The enduring popularity of the Star Trek science fiction franchise has led to numerous games in many different formats, beginning in 1967 with a board game based on The Original Series and continuing through the present with online and DVD games.
Official game titles include the following:
Starship simulator games create the experience of commanding and operating a starship, and usually allow the player to handle a variety of functions, and to allocate resources such as ship power and systems. Some early Star Trek games in this category have had a huge effect on subsequent games in their genre, often leading to new level of depth and complexity in programming and/or gameplay.
This game category includes both computer games and non-computer board games, since the Star Fleet Battles game series provides a starship simulation, and is wholly a tabletop board wargame. As well as the Star Trek RPG by FASA which allowed players to take charge of specific areas of a ship's functions (such as the engineer allocating power) during combat.
Star Fleet Battles is different from most other wargames, which usually indicate unit strengths with simple numerical ratings. SFB players are able to deploy and manage power for a variety of ship weapons and resources. This is done via an elaborate Energy Allocation mechanism where even partial points of energy can be allocated to a number of different systems. Federation Commander is the continued development of this system in a more fast-paced version. Instead of the Energy Allocation system, it uses an innovative tick sheet system, which manages power use for each ship, and also tracks which weapons and systems are in use. The computer game is based upon Star Fleet Battles.
In Star Trek: The Role Playing Game, produced by FASA, players actually had individual bridge functions during combat. This at one point became a separate game known as Starship Tactical Combat Simulator. The Captain determined the strategy, the Engineer was responsible for power management and allocation to different systems such as weapons and shields, the Helmsman for firing weapons, the Navigator for managing deflector shields, the Communications Officer for damage control and so on.
Starship simulator computer games which are set in the Star Trek universe occupy a large role in the history of computer games. Some of the earliest and more influential space simulator video games were Star Trek simulations designed to run on mainframes.
David H. Ahl played such games in the late 1960s at Carnegie Mellon University and the University of California, Berkeley. He stated that they were much less sophisticated than Mike Mayfield's Star Trek text game,[3] which originated as a BASIC program on an SDS Sigma 7 mainframe system in 1971 and ported to many different systems. Ahl published source code for this game in his best selling BASIC Computer Games, and variants of the game spread widely to personal computer systems.
Decwar in 1978 was also a groundbreaking game. Another is Super Star Trek, an early text-based, MS-DOS-based game. This game created an impressive starship experience using only text-based commands and graphics. The game Begin is considered notable for having a convincing model of game dynamics, as it has very few random elements, and is highly mathematical. In 1986, the game Multi-Trek (MTrek) was brought online at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Written in C for a PDP mainframe, and also available via dialup and later TELNET, MTrek was arguably the first ever game to combine a persistent world, online multiplayer environment with a real-time, true 3-dimensional game engine and versions of the game still have an active player base.
Netrek was released in 1988, and was probably the first game to use both the TCP and UDP protocols, the first Internet-aware team game, the first Internet game to use metaservers to locate open game servers, and the first to have persistent user information.
In later years, fewer games were produced within this genre, and more games were produced in the adventure games genre. The first new recent game was Starfleet Academy, which incorporated many Star Trek elements, but was criticized for depicting starship operation as more akin to fighter planes than capital ships. A sequel, Klingon Academy, was actually quite different, and was one of the first games to depict starship operation with an appropriate amount of complexity.
The Starfleet Command game series released by Interplay was based largely on the tabletop game Star Fleet Battles, and comprised Starfleet Command, Starfleet Command II: Empires at War, and Starfleet Command III. It constitutes one of the most definitive current games, depicting a wide array of ship systems and Star Trek storylines. This series had a more naval flavor, and depicted a number of ship systems. This series spawned a very large multiplayer ladder competition first with the "Starlance" system, and later on the "GamerZone" ladder. The main multiplayer setting is the "Dynaverse," which began as an official server hosted by Taldren, and has continued as a private effort (an earlier, unauthorized adaptation of Star Fleet Battles as a computer game was SSI's The Warp Factor in 1982).
was another addition to this genre, reflecting the more deliberative, command aspects of this experience.
In late 2006, Bethesda Softworks released several console games which carry on the tradition of classic Star Trek ship simulator/combat games, for the PC and Xbox 360, for the PlayStation 2, for the Nintendo DS and the PlayStation Portable and for the Wii and PlayStation 2.
