After his brief look at the ending, I’ll jump into the final review.
Showing posts with label Star Trek: 25th Anniversary. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Star Trek: 25th Anniversary. Show all posts
Thursday, 8 December 2016
Star Trek - Won! (Sort Of) and Final Rating
Written by Joe Pranevich
Last time, Star Trek: 25th Anniversary went out not with a bang but with a whimper as I was unable to defeat the “final boss” of the game in epic ship to ship combat. TBD took a crack at it too, documenting the expanded version of the “Vengeance” storyline, but also failed to win. This would be a sour note to go out on, but we have one final trick up our sleeve: Fry has managed to beat the game and tell us how it was done. It’s teamwork!
After his brief look at the ending, I’ll jump into the final review.
After his brief look at the ending, I’ll jump into the final review.
Friday, 2 December 2016
Star Trek - Extended Vengeance
Written by TBD
No, not THAT extended Vengeance
When I decided to play the CD-ROM version of the final mission of Star Trek 25th Anniversary, I knew it was extended due to complaints about the original version's short length, but I had no idea just how extended it was.
When Joe played the floppy version the only 'puzzle' he needed to solve was brilliantly deducing that using Doctor McCoy's medical equipment on the dying woman might be useful. The extended version gives us multiple puzzles, so let's see what happens between watching a Starfleet officer die and meeting the man who wants to kill us in a ship battle...
In the extended version, we don't immediately beam back to the ship after the woman dies. We can't even if we want to. Calling the Enterprise just has Uhura telling us that they're still tracking the distress call.
But we have other locations to explore. We don't even need to go to sickbay first. When we leave the bridge we are presented with a map of the ship.
Thursday, 24 November 2016
Star Trek - Lost! (For Now)
Written by Joe Pranevich
Last week, we rounded out the fifth episode of the game by saving an Aztec god from certain death at the hands of a Klingon tribunal. Star Trek can be wonderfully strange sometimes! We’ve had fun, but this week we will draw the saga to a close. As you can see from the title, I was not as successful as I hoped. I hate to not stick the landing, but I’ll keep working at it until the Final Rating is posted. Those of you that have played this game before (or read the comments) will have a good idea of what I’m stuck on, but we’ll get there in just a moment.
On to the matter at hand: Starfleet has contacted the Enterprise with a sensitive mission. A pre-warp world around Alpha Proxima may be in trouble. An asteroid (comet?) on an elliptical orbit will be approaching the planet soon and the Federation’s monitoring satellite have detected something suspicious. We have to go there, figure out what’s wrong, and fix it without alerting the natives. Sounds like fun!
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| A long winded introduction! |
Last week, we rounded out the fifth episode of the game by saving an Aztec god from certain death at the hands of a Klingon tribunal. Star Trek can be wonderfully strange sometimes! We’ve had fun, but this week we will draw the saga to a close. As you can see from the title, I was not as successful as I hoped. I hate to not stick the landing, but I’ll keep working at it until the Final Rating is posted. Those of you that have played this game before (or read the comments) will have a good idea of what I’m stuck on, but we’ll get there in just a moment.
On to the matter at hand: Starfleet has contacted the Enterprise with a sensitive mission. A pre-warp world around Alpha Proxima may be in trouble. An asteroid (comet?) on an elliptical orbit will be approaching the planet soon and the Federation’s monitoring satellite have detected something suspicious. We have to go there, figure out what’s wrong, and fix it without alerting the natives. Sounds like fun!
Friday, 18 November 2016
Star Trek - Walk Like an Aztec
Written by Joe Pranevich
It’s time for more Star Trek! Last week, we defeated the con artist Harry Mudd and arranged a reunion between him and his erstwhile wife as a parting gift. It was a fun mini-adventure even if it had some bugs and plot hiccups. At this point, all of our adventures have been standalone and that is fine, but I was hoping for some connecting thread or hints of an overarching plot. Thus far, the only recurring element has been the Elasi pirates, a group created for this game. We have a few episodes left so we’ll see what happens.
This episode breaks the mold by starting with a Captain’s Log rather than a message from an admiral. Federation intelligence is concerned about a military buildup near Hrakkour, a system on the edge of Klingon space. The Klingons are searching for a renegade, but we do not know what he did to deserve such a search party. Sensors have detected a faint trail leading to Zamphor in the Digifal system on the Federation side of the border and we are ordered to investigate. If we do not discover what happened and de-escalate the situation, there could be war.
