Is BC still good by todays standards?

[Star-Fury]

Hi all

Im seriously thinking of buying this game but unsure if its worth the unbelievable high price for a 2002 game.

Please can someone answer my questions and give their opinions.

1. How good really is the MP experience, is it buggy stable etc?
2. How many still play online?
3. How demanding is this game with the most popular mods installed? My spec is AMD 4200x2, 7800GTX, 2GB Ram, will this run the game on full settings?
4. Can i run 1680x1050 aspect?
5. Are there many mods that add extra mission etc in the SP game, basically mods expanding the SP experience or are most of the mods cosmetic?
6. How well do the games graphics and gameplay stack up aganist current games?

Sorry for all the questions but i have been looking at this game (and forums) for a while now but im finding it hard to justify paying basically the same price for this game as a latest PC release.

Thanks

[Bigkap]

My opinion: BC is the funnest, best looking Trek game I have ever played. I bought it back in 04 and stumbled across Bridge Commander  Files + BC Universe where I learned of the Mods available and how to apply them to the game.

In terms of mods available, they range from low graphic mods to high graphic mods, but it sounds like your PC can handle most, if not, all of them.

I had never been involved in an online community apart from MSN before purchasing this game and have since come to meet many great and talented people here.

I have 4 different installs of BC on my PC. My own modded version, an original series version (TCMP), a multiplayer version (Kobyashi Maru which I have yet to try but i'm told it's great fun),  and a Stargate version of that(KM: SC).

In terms of function BC can be "glitchy" depending on which mods you install and how they interact with each other but this community has been here a while so there are plenty of resources and people at your disposal to help you through any problems you may encounter. One of which is a member by the name of Mleo .

Hopefully this helps your decision, if you don't mind, what price is it retailing for? Just curious.

[Star-Fury]

Thanks for your reply.

The game is going for about ?30 give or take a fiver, which is a lot for a 2002 game.

BC Supermod 3.0 looks like the mod to have that will bring the game up to date a bit but i am still undecided.

I know ?30 is not the earth but i am only looking to buy one PC game at the moment and it needs to last me a while.
At the moment its a toss up between this and Left 4 Dead.

[Mandalore]

What mods you use depend on what you want, sometimes demanding several individual installs

BC Supermod is good if you want to play the SP campaign.
Kobayashi Maru is a mod that enhances the Quickbattle/MP but adds things that don't work in normal SP

I have this game since 2002 and it is one of my favorite games ever since and I can asure you, it is worth the money

[tiqhud]

I have this game since 2002 and it is one of my favorite games ever since and I can asure you, it is worth the money

Agreed

[Barihawk]

In my opinion, BC is only good because of the mods. In it's day, it was a cheesy low-budget "check out in the bargain bin" game with the gimmick of a realtime bridge view.

But with the modifications that have come out of it, it's the crown jewel of the Star Trek gaming community. Legacy is starting to turn over some new leaves (our team has managed to do some major overhauls under the hood now) but the interest is gone from that community while it thrives here.

[JimmyB76]

1. How good really is the MP experience, is it buggy stable etc?
2. How many still play online?

if you have a KM1 install (Kobayashi Maru mod, which basically contains the best and most updated mods out there, in an all-in-one package, and has all the mods working together perfectly well in harmony), that mod is the best thing for MP use, and alot of people play as such...  BC's MP realm is still very much active, tho i personally dont play MP...

3. How demanding is this game with the most popular mods installed? My spec is AMD 4200x2, 7800GTX, 2GB Ram, will this run the game on full settings?
4. Can i run 1680x1050 aspect?

that set-up should be perfectly fine for BC...  you should be able to experience very smooth gameplay with several ships and such with all settings on high...
unfortunately, BC cannot support widescreen (yet) which is a shame...  when BC was manufactured, widescreen wasnt very popular or widespread yet...

5. Are there many mods that add extra mission etc in the SP game, basically mods expanding the SP experience or are most of the mods cosmetic?

there is a mega-mod called Deep Space Nine FX, which comes with KM1, that contains mini-missions within it...  there is also a mod called Quick Battle Replacement (QBR, also comes with KM1) which is like an "expanded" version of QB and there are many missions available to download, or you can also create your own...

as far as Single Player goes, that is the trickiest and most complex aspect of BC that hasnt been delved into much...
if your interest is playing Single Player, you would be best going with an install that is modded with BC Supermod 3.0 (as suggested) and nothing else installed...  BC Supermod wasnt designed to work with any other mods installed and was designed to work only as it is...

you could always have a second BC install containing KM1 that could be used for MP use; virtually everyone who plays MP uses a KM1 install...  however, for MP use, you cannot mod that install since MP requires all parties involved to have the same exact scripts to work...  also, SP wont work well with KM, unfortunately... 

of course, you could have a third install for your own use to modify as much as youd like...

