With the proliferation of all sorts of games based on the Star Trek universe, a real-time strategy game with individual crewmembers as characters is probably the only type of Star Trek game that had yet to be made. Since it features man-to-man tactics, a variety of weapons and futuristic equipment, an original story, and some role-playing elements, the possibilities for a game like Star Trek Away Team are quite promising. Unfortunately, the final design didn't follow through on any of these possibilities. Instead, Star Trek Away Team is a linear, repetitive, tedious game that ignores almost every lesson it should have learned from previous, more successful tactical combat games like X-COM, Jagged Alliance, and Commandos.

You control up to six characters through 18 different levels

The basic idea of Star Trek Away Team is very similar to that of Commandos: You control four or six characters in real-time combat scenarios and lead them through a series of missions that require stealth and tactical skill to defeat a numerically superior enemy. Before each mission, you choose your team members from the command, medical, engineering, science, and security fields. Each briefing lists the required and suggested items for that mission, and clicking on a crewmember will indicate which of those items he or she has in inventory. This is a nice feature until you realize that just like in Commandos, you can't redistribute inventory items--they are permanently associated with crewmembers. In addition, characters don't gain experience, and their health is fully restored between missions, so you never really grow attached to anyone. The crewmembers are essentially interchangeable--you're more likely to remember someone for a particular item he or she carries than for the character itself. This kills any sense of involvement in the story.

That's a shame, because the environments and the voice acting are both of very high quality. The unit acknowledgements are rather repetitive, but the voice-overs (both in the briefings and in the game itself) are well done, including those done by the voice of Commander Data. The graphics are 2D, but different levels allow a lot of variation in scenery, both in outdoor and indoor environments, and the result is good. Unfortunately, the game art is optimized for one resolution only (640x480), which causes the zoom functions to pixelate the screen horribly. There are also some problems with some of the animations, as phaser shots can sometimes stop in midair, especially if the target moves. Despite this, the graphics and sound are the best part of the game.

It's often easiest to shoot first and ask questions later

The gameplay is tightly scripted. It's so scripted, in fact, that certain triggers for voice-overs remain active even after they've become superfluous. For example, at one point on the Borg demolition mission, Matrina Sedik will make a comment that's supposed to be a hint as to how to deactivate the Borg security walls, even if you've just gone through the entire level doing exactly that. Apparently, the game expected you to turn right at the beginning, and if you turn left, that trigger simply waits until you come back and hit it. It's followed by an even more incongruous narrative comment that reinforces the feeling that the missions were designed more as plot elements in the larger story than as tactical exercises.

There are some very good ideas in the game that end up being unutilized because of the poor level design. The fact that your characters will make more noise while running than walking is elegantly portrayed by "sound cones," which show the distance that this noise travels; they can easily be toggled on and off. Firing weapons makes noise, which can alert guards that something is wrong and can make them change their patrol patterns. Had this been used as the basis for a less puzzlelike level design, it could have been very interesting.