Star Trek: Voyager - Across the Unknown: Beam Me Up, Scotty, To More Micromanagement?
AI Gaming News Author · Rock Paper Shotgun ·
The first gameplay trailer for *Star Trek: Voyager - Across the Unknown* teases a survival strategy game brimming with ship management, tactical combat, and 'what if?' story choices, promising a deep dive into micromanagement that could be either brilliant or incredibly tedious.
Right, so apparently Daedalic Entertainment and gameXcite reckon we're all secretly yearning to be Captain Janeway, but with a spreadsheet for a First Officer. Their latest venture, *Star Trek: Voyager - Across the Unknown*, just dropped its first gameplay trailer, and bloody hell, it looks like it's going to be a field day for those of us who enjoy juggling a thousand tasks simultaneously – or, as the original article from Rock Paper Shotgun put it, 'micro managers'.
Now, for those who might've been living under a rock – or, you know, just haven't ventured into the Delta Quadrant – *Star Trek: Voyager* was the series where a Starfleet ship, the USS Voyager, got zapped seventy-five years from home. Cue a desperate, decades-long journey back, fraught with alien encounters, resource scarcity, and a crew trying to hold onto Starfleet ideals whilst making some pretty rough compromises. It's a goldmine for a 'story-based survival strategy game', isn't it? The premise alone screams 'what if?' scenarios like a distressed Ferengi. And that's exactly what gameXcite is promising.
But what does this 'what if?' look like in practice, beyond just a fancy marketing phrase? The trailer offers a glimpse, and it's a bit of a mixed bag, like trying to replicate a Borg cube with duct tape and a faulty replicator. Let's dig in, shall we?
First up, the ship management. This bit immediately brought to mind a slightly more sophisticated *Fallout Shelter*, but instead of vaults, you're building out the decks of the USS Voyager. We're talking a whole bunch of different 'blocks' where you can construct various rooms for your crew to go about their business. On the one hand, managing your ship's infrastructure, assigning crew, and optimising resources is exactly the kind of strategic depth a Star Trek game should offer. The Voyager was, after all, a ship often running on fumes and ingenuity. On the other hand, the spectre of 'busywork' looms large. Will these systems feel genuinely impactful, like I'm making tough choices that define the survival of my crew, or will it be more akin to glorified inventory management – just shuffling pixels around to keep everyone vaguely happy? I'm genuinely curious to see how deep this rabbit hole goes. Will I be tweaking power conduits in engineering, routing supplies to sickbay, or just clicking a button to 'make things better'? Let's hope it's the former, mate.
Then there's the space combat, which, to be fair, was a bit harder to get a firm grasp on from the quick cuts in the trailer. It looks like we'll have various abilities to deploy against incoming baddies – think phaser arrays, deflector shields, maybe some fancy evasive manoeuvres – all with cooldowns, thankfully, to stop us from spamming photon torpedoes like they're going out of style. There was also a hint that you might need to keep a watchful eye on specific parts of your ship, making sure the warp core doesn't go kaboom or your bridge isn't completely vaporised. This sounds promisingly tactical, adding a layer of risk and reward beyond just 'point and shoot'. I'm envisioning tense moments where I'm diverting power, making split-second decisions to save a critical system. Here's hoping it delivers that thrilling sense of being outgunned and outmanoeuvred, forcing you to think like a Starfleet captain rather than just a trigger-happy space pirate.
Beyond the hardware, we've got the human element – or, you know, the Vulcan, Bajoran, and Klingon elements. The game will apparently let you assign different crew members to specific missions, each bringing their own 'pros and cons' to the table. This is where the 'what if?' really starts to hum. Are we talking about sending Tuvok on a stealth mission where his logic is key, or Neelix to negotiate a treaty (heaven help us all)? The idea of leveraging specific character skills and personalities to solve problems sounds ace, provided it’s not just a thinly veiled rock-paper-scissors mechanic. I want to feel like I'm making a meaningful choice, not just matching a coloured icon to a designated slot.
And then, perhaps most interestingly (and with a glorious whiff of nostalgia), there are what the original article lovingly refers to as 'very '90s FMV looking bits' that let you choose alternate story paths, seemingly based on classic episodes. Fair dinkum, if they're leaning into that '90s aesthetic, I'm all for it. It's a bold choice in an era of hyper-realistic graphics, but sometimes a bit of charming cheese is exactly what the doctor ordered. The big question, though, is how truly 'alternate' these paths will be. Will they fundamentally alter the outcome of our journey home, or are we talking about minor narrative deviations? As someone who appreciates a good branching narrative (and isn't afraid of a bit of pixelated overacting), I'm absolutely stoked to see if they can pull this off in a way that feels genuinely impactful, rather than just a fleeting homage.
So, what's the long and short of it, mate? *Star Trek: Voyager - Across the Unknown* looks like it's trying to do a fair few things at once: ship management, tactical combat, crew specialisation, and narrative choice. There's definite potential for a deep, engaging survival strategy game that truly captures the spirit of *Voyager*'s desperate journey. But, as with any game promising such breadth, the devil will be in the details. Will the micromanagement feel meaningful or just mundane? Will the 'what if?' scenarios truly branch, or just offer cosmetic variations? We'll have to wait and see if Daedalic and gameXcite can stick the landing and give us a Star Trek game that's more than the sum of its parts. For now, though, it's certainly got my curiosity at warp speed. No release date yet, but you can wishlist it on Steam if you fancy joining Janeway on her long trip home.
My verdict? Cautiously optimistic, with a healthy dose of Jeff-style skepticism. Here's hoping it's a journey worth taking, and not just a detour to a nebula of busywork.
Tags: Star Trek, Strategy Game, Survival, Sci-Fi, Game Trailer
Original article: Rock Paper Shotgun