"Boldly going into the Trek license for the first time, 4J Studios delivers a solid arcade-style shoot-'em-up."
Boldly going into the Trek license for the first time, 4J Studios delivers a solid arcade-style shoot-'em-up. Despite it being the developer's first game, I think that it's a good enough presentation to not look slapped together at the last second. (Unlike [PC] Legacy. Ba-zing!)
The story for the game seems a bit off, in places. For example, Deep Space Nine Enterprise, and Sovereign get two and three missions, respectively, while The Next Generation, Voyager, and the Original Series get four to five. Some Trek fans may be disappointed at the way these were handled, but the missions themselves are fairly lengthy, and challenging (albeit not even close to what happens in the series themselves).
Graphically, this game is good. The ship models hold true to their series counterparts, and (when viewed up-close) they look smooth and well-textured, for a PS2 game. The nebulae and other celestial objects are beautiful to look at, and the planets serve their purpose. I may even go so far to say that the visuals are the best part of the game.
The sound department is where this game lacks. Sorely. The music is good, but there are only four tracks, and it gets repetitive. Really repetitive. The sound effects, however, are quite accurate. Phasers and photon torpedoes sound very close to their series counterparts.
In terms of gameplay, the control scheme is a bit clumsy to use, at first. You use the left analog stick to pilot your ship, and the right to aim, while the directional pad is used to reroute ship energy. This may sound like it's a pain in the rear to use, but it quickly becomes second-nature.
The modes of play in Encounters are a bit limited, but easily accessed. "Episode" mode allows you to select campaign-style missions from the different Star Trek eras (and one extra titled "Star Trek: Sovereign"). "Skirmish" mode, however, is where the game truly shines. You can pit unlocked ships against one another in single or multiplayer modes. There's also an option called "Battlefest," in which you get three different ships from assorted races to battle with. "Onslaught" is the best of them all. You get three lives, and you have to fight against every single ship this game has to offer. The downside to this is that you can only use Federation ships.
So, all in all, this is a solid, well-rounded package that is sure to appeal to Trekkies and non-alike. It's got good replay value, and it's a great game for the price. I definitely recommend it to anyone with fifteen bucks in their wallet and a PS2 to use.