a successful formula.
Maybe one day, a proper game developer will step up to the plate and deliver a great Star Trek game that focuses on decisions rather than simple combat.
Tags: Star Trek