Star Trek: Voyager: Elite Force
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| Star Trek: Voyager Elite Force | |
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| Developer(s) | Raven Software |
| Publisher(s) | Activision |
| Engine | Quake III engine |
| Latest version | 1.2 PC, 1.2.1 Mac |
| Release date(s) | September 15, 2000 |
| Genre(s) | First-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Teen (T) OFLC: G 8+ |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Macintosh |
Star Trek: Voyager Elite Force is a first-person shooter computer game developed by Raven Software and published by Activision in 2000. It is powered by the Quake III engine and set in the Star Trek universe. The game was successful enough to spawn an expansion pack as well as a sequel, Elite Force II.
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[edit] Gameplay
The game is based on the science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, and the player takes on the role of Ensign Alexander or Alexandria ("Alex," either way) Munro as a member in an elite security force - The Hazard Team. When the USS Voyager becomes stranded in a mysterious graveyard of ships, it's up to Munro to save the day. He or she will encounter a number of aliens from the Star Trek universe. This includes aliens like the Borg, Terran Empire, the Klingons, the Hirogen and Species 8472, as well as many races exclusive to the game. Besides fighting hostile aliens, Munro must complete tasks aboard the ship, such as helping to prevent a warp core breach, and assisting in ship repairs.
Between the standard run-and-shoot-sequences of all first-person shooters, Elite Force contains a vast amount of in-game cinematics to drive the plot forward. The film sequences are made with the game engine itself, excluding a noteworthy number of pre-rendered space sequences.
Voice acting is provided by all the primary members of the series cast. Jeri Ryan did not voice Seven of Nine in the initial release, but a later patch and expansion pack added her voice to the game.
[edit] Storyline
The Hazard team and the Infinity Modulator (I-Mod), an experimental anti-Borg weapon, have been captured by the Borg on a mission, with only Ensign Munro evading detection. Munro manages to retrieve the weapon, but upon encountering the rest of the Hazard Team, shoots the control panel for the shield holding them in, causing it to explode. It is at this point that the entire mission was revealed to be a Holodeck exercise, which Munro failed.
Voyager is then attacked by a mysterious alien ship. Although the ship is destroyed, it sends out an energy wave that transports Voyager to an unknown location. While the bridge crew tries to find out where they are, Munro is sent to help stop a warp core breach. Passing through many obstacles, he eventually arrives at engineering, and stops the breach.
The Hazard Team is then sent to an alien ship to gain information on the area. Soon after arriving, however, they are attacked by large flying aliens. The mission turns into an escape mission, though some members of the team are captured. However, it is then revealed that the attacks were a misunderstanding, and the alien race, the Etherians, were only trying to communicate. With the information that is gathered from the Etherian ship, the Hazard Team is then sent to a hodgepodge space station, made up of various ships that have been trapped in the same area: Klingon, Imperial Terran, Malon and Hirogen. The mission is to collect isodesium, which will hopefully stop the power drain that has been affecting the ship, and interfering with several systems. Munro manages to collect his samples, but since a fellow crewmember is injured before he can finish his duty, Munro goes after the final sample. In the process, Crewman Murphy is captured by members of the station. Munro goes to rescue her, and is successful, though when the two get back, the Borg attack. Lt. Foster is captured, Ensign Lathrop is killed, and the isodesium is stolen. A mission, on which Seven of Nine takes part in, is organized to recover the isodisium, and if possible, rescue Foster.
Using the I-Mod, the team proceeds through the ship, and finds Foster. Munro rescues him, and he is beamed back to Voyager. The Hazard Team then proceeds further in, but is captured by the Borg, who offer them a deal through Seven of Nine. Species 8472 was aboard the ship when it was captured, and in exchange for killing them, the Borg will let them go and give them back the isodesium. While the team is successful, the Borg attempt to double cross them, but Crewman Chang detonates explosives he has placed, and the team escapes. During this mission, there is a small alternate storyline that happens when the player fails to rescue Foster. Foster is turned into a Borg, and it is he who offers the deal to the Hazard team, rather than the Borg talking through Seven of Nine. Either way, the overall story is not affected, as Foster does not appear in the game again after this mission.
Although the isodesium is recovered, the Hazard team is not allowed to rest, as another alien ship has been detached to attack Voyager. To stop it, the Hazard team infiltrates an old dreadnaught and uses its weaponry to disable the ship. This is accomplished just as the ship reaches Voyager, so as soon as the team returns to Voyager, they must stop the aliens that are attacking the ship. The invasion force is stopped, and the Hazard Team uses the vessel to sneak onto the station holding all the ships in place, known as the Forge. While on the station, it is revealed that there is a plan to start another Forge, and Munro disobeys orders in order to destroy it. The spider-like creature Vorsoth is the final boss for the game, seen in the last playable level. The mission is a success, and the Forge is destroyed, allowing Voyager to continue on its way home. (The last level is a long movie clip.)
[edit] Multiplayer
Users can also compete against each other in a separate game, referred to as a Holomatch. This program allows you to play against bots, real human opponents, or mixtures of the two.
In a Holomatch, there are a number of game types including deathmatch, team deathmatch and capture the flag. The Elite Force Expansion Pack adds additional game types including assimilation, specialties, and action hero.
Over time, user-made modifications have added even more game types and maps to multiplayer. Some of these mods include QBall, Bomb Diffusion, EFAdmin, Federation, ERPG, RPG-X, in2tagib, pinball, Team Elite, and Gladiator.
After many years, the Elite Force Multiplayer is still very popular and active.
[edit] Trivia
- The main character, Alex Munro, has a flirtatious relationship with a female team mate (Telsia Murphy) regardless of the player's gender, marking one of Star Trek's rare allusions to the continuing existence of socially acceptable homosexuality in the future. However the game's sequel, Elite Force II, does not allow the player to play as Alexandria, and Alexander and Telsia have now become a couple.
- This game features evil, James T. Kirk-era characters from the mirror universe introduced in the original Trek episode, Mirror Mirror.
- The first few missions of the game take place on holodeck simulation of a Borg cube. If the player is captured by the Borg, a sequence is played where the player is seen being assimilated. However, when Munro fails the mission by destroying the control panel, the program simply terminates with no one actually injured. While ostensibly this is could be a purely simulated part of the holodeck program, in reality it is because the missions were originally intended to be played later in the game, when the Borg stole the isodesium. The levels were replaced as a training mission later in development.
