Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force

Frequently there are two or more team members with you (including familiar faces like Seven of Nine), which lets missions play out more like episodes from the series than a solo firefight that just happens to take place in a Star Trek setting. Other team members will disable security fields, analyze data, converse with you as the mission progresses, and add some much-needed firepower in the tough battle sequences. Elite Force uses the Quake III engine to good effect, serving up some beautiful environments, colorful special effects, and smooth frame rates. Our only gripe is that all the missions take place inside various spacecraft, but the architecture used by each race is unique so that it isn't too repetitive.

Elite Force stays very true to the source material, as we discovered the first time we beamed into a Borg cube and watched the inhabitants march by as if we weren't there. We shot a passing Borg to see what would happen, and the massive environment sprung to life as the threat was detected and dozens of angry Borg converged on our position. The cast of the TV series provided the voices for their characters in the game, and the artists painstakingly modeled the interior of Voyager. It all lends an authentic flair to this fun game that belongs in the collection of any Star Trek fan. --T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

• Almost like participating in an episode of the show
• Better than average voice acting
• Authentic environments, visuals, and sounds add to the experience

• Somewhat boring weapons
• Plot-driven story line forces linear mission design