Star Trek: Resurgence presents, basically, an episode of the sci-fi present in interactive, visible novel type.
The place Starfleet fight sims deal with phaser battles and starship technique, and sometimes wrestle to seize the numerous sides of the present past the iconography, Dramatic Labs threads life’s ethical quandaries, familial and political themes, and the sheer surprise of the universe all through this sport. Plus all of the “Shields up, purple alert!” and phaser hearth you’d count on from an ordinary episode of ’90s Trek.
Initially launched in 2023 on PC and non-Change consoles, the dev crew of Telltale veterans makes use of a two-protagonist narrative to ship acquainted (and, for followers, thrilling) starship actions aboard the USS Resolute. First Officer Jara Rydek and Petty Officer Carter Diaz offer you views spanning the ranks, combining day-to-day engineering and office shenanigans with investigation, political intrigue, and stress on the prime, till the 2 characters finally meet and their tales converge.
It is a good strategy to separate these two strands with out contriving a single character to hold the narrative, resolve diplomatic crises, counsel colleagues, beam down on away missions, scan anomalies, administer medical assist, and repair the warp core. The crew continues to be the star right here, regardless of this being a Rydek/Diaz episode.
And it is a first rate episode, too; one which nails the present’s mise-en-scène and writing model. Break up into chapters, the titles (all introduced in Crillee Italic, naturally) riff on outdated episode names or notable traces from the franchise. We’re within the Decrease Decks period, timeline followers; so, post-Nemesis, round a decade after TNG’s TV run ended, with Riker on the market on the Titan and everybody carrying the late-season DS9/First Contact uniforms. The Resolute is not the glowing new flagship, although, so there’s loads of outdated 2360s LCARS colouring and design language from the sooner reveals (plus some beautiful Kind 6 shuttles) blended in with the sleeker, metallic sheens of the films.
It is on to this freshly refitted science vessel that Rydek arrives following an incident that tarnished not simply the ship’s hull however her new CO’s popularity. Anxious to rehabilitate his profession, Captain Solano wants his subsequent mission to succeed at any value. There’s stress amongst his crew, too, as others had been eyeing Rydek’s publish.
Once more, that is basically an interactive novel. Past a few moments the place you may push the left stick ahead to stroll alongside a prescribed path, you might have zero direct management of your character; every atmosphere presents static photographs with interactable icons to analyze, every initiating a brief scene. Dialogue choices affect your relationships — the traditional Telltale ‘X will do not forget that’ branching narrative setup — and the pause menu incorporates a abstract of every character’s present opinion of you.
Past conversations, you get to function tools – reordering isolinear chips, modulating provider beams, flipping open tricorders and scanning, that form of factor. On a controller, you will be rotating sticks and pushing between icons, whereas in handheld mode the touchscreen has you pushing sliders and hitting prompts. It is easy stuff, however effectively carried out.
Each ‘puzzle’ is broadly comparable (transfer the tricorder round and scan throughout bands to seek out three substances, job carried out), however they’re brisk and pleasantly Trek-y, with all the appropriate terminology and sound results. Elsewhere within the audio division, though you aren’t getting any of the reveals’ recognisable, roaring themes, the rating does a good job of approximating the mid-’90s auditory atmosphere of DS9 or Voyager.
Resurgence is certainly a finances manufacturing. The video high quality varies between environments, however the Unreal Engine-powered visuals maintain up surprisingly effectively on Change, though it might use an optimisation move on Change 2, the place issues seemed slightly rougher to my eye. There’s some sleight of hand happening with prerendered video blended in with rendered scenes (at the very least that is what it looks like) and the picture is usually a little smooth, the video slightly uneven, with awkward pauses between deciding on an motion and awaiting the consequence. Nevertheless it all nearly hangs collectively, whether or not you are enjoying docked or handheld.
