TouchArcade Rating:

If you’re a big Star Trek fan then this should interest you: YesGnome’s simulation game based on the iconic series, Star Trek Trexels (Free), has added brand new content based on Star Trek: The Next Generation, and to celebrate they’ve dropped the price of the game to free for the first time since releasing last December. I have to admit that when Star Trek Trexels first came out, I became pretty obsessed with it. The game has a heavy Tiny Tower vibe as you slowly build out your own Starship Enterprise with various types of rooms and put together a crew to run it all. As you explore the galaxy, you’ll embark on missions of diplomacy, scientific discovery, and of course combat. It’s certainly not the deepest experience in the world, but it’s oddly compelling and does great Star Trek fan service.

The problem is, Star Trek Trexels was a paid game with a very freemium feel. Even if the game had been free from the start, it never quite felt like the balance was right as it was infuriatingly difficult to get the proper amount of resources to build out your ship and amass a crew that was worth a damn. For months, I gave it the old college try and definitely made headway, but eventually I got to a point where missions were too difficult for the crew and ship that I had and I found myself not able to progress any further through the galaxy. There were several updates that came along that were supposed to tweak the balance, and perhaps they did, but it was too late for me.

Anyway, today’s update looks to be the biggest for the game yet, with brand new characters and missions all pulled straight from The Next Generation part of the Star Trek series. You can even choose the Next Generation version of the Enterprise for your ship hull. The combat missions have also been overhauled, there’s a bunch of different social features that allow you to share your ship setup and enlist friends for more rewards, and last but not least you’ll now hear the all-important “swish" noise when characters are moving from room to room within the ship. It’s the little things that count.

For free, I’d definitely recommend downloading Star Trek Trexels if you’re a Star Trek fan or a fan of those building simulation games like Tiny Tower. At its heart, it really is a good game. I’ll (reluctantly) be trying the game out again myself in hopes that the balance of the progression has been smoothed over in the months that I’ve been away.