OFFICIAL N-G.com Star Trek Thread

[J. Max]

Pretty interesting preview of the upcoming Star Trek MMO

Sounds like it could be good.

I understand, of course, the decision to make Klingons enemies, but I don't particularly care for that.

Also, they mention the Gorn as enemies? Aren't the gorn friendly to the federation? They are in the Starfleet Universe

One thing that irked me about this preview was that Starfleet was continually referred to as a military organization, which is not the case.

I wonder why the decision was made to have everyone be captain of a federation ship? Why not throw in Klingons and Romulans, then add other races in the expansions.

Hopefully you can play as a non human character.

I think that the reason for not allowing the Klingons or Romulans (yet) is a technical one...they already have to cram in all of the different Federation classes, so to try and get the different Klingon/Romulan ships would be tough. Plus, playing as a Klingon would be SO different than playing as a human, they might actually need to make some serious changes to the way that the game is approached.

I think you can play as any race within the Federation though. I saw a preview that had a "build your own alien" engine. I'd like to play as an Andorian, personally.

 

[Zero Satori]

Been done already:

Not really. Those things work, I would say, only if one already cares about the universe/programme itself. "Best of" episodes might be good to introduce somebody to a series and effectively seduce them to want to watch more, but they make no effort (usually) to tell a complete story.

The idea would be to essentially re-cut Star Trek in various ways to achieve a goal of overall improvement. thirdkind said it well when he mentioned that collected editions generally piss-off hardcore fans, but when they're done well, only the most hardcore of people will be so dumb as to argue "because now 80% of the knowledge I have is inconsequential to the main story." With this idea, take (for instance) The Next Generation's Season One, start from "Encounter At Farpoint" and find the best parts from that episode, cut-out the slow, boring, or badly-acted parts, and re-release it in a "re-approved for quality" format.

Then move-on to the next episode. If it sucks so bad that it's not really worth watching or has less than a few minutes of decent stuff, then cut the whole damned thing, effectively deciding "this isn't up to the high standard we want." If the re-editing staff feels that there is more than one episode that needs VERY heavy editing for quality BUT still has some savable content, then they might figure-out a way to merge them together. The end result would be something like a Season One box set that has half (or less) the original running time, yet still guide new (and old) through the events that DEFINE The Next Generation as a worthwhile series.

Naturally, some seasons would be better than others, and have more footage. But it's more than "pick and choose the best," in comparison; it's more like "how can someone who doesn't want to enact (again, as thirdkind said it here) "a level of obsessive fanboy nerdism" still get a full and developed experience of the various Star Trek universes.

<< Maybe I should just stop bitching and do it myself, but I have to admit, I don't have any of the seasons of anything on DVD. Otherwise, I suppose it would be worth a shot! >>

 

[Lagduf]

I think that the reason for not allowing the Klingons or Romulans (yet) is a technical one...they already have to cram in all of the different Federation classes, so to try and get the different Klingon/Romulan ships would be tough. Plus, playing as a Klingon would be SO different than playing as a human, they might actually need to make some serious changes to the way that the game is approached.

I think you can play as any race within the Federation though. I saw a preview that had a "build your own alien" engine. I'd like to play as an Andorian, personally.

I think you're probably right. I think if they wanted to include different races it would be like playing a completely different game, which sounds like a great idea in my book. Probably wait for an expansion or something.

I wanted to play as Klingon in the Federation

 

[IsamuBlue]

Really enjoyed TNG, DS9, and Voyager. Didn't care for TOS or Enterprise.

Just my two cents...

 

[Zero Satori]

Really enjoyed TNG, DS9, and Voyager. Didn't care for TOS or Enterprise. Just my two cents...

It's more like one cent if you don't even put-out the effort to describe ~why~ you "enjoyed"/"Didn't care for" certain serieses. That being said, I personally would be interested in hearing why you didn't like Enterprise or The Original Series, because I too felt that way for a long time, but once I started liking one, I realised I liked the other, too. There's a greater sense of dependency upon the acting and story (I believe) in these series, rather than a viewer's connection with the characters or an epic timeline. The Next Generation always struck me as being hard to get-into at-times, despite its deserved position as one of the best eras of the franchise, and Enterprise and TOS were different from that.

