If there’s one thing I’ve learned through the years, it’s that, you never quite know how things are going to turn out. And that’s a lesson I’ve come to realize applies to every aspect of my life, including creative writing and gaming quite frankly. Because with video games, you really don’t know whether or not you’re going to enjoy a particular title until you dive into it and see if it meets your needs and it’s similar with writing, since sometimes you don’t know how a particular story is going to be received, especially when it’s something you’ve never done before as a writer and all of this applies to my ramblings on this fine Friday for one reason and one reason alone; because of how far this blog has come.
 
You see, I don’t open up all that much on the digital page, and anything personal I pour into my creative writing is done in crafty and subtle fashion and well, I’ve set thrusters on full when it comes to geeking out here in The Admiral’s Log and I didn’t know how that was going to go. But this particular nerdy venture has been well received, and I’ve been blown away by said reception and the positive feedback that’s been sent my way when it comes to my geeky ramblings, to the point where I need to take a moment and express my gratitude to each and every one of you out there for taking the time to visit this blog and read whatever I’ve poured onto the page, I really do appreciate it from the bottom of my heart.
 
But, before this gets too mushy, it’s best we return to the task at hand, talking ‘bout that Star Trek Online, which ironically is a game I wasn’t 100% sure I was going to love as much as I do since only a handful of Trek themed games have ever blown me away. But, two years after I first logged on, I’ve experienced wonders, all of them chronicled here, and I’ve come to realize that I’ve actually arrived at quite the crossroads in STO. For you see, there’s no missions left to go on, no multiplayer adventures left to explore. In this moment, I’ve done just about everything one can do in this game, which means there are going to have to be some changes when it comes to this blog in 2019.
 
Now, I am fully aware of how that sounds like an ominous farewell, but it’s not. Because as I was warping around the galaxy to finish an Endeavor Mission and my usual patrol, it dawned on me that there is a great opportunity sitting before me now in that…I can create my own story from here on out. Sure, there will be new ‘Age of Discovery’ missions arriving in a month or two, and I’m sure new seasons awaiting us down the line. But in the here and the now, while I wait for those things to drop into the game, I can do something I’ve never done before and straight up explore the galaxy at my own pace and do exactly what James T. Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise did two centuries ago and venture to strange new worlds.
 
If anything, it would be a waste to simply wait for new missions when the creators of this game took the time to literally build the entire galaxy in 2410 and it should be incredible to see what wonders await out there, which brings me to the slight changes that will come to this blog in 2019, in that, I’ll be posting a little less frequently in the new year. Because in order for me to tell a brand-new story, I need a little bit of time to live the adventure. However, I can promise that it won’t be that long of a wait, because already, I’m ready and raring to go when it comes to this new adventure, and since Trek is my thing, I’ll need to share the majesty of said adventures with all of you, as soon as possible.
 
So, on that note, it’s best that I sign off, for the Galactica has been re-stocked and replenished with plenty of supplies and quantum torpedoes for our long and winding journey and she’s all set to head out into the void. And while I’m on mini-hiatus, if you see the Galactica out there, don’t hesitate to say hello. For I have a funny feeling that going into territory that I’ve merely flown by at the edge of the galaxy will be a lonesome experience, so a howdy will always be welcome. Either way, thank you again for making this blog a blast to write and for taking the time to join me on my nerdy trek through the stars, and I hope all of you have a Happy New Year, and I’ll see you out there. Until next time.

About this time last year in Star Trek Online, my nerdy plate was pretty full. I was working hard to get the Galactica-B up to snuff, there were some new patrols I wanted to try out and there were also some new missions in my queue that I needed to get to, and while this is a short list of first world problems to say the least, from a gamer’s standpoint, it did force me to put a few things on the backburner in the game, like taking the time to enjoy a little bit of fan service from The Next Generation era since the holiday season is all about the legendary and omnipotent being, Q.
 
