Nerds That Geek Gaming Flashback - 'Star Trek: Borg'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

There was a time in the video game world, the 1990’s to be specific, where it seemed that full motion video was going to become a true staple of the industry. Everywhere you looked, gaming companies were doing their part to produce an interactive experience that featured actors and sets in an effort to blend the wonder of cinema with gaming and well, despite the best efforts of the industry to make this the norm, it never quite caught on, and there’s good reason for that.
 
Because unfortunately, the allure of creating and cashing in on an ‘interactive movie’ mattered more than the quality of the product and the market quickly found itself flooded with games that featured subpar and grainy video, laughable acting and writing and outright awful gameplay. Eventually, this kind of quality led to the end of the Interactive Movie, and the market shifted to telling a better story with better graphics. But, there were some gems to come out this full motion video gold rush and one that stood out as one of the best in my eyes, was Star Trek: Borg.
 
Now the plot of this particular game, plunked you in the shoes of a Starfleet Cadet named Furlong whose father died fighting the Borg at the Battle of Wolf 359 and with the Borg returning to Federation space, he wants nothing more than to exact revenge on the species that robbed him of a relationship with his father by participating in this new battle. But, the young Cadet is denied that opportunity and ordered to a Starbase and before he leaves he encounters the enigmatic Q, who offers Furlong a chance to go back in time and save his father and his ship, the U.S.S. Righteous, from being destroyed on that fateful day…
 
So really, what made this particular adventure so compelling and quite frankly so good, is the sheer fact that the production values of this game are outright top notch. They used sets and props from various Star Trek shows, and uniforms as well, grounding the story properly in the Trek universe and the wonder of that, doesn’t end there. Because John de Lancie reprises his role as Q and he plays the character with a magical charm that only he can provide and his appearance in this game is the true highlight since John is just an utter delight to watch since he offers some incredible comic relief and it’s just a joy to interact with him as the game progresses.
 
As an added bonus, the game is also incredibly fun to play. The story is vast and sprawling and it’s one of the rare games out there where you are actually rewarded for making mistakes, in fact you have to goof in order to finish it and that’s just magnificent. Sadly, the ancient code of the game means that it’s pretty much unplayable in the modern era. But, it’s cinematic quality and wonderful performances allows for it play out like a movie, and there are plenty of playthroughs to find online via YouTube. So, if you’re into Trek and missed this one, or you want to see what Interactive Movies should have looked like back in the 1990’s. Check this one out, it’s a fun little ride to say the least.

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