"Star Trek: Shattered Universe" from TDK Mediactive is the first Star Trek game developed exclusively for Playstation 2/X-Box gaming consoles and hopefully it's the first step in the next level of Star Trek gaming.

There are two ways to look at this game — as a Star Trek fan and as a gamer. The Star Trek side of things first. The game takes place in the Original Series Movie era, post-"Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country," focusing primarily on Captain Sulu and the U.S.S. Excelsior as the ship becomes trapped in the Mirror Universe (from the classic TOS episode "Mirror, Mirror") and must accomplish a number of objectives in order to return to our universe. Standing in the way of the Excelsior's return journey are a number of nasty foes, primarily the Mirror Universe's Pavel Chekov.

In terms of how this game stacks up Star Trek-wise, fans need to remember that this is the Mirror Universe, and things that don't normally happen in the Star Trek universe are commonplace here. In the Mirror Universe, death can come, as the evil Chekov states "in a thousand cuts," so rather than pitting large starships against each other in naval-style battles most commonly seen in Star Trek, smaller fighters do the dirty work and players find themselves flying small ships to defend Excelsior from its enemies.

To achieve Star Trek authenticity, the game uses the vocal talents of George Takei as Sulu and Walter Koenig as Chekov, although it would have been nice to hear some orchestral music from the series or films instead of the original synthesized music composed and performed by Barry Fasman and John O'Kennedy.

There are details in the art direction by Thomas Howell that reflect some Star Trek chops, such as Sulu's Mirror Universe scar and the majestic feel to the large starships when buzzing about them in the small fighters.

As players advance along in the game, there are interesting tidbits of Star Trek continuity that pop up, such as the Klingon Alliance (unseen in TOS but appearing in the Mirror Universe Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episodes).

As a Gamer, the game's play itself is hard, and hard to master. This is a game with a high learning curve, as players must master a complicated control system without any training levels. The first mission involves defending the Excelsior from attack by smaller fighters while attacking the Mirror Universe Enterprise. There's a time limit to most missions, which also makes gameplay tougher. Like most of our first experiences driving a car, there's a lot of time spent actively paying just as much attention to which buttons do what as on what's on the screen.

Once players master the controls, the game is fast-moving and challenging. The rapid-fire graphics that make the screen swirl and revolve as players pilot the small fighters over and under larger ships is impressive in its rollercoaster-like feel.

"Star Trek: Shattered Universe" is a challenging and, when mastered, enjoyable addition to a Star Trek fan's collection of games. Hopefully, there will be more Star Trek games for today's advanced gaming systems developed, games that also take place in the regular Star Trek universe.