Because this time of year features a special sub section of missions in the game and all of them exist because of the titular Q, who just so happens to pop up at Earth Space Dock to see if you are brave enough or crazy enough (all a matter of perspective I suppose) to take on his Winter Wonderland and well, seeing as to how I was tied up last year, I made a vow that come this year, I was going to make the time to see what this special event was all about and since I had a little time on my hands this past week, I made good on my personal promise and boy, am I glad I stopped by Q’s throne, because once I asked him to whisk me away to this special place, I was privy to some incredible sights. 
 
For his Winter Wonderland is exactly as advertised, since it’s a snow covered world straight out of our favorite holiday stories, complete with a massive and shimmering ice-like gazebo for everyone to congregate within and once you venture past that point, you’re surrounded by snow and snowmen and fellow players prancing through these wintery delights and at first glance, this world seems like the anthesis for everything that Q stands for since he loves mischief and mayhem and well, it doesn’t take long for the player to understand that everything twisted that this being loves is present here, you just have to step away from the sight-seeing to dig into it.   
 
For there are interesting activities abound in this place, like all kinds of races and competitions and me personally, I’m not big on racing games or racing events in games, so I flat out skipped those. Instead, I felt the need to go ice fishing, Klingon style and that…was pretty wild in its own right. Because these proud warriors don’t cut a hole in the ice via a shanty and wait for the fish to arrive. You hunt that sucker down with a hand gauntlet and pull that fish right out of the water and if that’s not wild enough for you, well, once you’ve put enough fish in a giant community coffer you have to fight off a giant gummi monster and well, that’s about as Q as it gets to be honest and he wasn’t quite done with keeping this activity filled wonderland in an abstract place.
 
Because Q also has his own nightmarish version of the Krampus for you to face and that, well that was just plain fun as I took the time to chase them off and run and hide as necessary and while this part of the game may not be as in depth and expansive as the galaxy itself, this is still quite the lovely little break from the everyday rigmarole of the 25th Century. Because anything goes in this Winter Wonderland, but I fully understand why it’s a limited event. For firing snowball guns and racing about in the cold can only go so far, but all of that aside, I won’t lie, it was a tad intimidating to stand before a powerful being that challenged Captain Jean-Luc Picard on a regular basis and even brought the Borg to Federation space.
 
But in the end, this was just plain fun, and I’m glad it’s present in the game. However, all fun aside, there are still systems out there needing help and patrols to complete, so now that this adventure is out of the way, it’s back to the stars, and keeping the peace… 

​I suppose the time has come for a gamer-esque confession in that…I’m really not that big of a fan of the multiplayer format. I know, I know, it’s the future of gaming, it can be an enthralling experience and all that and I should try it with the right game, but the fact of the matter is…I have tried it, and it’s just not for me. I’m a story guy, plain and simple, and I tend to gravitate toward games that allow for me to enjoy an enriching tale at my own pace and that’s one reason why I’ve able to enjoy Star Trek Online for as long as I have, because while it does feature some important multiplayer elements, it’s not a requirement to enjoy the game. 
 
Yet, whether I like it or not, there are times when it is better that I join a temporary fleet filled with people unfamiliar to me in order to finish an Endeavor Mission in this game, since PVE events are part of that mission lineup and hey, if I want my energy credits and dilithium, it’s either suck it up or go on patrols, my choice. And in all honesty, some of these events are pretty entertaining, like taking on the Crystalline Entity in combat because that particular mission is actually pretty epic in nature since you’re duking it out with one of Star Trek’s most powerful alien villains, and the challenge posed here is a tough once since this creature doesn’t go down easy, and it often brings friends to the party.
 
However, as time rolls on, these kinds of missions are beginning to appear more in the game, and well, I won’t lie, I was a touch reticent to begin the new Task Force Operations missions that came with the ‘Age of Discovery’ upgrade simply due to the fact that I hadn’t a clue what to expect from these particular operations. Because Task Force meant fleet work, and I was uncertain as to whether or not I’d be flying alongside A.I. or people and if it was the latter, would I need to go pure multiplayer here and bust out my microphone and coordinate with others, or would it be closer to a PVE event where there tends to be a little more freedom?
 
