Designers: Mike Elliott, Bryan Kinsella, Ethan Pasternack

Final Score:  (3.9 out 5 Stars)

Star Trek is undoubtedly one of the most easily recognized franchises in science-fiction and popular culture right along the likes of Star Wars. Unfortunately in the world of gaming, be it video games, board games or otherwise it just seems to be cursed. After nearly 50 years of Star Trek I don’t even need the use of my second hand to count the number of quality games made for the Star Trek franchise across all gaming platforms. In the world of board gaming I can’t even think of one. To put it plainly yet very accurately, Star Trek board games and card games suck.

Suffice to say when released in 2011 I barely even gave this game a glance, working on the standard and historically accurate presumption that if it has the Star Trek logo, it’s probably not going to be very good. Still, I am a fan of the franchise as a whole and find myself longing for a way to experience it as a game. Unlike most of my gaming purchases, against my own sound advice I impulsively picked up Star Trek: Fleet Captains recently. The only question that remains is, does the game stack up? or is it yet another disappointment to the seemingly hopeless string of games attempting to capture the Star Trek universe? Let’s find out.

Components

Verdict:
Tilt: 

Pros: Sturdy miniatures that are made to last and look stunning on the table,.

Cons: Card stock quality is average with some components clearly needing to be thicker (system tiles), in contrast to the miniatures the cards are not made to last. Not the best application of the Clix gimmick.

I usually don’t complain about the price of games because typically there isn’t that much to complain about. Most modern designer games fly in around 20-50 dollars usually peeking at around 60ish or so. It’s really rare that a game is released that weighs in around 100 dollars (about 1,000 Swedish crowns for my Scandinavian friends).

When a game is that expensive, my expectation is that the components of the game better blow me the fuck out of the water, after all I paid dearly for them.

In the case of Star Trek Fleet Captains certainly the thing that immediately captures your attention are the plastic heroclix miniatures and they do not disappoint. These are some solid mini’s, especially for board game standards and while unpainted with occasional blemishes, in board game terms I can’t think of any game that has done a better job. Naturally they aren’t comparable to miniature games and that isn’t a standard for comparison here, but I have seen the Attack Wing miniatures and they aren’t that far off here, some of them appear to be the same molds.

The ships are easily identifiable, in particular the many unique Federation vessels. The Klingon ships are less so due largely to the fact that there are fewer different types but they are no less spectacular looking. I can say that the clix components aren’t always easy to turn, some are a bit stickier than others adding to the fiddly nature of the game and its worth mentioning that in play, the Clix gimmick really doesn’t translate well. The font is very small and the information difficult to read on them. I don’t dislike the Clix concept, but perhaps this wasn’t the best application of it.

As for the rest of the game I think the components barely get a passing grade in terms of quality, the stock is quite flimsy even though I personally like a rough finish. The system tiles in particular are a thin stock given that the thinness makes them a bit difficult to pick up and even after a couple of plays clear marks and bends can be seen.

There is quite a bit of components here, hundreds of cards and plenty of counters to track everything with ample excess to ensure you aren’t going to run out of anything during play.

To conclude, aside from the Miniatures which are really great and alone would earn a very high component grade, the component quality is quite average everywhere else, well below expectations for such an expensive game. I’m thankful that while the cards are thin they are at least a rough finish which will help to hide the eventual blemishes on the cards. It was difficult to score it, on miniatures I would have given it 4 stars for components, but for the rest of the game it would be a hard 2 stars. The deciding factor for me was the price, at such a high cost, I really expected, no, demand, fantastic components from start to finish. You don’t get to charge me 100 bucks and give me a game that is already showing wear and tear after a couple of plays.

Theme

Verdict: 
Tilt: 

Pros: Every inch of the game is designed with the Star Trek theme in mind, delivering dynamic trekkie goodness from start to finish.

Cons: Photo art style is effective in inspiring nostalgia and portraying the games theme to Trekies but likely looks weird and low budget as the shows were to non-trekies. Photo Art is pretty much never a good idea for board games.

