Star Trek fans rejoice, Trek gaming has returned!
User Rating: 7.7 | Star Trek: Tactical Assault DS
There have been a lot of licensed Star Trek games over the years, and many of them ended up with less than desirable results. But Bethesda has crafted a game worthy of Trek's rabid fanbase. Star Trek: Tactical Assault is set in the time of the Kirk movies. Where exactly is a little sketchy since the crew from the movies are nowhere to be found in this game, save for a brief opening cinematic featuring a Shatner voiceover. ST: TA puts you in the captain's seat at the very beginning of the game. Fresh out of Starfleet Academy, you take your first command --A Frigate named Essex-- and after an oh so brief training mission you are thrust into an escalating Klingon conflict. The story is all done through log entries and crew comments during the course of the game. It's not going to win any awards in the storytelling department, but this isn't Pheonix Wright we're talking about here. The storyline is only there to facilitate the combat, and that is the game's true strength. The controls can be input through the touch pad, button/D-pad presses, or a hybrid of the two. The DS touch screen is used to good effect, but it's not required at all if you prefer a standard controller setup. The overall layout is done pretty well and the design is intuitive for this kind of sim combat. And make no mistake, this is a sim. It's not the arcade style action you find in games like Star Trek: Encounters. The graphics in the DS version are functional. The PSP version looks much nicer however. It's a sort of trade off really. The touchpad of the DS offers an extra layer of control while the PSP offers you a much prettier package. It's all about what is important to you as a gamer. Sound is standard and about what can be expected of Star Trek games in this day and age. Phasers sound like phasters, Photon Torpedos sound like Photo Torpedos, etc etc. The score is styled after the Jerry Goldsmith music the TV shows are known for, but by and large they are forgettable tracks. The best thing about ST: TA is the combat. Battles are lengthy and intense, sometimes pitting you against two or more opponents at once. Some chapters offer you a choice of going forward into hostile territory or going back to the starbase if you are too damaged to fight. Others will stretch you pretty thin as you have to defend one area and are then ordered to go fight elsewhere regardless of your condition. As the name of the game would suggest, using tactics is a big part of this game. Battles will go much better if you think through your actions instead of diving headlong into battle over and over. Making sure your well shielded areas are facing your opponent and your weak areas are protected, bring your weapons to bear just before they are fully recharges so you can fire and move quickly, you get the idea. This game is not for everyone. But if sim combat in a Trek sci-fi setting sounds good to you, then take a look at ST: TA. It may be just what you've been looking for on whichever handheld you own. 