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| Klingons! |
This episode breaks the mold by starting with a Captain’s Log rather than a message from an admiral. Federation intelligence is concerned about a military buildup near Hrakkour, a system on the edge of Klingon space. The Klingons are searching for a renegade, but we do not know what he did to deserve such a search party. Sensors have detected a faint trail leading to Zamphor in the Digifal system on the Federation side of the border and we are ordered to investigate. If we do not discover what happened and de-escalate the situation, there could be war.
Thursday, 10 November 2016
Star Trek - His Name Is Mudd
Written by Joe Pranevich
Last week, we conquered another episode in the saga that is Star Trek: 25th Anniversary. Thus far, we’ve rescued Federation colonists from fake-demons, saved a hijacked vessel from space pirates, and prevented a genocidal war with the Romulans. I am having a ton of fun so far, even as the interface and puzzles are clunkier than I was expecting. The game loves its source material and as a Star Trek fan I appreciate all of the little details they are getting right. Would a non-fan like the game as much? I don’t know. It’s a wonderful anniversary tribute so far.
This episode begins with Kirk receiving orders to travel to the Harlequin system to rescue a scout ship being harassed by Elasi pirates. I knew they would be back! The library computer tells me the system is a war zone with two inhabited planets, one Elasi-controlled and one Federation-controlled. We head there and provide just enough distraction to enable the scout ship to warp away but that leaves two attackers closing in on the Enterprise. It’s time for the obligatory combat sequence!
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| Harry Mudd! |
This episode begins with Kirk receiving orders to travel to the Harlequin system to rescue a scout ship being harassed by Elasi pirates. I knew they would be back! The library computer tells me the system is a war zone with two inhabited planets, one Elasi-controlled and one Federation-controlled. We head there and provide just enough distraction to enable the scout ship to warp away but that leaves two attackers closing in on the Enterprise. It’s time for the obligatory combat sequence!
Monday, 31 October 2016
Star Trek - Better Living Through Chemistry
Written by Joe Pranevich
Happy Halloween! Last episode, we defeated a group of space pirates that had seized a Federation ship. So far, the game appears to have a set pattern as both missions started with a space battle before segueing into a traditional adventure. No items were kept between episodes; they seem standalone so far. I am frustrated that this is my second episodic game in a row, but I can appreciate some designers may prefer that route. This game forces us to play the episodes in order so I still hope that there will be plot progression.
An admiral delivers our orders: Romulans have raided across the neutral zone to attack a station, ARK-7. Our job is to defuse the situation. A planet, then a ship, and now a station? At least we are getting a variety of locations! I find our destination in the copy protection map and emerge from warp to be greeted by a de-cloaking Romulan ship. The captain claims that the Federation is engaging in treachery and that they know of our plans. What plans? Before I can ask, they attack and the episode begins!
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| Romulans! |
An admiral delivers our orders: Romulans have raided across the neutral zone to attack a station, ARK-7. Our job is to defuse the situation. A planet, then a ship, and now a station? At least we are getting a variety of locations! I find our destination in the copy protection map and emerge from warp to be greeted by a de-cloaking Romulan ship. The captain claims that the Federation is engaging in treachery and that they know of our plans. What plans? Before I can ask, they attack and the episode begins!
Thursday, 20 October 2016
Star Trek - Pirates of the Federation
Written by Joe Pranevich
In our last episode, Captain Kirk and his crew saved a group of colonists from shape-changing robots guarding an ancient sleeping race. It was a fun adventure even though the space combat was tricky on modern laptops and I struggled with the eclipse puzzle. As the curtain closes on that episode, it’s time start another: “Hijacked!”
The story opens as usual with an assignment from Starfleet: the USS Masada failed to report in as scheduled. We are to travel to the Beta Myamid system, investigate the delay, and take whatever actions we deem necessary. It seems like another rescue mission, but this time we are looking for a ship. Once in the system (after passing the requisite copy protection), we are greeted by an “Elasi” captain. He’s a surly sort and tells us that we have to leave immediately because we are interfering with their affairs. Moments later, he arms weapons and raises shields; we have no choice but to fight.
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| Space pirates! |
In our last episode, Captain Kirk and his crew saved a group of colonists from shape-changing robots guarding an ancient sleeping race. It was a fun adventure even though the space combat was tricky on modern laptops and I struggled with the eclipse puzzle. As the curtain closes on that episode, it’s time start another: “Hijacked!”