To me, first and foremost at the top of the list was that if this game was going to put the Star Trek logo on the cover and claim “Explore the galaxy with your own fleet!” it better feel like it. Thankfully the designers put their best foot forward and while not perhaps in a terribly artistic way as the games art style is largely screen shots from the TV shows and movies, for fans at the very least it might hit that nostalgic note. The presentation and thematic presence comes in small part due to the components, in particular the ship miniatures but overall where the game shines is within its connection between the mechanics and the Star Trek theme. I will discuss some of those mechanics in the gameplay section, but suffice to say there is no action in the game you can take, that doesn’t have an immediate and recognizable link to the show, all reflected in the art style and general presentation of the game. The Star Trek presence is unmistakable in this game, it’s exactly what you hope to find in a franchise board game.

Now typically I don’t like “photo” art in games because while I might love the show or movie they are based on, when I play a game I love to experience new visuals rather than cropped photos from scenes I have already seen. Fleet Captains however does a great job of selection here, choosing some of the most iconic, funniest and cleverly nostalgic photos from the show, clearly a tribute to fans. I found myself smiling at the draw of every card, a clear sign that the designers got the desired effect out of this minimalist approach to art design, at least from a Trekkie.

I’m afraid however that if you don’t watch and know Star Trek, this art style is going to look quite weird to you. The costume and art design of the Star Trek shows was nothing if not rather low budget so there are some pretty outrageously cheesy men in rubber suites that might put a smile on your face for the wrong reasons.

That said, it’s crystal clear to me that the Star Trek theme is here in spades, it IS Star Trek in a box and it’s exactly what as a Trekkie I hoped I would find when I opened it. Fleet Captain delivers the connection between theme and gameplay in a nostalgically fantastic way.

Gameplay

Verdict: 
Tilt: 

Pros: Dynamic game-play offers tremendous variety in strategies in this very balanced, yet diverse game. Its connection between theme and mechanic is near perfect. It’s the first and only good Star Trek game on the market.

Cons: Card play timing and effects can sometime be confusing without much official clarification. As a 2 player game it’s great, but to get a proper multiplayer experience (3 or 4 players) you have to buy one or both expansions which are nearly as expensive as the core game and at this point difficult to find.

As usual in my reviews I typically don’t explain how to play the game, I find that most people when they read reviews, myself included, just want to get to the nuts and bolts in regards to what works and how well it works. We will do just that.

Fleet Captains is a multifaceted, dynamic and asymmetrical game, which are all buzz words but they actually do mean stuff In this case, I promise.

When I say multifaceted I’m talking about Fleet Captains merging of genres and game play elements. It’s a game that combines adventure gaming (player vs. environment) via encounter decks and system tiles creating that very familiar exploration element in Star Trek shows. It’s also a strategic game of area control, players influence system tiles, construct colonies and gain benefits from controlling these areas. This give you a sense of the Star Trek universe on a more global scale, where familiar science-fiction sounding stuff like Starbases, Nebulas and unique locations you most certainly remember from the shows take on strategic meaning and purpose in the game.

The game is also a strategic game of fleet combat, the primary way players interact with each other as they attempt to slow or halt each other’s progress in their pursuit for victory points through direct aggression. This of course is the most Star Trekkie thing of all as the Federation and Klingons clash in combat raising shields, overloading sensors, firing photon torpedoes, all driven by a variety of customizable mechanics and card play. Playing with the model ships is fun enough, but seeing that the mechanics that govern them are so in sync with the theme here makes this a wonderful experience for fans of Star Trek.

Finally it’s a strategic card game as players try to out play each other in back and forth of modification cards, combat cards, crew cards other advantageous card play. This is in a sense the finishing touch on the game, its where that personalized ownership of your game world comes into play. You have Captain Kirk and Bones on the Enterprise, exploring the galaxy, but you can also have sort of customized, alternative world where Picard actually captains the Runabout. It’s the essence of Trekkiness.

In on themselves individually the mechanics aren’t terribly original but what drives them is. Again, its that connection of mechanics and them, for example the encounter cards are effectively the central plot of an entire Star Trek episode from one of the tv shows or movies and the mechanics that define that encounter are represented in a manner that has an expected effect on the game. There are long lasting effects, some that redefine the terrain, others that create a unique risk for that game in a particular area. This is true of the command cards, the mission cards, the system tiles themselves and how all the ships function. Everything is in tune.

