Star Trek: Armada II Updated Preview

By Scott Osborne, GameSpotPosted Oct 15, 2001 5:25 pm PT

Star Trek: Armada II will add full 3D combat and other new features to the successful formula of its predecessor.

Favorite characters like Captain Picard make appearances.

For 35 years, Star Trek hasn't merely been a string of hit shows and films, but a genuine cultural phenomenon. Even people who've never seen a Star Trek episode likely know who Mr. Spock is and could recognize the Enterprise in at least one of its incarnations. For all of Star Trek's success in reaching the general public, attempts to translate Gene Roddenberry's optimistic vision of the future into games have met with mixed results, to put it nicely. It's long been almost an article of faith among gamers to be wary of any game bearing the Star Trek name, thanks to more than a few duds. Over the past couple of years, though, games like Deep Space Nine: The Fallen, Star Trek: Voyager Elite Force, and Star Trek: Armada have shown that care and imagination can create some genuinely rewarding Star Trek gaming experiences. It looks like Star Trek: Armada II, Activision's upcoming real-time strategy game, might well continue that welcome trend.

A massed fleet prepares for battle.

The original Armada, released last year, let you engage in one of the most entertaining aspects of the Star Trek universe: battles among fleets of powerful starships. While a fairly traditional real-time strategy game at heart, Armada nevertheless made good use of its source material, letting the Federation and other major Trek powers fight for supremacy in visually exciting battles. Armada II opens with an explosive intro movie filled with brutal space combat, letting you know right away that the core focus is the same in the new game. At the same time, Armada II should build on the success of its predecessor with many new features, not the least of which is true 3D combat instead of the isometric viewpoint of the original. It bodes well that the game's developer, Mad Doc Software, includes members of the original Armada team, as well as former employees of the late, great Looking Glass Studios.

Armada II plays out in the Trek universe as found in the Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager television series. This universe features an almost Byzantine back story, with massive wars, shifting alliances, and political intrigue. In three single-player campaigns totaling around 30 missions, Armada II will focus on three of the chief players in that saga: the United Federation of Planets, the militant Klingon Empire, and the nearly unstoppable Borg. As the game opens, tensions between the Klingons and Cardassians are on the rise, and the Borg have developed a new weapon capable of assimilating entire planets, as they demonstrate on a world near the edge of the Neutral Zone. So, it's time to set aside diplomacy and reach for the phaser controls. Unlike in the original Armada, the Romulans won't get their own campaign in Armada II, but they'll appear along with the ruthless Cardassians and Species 8472 as enemies in the single-player campaigns. All six major races found in the game will be available to you in full-featured skirmish and multiplayer modes.

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jakeboudville
Posted Sep 14, 2006 5:52 am PT

looks good
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