Later this year, the free-to-play MMORPG based on the Star Trek franchise will be heading to consoles, as Star Trek Online is confirmed for a PS4 and Xbox One release. The game will launch simultaneously across both console platforms, and will bring the full Star Trek Online experience that’s been running for almost six years on PC.
But for a game that’s been so embedded in PC play for so long, this transition has been far from easy. In their announcement about the console versions, Stephen Ricossa of Arc Games talked about some of the challenges that the developers have faced in making the switch:
Our first major task was to convert a PC game that takes nearly an entire keyboard to play into a game that plays well with a 12 button controller. We focused on getting the controls right before we began work in earnest on this project, because we knew the game had to be as tactical, fun, and accessible as the PC game that preceded it. A combination of radial menus and streamlining of some HUD elements created a game that is easily understood, instantly accessible, and incredibly fun to play.
As well as reconfiguring the basic controls and mechanics of the game, Arc looked at how the visuals could be updated for the next generation (pun intended) of players. Improvements such as deferred lighting, light probes, and improvements to the High Dynamic Range lighting system all went into the mix to get Star Trek Online looking better than ever. There are also improvements to the game’s episodic flow and to the character progression systems.
Check out the console announcement trailer for Star Trek Online above and keep an eye out for more news on features and the release date as it comes to us.