That being said, for the sake of discussion, here's my ordered list of favourite Star Trek items:

1) Enterprise
I love the characters, I love the acting. I like that there's more of a military feel to it and the adventurousness of an early era. (Let the flames begin!)
2) The Original Cast Motion Picture Series
There's no beating a collaboration of experienced character actors, passionate hand-selected writers, and incredible budgets. Put those all together and Star Trek gets treated like the societal icon it truly is.
3) The Next Generation
Even I'm shocked that it's this low on the list, but the show is overall an incredible experience of both variety and continued, epic adventures and recurring characters. It gets pulled-down by being rather dry and hard-to-approach at times.
4) The Original Series
From what I've seen, it's a place where traditional television of talented actors and pull-out-all-the-stops writers come together to create a solid SF experience. The cheesiness is generally a non-factor, but when it's bad...it's bad enough to look away even from a non-fan's perspective.
5) Deep Space 9
I actually just put this here to make an even five-point list. It's a good show that did some interesting stuff but strikes me as rather experimental and so character-driven that the SF adventure of the franchise which I love is frequently forgotten.

 

[Lagduf]

The sex appeal thing is played up far too hard in both Voyager with 7 of 9 and in Enterprise with the Vulcan chick.

You could say they tried to do that in TNG with Diana Troy but I don't buy it. I like when she finally started to where a Uniform instead of that lame ass counselor one piece shit she always wore.

 

[J. Max]

The sex appeal thing is played up far too hard in both Voyager with 7 of 9 and in Enterprise with the Vulcan chick.

You could say they tried to do that in TNG with Diana Troy but I don't buy it. I like when she finally started to where a Uniform instead of that lame ass counselor one piece shit she always wore.

It didn't help that Jeri Ryan was banging Brandon Braga at the time Voyager was on which is why she was so heavily featured...every plot of the last three seasons of Voyager started to revolve around her, but the characters on that show were so weak that it didn't matter that much. Show sucked anyway. Too much time travel too.

And Enterprise...that was just a bad show. From what I understand, UPN wanted more sex on that show which was the reason for everyone having sex with everyone else...

 

[aria]

Rewatched the new movie, still love it. I hope the next has Klingons.

I still watch TNG repeats DVRed off of SciFi.

 

[Lagduf]

DS9 is still Garbage, HOLLA!

BUMP

Star Trek Fleet Captains

-This newly released title appears to be the definitive Star Trek board game. Fully licensed it features characters and ships from across the spectrum of Trek and allows you to mix and match characters from past, present, and future. In selecting what characters you want to use you also get to select your own play style: will you focus on combat or exploration and the completing of missions? Currently the game only features the Federation and Klingons but the modular nature of the game (and that fact that it is from Wizkids) necessarily dictates it will have expansions.

I don't have this game yet but it's my next board game purchase for sure. The game is price with a $100 MSRP, however, if you buy it online you can get a discount in the neighborhood of 30%

BGG Page on Fleet Captains - Take a look for more information.

Here is a video review:

 

[Lagduf]

Star Trek: The Adventure Game
- Classic Federation vs. Klingon action. This game sees you as either the Klingon or Federation trying to sway the planets of this sector of space to your side. It involves subterfuge, combat, and exploration all with a nice story telling flare. It's a 2 player game. From 1985 but can be bought new for $30. I will be purchasing this.

Star Fleet: Battle Force

- Beer and Pretzels Star Trek game featuring direct combat. It's card game, you play ships and attacks and try to kill your opponent who does the same against you. Cheap enough, and light enough in complexity to warrant a purchase by any Star Trek fan. Video of components and explanation of the game below:

 

[NeoSneth]

I played Star Trek Captains a few times at GenCon. Feels like star trek, that's for sure. I'm not sure if it was any fun though. If TOS is fresh in your memory, it can be a lot of fun.

Fleet Captains is pretty amazing. I would like to get into it, but I just dont have enough time.

 

[Lagduf]

Star Trek Captains?

 

[Marek]

So i'm not much of a Trekkie at all, but this thread is aptly timed.

I have a couple friends who are all about Starship Enterprise, the series.

Is it good, or shit?

 

[Lagduf]

I didn't care for Enterprise. I wouldn't call it "shit" though.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

I've said it once and I'll say it again. As far as a show with the best writing, characters and plotting goes, Deep Space Nine is the best Trek show. Period. Everyone loves Next Generation, but there are whole seasons that really stink. I would concede that at its best, TNG is better than DS9, but DS9 was consistently awesome for years, once it hit its stride (which was earlier than people give it credit for).

I always thought Enterprise got an unfair shake. It was really hit and miss, and when it missed, holy fuck did it miss. And the finale was an abomination... But some of those episodes were pretty good. I wish they'd gotten the full 7 seasons. I think it was started to go somewhere in the fourth season. The third was decent, too.

Voyager was awful. Awful, awful, awful. Everything about it was crap. The new aliens they made up? Crap. The characters? Crap. That whole Borg feud thing? Oh yeah, let's ruin that enemy completely. What a bunch of crap.

