Star Trek: Encounters

It's a great value for its $20 debut price tag, and it’s easily my favorite game of any generation based on the Star Trek license.

Crafted in a TV universe that puts less emphasis on warfare, Star Trek: Encounters is a curious choice as a tactical ship combat simulation.

This is almost a decent game -- it certainly tries -- and Trekkers looking for an action game could certainly do worse. Avoid beaming in with particularly high expectations and you'll probably get your 15 bucks worth of hot Enterprise vs. Bird of Prey action.

Mainly it suffers from being too bland and inconsistent, and while it has some good ideas it doesn't quite deliver on all aspects.

An absolute mess, crippled by a terrible control scheme and frustrating missions that wear on seemingly forever. And even with six editions of the series supplying the narrative, it's a waste of a great license, offering very little to anyone looking for a franchise fix.

Disciples will be disappointed by the fundamental lack of gameplay depth, even as they might like the surprisingly high level of difficulty, but more casual fans might appreciate being able to grab a quick space battle here and there in skirmish and multiplayer modes.

Star Trek fans should hate it, and so should people who like games. [Jan 2007, p.87]