Bottom line is, I was curious, in part because this was something different being introduced into the game, especially when one considers that these missions are actually part of the story flow now and well, it meant there was only one way to find out what they were all about; suck it up and play one and as it turns out, it’s a lot like PVE and they’re epic missions in their own right. Because things can get pretty intense here, to the point where the combat present can humble a player. Because if you decide to just go off on your own and do whatever, there’s a fair chance you’ll run into a massive flotilla of capital ships, and endure quite the butt-whippin’, a lesson I learned the hard way in the Azure Nebula Rescue TFO, pictured above. 
 
Which means that some semblance of teamwork is paramount to these assignments and when you hang with your impromptu fleet, wonders occur and the bad guys get their just desserts and really the biggest lesson I learned when taking part in these missions, is that they do in fact provide a perfect blend for a player like me. For while I am in a multiplayer match, there’s just enough individuality to keep me happy since Task Force Operations doesn’t feature grand and sweeping missions that last for hours on end, a big reason as to why I don’t take part in multiplayer to begin with since I simply don’t have the time in my day to go on those kind of missions, but I digress, back to the matter at hand, why I’m good with TFO.
 
Because it also gives me combat freedom as well, allowing for me to choose my targets and fight them the way I like to and really when all is said and done, I have to admit that these combat missions are quite addicting in their own right. They’re new, they’re fun and I’m enjoying them to say the least. Will they ever turn me on to multiplayer? Time will tell, but if I had to guess, likely not. I really do enjoy the solitude of flying my own ship and doing my own thing, but it is nice to know that every once in a while, I can escape the void of space and hang out with some fine people and slap some bad guys around with a quantum torpedo or six… 

While we love our favorite franchises through and through, and support them as often as possible, no one likes to acknowledge the fact that eventually, they run out of steam and the quality that we often find in these wonderful tales eventually begins to decline and there are always various reasons as to why this happens. Top tier talent associated with the franchise sometimes begin to desire more in their careers and step away from the saga, changing the narrative and the design of the story and in the computer game world, the lightning quick evolution of technology and the ever-evolving tastes of the industry can help make a franchise irrelevant.
 
But sometimes, those issues and a lack of fresh ideas can contribute to the end and I would venture to say that all of those factors came into play with the sixth and final entry in the Space Quest series, Space Quest VI: Roger Wilco in The Spinal Frontier. For this particular chapter in the Wilco saga is in fact the weakest in the franchise and well, that’s a down right shame because this adventure actually had some serious potential. After all, it featured top-notch graphics and beautiful and…moist locations for Roger to visit in this tale, but something simply fell flat here, leaving the game to feel pretty by the numbers, thanks in large part to its slow pacing.
 
For the games that came before this one, kept the story rolling by way of shorter scenes and sequences on other worlds and by making use of whip smart scripts that engrossed and entranced the audience. But here, the story just drags on and it takes far too long to get to the next plot point and that problem is extended into the all-important third act where Roger is transported into another’s person’s body. Because a sequence that should have been fun and silly takes forever to slog through, which brings me to the next major issue with this game, its hit or miss humor.
 
Because the normally on point humor wasn’t quite as sharp as it used to be, and the lampoons and gags that were once handled with subtlety were a bit more ham fisted here and there were other problems hovering over this game as well, to me the biggest one is that this game arrived upon the market a little too late. For at this point in the time the industry was starting its shift toward console gaming and full motion video becoming the next great thing and the fact that this game didn’t offer anything incredibly unique outside of another adventure with Roger Wilco likely alienated it in a sea of next generation games. 
 
However, while it seems as though I’m truly ripping into this one, I do want to point out that there are some genuinely delightful moments to be found in this game. Virtually any interaction with Captain Kielbasa is just a hoot and some of the jokes really do work and leave you in stitches. It’s just obvious that the magic for this series had finally run out, and it’s time had come to a close and well, while it’s not a perfect send off for Roger Wilco, it’s a serviceable one and while this may be the weakest link in a wonderful series, it’s one worth playing out of tribute for our favorite janitor and of course, if that’s not enough to satisfy, one can always bask in the fact that this chapter is part of a unique series that found a way to make science fiction and comedy blend together seamlessly, and one that managed to make a galactic hero out of an everyday janitor.