The worst thing, though -- the absolute worst thing to have the name 'Trek' on it? Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Peeeeeeee-yeeeew!!

 

[SouthtownKid]

In the vein of things that have been said before and will no doubt be said again, DS9 may have good writing, good characters, and whatever else, but it's not Star Trek. There is a reason the creator of Star Trek shot the idea down.

 

[rarehero]

Rewatched the new movie, still love it. I hope the next has Klingons.

Yea, I've been watching it today again too.
I really can't wait for a new ST movie.
Just not enough happening with the franchise now.
A heavy percentage of shows on tv now are police, crime, law related.
We need some more sci fi.

Also, I've always been a fan of DS9.
I know it doesn't fall into the whole adventure around the universe mantra
that was secondary to Roddenberry's social commentary overtones,
but it had good characters, the outpost idea of protecting the worm hole was great, and odo.
To me, he was the series' data character, the who idea of a shapeshifting race seemed pretty cool to me at the time.

 

[Lagduf]

Currently the only Star Trek game I own:

Federation Commander

This is essentially a Star Trek wargame. It does not take in to account the 3rd dimension so it plays out like a naval combat wargame. It's quite fine. Federation Commander is a streamlining of the earlier Starfleet Battles which is quite rules heavy and more in depth. Starfleet Battles is more akin to a simulation while Federation Commander is a game. That said, the complexity might seem overwhelming to someone who has only played Monopoly but really if you stick with basic ships and dont start adding expansion content the game is quite easy to come to grips with.

What I like about this game is that you get these cool dry erase boards showing diagrams of your ship. Using dry erase pens you can allocate damage, shift which sections of your shields are getting more power, etc. Really makes you feel like you are in control of your ship. Especially once you start to take damage and only have so many resources to repair your ship each turn.

The game features simultaneous movement, with faster ships moving first, of course. There are lots of classic trekky weapons, phasers, torpedoes, disrupters, etc.

What do you do in this game? Basically try to blow the other player's ships up. So it's a classic fleet engagement type scenario. Here is a video of the components:

In the vein of things that have been said before and will no doubt be said again, DS9 may have good writing, good characters, and whatever else, but it's not Star Trek. There is a reason the creator of Star Trek shot the idea down.

Love ya

 

[Lagduf]

Anyone have any trek memorabilia they want to share with us? Trek Game collection?

 

[HeartlessNinny]

In the vein of things that have been said before and will no doubt be said again, DS9 may have good writing, good characters, and whatever else, but it's not Star Trek. There is a reason the creator of Star Trek shot the idea down.

Why is that relevant in any way? So some dude didn't like it, and didn't think it fit his vision? So what.

I don't need Stan Lee's blessing to enjoy a Spider-Man story. Same thing here. I don't understand why Roddenberry's opinions matter one whit when it comes to what makes a good show or not.

Besides, he died before they made it. For all we know he would have liked the final product. It's all speculative.

 

[SouthtownKid]

Why is that relevant in any way? So some dude didn't like it, and didn't think it fit his vision? So what.

I don't need Stan Lee's blessing to enjoy a Spider-Man story. Same thing here. I don't understand why Roddenberry's opinions matter one whit when it comes to what makes a good show or not.

Besides, he died before they made it. For all we know he would have liked the final product. It's all speculative.

What's not speculative is what Roddenberry said he created Star Trek to represent, and that DS9 runs directly counter to it. That's why the hacks waited until he was dead before they trotted the rejected concept back out. Why do you have to take everything in every thread as a personal assault? I'm not telling you what you can or should like.


And why is it relevant? Because some people respect and enjoy creators' intentions. No one says you have to, but some do. If someone created a Calvin & Hobbes: Deep Space Nine that ran completely counter to the tone and message of the original Calvin & Hobbes, AND Bill Watterson said he hated the idea, did whatever he could to block it, and the newspaper syndicate waited until he was dead and then released it anyway, that would be enough for me not to have much interest in it, regardless of execution.

 

[BobbyPeru]

Calvin & Hobbes: Deep Space Nine

Ooh, sounds like fun!

 

[Lagduf]

Let's keep the legitimacy of DS9 arguments to a different thread, thanks. State your opinion on it, fine. We don't need to go back and forth as no one is going to change their mind.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

Why do you have to take everything in every thread as a personal assault?

Really. You're the dude who picks a fight with anyone over anything and argues endlessly for pages and pages, often over the tiniest and most insignificant of minutia, and I'm the one who takes it personally? Okay dude.

At first I thought the whole "STK is an angry old man" thing was just a joke. Now I wonder if you collect stray balls that land on your front lawn.

 

[Lagduf]

Star Trek is like, about, peace and happiness bros.