There is also a variety of ways these cards interact and create combinations of mechanics that create the diversity in the game as a whole. For example you might have a science vessel that doesn’t have much in the way of offensive military power but with the right command cards, that high sensor score can be turned into a lethal weapon. This sort of inventive element replicates the feel of the show as your clever Federation officers or Klingon Warriors find ways to turn disadvantages into advantages. There are many gotcha moments, last minute miracle moves and an ample surprises are fizzing with that Star Trek essence.

The “dynamics” (Buzzword) of how the game is setup, and ultimately reveals itself is also a major strength of the game. You start the game with a small fleet of the many possible ships each with unique abilities, strengths and weaknesses drawn randomly at the start of the game. The galaxy itself is built from a small portion of a fairly sizeable deck of system tiles constructed in any way you see fit which defines the length of the game and in a sense the type of game you will have. You get a small handful of mission cards for each game from a stack of many. You select 4 command decks of 10 cards each from 10 different command decks, cards that will define your strengths and weakness. Not to mention the encounter cards of which you may draw dozen in the course of the game, from a deck sizable deck.

Let’s just say that the amount of dynamic content is so large that even without the expansions the possibilities will take many games to explore fully. After six plays of the game I can say without reservation that not only was each game unique, but no clear strategies that carry over from game to game revealed themselves. It’s a game of reacting to what is available and in front of you, rather than theoryocrafting or analyzing the mechanics to “figure out” how to win the game. It’s my personal favorite style of design and you will find none of my top 10 games are games you can unravel the “how to win” puzzle which might explain why so few Euro games make the cut.

Finally the game is Asymmetrical but this isn’t just a subtle facade, there is an extremely distinct difference between playing as the Klingons or the Federation and again, like everything else in the game it’s thematically accurate down to a science in the broad Star Trek theme. Both the ships and command cards each have distinctly unique capabilities, each with their own benefits and drawbacks. Each race excels in certain areas, while flounders in others, yet there is a certain sense of equality even in this Asymmetrical balance. For example when a military Klingon ship faces of against a Federation science vessel you might expect that the military might of the Klingons means a sure, easy fight. Thanks to some interesting card play and mechanics, a science-vessel might overload and disable the Klingons shields and even with its limited fire-power could win the day. Every mechanic in the game combines to create unique opportunities for each player, using them wisely is the route to victory. The strategies deployed aren’t always driven by the strength of the Asymmetrical style for your race, often its opportunities and surprise card effects that make all the difference. Needless to say, this element can be found in Star Trek shows and movies, which brings that Star Trek feel to the game.

There are many nuances of gameplay in Star Trek Fleet Captains but what I think makes Fleet Captains special is how well thought out each nuance and mechanic is, how well balanced it is and how diverse it is. I can’t really point to a specific mechanic and say “hey that’s really unique”, most of these things we have seen in other Wizkids games or otherwise, but it’s the combination of mechanics with its unmistakable link to the theme that really separates Fleet Captains from other games and makes it shine.

Now I do have a couple of beefs with Fleet Captains as far as gameplay is concerned but these are mostly minor things that hardly detract from the experience as a whole. For one the effects of the combat cards can sometimes be a bit contradictory and sometimes timing of play can create some disputable effects most of which are neither defined in the rules or the FAQ’s. There are similar issues with some encounter cards. I also wish they added some way to track ongoing effects for encounter cards that stay in play, the official rule is to leave the card on the system tile but this covers it up and if you get a few of these cards on the table things can get very messy in particular if you are playing a larger game. Some simple numbered tokens that could be matched on the side of the table to the cards would have effectively resolved the issue (and doing that with dice is how we solved it).

I can say that the fiddly Clix components on the ship does detract a bit from the game, if for no other reason than that they are hard to see as the font on them is really small and blocky. This is more of a component issue, but it has impact on play as 8’s, 6’s and 9’s for example look almost indistinguishable from each other unless you put it under a microscope and that can lead to poorly thought out decisions or clerical errors. Playing the game in good lighting is a must.

Then there is the two player issue, now it does have an option for 4 players in teams of 2 which I found to be ok, but clearly, it’s a two player game. I accept that, but I certainly see this working as a 3 or 4 player game where everyone plays for their own faction if you get the expansions. Sadly those expansions are almost as expensive as the base game so it’s a pretty big investment to get this up and running at full capacity. I took the plunge with the dominion expansion and as expected the 3 player experience with 3 separate races was fantastic, but it cost me nearly 1800 Swedish crowns to put together (that’s about 200 dollars).