There’s no greater crime in a franchise, than when the powers that be try their hardest to outdo perfection, and we’ve seen it happen time and time again, where a film franchise, or a book series, or a game series will try and provide us with a sequel that’s bigger and badder than the story that flat out reached the top of the mountain and that often ends with mixed or disastrous results. And the reality of the matter is, fans don’t want creative minds to one-up the last entry in the series, they simply want that high quality maintained.
 
Which is why I am such a fan of the next entry in the Space Quest series. Because rather than try and top the wonder and majesty of Space Quest IV, the goal here was to provide the fans with something equal to that juggernaut chapter in this series and Space Quest V: Roger Wilco – The Next Mutation accomplishes such a feat by changing things up when it comes to the overall design of the franchise since this game abandons a vast majority of anything related to Sludge Vohaul and Roger’s fight to keep that monster from overtaking the galaxy and that allows for the game to explore a brand new storyline, one involving Roger’s new role as an officer in StarCon.
 
Yes, that’s right, Roger Wilco grows up in this story and joins StarCon and even manages to become a Captain in the fleet, thanks to some auspicious circumstances and that allows for him to boldly go to new places in the universe to pick up trash because there’s no way this one was going to abandon the janitor gag, I mean come on, his ship is named the SCS Eureka. But this change in design does allow for a big-time plot to come into play, one that puts Roger and his crew squarely in the ever-tough position of saving the galaxy and thanks to the top-notch graphics, we go to some supremely cool places in this one and it really is quite the ride storytelling wise.
 
But another reason I’m such a fan of this game, is due to the fact that this one also changes up how the game handles its comedic moments. For in the past, the story was a grand amalgamation of send ups of the genre, poking fun at multiple franchises at the same time if possible. But in this game, it’s all about lampooning Star Trek and this game pulls that off in magnificent fashion. Because there are Trek references abound in this one, and heck, even the whole notion of Roger becoming a captain fits that mold, but it’s all handled in lighthearted and fun fashion, as the series is wont to do and really, it gets major props for locking onto something as big as Trek and handling its satire of it with grace.
 
If anything, this is my personal favorite when it comes to this storied saga, just because I’m a huge fan of the franchise it pays tribute to, and a huge fan of the Space Quest saga as is, making this story the perfect blend for me. But all of that aside, this really is a fine entry in the franchise as well, since the story is epic and fun, but sadly, this did signal the beginning of the end for this storied franchise. For only one of the Two Guys from Andromeda worked upon this game and the industry was changing and shifting away from adventure games and this was really the last time the saga would live up to its expectations, so it’s fitting that one of its final entries just so happened to be of the upmost quality…

It’s funny how sometimes, a casual conversation will make you realize exactly what you have in front of you and the other day, that happened to me when I was playing Star Trek Online to prepare this blog for all of you fine folks. For while I was in the 25th Century, meandering through Earth Space Dock and eventually uncovering the fact that the memorial to those Trek had lost actually features a vast list of names, a conversation with my Biffle Shae, wherein I used the word ‘immersive’ to describe how impressed I was with the detail in the game, led me to realize just exactly what I truly have at my fingertips when it comes to this all-important (at least to me) game.
 
Because the fact of the matter is, I have the entire Star Trek franchise within reach in this game at a moment’s notice. It’s doesn’t matter what era, or what story was told, somehow, it’s in here by way of locations and missions and uniforms, you name it. And really, that’s precisely why I cannot get enough of this game, for at any given moment I can venture out and enjoy whatever era tickles my fancy and it just so happens that before I hit that realization, I was enjoying the very thing I’m celebrating in this blog, since I was playing through the ‘Agents of Yesterday’ story arc and taking part in brand new missions set in the 23rd Century.
 
