E3 2006 First Look Preview
Out of about four games
that Bethesda Softworks is working on for this year, two of them are big
ventures into the universe of Star Trek … one for the 360 and PC, and the other
for the PSP and DS. The 360 and PC version is called Star Trek: Legacy, and what
makes this title really stand out is the fact that it spans all of the Star Trek
TV shows starting with the old Enterprise and the Captain Kirk era and moving
all the way up to modern times.
The demo really showcased
what the game will be about … star fleet space battles. You are in command of
not only one selected ship from the movies and TV programs, but you can also
command a fleet of up to four different ships, and give them individual or group
commands to help build a strategic element. For example, one part of the demo
showed a Romulan attack a fleet outside of the earth’s orbit attacking a
Federation base. The Enterprise vessels were given individual attack commands
and each one could be switched to on the fly. Lo and behold, a Borg cube
suddenly entered into the picture, so then the whole concept of the game changed
as the Romulans, the Federation, and a group of Klingons (who were trying to
help attack against the Romulans) suddenly became allies and turned all of their
firepower onto the Borg cube. At this point, the command was given for all four
Enterprise units to move and attack together for combined firepower.
The controls were smooth,
which was shown in detail in a second part of the demo straight from Star Trek
II: Wrath of Khan as a one on one ship to ship battle was showcased. The left
stick rotated the Enterprise in a full 360 universe, while the right stick
turned the camera angle to get a full view or targeting ability all the way
around you. In addition, you can also divert power on the fly to whatever you
feel is needed at the time, like pulling away from your thrusting power and
adding to your deflector shields.
Graphically, the game is
looking really super. The detailing for damage on the ships was top notch, all
the way down to the charred and smoldering parts of a damaged saucer section or
the spectacular explosions showcased against a purple supernova star in the
backdrop of space, and each ship is rendered with 5,000 to 10,000 polygons.
The game is scheduled for
release in November 2006 to coincide with the 40 year Star Trek anniversary, and
it will not only feature single player missions but will also be supported by
Xbox Live and PC online play with such modes as Deathmatches or a tug of war
battle where ships can be upgraded.
