Star Control
Description official descriptions
Star Control is a science-fiction wargame which pits the forces of the Alliance of Free Stars against those of the predatory Ur-Quan Hierarchy. The games are designed so that you can ease into play, familiarizing yourself with menus, options and player controls. The Alliance and Hierarchy each possess different types of warships. Each vessel has its own maneuvering and firing characteristics, plus a unique special power that you can employ when circumstances dictate.
The game has two modules: the Melee, in which you can simply blast the computer or another player to smithereens using one of 16 different ships, in either Hierarchy or Alliance fleets; or, should you wish for a more challenging game, lets you play one of 9 preset scenarios.
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Credits (DOS version)
37 People (17 developers, 20 thanks) · View all
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[ full credits ] |
Reviews
Critics
Average score: 64% (based on 24 ratings)
Players
Average score: 3.5 out of 5 (based on 75 ratings with 9 reviews)
The Good
Well, stellar battle at its finest... in 1990. This was a fantastic little game back in its day. I remember going to my friend Steve's house after school and giving a good few rounds against him. He'd play on one half of the keyboard, I'd be stuck with the a's and d's. Awkward and disadvantaged, but still wonderful fun.
The ships are so eccentric and fun to play, you've really got to experience the game to understand. The monstrous Ur-Quan have a secondary fire that releases little astronauts that sap the shields from a ship, but sending them out reduces your ship's hit points. The Shofixti are a raccoon race that pilot a tiny ship -- that self-destructs if desired. Yes, a pyrrhic victory is the idea. There's a classic flying saucer craft piloted by the Arilou that jumps around with its warp drive and strikes with a short-range auto-tracking laser, And then there's a crystalline entity ship used by the Chenjesu that fires projectiles that fly right across the playing area, loop around to the other side of the screen, and keep going... until you press fire and have the shell fragment into a burst of shrapnel.
Such imaginative ships, such fun gameplay, I really do take this sort of game over 99% of the PlayStation3 crap released today. It's really not about graphics, it's about gameplay, But I'm sure you don't need to hear me preach.
The Bad
Not much to nitpick here. The game ran fine in 1990, although I haven't really played it much since then. This is a heritage title that is dated by modern technology, but I'm sure I'm not the only person in the world who fondly remembers going toe-to-toe with a friend after downing some Fresca and Doritos.
The Bottom Line
Blitzkrieg action, although elements of strategy can occur. This is an exceedingly fun game with a great interstellar warfare theme that was expanded upon in later titles.
Highly recommended, although I seriously doubt anybody is going to go and buy it in 2008. Team Fortress 2 is kind of head-and-heels superior to this little gem, unless you have a strong craving for 286-era games.
DOS · by Chris Wright (85) · 2010
A great game bested by its sequel.
The Good
It's a great game that developed upon the idea of games like Thrust and added improvements such as multiple and unique weapon types for each ship. I also quite liked the full game (when playing two player of course) as it added more to the game than simplying blasting your opponent away.
The Bad
Not a great deal except that it really wasn't as good for single player.
The Bottom Line
A great game to play, especailly for two people, but it's is beat all round by its sequel (except for the multiplay fullgame mode.)
DOS · by Fafnir (103) · 2001
The Good
At the time SC came out, it was unsurpassed in the depth of its play. Although the controls were fairly Arcade-like and simplistic, the balance of the different ships is nearly perfect. (and arguably unmatched even by SC2, which had a few too many ships) Not only was each ship completely distinctive, but the dynamics of the battle changed completely depending on which ships were in play. An Ur-Quan and a Chenjesu would have a long-distance slugging match without closing, whereas a Spathi and Arilou would have an insanely frenetic dogfight. And there was great joy in discovering particular strategies for each matchup. On a smaller note, the included strategy game section was entertaining, if simplistic.
The Bad
The AI is a bit dumb compared to SC2, but my guess is they programmed the AI in SC2 based on the more successful strategies discovered by players. (IE, the AI was about as good as could be expected) The rotating starfield in the strategy segment was INCREDIBLY difficult to learn, and many players never got the hang of it. (although if you could, it made the navigation a lot of fun)
The Bottom Line
Overall, this is a fun game with incredible amounts of replay ability. While it's easy to see all the game has to offer within a few hours, months could be spent exploring combat strategies.
DOS · by WizardX (116) · 2003
Trivia
Inspiration
The "special thanks" in the manual list off an equally large number of sci-fi authors whose work in some way influenced the game. It's fairly rare for game designers to be so rigorous in documenting their inspirations.
References
The vast majority of captain names in the game were taken from various famous and semi-famous sci-fi sources. (far too many to list here. For example, there's a Syreen Captain Alia (from Dune) and an Earth Captain Pike (from Star Trek))
Title
From almost the very beginning of his video game design career, Paul Reiche III has revisited the theme of pitting varied teams of carefully balanced but widely varied opponents against each other, first in 1983's Archon and most recently in 1998's The Unholy War (and its Japanese analogue, Little Witching Mischiefs).
Star Control also falls in the middle of this chain, and its heritage is plainly spelled out phonetically in its abbreviation:
__Archon Star_Con
Awards
- Computer Gaming World
- November 1996 (15th anniversary issue) – #127 in the “150 Best Games of All Time” list
Information also contributed by Pseudo_Intellectual
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Related Sites +
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ComSim Central
Info on getting the game, and lots of scenarios for the full game. -
The Dot Eaters
The Dot Eaters: Videogame History 101 An extensive history of videogames, including computer games and the work of Paul Reiche and Freefall Associates. -
The Pages of Now and Forever
This site could perhaps be called the heart of the Star Control fan movement on the 'net.
Identifiers +
Contribute
Are you familiar with this game? Help document and preserve this entry in video game history! If your contribution is approved, you will earn points and be credited as a contributor.
Contributors to this Entry
Game added by Tomer Gabel.
Genesis added by PCGamer77. ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC added by Martin Smith. Commodore 64, Amiga added by Servo.
Additional contributors: Ben Voynick, RmM, Ummagumma, WizardX, Ricky Derocher, Patrick Bregger.
Game added August 11, 1999. Last modified February 13, 2024.