Developer: Tessera Studios
Publisher: Outright Games
Release Date: 14th October 2022
Platforms: Xbox, PlayStation, Switch & Steam
Reviewed on: PS4 Pro
First up, full disclosure, I am not a huge fan of the original Star Trek or indeed any of the more recent series or related shows and films. However, I am a fan of sci-fi in general so was intrigued when I saw this game listed as an upcoming PlayStation release.
Star Trek Prodigy is an animated series created for the cable channel Nickelodeon and the Paramount+ streaming platform. It has so far released the first ten episodes of season one which were shown in late 2021, with the second ten due in October 2022 and a second season is currently in production. Star Trek Prodigy: Supernova features all the voice talent from the show including the legendary Kate Mulgrew who reprises the role of Captain Janeway, as she guides a new cast of young characters in the Star Trek universe.
Again, as the programme is aimed at younger audiences I am obviously not the target demographic. In this review I will therefore simply be judging the game on its own merits as a standalone experience.
Supernova is a third person action / puzzle game, similar in many respects to the Lego movies series of games. The story follows the adventures of a group of young teenage aliens as they strive to save a planetary system from the titular supernova.
It is the second release from the small Spanish developer Tessera Studios and published by Outright Games who specialise in video games for younger players. Tessera previously released the PSVR supporting Intruders: Hide and Seek, a first person stealth game. It is rated as an average 61 on Metacritic – a score which a member of the Pure Dead Gaming Discord who had played the game described as spot on. Can the team’s sophomore effort go beyond their debut and achieve greater acclaim?
The game can be played either single player or couch co-op. As a single player there are two characters on screen and the player can swap between them at will – the non player controlled character is AI driven and will follow the human character around and join in during combat. This review was written based on a single player play through so I can’t comment on how co-op fares but I can imagine it would be quite a lot of fun for a couple of children playing together – most of the puzzles require cooperation between the two characters to varying extents.
The gameplay varies between combat – with a choice of melee or ranged attacks – and reasonably simple puzzle solving. The combat is pretty straightforward but as you progress through the game you open up new weapons and techniques which brings some variety to the otherwise fairly repetitive fights you encounter.
The puzzles initially revolve around moving cubes and throwing switches which power doors and barrier mechanisms in a fashion which is somewhat similar to the game The Turing Test. Again, like the combat, more mechanics are layered on as you get deeper into Supernova.
The game’s main plotline focuses on the crew’s race to save their teammates and their spacecraft, the Protostar, from an impending supernova. This takes them to three different worlds which have different atmospheric conditions and landscapes. On each world there are a series of fights to overcome and puzzles to solve as the two protagonists, Dal and Gwyn, search for their crewmates, quest related items and various other collectibles.
The game is nice and easy to get into – the controls are all pretty straightforward and the start of game tutorial runs you through everything so you are up and running in a matter of minutes. For a game aimed at kids this is vital.
One minor gripe here I did have was that I found having the main interaction button, X, the same control as dash slightly jarring. Sometimes when I was e.g. trying to pick up a block and I was slightly too far away I instead found myself shooting past it. Otherwise the controls were absolutely fine.
The puzzle sections break up the combat and make for a somewhat varied approach to the game. The gameplay does remain fairly simplistic but that’s fine considering the intended audience. Supernova steadily adds in new gameplay mechanics – e.g. the ability to pull / push blocks like Lara Croft and being able to lift barriers to let your partner underneath as Kratos does for Atreus. As the game advances the puzzles increase in complexity and some are fairly challenging. The way the two protagonists have to cooperate to solve these puzzles is actually very satisfying.
The visual style is bright and colourful. This is a game aimed at kids and as such I think the graphics are appropriate and most likely quite attractive to our younger gamer friends. Likewise, I found the atmospheric music really nice to listen to and evokes (to my ears) traditional Star Trek type theme music.
Supernova does seem to assume some familiarity with the source material. This may be fair enough as presumably fans of the show are the main targets but could be off putting to some. Without any context setting the characters would at certain junctures start referring to characters by name. “Who on earth is that?” I thought to myself – “oh well, doesn’t really matter, I’ll just carry on fighting enemies and solving puzzles”.
Having said that, the plot is relatively simple and not understanding references made by the various characters didn’t really detract from the game too much.
Visually Supernova is undeniably quite rough around the edges. This review was done on a PS4 Pro so I can’t comment on PS5 / Xbox Series visuals but the details and graphical fidelity were not particularly impressive. The animations during combat are very rudimentary and the on screen presentation of dialogue boxes and story elements likewise pretty basic.
If you told me I was playing a PS3 game I’d believe you. Members of the studio team apparently have a lot of experience in mobile development and perhaps this is related as the graphics would seem more in place on an Android or iOS game rather than a 8th or 9th gen console.
Comparisons with The Lego Star Wars / Lord of the Rings etc series are unavoidable – it’s a third person combat and puzzle game with much the same blend of the two game styles. It looks and plays very similar to these games but lacks a lot of the polish that Traveller’s Tales’ games have.
I know very little about Star Trek and practically nothing about this animated series. Furthermore, I’m a middle aged bloke so clearly not who the game is aimed at whatsoever! With that in mind it is not at all surprising that Supernova is not really my cup of tea. However, I did have quite a lot of fun playing the game for a few hours – it’s nothing you won’t have seen before but it’s all packaged up in a nice, entertaining product.
Star Trek Prodigy: Supernova sets out to achieve a certain thing – we could, perhaps uncharitably, call this a Lego clone. It largely achieves this whilst not matching the levels of refinement – both visually and gameplay – in that series of games. Fans of the Prodigy TV show will absolutely enjoy this more but even for those who aren’t familiar with it there is a decent, if uninspiring, game here to be played.
-Calum