On the subject of issues that may elevate a Vulcan’s eyebrow, Fast-Time Occasions really feel as clunky and pointless as ever right here. Elsewhere, a personality appeared at their station lacking some very important headwear earlier than it magically materialised a few photographs later. One other time, because the digicam whip-panned across the bridge, I swear I glimpsed a Bolian I might beforehand dismissed, too.
There’s slightly jank across the edges, then – once more, this is not the flagship. All that stated, Dramatic Labs spent its assets in the appropriate locations, 100%. No, you’ll be able to’t management your characters straight, however that restriction offers the devs whole management over the digicam and almost each scene and atmosphere feels like one thing that might have been shot on a Paramount soundstage within the Berman period (together with a visit to ‘Planet Hell’), with good depth of subject and powerful course grounding the story effectively sufficient that you aren’t getting hung up on minor tech hiccups or uncanny glide-walks.
The facial animation and voice work are glorious, too, conveying feelings precisely within the reveals’ Shakespearean model, with writing high quality to match. Carter’s received easygoing Geordi vibes which work effectively towards Jara’s extra sober, commanding presence, however each are likeable with the actors delivering nice performances. It is a testomony to the writers and performers that Spock and Riker do not feel shoehorned in for the followers, and you would be hard-pressed to inform Piotr Michael’s glorious rendition from Nimoy himself. It is all very effectively carried out.
Some crewmembers are extra prickly than you’d count on on a Starfleet vessel, however I typically warmed to them – all besides one, who supplied solely horrible takes and the worst suggestions. Maybe different characters go into full-on sulks once you shut them down repeatedly, Worf-style, and this one did undergo personally as a result of a ‘wants of the numerous’ choice I made. In one other playthrough, if I channelled my Mirror Universe self and made totally different selections, maybe we could possibly be greatest buds.
Past that one officer, although, one of the enticing components of Trek is effectively represented right here: the competence porn of seeing skilled, clever individuals doing jobs they get pleasure from, and effectively.
It has been some time since I performed Mass Impact, however the steadiness right here between diplomacy, your personal ethical integrity, and the fact of the scenario put me in that state of mind. By tapping right into a story with callbacks to a Season One TNG episode, you get slightly TOS flavour, too: capricious godlike creatures, power crystals, and a few nice, ’60s-style hokum. For dyed-in-the-wool Trekkies, it is exhilarating, though the ending — at the very least my ending — left a major plot thread hanging in a approach which felt unsatisfying.
Nonetheless, the “seven hours or extra” earlier than the credit rolled have been solidly participating. Resurgence does not serve up dry starship useful resource administration or frontier technique – it is all in regards to the advanced choice making and ethical quandaries of precise Star Trek, plus the occasional thrill of claiming “On display screen” or “Have interaction” or “Energise”. It is correct sufficient with terminology throughout the board to fulfill anybody who is aware of photons from part inducers, and simply scanning crap together with your tricorder is a thrill. It places you in an episode, dwelling that dream of being a hyper-competent Starfleet officer, working with various, intelligent, empathetic individuals in the direction of the higher good. And looking out fetching in a jumpsuit whilst you’re at it.
So, as episodes go, it is a good ‘un. Not a Better of Each Worlds — not one thing you are going to dig out the Blurays for particularly — however a stable mid-Season Three-er that is completely value a (re)watch.
Conclusion
Star Trek: Resurgence is a modest enterprise, however Dramatic Labs did a stellar job of capturing the qualities of the present, particularly its ’90s period, with all of the strengths and weaknesses thereof. As with the present, technically, it’s possible you’ll discover some tough edges, however the creators have labored wonders with their assets. The visible novel stylings right here swimsuit the fabric, and it is received it the place it counts, with glorious writing and performances throughout the board.
Non-Trek followers will not get half as a lot out of it, and also you is probably not tempted to return for a second playthrough. But when the present crop of Trek reveals is not fairly scratching your itch, Resurgence does a terrific job of transporting you again a technology.