Which means, it was time for another new character and another new ship in order to properly enjoy this pastel heavy era and in keeping with my new way of naming vessels, since I am the son and the brother of Navy Men, I felt it was high time to pay tribute to my father in the game, and I named my new craft the U.S.S. Camden (NCC-1702) after the second ship he served upon and once we got the ol’ girl properly named and crewed it was off to explore 23rd Century space and my goodness, how cool was this? Well, the answer is very cool because I won’t lie, I was downright giddy venturing through this era of Star Trek.
 
After all, The Original Series era was my first real introduction to the franchise, and dad’s old ship received its respective naming rights since hey, he got me into this world in the first place, and it was just magnificent to sail the stars in this era and see all the old tech that once looked futuristic and take part in a grand and sweeping storyline involving time travel, one filled with all kinds of twists and turns that I eventually resolved in the 25th Century by way of my primary character. But while it was neat to fire those noisy phasers and beam down in a shower of glittering gold, I won’t lie, the fan service here is pretty phenomenal and made smile like a goon.
 
Because this set of missions allows for you to interact with some big time Trek names, since you get to hang out and interact with the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 on several occasions, and my little run ins with them included an inspirational chat with Commander Spock (played by the late Leonard Nimoy) and Commander Scott (played by his son Chris Doohan) and countless others and the biggest kicker of all, is that there’s a mission, pictured above, where you get to actually step aboard the Big E’s bridge and that…that was just stunning and humbling and every adjective you can think of to describe the wonder of such a moment and that mission alone, is probably my favorite for a great many obvious reasons.
 
If anything, this part of the game really was a blast to venture through and I am sorry I didn’t do it sooner to get my total geek on. But really, when all is said and done, this past week in playing the game really did allow for me to appreciate the love and care that’s gone into it more, and it’s wonderful to see how all the storylines are woven together and it motivates me further to explore strange new worlds in this game and seek out everything that I can find in the galaxy that relates to the franchise and now that I’m done exploring the past, it’s back to 2410, to dabble in the new Task Force Operations missions and then…well we will see. Until next time.

​There comes a point for every single franchise out there, when it outright reaches perfection. This is where the story is at its finest and the tale that is presented to the audience is one that keeps them talking for ages on end and in 1991, that perfect moment arrived for the Space Quest franchise since the fourth entry in the series, Space Quest IV: Roger Wilco and the Time Rippers provided fans of this franchise everywhere and everyday gamers as well, with a virtually flawless adventure game, one that felt like a Hollywood motion picture. 
 
Much of that is due to the fact that in 1991, new advancements in computer graphics allowed for Sierra On-Line and the Two Guys from Andromeda to put together worlds that few of us had seen in computer gaming and every single place, and time that Roger ventures to in this particular tale is downright breathtaking and they manage to evoke powerful emotions from the player, since I felt a genuine sense of dread and danger while I spent my time with Roger in Space Quest XII: Vohaul’s Revenge II. But while the graphics here are breathtaking and immersive, let’s be totally honest, it’s the story that truly brought this franchise to the next level.
 
Now, that’s not meant to be a knock upon the game’s predecessors, because the trilogy of stories prior to this were indeed fun and fascinating in their own right. But this script, well this one was simply on a whole new level. Because this tale, managed to put together a space opera if you will, one that figured out how to bring Roger’s greatest nemesis back into the fold despite his death and his evil and sweeping plan to travel through time to wipe Roger out is on par with the greatest sci-fi franchises out there and well, this plan leads to one hell of an epic showdown when all is said and done, one that outright takes your breath away and leaves you hungry for more.
 
However, while in many ways it sounds as though the franchise plays it straight in this one by offering up an epic plot line, one grounded in grittiness and darkness, that’s simply not the case. The silly is still strong in this one, and the gags are just as epic as the story. I mean come on, I love the fact that as Roger travels through time, the title banner at the top of the screen changes slightly, reflecting the game/time period you’re in, giving us quite the chuckle when we see Space Quest X: Latex Babes of Estros and well, the trip to the mall there is pretty damn hilarious as well.
 