My conclusion despite these minor flaws is that Star Trek Fleet Captains game-play is outright amazing. It’s just a fantastic game that works on every level, it’s well balanced, easy to learn difficult to master, it’s dynamic, offers a wide range of strategies and possibilities. Above all else though is that wonderful connection between the mechanics and the theme, for a Trekkie fan, you just can’t ask for more out of a Star Trek game.

Longevity and Replay ability

Verdict: 
Tilt: 

Pros: The games dynamic nature, great variety of strategic options and engaging gameplay make this game a long term keeper in your collection. Two great expansions, if you can get a hold of them, give this game incredible expandability.

Cons: The Star Trek theme is often a love it or hate it type of thing with groups, if your group doesn’t like the theme it may be a hard to get it to the table. The game appears to be going out of print with expansions becoming increasingly difficult to find meaning long term support is unlikely.

This is always a simple part of the review, a game either has it or it doesn’t. Naturally I will elaborate a bit but the bottom line of Fleet Captains is that it has replay ability in spades, certain to ensure its longevity in my collection. In fact I was only compelled to pick up the expansions for the variety and expansion into the 3 and 4 player realm, but in terms of longevity and replay ability, the core game has such an incredible dynamic and diverse system that you can play it endlessly with each game guaranteed to be unique. It’s near perfect in this regard.

The question of longevity isn’t always about dynamic options however, in fact, the question of longevity is largely about whether or not repeated plays are fun and whether it will actually make your gaming groups table. The fact that it’s different every time you play is a good start but does the game have that umpf at the end where after playing it 20 times it remains fresh and fun. Talking about it is tough for reviewers because we typically don’t want to play a game for 2 years to see how it fairs over that much time before we write a review. We can only guestimate as to how the game will fair in our collections and in our gaming groups. That said, when you play a lot of games like I do yet maintain a very small collection you become very accustomed to recognizing the difference between that fresh new game novelty and wow factor and its ability to hold your interest over time.

In that regard despite all of the potential of this game I don’t really see myself playing it often, not because of a lack of desire mind you. The reason is that the drawback of the game is the same as the benefit.

Simply put, it’s a theme heavy game in the Star Trek universe and it’s a 2 player game. That means it’s more likely to filter out of group gaming nights, and while the expansions fix this to some extent I still think I will largely play this as a two player game. I love 2 player games and I love Star Trek, these are positive things, but it’s precisely for those two reasons I suspect getting it to table with any regularity will be difficult. This is a pretty common problem among niche products like this one.

There is one minor hiccup in terms of longevity and that is the support for the game itself. I managed to pick up the Dominion expansion, but the Romulan expansion is not only out of print but nearly impossible to get a hold of at this point. From my understanding as well is that the game is going out of print, so a reprint of the Romulan expansion looks unlikely. Especially now that a new Star Trek game has been announced based on the Mage Knight system, the future of this product support wise from Wizkids look bleak. Now once you have the game, supported or not, this doesn’t really effect you but call it cult of the new if you like, but I love knowing that games I like and play are actively being supported.

Conclusion

This review has been overwhelmingly positive and looking back on it I think it suffices to say that Star Trek Fleet Captains is an excellent game, for science-fiction fans and especially Star Trek fans. Fleet Captains has great dynamic mechanics, with plenty of strategic diversity, Asymmetrical gameplay with immense re-playability and for the Star Trek fans it’s a game that tells a story through it’s richly, mechanically linked, theme. It’s everything you can hope for a game to be, niche as it may be. It certainly deserves its very high rating and I’m happy to see that the new rating system represents my sentiment about the games quality. The low score for components has minimal impact and rightfully so, it’s really not much of a detractor for me.

If there is any drawback to the game it must certainly be its price, for many a far larger problem than the games quality. It’s an expensive game in particular if you intend to include the two expansions into your collection. An investment that warrants caution, yet expediency as the game is clearly losing support in favor of Wizkids newly announced Star Trek Frontiers based on the Mage Knight system. If your considering Fleet Captains, I would suggest you think quickly before it disappears into obscurity.

This game certainly gets a stamp of excellence from me, it has all the makings for a permanent addition to my collection.