Several online games have appeared on the Internet. Vega Trek is a game mod which is planned to eventually become active as a multiplayer game.[4] Flashtrek: Broken Mirror, first created by Vex Xiang, is one of the online Star Trek games, and is entirely browser-based. It has spawned several sequels. One sequel was created by Vex Xiang, and multiple others were created by fans. A newer game titled Star Trek: Broken Mirror was being developed by a man named Darkwing for several years, but was apparently abandoned in 2014.
is one of the newest additions to this genre, and continues the historical pattern of Star Trek-themed simulator breaking new ground. This cross platform game is in a virtual reality environment in which four players actually occupy the bridge of the USS Aegis, Enterprise-D (Through Downloadable Content) or the Original Enterprise. Players get to see each other in real-time, and interact during the game to operate the ship and work together to handle various game scenarios.[5] [6]
Four pinball games have been based on the Star Trek series:
| Year | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Star Trek - Strategic Operations Simulator | |
| 2000 | Star Trek: Borg Contact | |
| 2002 |
The history of the Star Trek personal computer game franchise began as early as 1971, with a Star Trek text-only computer game written in BASIC. Many PC titles have since been published, and the franchise was one of the first based on a TV program to break into the young PC gamer market in the 1990s. Activision and Viacom signed an agreement to develop games based on the Star Trek property in September 1998.[7]
Interplay, Simon & Schuster, MicroProse and Activision released most of the best-known Star Trek games between 2000 and 2003. Titles like Star Trek: Armada, Star Trek: Elite Force and Star Trek: Bridge Commander were all published during this period, as were over half of all the other major Star Trek PC games. The absence of new titles after 2003 was due in large measure to a split and subsequent lawsuit between Activision and Viacom which ended in 2004.
With the departure of Activision in 2003, the franchise under the tenure of Paramount effectively came to a close. Since the end of 2005, CBS has assumed most franchise management, including games and other products. Even with no new licensed titles released during 2003-2006, the older games like Armada and Elite Force still have an avid fan base which keeps the small community going. Development of the new Star Trek: Online title is complete and the game was made available for sale on February 2, 2010.[8]
Star Trek: Alien Domain is a 2015 flash-based Star Trek multiplayer strategy game developed by GameSamba in conjunction with CBS Interactive.[9]
| Year | Title | Platform | Developer, publisher | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Star Trek (text game) | Multiple | Mike Mayfield | |
| 1971 | Star Trek (script game) | Don Daglow | ||
| 1973 | Super Star Trek | Multiple (BASIC) | Bob Leedom, David H. Ahl | |
| 1973 | Trek73 | William K. Char, Perry Lee, Dan Gee | ||
| 1976 | Galaxy | Bob Findley, SCELBI Computer Consulting | ||
| 1977 | Star Trek | Bob Bishop, Interface Age | ||
| 1979 | Apple Trek | Dr. Wendell Sander, Apple Computer | ||
| 1979 | Star Trek III | TRS-80, Apple II, Atari 8-bit | Adventure International | |
| 1980 | 3-D Star Trek | Atari 8-bit | Color Software | |
| 1980 | Battle Trek | Gilman Louie, Voyager Software | ||
| 1981 | Tari Trek | Atari 8-bit | Quality Software | |
| 1982 | Video Trek 88 | MS-DOS | Windmill Software | |
| 1983 | Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator (ports) | Sega | ||
| 1984 | Begin: A Tactical Starship Simulation | Clockwork Software | ||
| 1985 | Star Trek Evolution[10] | Load'n'Go / One Step / Green Valley Publishing | ||
| 1985 | Apple II, C64, MS-DOS | Simon & Schuster | ||
| 1986 | Apple II, C64, MS-DOS | Simon & Schuster | ||
| 1987 | Atari ST, C64, MS-DOS | Simon & Schuster | ||
| 1988 | Star Trek: First Contact | MS-DOS | Micromosaics, Simon & Schuster Interactive | |
| 1989 | Star Trek V: The Final Frontier | MS-DOS | Level Systems, Mindscape | |
| 1991 | Begin 2 | MS-DOS | Clockwork Software | |
| 1992 | Star Trek: 25th Anniversary | Interplay Entertainment | ||
| 1993 | MS-DOS, Macintosh | Interplay Entertainment | ||
| 1995 | MS-DOS, Macintosh | Spectrum HoloByte, MicroProse | ||
| 1996 | Simon & Schuster | |||
| 1996 | Windows, Macintosh | Simon & Schuster | ||
| 1996 | MS-DOS, Macintosh | Stormfront Studios, Viacom New Media | ||
| 1997 | Star Trek: Starfleet Academy | Windows, Macintosh | High Voltage Software, Interplay Entertainment | |