But in the end however, this is just hands down, the peak of the Space Quest franchise. This one made me laugh the hardest, it offered some fine puzzles for me to solve and well, what matters most, it hooked me from the get-go, thanks to its quality story. I simply had to know every single detail about Vohaul’s plan and how he came back to life and of course, I had to defeat him because you can’t let a twisted monster like that win and this one, well this is one that I revisit often since it offered up so many incredible moments and well, the series wasn’t done with providing us with epic moments just yet since the next game in this saga, was everything I could have hoped for and more…    

​If there’s one thing I’ve come to learn through the years, it’s that a quality story will always leave you hungry for more. These are the kind of stories that motivate you to tell your friends about them every single chance you get in the hopes of getting them to take part in the experience, and they also leave you counting down the minutes until the next chapter in the tale either hits the shelves or the theaters and truth be told in 1990, that’s precisely where my mind was when it comes to the Space Quest series.
 
Because this quirky and magnificent saga was everything a young nerd could ask for, and thankfully, since I didn’t start this series until the summer of 1990, I was able to get my hands on the first three games with ease since they were still readily available in stores. But that sure didn’t make the wait in between playing them any easier. I had to know what was going to happen next and that motivated me to mow a few more lawns that summer to get enough cash to play the third entry in the saga, Space Quest III: The Pirates of Pestulon and well, when all is said and done, this game ended up being well worth the extra summertime work.
 
Because this game, featured a grand and sweeping storyline, one that moved at a break neck pace shortly after Roger Wilco awakened from his suspended animation pod and really what impressed me the most about this tale is that it didn’t follow any particular sequel tropes. Instead of immediately bringing back Sludge Vohaul, the series left Roger lost in space so to speak, without a starship to travel the stars with and in a place, he’s never seen before and this…this was brilliant. It allowed for a sense of wonder and discovery to permeate this tale as we gathered our bearings alongside Roger and for lack of a better phrase, explored strange new and exciting worlds and fascinating places.
 
But what matters most, is that the spirit of adventure and the silliness and fun that were present in the first two entries of this game are brought to a whole new level in Part III. Because with an upgraded graphics engine, we are treated to some wonderful sight gags at Monolith Burger, and the entire sequence on Phleebutt is just as good as it gets when it comes to this series since you’re introduced to some wild characters all while enjoying some top notch Sci-Fi homages and really, everything comes together in the third act when Roger arrives on Pestulon and has to deal with Elmo Pug and his ScumSoft lackeys…
 
If anything, this is really when the series hit its stride, which is by no means an insult to the other two games because they were a blast to play. But this game, it’s something special, it’s really the Two Guys from Andromeda letting loose and seeing what sticks and well, everything works and man, I played this game for hours on end and replayed it I don’t know how many times because it’s just plain fun, it always made me laugh and well, what’s truly amazing is that this chapter was merely an appetizer for things to come. For Roger’s finest hours were about to arrive in a pair of adventures that actually managed to top this one. 

​If there’s one thing that science fiction has taught me through the years, it’s that, every good hero needs a true nemesis. The kind of villain that knows how to get to the hero and rattle them in incredible fashion and challenge the hero and push them in ways they never thought possible. We’ve seen it in Star Trek since Khan was able to get the best of Kirk from time to time and heck, even the always logical and collected Picard had the Borg around to bring him to his proverbial knees.
 
But what matters more for the sake of today’s review, is that the Two Guys from Andromeda (Scotty Murphy and Mark Crowe, the creators of this beloved saga), understood the importance of having this kind of villain in the Space Quest series and rather than draw out the introduction of a powerhouse monster of the course of a few sequels, they dropped a nasty villain right into Roger Wilco’s lap right away since the second entry in this magnificent saga, Space Quest II: Vohaul’s Revenge, saw Roger facing off against the man that would make his life hell on several occasions over the course of the series.
 
