E3 2011 Preview: Star Trek

Three years ago rising director J. J. Abrams was approached by Paramount to do what many people had believed impossible: reinvent Star Trek, arguably the most beloved science fiction franchises of all time, and make it relevant to today’s audience.  This task seemed insurmountable for most directors and producers but Abrams, riding strong on his successes on television shows like Lost and Fringe as well as film successes like Mission Impossible 3 and Cloverfield, certainly delivered with one of the most entertaining films of 2009.  Bringing back classic characters while both making it easier to understand for non-fans and not ticking-off Trekkies around the world, Star Trek made the old new again.

While Abrams works on a sequel set to release next year Paramount had their Digital Entertainment team approach Digital Extremes with a task just as monumental: creating a Star Trek game that everyone can get behind.  Creators of Dark Sector and The Darkness II, Digital Extremes has a tough task ahead of them but judging on what I saw while at E3 several weeks back I’m certain they’re the right team for the job.

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Beam Me Up for Adventure

Stepping into Paramount Digital’s small meeting room on Wednesday afternoon I was sat down with a few other writers in front of a television and two members of the development team.  All around me we saw concept art from the game which really seemed to capture the authenticity of the Star Trek universe.  Awe-inspiring vistas and beautiful starscapes gave ideas as to the sense of scale that has always been at the forefront of every Star Trek property and, as the demo began, it was mentioned that the concept art was just a hint of what is to come in the final game.

Most Star Trek titles over the years have been mostly the same, built around the concept of a space-flight simulation with small strategic aspects built in.  This is all well and good as everyone wants to be able to pilot the Enterprise into combat against Klingons, Borg, or what name you but in the end the experience has never been anything more than a decent experience.  Star Trek Online took steps to address this when it was released early last year with gameplay that, ideally, is perfect for the franchise.  However, in the end its gameplay didn’t seem to match up to what people really wanted despite plenty of bells and whistles.  Digital Extremes however it taking an entirely different approach with their title: a cooperative third-person shooter.

Taking place an undisclosed amount of time after the 2009 film, Star Trek, much like many licensed film properties, is set between the previous film and the next one.  Similar to how film tie-in titles like Tron Evolution, Star Trek will be canon to the new vision of the series.  Players take on the roles of the two most famous characters of the franchise: Kirk and Spock, at a point in which their friendship is still growing but still retain differing opinions and styles.

Our demonstration began a good portion into the game’s story.  Returning from an away mission aboard a shuttlecraft, Kirk and Spock find the Enterprise adrift and almost certainly abandoned in the middle of an interstellar minefield.  Certain that the shuttle would not be able to approach the ship without hitting a mine, Kirk and Spock opt for a less conventional approach: launching themselves at the ship while in their spacesuits in hopes of landing at an air lock.   With a swift thrust the duo blast away from their shuttlecraft and begin their speedy approach to the Enterprise in an on-rails tunnel ride like that of modern Sonic the Hedgehog game levels.  As mines fly toward and past them the pair tries desperately to avoid them while at the same time trying to utilize as little maneuvering fuel as possible.

As Kirk and Spock fly through the minefield it begins to become clear that the two are meant in both character and gameplay style to be very different from one another.  In this particular instance it is probably a more believable scenario to say that the two players were trying to reflect upon their characters in the way they play as Kirk’s player has trouble avoiding mines while Spock’s player has little to worry about, making calculating moves past the mines.  This became more pronounced though when, as the sequence comes to an end, Kirk lands in a heap, tumbling across the deck while Spock executes a perfect landing.  After a witty exchange, which clearly shows that the levity present in the 2009 film will be returning, the two proceed into the innards of the gigantic starship.

Darmok and Who at Where?!

As Spock and Kirk enter the ship it is immediately apparent that things are amiss.  The Enterprise is under command lockdown and the crew is nowhere to be found.  Traveling down a decimated corridor the two come across a locked door.  This part introduces us to the game’s utilization of one of the most famous Star Trek devices: the tricorder.  Using their tricorders together, Kirk and Spock are able to bypass the door and continue beyond.  Just a few meters down they come across a dead crewman (wearing a red shirt).  Spock uses his tricorder and scans the body, learning that the man did not die of battle wounds or environmental damage but instead of a parasitic organism he somehow was infected with.  The ability to scan the environment and bodies with the tricorder gives players more information about what’s going on in the world as well as the possibility of actually affecting gameplay later on.