| 1997 | Star Trek Generations | Windows | MicroProse | |
| 1998 | Star Trek Pinball | MS-DOS | Interplay Entertainment | |
| 1998 | Windows, Macintosh | MicroProse | ||
| 1998 | Windows, Macintosh | Sound Source Interactive | ||
| 1998 | Windows, Macintosh | Imergy, Simon & Schuster | ||
| 1999 | Windows | MicroProse, Hasbro | ||
| 1999 | Cancelled | Interplay Entertainment | ||
| 1999 | Windows | Quicksilver Software, Interplay Entertainment | ||
| 1999 | Windows | Presto Studios, Activision | ||
| 2000 | Star Trek: Starfleet Command - Gold Edition | Windows | Quicksilver Software, Interplay Entertainment | |
| 2000 | Windows | Mad Doc Software, Activision | ||
| 2000 | Windows, Macintosh | The Collective, Simon & Schuster | ||
| 2000 | Windows | Genetic Anomalies, Activision | ||
| 2000 | Windows | 14 Degrees East, Interplay Entertainment | ||
| 2000 | Windows | 14 Degrees East, Interplay Entertainment | ||
| 2000 | Windows | Taldren, Interplay Entertainment | ||
| 2000 | Windows | Imergy, Simon & Schuster Interactive | ||
| 2000 | Windows, Macintosh | Raven Software, Activision | ||
| 2001 | Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force Expansion Pack | Windows | Raven Software, Activision | |
| 2001 | Windows | Gizmo Games, Simon & Schuster | ||
| 2001 | Windows | Mad Doc Software, Activision | ||
| 2001 | Windows | Reflexive Entertainment, Activision | ||
| 2001 | Windows | Taldren, Interplay Entertainment | ||
| 2002 | Windows | Taldren, Activision | ||
| 2002 | Windows | Totally Games, Activision | ||
| 2003 | Windows, Macintosh | Ritual Entertainment, Activision | ||
| 2005 | Star Trek: The Next Generation: Stranded | Sky Gamestar (ceased 2015) | Denki | |
| 2006 | Mad Doc Software, Bethesda Softworks | |||
| 2009 | Star Trek: DAC | Windows, Xbox 360, Macintosh, PlayStation 3 | Naked Sky Entertainment, Paramount Digital Entertainment | |
| 2010 | Star Trek Online | Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 | Atari, Cryptic Studios, Perfect World Entertainment | |
| 2013 | Star Trek | Digital Extremes | ||
| 2015 | Star Trek: Alien Domain | Browser | GameSamba | |
| 2016 | Star Trek Timelines | Browser, iOS, Android | Disruptor Beam | |
| 2017 | Windows, PlayStation 4 | Ubisoft | ||
| 2022 | Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Switch, Windows | Outright Games | ||
| 2023 | Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows | Dramatic Labs | ||
| 2023 | Windows, macOS | Paradox Interactive |
| Year | Title | Platform | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Microvision | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1982 | Vectrex | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1983 | Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator | Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Atari 8-bit, ColecoVision, VIC-20, C64, TI-99/4A | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1992 | Star Trek: 25th Anniversary | NES | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Star Trek: 25th Anniversary | Game Boy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1993 | Star Trek: The Next Generation: Future's Past | Super NES, Genesis, Game Gear | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Star Trek: The Next Generation | Game Boy, NES, Game Gear (as Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Advanced Holodeck Tutorial) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1994 | Star Trek: The Next Generation: Echoes from the Past | Game Gear, Genesis, Super NES | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Game Boy, Game Gear | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 32X, Super NES | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Genesis, Super NES | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000 | PlayStation | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Windows, MacOS 9, PS2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004 | PS2, Xbox | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
[Xbox 360, Windows
|-
| ''[[Star Trek: Encounters]] || PS2|-| 2007 || || Wii, PS2|-| 2009 || Star Trek: DAC || Xbox 360, PS3|-| 2013 || Star Trek || Xbox 360, PS3, Windows|-| 2016 || Star Trek Online || Xbox One, PS4, Windows, Mac|-| 2017 || || PS4, Windows|-|2022|Star Trek: Prodigy: Supernova|Xbox Series X, PS4, PS5, Switch, Windows|}Mobile
Electronic and casino games
Handheld electronic gamesNumerous stand-alone electronic handheld and tabletop games have been produced by manufacturers like Bandai, Coleco, Konami, and others. See alsoExternal links
|