Star Trek: Bridge Commander

Beam me up, Scotty...

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Gameplay centers around the player as the newly-recruited Captain of a damaged vessel, making their way through the mystery of their situation, one waypoint at a time. Players issue orders to the crew, who then perform the actual commands. The voice of "you" is never actually heard in the game, as orders are delivered by clicking on menus that come up on screen when you position the mouse over a specific person's station on the bridge (these menus can also be assigned to keys, eliminating the mouse). Those who are used to the fast paced dogfights of other titles may need a while to become acclimated to the different pace of these bohemoth starships. They don't turn quickly or maneuver like an X-Wing fighter would, and the combat is more of a chess game than an out-and-out dogfight. Particular systems on an enemy's ship can be targeted (shields, weapons, etc) which adds to the depth of the combat greatly. This class of ship does not explode into a ball of fire with one shot, but you can tear off entire chunks and make holes... in some ways, it's more gratifying to cripple than obliterate (I'll have my therapist look into that one). A good starship Captain will also know how to manage his vessel's power distribution, especially after the drain that combat can put on it. Certain systems may need special attention if they become particularly damaged or drained as a result of the melee. Trek fans will be pleased to know that both Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner make appearances, and there are even a couple of missions that center around their characters. The overall single player experience is quite short, and the multiplayer aspect (which is missing the "location specific" damage modeling and is played strictly from an outside viewpoint with manual control) is your normal deathmatch, team deathmatches, and "defend the starbase" matches. The save system is automatic, saving your progress between each mission. However, players cannot save wherever they like, so if one fails 90% of the way through the mission, it will have to be replayed over again. This does add a bit to the frustration factor, but the developers included the ability to have the ship repaired at the Starbase between battles. Although on rails and a bit twitchy in terms of stability, Bridge Commander has delivered an impressive, immersive title that finally has captured the essence of Star Trek and is like a rollercoaster... fast, intense, and over before you know it.

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By Russell Garbutt