It’s no coincidence that the USS Enterprise has landed in the XBLA solar system just in time for the box office release of the 11th movie. Hoping to cash in on the re-emerging franchise, developers Naked Sky Entertainment have fired up Star Trek D-A-C for those who fancy swinging their legs on the captain’s chair.
D-A-C is a simple yet graphically pleasing top-down shooter with emphasis on fast-paced multiplayer battles. Three modes of play are available: versus, co-op and solo. There are also four different types of play, namely team, deathmatch, conquest and assault. Offline play is available but battling with your friends over Live (up to 12, if you have that many) has more appeal than sitting alone in your ready room. Er, bedroom. But with a meagre choice of three ships, three styles of play and not much else, there is a distinct lack of true Trekkie appeal.
Nonetheless the gameplay itself is solid. The left analogue stick is used to fly your ship, while the Y button functions as an overview of the map and RT fires weapons. Holding in the LT provides a speed boost. This can come be very nifty when a bunch of opponents are threatening to blow you to smithereens! You can also collect spherical power-ups that can shield your ship from damage, provide powerful enemy-blasting bombs or even ‘cloak’ your vessel making it invisible to the eyes of your enemies. As play progresses your ships weapon strength will increase, but beware as opponents will be all too happy to blow you into smithereens with their equally powerful craft. Should the worst happen and you find your own ship in this predicament, a swift punch of the A button will release you into a delicate pod. Keep this safe from lasers and bumps for five seconds and you will retain some weapon strength as well as respawning faster. What’s more, those with an urge to see just how magnificent (or shockingly poor) their individual kill ratio is can access individual player statistics from the pause menu.
As far as visuals go, there’s a balance of good and bad. The vessel is of a questionable size, but as any good citizen knows, size doesn’t always matter. Backgrounds are vivid and highly detailed though it can sometimes feel a little too intricate and overpowering, drawing the focus away from the ships. You won’t find fancy musical symphonies but the musical track is fitting if repetitive.
There is a lot of action in D-A-C but unfortunately the Star Trek tie-ins are disappointingly few and far between. There isn’t a great deal of varying gameplay and, coupled with some pesky visuals, this arcade release might just fly right by you.
This isn't the 360 version, but it sure looks cosmic
This is the 360 version. Note the tiny spacecraft and ignore distinct lack of reviewers (s)kills
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May 17th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
Needs more Janeway.
May 17th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
I used to think that Undertow was the worst game ever, but this somehow managed to take the title.
It’s horrendously sluggish, hard to kill anything, and not fun at all.
It’s strange how such a brilliant film translates into a horrible, horrible game.
May 17th, 2009 at 2:05 pm
Couldn’t agree more. Really disappointed about this one. :(
May 17th, 2009 at 3:09 pm
cool, i think i would want more Star trek in it. and definitely more Janeway!
thanks for the Status Report Ensign stacy
May 18th, 2009 at 12:36 am
Another waste of points, when will i learn…..
May 18th, 2009 at 7:47 am
It is a totally awful game – I think Stacy’s been over generous with it. Very over generous with it! :)
May 18th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
Poor effort.
Blast this one through the airlock.
May 18th, 2009 at 7:30 pm
[...] Beam over to Ready Up! to read the review in full. [...]
May 19th, 2009 at 10:35 pm
I suppose I was being a little lenient. I did enjoy whooshing through space though. And pretending I was Janeway. If only.