As they continue on a transmission from a crewmember is received by Kirk: she’s trapped in the shuttle bay and is requesting assistance.  Riding a turbolift, Kirk and Spock arrive at the bay only to find it empty save for displaced cargo and docked shuttles gathering dust.  It is clear that whatever happened to put the Enterprise in its current emergency state didn’t allow the crew time to evacuate.  Venturing further into the room, Kirk and Spock find the source of the transmission but no sign of the person who made it.  Suddenly a group of aliens unlike any seen in the entirety of the Star Trek franchise ambushes them, surrounding them on all sides.  Kirk and Spock run for cover in a completely interactive sequence, allowing the player to get a few early shots in as their characters dive behind some cargo before the firefight begins.

The dynamitic difference between the two characters is again demonstrated during the combat sequence.  Kirk, being the ambitious, nigh-reckless character that he is, is very offensive in his gameplay so therefore his phaser can be ungraded over time to include a vaporization mode in addition to the standard kill and stun modes.  Spock on the other hand is more defensive in nature and also has abilities and upgrades unique to his character such as the ability to utilize a particle cannon that can knock out enemy shields or the ability to mind meld with the enemy, confusing them into attacking his own teammates.

The firefight lasts for several moments, Kirk blasting away from cover and vaporizing a few aliens while Spock is able to sneak behind one and performs a mind meld.  Suddenly attacked from the rear, Kirk is knocked down after falling into a rising yellow cloud.  Kirk calls for Spock’s help as he has become infected by the same parasite that killed the red shirt crewmember they found earlier.  Taking Kirk over his shoulder, the two travel to the medical bay, Spock’s player walking them toward their destination while Kirk fires away at approaching enemies, his vision slowly turning yellow and blurring as time passes by.

Arriving at medical, Spock places Kirk on a surgical gurney and begins scanning him.  A monitor displays several parasites that have invaded Kirk’s body and Spock is forced to do a small interactive sequence in which he uses a surgical laser to rid him of the infecting agents.  Taking into consideration how many dead bodies were scanned with a tricorder prior to the firefight in the shuttle bay the sequence can be easier.  As enemies burst into the room Kirk provides covering fire as Spock attempts to kill the parasites.  With the removal of each parasite Kirk’s vision steadies, allowing him to aim better and see more of the environment.  Finishing up the task, Spock joins Kirk in fending off the invading aliens.

Stepping off the gurney, Kirk picks up a Federation phaser rifle.  More powerful than his captain-issue phaser, the rifle’s helps even the odds.  After another wave of enemies pins them down, Kirk uses the rifle’s secondary fire option, a portable shield, and takes cover behind it.  Kirk orders Spock to shoot his shield which succeeds in giving it more strength.  As the combat continues Kirk uses his tricorder to explode a panel next to an enemy, killing him.  Just when the two think that they’ve exhausted the enemy’s reinforcements a more powerful one teleports into the room.  After a short firefight Kirk is knocked unconscious.

Set Phasers to Fun

The next adventure of the USS Enterprise and her crew is still a year away from us and many questions are left unanswered: who attacked the Enterprise?  Where is the crew?  How does this tie into the two movies?  My brief time with Star Trek was a wonderfully sweet tease and, as the son of a Trekkie, I get the feeling that the dedication Digital Extremes is putting into the game will be well worth it to both old fans and newcomers alike.  At this point in development there’s a lot of potential for upping the ante for fans such as utilizing the voice talents of Zachery Quinto and Chris Pine but at this point they weren’t ready to confirm such a possibility.

I’ve always likened Star Trek games to Superman ones: no one has ever really gotten it or its characters right.  If Digital Extremes can deliver on the promise of what I saw that Wednesday afternoon I can’t help but think that finally, for the first time in a very long time, the series might finally get a game that’s worthy of the long running series’ universe, characters, and fan appreciation.