The story opens as usual with an assignment from Starfleet: the USS Masada failed to report in as scheduled. We are to travel to the Beta Myamid system, investigate the delay, and take whatever actions we deem necessary. It seems like another rescue mission, but this time we are looking for a ship. Once in the system (after passing the requisite copy protection), we are greeted by an “Elasi” captain. He’s a surly sort and tells us that we have to leave immediately because we are interfering with their affairs. Moments later, he arms weapons and raises shields; we have no choice but to fight.
Friday, 14 October 2016
Star Trek - The Devil Went Down to Pollux V
Written by Joe Pranevich
“Space… the final frontier…” Star Trek: 25th Anniversary begins exactly where it should: with the famous introductory lines and a computer version of the opening theme. It’s a nice way to get us in the Star Trek mindset. The game itself opens on the bridge of the Enterprise just as Captain Kirk receives orders to participate in a readiness drill. Captain Patterson and the USS Republic are here to engage with us with mock combat. Uhura receives a message that our opponent is in position. Spock suggests that we raise our shields and arm our weapons. The game is on!
Or… it would be if I knew how to do either of these things. We start in a ship-to-ship combat mode and moving the mouse steers rather than allowing me to talk to any of my bridge crew and ask them to get ready for the battle. I pause the game and look through the manual. As I alluded to last week, there are a lot of keyboard shortcuts. In this case, we have to press “S” to raise shields and then “W” to arm the weapons. It’s a good thing this is a training fight because a firefight is not the right time to be learning the controls...
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| Star Trekkin’ across the universe... |
Or… it would be if I knew how to do either of these things. We start in a ship-to-ship combat mode and moving the mouse steers rather than allowing me to talk to any of my bridge crew and ask them to get ready for the battle. I pause the game and look through the manual. As I alluded to last week, there are a lot of keyboard shortcuts. In this case, we have to press “S” to raise shields and then “W” to arm the weapons. It’s a good thing this is a training fight because a firefight is not the right time to be learning the controls...
Tuesday, 4 October 2016
Game 75: Star Trek: 25th Anniversary - Introduction (1992)
Written by Joe Pranevich
It’s a wonderful coincidence that we are about to play this game, produced in honor of Star Trek’s 25th anniversary, shortly after that show’s 50th. I am thrilled to be able to play it for the blog! Star Trek has been a part of my life almost as long as I can remember. I watched the original show with my father as a kid, young enough that I would hide before the credits so that I did not have to see the “scary” face at the end. As a nine-year old, I debated the merits of the “old” and “new” Star Trek with my friends shortly after The Next Generation took the airwaves. As I grew up and the world became a more complicated place, Deep Space Nine infused that vision of the future with just enough darkness and complexity that I was hooked. By the Voyager finale, I was in the workforce and watched it surrounded by my friends and coworkers. Enterprise debuted on my birthday. It’s no exaggeration to say that Star Trek has been one of the yardsticks of my youth.
All that said, I had never even heard of this game before getting involved with the blog. I was aware of the Nintendo version, but I suspect that Paramount did themselves a disservice by releasing three different games with the same name. More on that in a bit, but the important thing is that I am coming into this fresh and excited. Did they build a fitting game to honor the silver anniversary of this beloved franchise?
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| Adventure games… the final frontier... |
It’s a wonderful coincidence that we are about to play this game, produced in honor of Star Trek’s 25th anniversary, shortly after that show’s 50th. I am thrilled to be able to play it for the blog! Star Trek has been a part of my life almost as long as I can remember. I watched the original show with my father as a kid, young enough that I would hide before the credits so that I did not have to see the “scary” face at the end. As a nine-year old, I debated the merits of the “old” and “new” Star Trek with my friends shortly after The Next Generation took the airwaves. As I grew up and the world became a more complicated place, Deep Space Nine infused that vision of the future with just enough darkness and complexity that I was hooked. By the Voyager finale, I was in the workforce and watched it surrounded by my friends and coworkers. Enterprise debuted on my birthday. It’s no exaggeration to say that Star Trek has been one of the yardsticks of my youth.
All that said, I had never even heard of this game before getting involved with the blog. I was aware of the Nintendo version, but I suspect that Paramount did themselves a disservice by releasing three different games with the same name. More on that in a bit, but the important thing is that I am coming into this fresh and excited. Did they build a fitting game to honor the silver anniversary of this beloved franchise?
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