Yet, what makes this first encounter between the two of them so incredible, is the sheer fact that it was all handled in epic fashion in this game. For this one picks up shortly after The Sarien Encounter and it doesn’t take long to see our titular hero kidnapped by some mysterious men and accidentally deposited on an alien world and that’s where the fun begins since Roger is forced to use his somewhat dim wits to survive this environment and escape this planet and once he does, we finally get the showdown in question when Roger and Sludge Vohaul, the man responsible for the Sarien incident, face off at last with the fate of Xenon in the balance.
 
However, what’s equally impressive is that the game finds a way to up the ante as the story progresses and that extends to the showdown in question since it’s handled in tense and ultra-creative fashion and even after said showdown comes to a close, there’s still more danger and intensity to be found as Roger has to work to escape Vohaul’s asteroid lair and well, I simply loved every single second of this game because it was just so incredibly unique to say the least. After all, most adventure games like this want to show off all kinds of incredible locales and offer up a grand and sweeping story along the way, but this is awesome thanks to its simplicity.
 
We only have a handful of places to go to, the plot is laser focused on a cat and mouse game revolving around Vohaul’s vendetta and my goodness, is it a blast to play. Because it really is intense and entertaining and to top it all off, it stays true to the franchise’s roots by offering up some wonderful sight gags that pay homage to the sci-fi genre as a whole, and the ones that stand out in my mind, are the Alien references that show up in the third act, specifically the xenomorph with lips that loves to deliver a deadly kiss and well, when all is said and done, this was just a wonderful entry in a wonderful franchise. Because it’s hard to make a computer game that feels like an epic film, but this one pulled it off, and the saga wasn’t done with wowing us just yet since the next entry in this series, had more surprises up its sleeve…

​There was a time in my life where science fiction was everything to me. I simply fell in love with the genre and everything it stood for and it motivated me to seek out as many stories as I could from said genre, from just about every single medium imaginable as I did my best to satiate my starving mind. That meant sci-fi books and movies and shows were a staple for me on the weekends and I honestly thought that was the only way I would get my fix because I was unaware of the fact that there was another route to celebrating the genre, by way of computer games.
 
For while I poured over Asamov and Clarke in print, a couple of dudes released their own love letter to the science fiction genre on floppy disk and it wasn’t until my gaming phase in middle school that I discovered the wonder of the Space Quest game series from Sierra On-Line and oddly enough, my first real taste of this particular saga came by way of the demo of the third entry in the series, The Pirates of Pestulon and getting to play that demo, motivated me to seek out where these adventures began and I’m so glad I started at the beginning because Space Quest: The Sarien Encounter was truly a revolutionary game and a wonderful beginning to a sweeping and fun journey through the stars.
 
Granted, the graphics at the time look outdated in this day and age, but they were top of the line back in the day and done well enough to make it inherently clear that this first adventure with a janitor named Roger Wilco was going to highlight the best parts of the genre, all while making you chuckle and laugh with its ability to lampoon the genre as a whole and well, it didn’t take long for me to be instantly hooked on this game. Because for starters, I was in space and traveling through it and really what blew me away the most when it comes to this game was the sheer fact that it featured one hell of an epic plot.
 
Because this game went beyond merely moving us from point A to point B, there was a nasty villain to deal with, and our goofy protagonist obviously was more of a hero than we initially gave him credit to be and venturing from world to world, all while working toward defeating the dastardly Sariens from destroying the galaxy was thrilling to say the least and I tore through the game as quickly as possible to see how it was going to end and well, who knew that this simple adventure would lead to a massive franchise, one that was celebrated for celebrating the most iconic parts of the genre?
 
But, that’s me getting ahead of myself, because we will talk about the other games in the coming days. But in the here and the now, this is a game that quite frankly holds up well despite its graphical shortcomings, because it really was an honest attempt to tell a fun sci-fi story, one that I would venture to say is a rousing success and while it got a lovely VGA remake in 1991, updating the look and feel of the story to match the industry at the time, nothing will ever replicate the feel of this one and the wonder that came with this first adventure all from stepping into the shoes of a janitor that would become the hero of the galaxy.