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1[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/6e3fa358c91f108e1272ca3fc9942ff7.jpg]]
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3''Franchise/StarTrek: A Final Unity'' is the third in a series of {{Adventure Game}}s based on the Franchise/StarTrek universe, made for the PC in 1995 by Creator/MicroProse. It marked the first adventure game written specifically for the ''[[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Next Generation]]'' franchise, the first ''Star Trek'' adventure to be released exclusively as a fully-voiced CD-ROM, and also the first to feature "Super-VGA" graphics.
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5Like its ''[[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries TOS]]'' predecessors (''[[VideoGame/StarTrek25thAnniversary 25th Anniversary]]'' and ''VideoGame/JudgmentRites''), ''A Final Unity'' is a very faithful translation of the television show into the adventure game format. This means that the aesthetic style, writing style and structure of the show are all represented in the game. Unlike its predecessors, which were highly episodic in nature, ''A Final Unity'' is built entirely around a central StoryArc. It is designed to resemble a single, multi-part episode of the television series, whose story unfolds over a long sequence of away missions, space battles, conversations on the ship, and even some rudimentary management of the ''Enterprise'' itself.
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7The story begins with the Enterprise encountering a tiny ship fleeing Romulan space, through the Romulan Neutral Zone and into Federation space. It is pursued by a Warbird belonging to the Garidians - a race allied with the Romulans. After the Enterprise intervenes and sends the Garidians back whence they came, the rescued ship turns out to be carrying religious refugees who are fleeing from Garid. They ask Picard to assist them in rediscovering some ancient texts that might help spark a revolution back on their home planet. However, the search for these ancient texts [[PlotTwist subsequently leads]] to the re-discovery of an ancient civilization that once spanned a major portion of the galaxy, and disappeared overnight some 900,000 years ago.
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9A good portion of the game is spent on the bridge of the ''Enterprise'', but the focus of the game is still on the away missions. There are 6 of them, played in a PointAndClick adventure style reminiscent of the previous games in the series. This time around, the player gets to select which of the officers from the ''Enterprise-D'' they'd like to send down. In fact, the difficulty of each away-mission depends greatly on which officers are picked; If the most suitable officers are chosen for a mission, they will have interesting conversations with one another throughout and offer very helpful advice. As in the previous games, good diplomacy and defusing dangerous situations is once again critical here. Losing any crew member results in an instant GameOver.
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11For the first time in ''Star Trek'' videogame history, ''A Final Unity'' includes fully-3D-rendered space battles. Combat is handled through the various command posts that control the different systems on board the ship: directing weapon-fire, distributing energy, maneuvering around the battlefield, and even using tractor beams. Battles can be very difficult and very engrossing, and differ from previous games in that the arcade-like controls and flight mechanics have been replaced with a much more complex (and confusing) simulator of ship-to-ship combat, closer to the ones used in games like ''VideoGame/StarTrekBridgeCommander''. Furthermore, players have the option of relegating control to their officers during battle.
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13Once again, pretty much the entire regular cast from the television show gave their voices to this game, with plenty of dialogue for each of them. The game successfully manages to capture the feel of the series, right down to the Teaser at the beginning, the sounds and visuals, and of course the type of conflicts usually presented in ''Next Generation'' episodes. This should not be surprising, seeing as much of the story and direction aspects were handled by the creators and writers of ''The Next Generation'' and ''[[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine Deep Space Nine]]''.
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15''A Final Unity'' is also considered the last Star Trek adventure game to have SugarWiki/NoProblemWithLicensedGames, and is still remembered fondly. The next attempt resulted in ''[[VideoGame/StarTrekGenerations Star Trek: Generations]]'', a mediocre game based on a movie of the same name. This coincided with the general decline of the adventure-game genre as a whole. At the same time, the Star Trek videogame franchise began moving into more serious ship-to-ship and fleet-to-fleet combat simulations (with the occasional lower-quality adventure being released to a less receptive crowd).
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18!! This work contains examples of the following tropes:
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20* AlienGeometries: Chodak architecture.
21* ApocalypseHow:
22** '''Universal Metaphysical Annihilation:''' It's strongly implied that [[spoiler:the ''entire space-time continuum'' would be destroyed if the Unity Device were ever to be used for its original stellar engineering purposes again]].
