Star Trek is one of the oldest and most popular science-fiction franchises. Since the first episode of Star Trek debuted in 1966, the show rapidly became a cultural phenomenon and the term “Trekkies” came to existence.
Naturally, the franchise has also enjoyed popularity in media other than TV, from animated series to video games. With video games, it has enjoyed varying degrees of success. Some games have been as popular as the series and have helped to further the lore. Other games, however, have been little more than shameless cash-grabs.
Since Star Trek games have had to be licensed, their quality has largely depended on the developers’ passion and respect for the franchise. That hasn’t stopped countless developers from trying to tell their own stories in the universe. So, it’s important that we look at the games that should be considered canon, and the ones that should never be replicated. Here are the best and worst Star Trek games.
10 WORST: Star Trek D-A-C
Video game adaptations don’t come much blander than Star Trek D-A-C (Deathmatch. Assault. Conquest). This is a top-down shooter set in space with some multiplayer elements like a 6-on-6 Deathmatch mode and a 6-player co-op mode. The single-player element doesn’t even bother with a basic storyline; it’s just a survival mode that gets old quite fast.
Star Trek D-A-C isn’t the worst game ever made. But it doesn’t do anything to stand out. It’s an average top-down shooter, and it does nothing to engage Trekkies. Take away the Star Trek name and no one would realize.
9 BEST: Star Trek: Bridge Crew
One of the things most Trekkies dream of is taking control of their own ship, just like Captain Kirk or Picard, or even being part of a crew. Star Trek: Bridge Crew tries to satisfy that dream.
It gives players a VR headset and puts them on the bridge of a vessel. Multiple players are put on a ship, and they each get access to a console with unique commands. The players have to work together to accomplish their collective missions. For instance, the captain can order the phasers to fire, but the weapons officer is the one who pulls the trigger.
8 WORST: Star Trek: Hidden Evil
Star Trek: Hidden Evil is a video game meant to be the sequel to Star Trek: Insurrection. In Insurrection, the crew of the USS Enterprise-E discovered a conspiracy involving the Son’a, and they rebelled against Star Fleet to defeat it.
In Star Trek: Hidden Evil, the player controls Ensign Sovok, a character who works with the rest of Captain Picard’s crew. The developers managed to get Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner to reprise their roles as Captain Picard and Data. However, the game ruined the promise; its campaign was dull and too brief while the gameplay mostly involved boring combat and mediocre puzzles.
7 BEST: Star Trek The Next Generation: A Final Unity
With Star Trek The Next Generation: A Final Unity, developers Spectrum Holobyte were trying to make the best possible Star Trek game. They almost pulled it off, too. The game was chock-full of features from exploration of the galaxy to diplomacy, adventure, space combat and more.
The game had problems, like its slow pacing and how not every feature worked as well as hoped. However, when it did work, it captured the essence of Star Trek in a way few games have managed. For Trekkies, A Final Unity is fun, challenging and one of the most memorable games in the franchise.
6 WORST: Star Trek: The Video Game
In 2009, JJ Abrams remade Star Trek with a stellar movie that was as big a hit with the critics as it was with the fans. While not all of the older fans loved it—the more action-oriented direction was a worry for them—it helped introduce a younger generation of fans to the franchise.
Naturally, the film came with a video game tie-in. However, Star Trek: The Video Game was nothing like the film. In fact, it’s often considered the worst video game of the entire franchise. It had terrible graphics, poor level design and bugs that were sometimes game-breaking.
5 BEST: Star Trek: Online
As an MMO, Star Trek: Online tries its best to live up to fans’ hopes and expectations. It had a rough beginning, back when gamers were being forced to pay a subscription fee while still playing a game full of bugs. However, once the game went free-to-play, it improved drastically.
Star Trek: Online continues the TV show’s stories, brings back some of the original cast members to voice their characters and has stellar space combat. Best of all, it lets players chart their own paths and explore wherever they want. The only flaw is the grind associated with most MMOs, but other than that, it’s an amazing experience.
4 WORST: Star Trek: Shattered Universe
Star Trek: Shattered Universe is a space simulation game developed by Starsphere. It’s set in the Star Trek Mirror Universe, and the player takes control of a one-person fighter spacecraft. Even the least faithful Star Trek games feature a ship from the TV series, but the space fighter in Shattered Universe makes the game feel more like Star Wars than anything else.
If that wasn’t enough, the game doesn’t use any of the iconic theme songs from the franchise. The story is also as far from the spirit of Star Trek as one can dread. Star Trek: Shattered Universe was rightfully panned by both critics and fans.
3 BEST: Star Trek: Invasion
For a PlayStation One game, Star Trek: Invasion’s visuals have aged rather well. Released in 2000, the game was developed by the same team that developed the critically acclaimed Colony Wars. The battles in the games recreate the tension and tactics involved in the actual Star Trek series. It allows players to use tactical evasion, stealth combat and rewards the player’s combat skills.
Its sound design has also aged well since the game’s characters were voiced by the actual actors from The Next Generation TV series. Its plot, soundtrack and sound effects also helped to cement it as a nearly-flawless video game.
2 WORST: Star Trek: Legacy
Star Trek: Legacy is a real-time tactics game released on Windows and the Xbox 360. Released in 2006 to coincide with the franchise’s 40th anniversary, there were high hopes for the game. It had enlisted the five actors who played the captain in each of the franchise’s five individual shows to provide voices, but they were completely wasted.
The game had a single save file, unintelligent allies, controls that couldn’t be redefined, a single locked camera and questionable design choices. The only legacy this game left was letting down Star Trek fans who were hoping for something special.
1 BEST: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: The Fallen
Set in the Deep Space Nine timeline, the game is based on three novels: The War of the Prophets, Millennium: The Fall of Terok Nor, and Inferno. It’s a third-person shooter with elements of survival horror elements that made it challenging, tense and unforgettable. The game didn’t have a multiplayer element, but the single-player aspect was so solid that it didn’t matter. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: The Fallen also had levels without combat that let the player explore the Defiant and Deep Space Nine.
This is a great game not just for Trekkies, but also for gamers who love engaging single-player games.