I know ?30 is not the earth but i am only looking to buy one PC game at the moment and it needs to last me a while.
At the moment its a toss up between this and Left 4 Dead.

thats actually not too bad...  ive seen it go for much much more...  and if you do decide to purchase it, it should keep you rather busy for quite a while with all the ships, bridges, mods, etc etc etc to try out and play around with...


and of course, we're always here if you ever do have any questions about anything BC-related; dont ever hesitate to ask...

[Aeries]

The game is amazingly fun when you have the right mods applied to it. But what's even better, is the community built around it.

[MLeo]

There is this "ancient" mod called the "Lost Chapters", which used included, but not used, dialogue to add extra options in the Single Player. Not sure if it's still on bcfiles. To be honest, I don't even know exactly what it did.


Personally, I find the game attractive because I can program in it.

[JimmyB76]

aaah the ol' Lost Dialogue mod... 
all it does is change a few scripts for the character dialogues and "unlock" some of the dialogue that was left out of SP...

that comes with KM1 and i think (tho im not 100% sure) is also included in BC Supermod...

[Billz]

aaah the ol' Lost Dialogue mod... 
all it does is change a few scripts for the character dialogues and "unlock" some of the dialogue that was left out of SP...

that comes with KM1 and i think (tho im not 100% sure) is also included in BC Supermod...

Correct.

Bottom line, you'll be happy with BC for a long time.

1 thing though. Its generally not polite to ask for mod that hasn't been made yet. Now I'm not saying that you'll do that when you get the game, but in the past there have been instances of people buying the game, not finding a mod they want and coming here asking for it to be made.

Thats just a heads up though.

BC can be annoying when it comes to scripting though. If you have any problems, you know where the Tech Support section is.

[MLeo]

Or me. ^_^ Through Tech Support that is.


Like I said, if you can program then it's a good possibility that you will also like scripting for BC.

[ChronowerX_GT]

unfortunately, BC cannot support widescreen (yet) which is a shame...  when BC was manufactured, widescreen wasnt very popular or widespread yet...

Ermm, I play it in widescreen. You can't select widescreen in the game options so you have to edit one of the files. But I now play it in 1280x720. Unfortunatly some icons go missing (although most of them can be replaced by keyboard shortcuts) and only a few widescreen resolutions are supported. 1440x900 for example isn't.

As for the game, well it looks amazing. Ships of 20000+ polies and 2048x2048 textures make it look fantastic.

I bought it for ?45 in late 2007 and it's worth every penny.



_{jb76 edit - fixed quote}

[faro0485]

Since you mentioned MP first, BC's MP community comes with hidden communal rules. Especially with the Death Match servers (which is popular choice as it's not that buggy).



BC isn't worth the ?30 if you choose your MP according to MP community (especially if you are unable to host a server), it might be worth it for those who like to have a trek game in their collection and MP with friends.

[JimmyB76]

unfortunately, BC cannot support widescreen (yet) which is a shame...  when BC was manufactured, widescreen wasnt very popular or widespread yet...

Ermm, I play it in widescreen. You can't select widescreen in the game options so you have to edit one of the files. But I now play it in 1280x720. Unfortunatly some icons go missing (although most of them can be replaced by keyboard shortcuts) and only a few widescreen resolutions are supported. 1440x900 for example isn't.

actually, this is correct; BC can play in that resolution i had forgotten...  even if it is a little "buggy"; i just personally dont like that resolution...

[Star-Fury]

Thanks for all the replies people its obvious now things are still very active for this game

About the widescreen issue will i be able to run the game in 1680x1050, 16.10 widescreen?

Also are the MP games just versus battles or can you run some of the mission with other people?

BTW great site 

[FarShot]

yes, you can do multiplayer with other people

you just have to have the same scripts as they do

[ChronowerX_GT]

About the widescreen issue will i be able to run the game in 1680x1050, 16.10 widescreen?

I dunno, I'd test it for you but my screen only goes up to 1440x900 so I can't. But 1280x720 still looked really good. It is a HD res anyways

[LordReserei]

ST: BC is well worth buying and playing and on your specs it'll be great, as for the aspect ratio, there's a widescreen hack and ?30?...I bought mine for ?5 a couple of years ago

[Star-Fury]

?30 is the average, i may get lucky on ebay but they seem to be holding their prices.
Anyway I am going to download the demo first but was wondering can i use the 3.0 mod or any other mods with the demo to improve the graphics and gameplay .