“Using a controller or a mouse and keyboard, players with and without VR headsets can be seamlessly matched together to pilot the U.S.S. Aegis (or U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701) as Starfleet officers, or play alone as a captain,” Ubisoft said in the announcement. “The update also includes enhanced Windows Mixed Reality support, adding more options for players to explore uncharted space.”
Game director Brian Tate stressed in a developer diary video that Star Trek: Bridge Crew is meant to be a social game, and the decision to introduce non-VR play should help to foster a better sense of community than was previously available. The entire player base is now connected. Whether you’re playing on PC or PlayStation 4 in either virtual reality or in a traditional setup, you can play with everyone else.
Additional graphical features were also enabled for the non-VR version of the game. However, for those with high-end PC rigs, Ubisoft said you will be able to enable them in the VR version, as well. More features will also be coming in future updates, but the company isn’t ready to reveal specifics just yet.
Star Trek: Bridge Crew was developed by Ubisoft’s Red Storm Entertainment studio, which had previously been known for its work on Tom Clancy franchises. Last year, the studio also launched the VR game Werewolves Within, which uses meta-gaming to “spot the liar” in multiplayer. Given the nature of its main gameplay hook, it’s unlikely the latter game will ever make its way outside of VR platforms.
The latest update for Star Trek: Bridge Crew is available now on both PlayStation 4 and PC. Unfortunately, Ubisoft has yet to enable a young and overacting William Shatner into the game, likely because it would be too much for emotionally unstable players to process.
