Star Trek S.O.S. -- Best Home Version?

[bargora]

Like most everybody else, I was blown away by Sega's arcade vector-graphics space combat sim.

I was somwhat less blown away (yet still excited about) the Atari 2600, 8-bit and 5200 incarnations of the game. Where else did this game appear for the home user? Which one was the best? Was there a home version that preserved the vector graphics?

[digitalpress]

It's been a busy day for the DP database! Good question though.

Star Trek (Atari 2600, by Sega) $10/R3
Designed by Rob Zdybel. Based on the 1982 Sega coin-op. Includes overlay(s). PERIODICALS: Computer Games magazine rated this game an A (and named it "Game of the Month"). Electronic Fun With Computers & Games magazine rated this game a 2 (out of 4). c1983 Sega. #004-01.

Star Trek (Atari 5200, by Sega) $10/R3
Based on the 1982 Sega coin-op. #004-02.

Star Trek (Atari XE, by Sega) $12/R4
Based on the 1982 Sega coin-op. #004-03.

Star Trek (ColecoVision, by Coleco) $18/R4
Based on the 1982 Sega coin-op. Original arcade game designed by Rob Zdybel. c1983 Sega, 1984 Coleco. #2680.

Star Trek (Commodore 64, by Sega) $4/R2
Designed by Joe Sengir. Based on the 1982 Sega coin-op. c1982, 1983 Sega. #004-05.

Star Trek (TI-99/4A, by Sega) $16/R5 +
Based on the 1982 Sega coin-op. Much harder to find the original Sega release of this game. Same as the TI release on the "inside". c1983 Sega.

Star Trek (TI-99/4A, by TI) $5/R3 +
Based on the 1982 Sega coin-op. EASTER EGGS: Cheat mode: hold down the <shift> key and press 838 during the opening screen. PERIODICALS: Computer Games Magazine rated this game an A (and named it "Game of the Month"). Electronic Fun With Computers & Games rated this game a 2 (out of 4).
c1983 Sega. #PHM3225.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (Vectrex, by GCE) $10/R2
a.k.a. Star Ship
Designed by Mark Indictor. Based loosely on the arcade hit, this is a decent adaptation. #3107.

Star Trek (VIC-20, by Sega) $11/R4 +
Designed by Eric J. Popejoy. Released in 1983. 8k cart. EASTER EGGS: Hidden inside the ROM code was this message (at $ad82): "STAR TREK BY ERIC J POPEJOY 2138293641". The numbers seem to be a phone number, located in Southern California, USA: (213) 829-3641? (See also the entry for Tac-Scan in the prototype listings; it may be that Sega often used contractors to write their games). #004-04.

I'm partial to the TI-99/4A version though the Atari 8-bit version is very good too. The only game that keeps that vector look is the Vectrex version but it's really NOT the same game as the Sega arcade title.

[Aswald]

At least the Atari 5200 version is complete. The ColecoVision version, for some bizarre reason, LEFT OUT the "Dock With As Many Starbases As You Can" screen. Even the Atari 2600 version has it!

[Zaxxon]

I've never played the TI99 or 8bit versions but I don't know how you could top the CV version control-wise. It's great to play with the Super Action controllers with a button for each finger for each function. I can't even imagine trying to play this on the 2600 with one button.

[bargora]

If I remember correctly (after, what, 15 years--haven't replaced my 2600 ST:SOS cart yet) on the 2600 version you pulled back on the stick to fire a photon torpedo, or held fire and pulled back to warp. All in all, I didn't think it was too bad of a control system, except that you couldn't warp and fire a torpedo at the same time.

[ManekiNeko]

I personally think the ColecoVision version was the best of the bunch. You'll be blown away by the detail of the graphics in the first person window.
The TI99/4A version of Star Trek was notable for its inclusion of digitized speech, and the Vectrex game is memorable for not being anything like the arcade game, despite its being the only system capable of a complete translation.

JR

[Zaxxon]

I would think the TI99 and CV version were done at the same time by the same people and maybe scaled down for the TI99 to fit in it's memory. They're so close hardware-wise. The CV and Ti99 versions of Buck Rogers and some other games look identical but may lack a level or two.

[digitalpress]

I would think the TI99 and CV version were done at the same time by the same people and maybe scaled down for the TI99 to fit in it's memory. They're so close hardware-wise. The CV and Ti99 versions of Buck Rogers and some other games look identical but may lack a level or two.

Why not try them for yourself and find out? They're both excellent games.

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

I was always a bit disappointed that the 5200 version wasn't that much of a quantum leap over the 2600 in terms of its graphics. It should've been one of the best versions.