Star Trek The Next Generation On Gameboy Review

Star Trek The Next Generation is a video game by Absolute and released for the Nintendo Game Boy in June 1993. The game was also released for the Nintendo Entertainment System.



This game begins you with Picard giving you a mission. When you get the particulars to the mission you then interact with members of the Enterprise. There are five members of the Enterprise; Worf, Data, La Forge, O'Brien, and Riker. Each allows you to do what they do on the TV show.

Worf is in charge of tactical which includes raising and lowering the shields and arming weapons. When the Enterprise is under attack select Worf allows you to defend the ship.

The combat screen.

Data allows you to set course and speed, use sensors and to go into orbit around a planet.

To begin a mission you go to Data and set a course from the locations on the computer and then set the warp speed. When you select the warp speed you have a choice to make. A higher warp speed will get you to your target faster allowing you more time before your missions end but you'll have less energy to use when you get there. You'll need to figure out if you'll need more time or power. As you select your warp speed the screen will show you at what stardate you'll arrive at your destination.

When you arrive at your location sometimes your target will be off screen. Click on Data and then sensors and it will show you where your target is located compared to the Enterprise. If it's a planet you'll need to enter orbit when you get close to the planet. In order to orbit a planet, you'll need to fly the Enterprise through boxes which aren't too hard to do. When you've gone through enough boxes you'll enter orbit.

Entering orbit

O'Brien is the transporter chief so when you move the Enterprise close enough to a ship or into orbit around a planet clicking on O'Brien allows you to beam people from their location to the ship. You need to put the box over the characters, who are moving and hold down B. When the lock fills up you can beam them to the Enterprise but don't use up all your power before you finish the mission. O'Brien is also used to beam intruders off the Enterprise.

Beam me up, Scotty!

LaForge allows you to send power to different devices of the Enterprise as well as repairing the damage. When you are managing power you'll have a screen with a bunch of wires that lead to three different powers; phasers, shields, and transporter. You'll have to control a spark to the system that needs power. As the spark travels you'll either block or open paths so it can get to the system that needs it. It works pretty well and can be fun.

Transferring Power

Riker's only job is to tell you how long you'll have to complete your mission.

Now before I type this I want you to understand that I'm a dork for Star Trek. If you look up at the Stardate it says 40023.3. The NCC-1701-D Enterprise was commissioned on Stardate 41025.5 so this mission takes place before the Enterprise was even finished being built which leads me to believe this game is set in the Twilight Zone.

At the end of the mission, Picard will tell you how you did and you'll increase your rank and be given a password based upon characters of the TV show.

As you move along through the game the missions will get hard in a number of ways including have to fix the Enterprise when it's damaged and beaming intruders off the ship before they can wreck it. Other than that the missions don't change. Even though the levels are different each time the game does get a little repetitive.

The graphics in this game aren't too bad. The images of the characters are pretty good and the consoles look like they do from the show. The sound effects are OK, but you can't ask too much from the Gameboy in that department.

Overall I think Star Trek The Next Generation on the Gameboy is a pretty good game. It looks and sounds good and really a pretty good simulator of what happens on the TV show. The biggest letdown is that the missions get pretty repetitive. For Star Trek TNG on the Gameboy, I give it a 6 out of 10.