Star Trek: Infinite Review (Mutt)
It pains me to not be able to recommend this game. I am such a huge Star Trek nerd and fan of strategy games in general that this was a slam dunk purchase for me. I didn't care that it was essentially a Stellaris mod. I just figured, how great to have an officially licensed ST grand strategy game. Something that I would play until the end of time. So what's the problem? Ugh....
For starters, the game has been abandoned. Just a few short months after release the devs were laid off. There will be no more updates, no more bug fixes (of which there are still a few), and no future content or DLCs. That wouldn't be so bad if the game didn't feel half baked. The game seems like it was rushed out as a quick cash grab. Linear progression trees were added (which was a nice addition) but many of the missions get locked out by regular in game events. Once that happens you can no longer advance the mission tree. For example, one Federation mission requires you to free Bajor from the Cardassians but if you don't complete the task in time the only way to complete the mission is to declare war on Cardassia. However, as a game mechanic, the Federation can't declare wars. Was this an oversight? Who knows, it'll never be fixed. If you fail the Janeway mission or don't complete it in time, the game allows you to play for another 50-75 years before the entire map is wiped out by the Borg. If the mission is so important why not end the game after I fail to complete it rather than waste additional hours of our time on an unwinnable experience? Who knows, it'll never be fixed. Story based missions in general are repetitive regardless of faction which cuts back on replay-ability and in some cases, doesn't make much sense in terms of Star Trek Cannon (ie. the Janeway mission playing as any faction other than the Federation). It just feels lazy, which to be honest is infuriating because this could be such a great game if they put just a little love into it.
Other things to note/touch on. It's an officially licensed Star Trek game without Star Trek music or sound effects. What!? Firing phasers doesn't sound like firing phasers. Photon torpedoes? Nope. No red alert, nothing. Certainly no classic ST themed music. Don't let the deluxe edition fool you. Avoid that like the plague. It was just another shameless cash grab.
Lastly, and I know this was said elsewhere, considering that there are at least two really good unofficial (player made) Star Trek Stellaris mods out there that do so much more, this game just failed to meet the mark. Alpha/Beta quadrants only....only four playable races... ugh. There's just not a lot of replayability. Just go buy Stellaris when it's on sale and DL the New Horizons or New Civilizations mod. Personally, I'll probably continue to play, at least the last two factions I haven't played yet, and then go do the same.
TLDR:
What a bummer. The game could have been so much more but it's just not. Save your money, wait for a sale or go buy Stellaris and play one of the above mentioned mods which has more content, polish and is still continually updated. Hope that helps anyone that was on the fence about this one.