Star Trek: Resurgence – Alien Diplomacy R Us

So, how about this! A new Star Trek game that is actually good. Well, as far as the story goes at least, and the presentation overall. It is lacking in the gameplay department, but what else can be expected from a studio consisting of former Telltale employees? Star Trek: Resurgence is Dramatic Lab’s first game, and to nobody’s surprise the gaming aspect remains as mentioned limited, however, it comes with severely upgraded visuals. Gone is the heavily penciled-in comic book style and is now replaced with full Unreal 3D glory with a semi-realistic approach. To truly enjoy Star Trek: Resurgence it all comes down to personal expectations (as usual), so the sane approach (which I took) is to leave any form of system interaction at the door going in. And if you can do that, you are in for a pretty good time!

My favorite series
The story takes place during the Next Generation timeline, far from any modern abominations thankfully. In this adventure you take control of first officer Jara Rydek (coming to replace a recently diseased “number one”), and engineer Carter Diaz who is already part of the crew of USS Resolute. The two characters differentiate a lot from each other. As Rydek you will be treated as an outsider and will have to work to get accepted as part of the team. Diaz already start liked, but is a lower-ranked engineer compared to Rydek, which comes with its own issues and problems.

As it is, this is not just a Federation crew life simulator. Soon after the quick introductions something odd happens to the Starbase the ship Resolute is docked at. Some kind of massive ION storm knocks things about, and as it turns out, this storm has its origins in the system you are supposed to visit on a diplomatic mission. A very classic Star Trek opening all things considered, which keeps up with the writing all the way to the end – even if certain parts could have been better, like the “action” sections. However, these segments of the game don’t fail thanks to the writing only. They feel tacked on with extremely basic, but at the same time annoying and clunky cover-shooting mechanics. Narrative-wise, the body count does stack a bit high also. This has the effect of making a bit of a joke of the setting since killing dudes is not precisely what Star Trek is known for. It’s especially noticeable as Star Trek: Resurgence seems to play it straight otherwise. It’s a shame, yet, it doesn’t ruin the game. It just feels out of place, and each time these moments comes along I couldn’t wait until it was over.

Besides the main narrative, the characters are well-written, but some of the crew might be harder to get a grasp on since it has a pretty large cast to go through. I have a feeling this issue is part of the whole main-character switcheroo thing, as making two main guys come with a loss of focus on certain individuals. This has a bigger effect on the Rydek segments than when playing Diaz, as he interacts with far fewer people, but still plays as large of a role in the story. However, it’s not a huge problem, just a minor notable one, like when you are asked to remember specific characters by name.

Choice and consequences
Star Trek: Resurgence has a very enjoyable story, but it entirely depends on how much you know about the plot going in. See, the mystery of the story hinges on many unknowns that play directly into the mechanics of the game. Knowing any of these “twists” beforehand would devastate the narrative experience since you would know exactly what choices to make for the best possible outcome. This might not differentiate much from any other games in this genre, yet, I feel this has to be pointed out. Even if Star Trek: Resurgence allows for different outcomes during the campaign, I don’t see myself playing this title again. It’s rather long, and the gameplay segments (beyond the shooting) do feel like padding more than anything else. There is very little exploration, and there are zero puzzles – everything, and I mean everything depends on how you view the storyline. It’s a tale that works once, but as soon stuff gets known it loses its luster. So, if you decide you want a taste, it’s vital you start playing it blind.

There isn’t much to say about the gameplay. As mentioned the only things that matter are the narrative choices you will do during the campaign. Much like all other Telltale games. Now, this might come off as negative, but as an adventure title with a focus on story, it’s delightful. It’s also dramatic in a very traditional Star Trek sense, which makes up for the loss in gameplay. Also, I have to stress this again – having the correct expectations going in will help a lot with turning it from a disappointment to something much more enjoyable.

This looks great
Beyond the good story, the enchanted graphics sure help push Star Trek: Resurgence along. It’s not the best-looking thing I have seen, but the visuals look clean, and I especially liked how the lighting naturally caresses the faces. The only thing that dragged down the presentation is the gorilla-like animations for the Starfleet women when they walk around. Not sure how this “mistake” happened, since one aspect I enjoyed is how feminine Rydek is portrayed, both in her looks and mannerism – a very surprising thing in this day and age. However, the gorilla walk put a hamper on this illusion.

The voice acting is top-notch all around even going so far as having Jonathan Frakes coming back to Star Trek to voice William T. Riker. The sounds and general atmosphere is very much Star Trek, as everything sounds like it should. For some reason, though, the music is spotty. It’s not exactly bad, but it did cut in and out during play with no real rhyme or reason. Highly amateurish, and at some points it felt like the wrong tune was playing not matching the action on the screen. Another issue with the music is how constantly loud it is, drowning out everything else, like the dialogue, making it hard to hear and follow what is going on. I have no idea why it is like this, it doesn’t feel very professional exactly, and it’s also a bit baffling since otherwise the presentation is excellent.

Star Trek: Resurgence is a fine adventure game and at risk of repeating myself. Treating it more than a narrative experience makes or breaks this title. The story is great, and the visuals and audio make you feel like are in the TNG universe, which by itself is an awesome feeling. The only thing I find truly lacking is exploration. I would have loved to be able to roam the ship at will, alas, most of the ship exploration is off-limits. It’s a major missed opportunity, and I have a feeling just this aspect alone could have been a seller for devoted Trekkies. Some areas allow you to look around a bit, however, it isn’t much – the game is very focused to push the narrative along. I guess, it all comes down to how much you yearn for a good story in the Star Trek universe. If you are a sucker for anything Star Trek, or just specifically the TNG show, you can’t go wrong here.

Thanks for reading.

/Thomas