Why So Blu?

Star Trek D-A-C Doesn’t Beam Up

Recently released on the Playstation Network is the new downloadable game, Star Trek D-A-C.  For $9.99, players can buy this game with its permanent home on their PS3 hard drive.  Star Trek D-A-C is a top-down shooter set in deep space where you can choose from a variety of ships, which include a flagship (such as the Enterprise or Constitution), missile cruiser, support frigate, bomber and fighter.  Each of the vessels have their own distinct abilities and targeting system.  For instance, the bomber is small, pretty maneuverable and jettisons its salvo from behind.  The more cumbersome flagship has a targeting cursor you must guide around the screen to wherever the next wave of baddies appear. 

Shots are fired by aiming the right thumbstick in the direction of the alien onslaught (Romulans are the enemy of choice in the single player mode), while the L1 and R1 buttons activate special weapons like homing missiles or a complete annihilation of everything on the screen.  The graphics are displayed in a very crisp 1080p with four different play modes in single player version; deathmatch, assault, conquest and survival.  The game also has online capabilities so you can match up with friend or foe from around the globe.  For multi-player, players can choose between the Federation or Romulans, and jump into a versus, co-op or survival mode.  In the end though, Star Trek D-A-C is nothing more than a glorified game of Atari’s Asteroids. 

Instead of flying rocks, you’ve got manned spaceships that waste no time in in trying to turn you into galactic dust.  The game is fast-paced and has a very brief learning curve while the only crucial in-game stats to mind (at least in single player) are your shield and weapon bars at the bottom of the screen.  If you’re a fan of good old Asteroids and you like Star Trek, well, this game is just a match made in Trekkie heaven.  Otherwise, I’d stay away and save the ten bucks for another day.