23** '''Galactic Societal Collapse:''' [[spoiler: As soon as the Chodak Empire lost their Unity Device, their entire society collapsed pretty much overnight, primarily due to uprisings. They've been struggling to return for almost a million years!]]
24* ApocalypticLog: The logs found in the various computers on Allanor chronicle some activity during the last few hours of the Empire at its peak. The computers recorded the arrival of the rebels aboard the Rinkyl, and the chaos that ensued.
25* ArtificialStupidity: Space combat is the biggest letdown of the game, owing to its terrible design. Weaponry doesn't seem to work half the time, and gives no indication of when it actually does work. It's easy to get blown up and lose the game without even knowing how it happened. To make matters worse, emulating the game on modern machines causes ships to spin wildly in random directions for no apparent reason. The quickest and easiest way to get through it is to let Worf take control of combat, where he makes the Enterprise spin around and corkscrew marginally less than the target ship does.
26* BaitAndSwitch: Both InUniverse and Out, the final chapter on board the [[spoiler: Unity Device]] turns out to be one of these. After spending half the game [[spoiler: racing to the Unity Device to take control of it or at least prevent anyone else from doing so, Picard, Pentara and Brodnack discover that the Device is still being controlled by the same scientists who stole it originally, and that they have no intention to give up control to anyone else. They are using the device purely to mend the rifts in space-time that were caused by the Device itself a million years ago. They need an additional Chodak to help them, but the only suitable one who shows up (Brodnack) is too hell-bent on restoring the Chodak Empire, which had caused the problem to begin with. To that end, they engineer events so that Picard would show Brodnack the path of altruism and cooperation, setting him up for that one moment at the end in which he will voluntarily pledge his life to the monumental task]]. Up to that very point, Picard truly believed that [[spoiler: his own worthiness to control the Device was being tested]].
27* {{Blackmail}}: Picard knows he can't punish Aramut without first proving that he had been selling banned animal species, so instead he tells Aramut that he's going to let the Romulans know he'd been smuggling animals out of their space. This is enough to get Aramut to plead for a deal.
28* BlameGame:
29** This happens during the investigation on Morassia, with literally everyone blaming someone else for the various deficiencies, accidents, and seeming incompetence occuring at the facility. Dr. Hyunh-Foertsch takes this one step further by blaming the apparent animal smuggling on ''three different groups of people'', claiming they are all in it together.
30** Even after the mission is over, Aramut tries to continue the Blame Game by accusing his own suppliers of mistagging the animals before they even got to him. Unfortunately for Aramut, Picard is tired of playing the game.
31* BoringButPractical: The Chodak have apparently not only developed paper-clips that are identical to those used on Earth, but also designed their computers with tiny holes to eject any access rod that got stuck - in the same exact way humans designed CD-ROM drives in the 20th century.
32* BrokenAesop: At the very end of the game, Picard is given the option to use the Unity Device to [[spoiler:annihilate the Borg]]. He decides not to take this option, and wins control of the Unity Device as a result. After the fact, he rationalizes the decision as obeying the Prime Directive. The keepers of the Unity Device congratulate him on having the wisdom not to use the device for petty ends, which essentially implies that because it believes in the very simple concept of non-interference, the relatively young Federation is wiser and more enlightened than the million year old Chodak race which actually built the Unity Device in the first place.
33** This is further broken in that the message of the entire game right up to that point (as was that of the television series) was all about cooperation and mutual respect between different and alien cultures.
34** To say nothing of the Unity Device stating that not using it to wipe out the Borg is not using it to "settle petty political dispute." Except... This is THE BORG we're talking about, a species who are considered so much an existential threat to the Federation (and organic life in general) that in one episode of [=TNG=], an admiral explicitly told Picard that if he were in a position to destroy the Borg, he was to take it. The Borg aren't a political entity, and wiping them out wouldn't be "solving a political dispute" but acting to preserve life (granted, this game was written and produced well before ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'' expanded the Borg to where they were so explicitly deadly and dangerous to all life).
35* ChekhovsGun: Several, but most important are the ruins on Horst III, being investigated by the Vulcan scholar Shanok. These turn out to be ruins belonging to [[spoiler: an ancient empire that built the Unity Device]].
36* ChekhovsSkill: When the away-team first meets Chancellor Laraq face-to-face, he makes sure to mention that he has become an expert at translating Chodak texts found littered on his planet Frigis. This comes in handy later when the team discovers a hidden Chodak facility and must translate some operating instructions for its machinery.
37* ColonCancer: ''Franchise/StarTrek: [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration The Next Generation]]: A Final Unity''.
38* ContinuityNod: Multiple nods to various episodes of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', which was still in its 7th and final season when the game was released.
39** Geordi displays familiarity with singularity-based power cores, which he had acquired while attempting to repair a Romulan Warbird. ("[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E23Timescape Timescape]]")
40** Troi can be used instead of Geordi for the same puzzle. In her case, she learned the principles of singularity drives while serving in disguise on a Romulan warbird. ("[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E13FaceOfTheEnemy Face of the Enemy]]")
41** When Data is confronted with the possibility of a creature that eats neural energy on the planet Morassia, he is not surprised at all - stating that he had already encountered such creatures personally (in the two-parter episode "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS5E26S6E1TimesArrow Time's Arrow]]").
42** The ''Enterprise'' encounters the Klingon cruiser ''Bortas'' during their attempts to defend the border against a Romulan invasion. Worf comments that the ''Bortas's'' new captain had fought alongside him against the Duras family - a nod to the two-parter episode "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS4E26S5E1Redemption Redemption]]". The ''Bortas'' itself appeared in that episode and others as Chancellor Gowron's flagship.
43** When Picard is being interrogated on the Unity Device to determine what he would do with its power, the judge asks whether he would use it to make up for his father's disapproval, or his brother's resentment. This harkens back to episodes such as "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E14Tapestry Tapestry]]" and "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS4E2Family Family]]", in which those aspects of Picard's life were revealed. The judge then brings up Picard's NoodleIncident from his academy days that nearly got him expelled ("[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS5E19TheFirstDuty The First Duty]]"), as well as an old lover he had jilted due to fear of commitment ("[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS1E23WellAlwaysHaveParis We'll Always Have Paris]]"). He then moves on to more recent failures, such as the destruction of the Stargazer ("[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS1E8TheBattle The Battle]]"), the actions of Locutus of Borg at Wolf 359 ("[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS3E26S4E1TheBestOfBothWorlds The Best of Both Worlds]]"), and giving up Federation secrets to the Cardassians ("[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E10ChainOfCommand The Chains of Command]]").
44* ContrivedCoincidence: The ''Enterprise'' rescues some Garidian refugees looking for the Fifth Scroll. It then responds to an alien attack on a research station. Finally, an Admiral calls and asks for help looking for a friend who's gone missing on a nature preserve. These three events follow one another almost directly, but literally have ''nothing'' to do with each other on a causality level. However, once the third event is completed, all three storylines come together perfectly, with the missing person investigation ultimately providing a crucial clue that leads the ''Enterprise'' right to the planet containing both the Fifth Scroll and an extremely rare Chodak ruin. Without all of these disconnected things happening at the same time -- [[spoiler:and right before the Romulans and Chodak invade the Federation, no less]] -- the ''Enterprise'' would never have been able to find the Unity Device in time. On the other hand, the trope may be [[JustifiedTrope justified]] by the fact that the Unity Device probably had the power to orchestrate them.
45** Another coincidence is the Vulcan archaeologist Shanok on Horst [=III=]. He is first visited early on because he's the foremost expert on Garidian archaeology in the Federation. He has no information that could help with finding the Fifth Scroll, but does mention that he's currently excavating the only Chodak site ever found within Federation space. Once [[spoiler: the Chodak invade]], the ''Enterprise'' rushes back to Horst [=III=] and visit his excavation site, where they find the only clue that could pinpoint the location of [[spoiler:the Chodak capital of Allanor]].
46* CreepyCathedral: The Quester sect of the Garidian Followers reside in one - a black gothic cathedral with an eerie green glow. The aesthetic supposedly goes hand-in-hand with their apparent devotion to self-inflicted pain as a path to salvation.
47* CripplingOverspecialization: The Unity Device accuses the Chodak of having done nothing but hone their skills at overcoming the challenges they expected the device to present to them once it reappeared - and never having learned from the mistakes that led to its disappearance in the first place.
48* DataCrystal: Picard actually receives a Chodak data crystal about halfway through the game, called a "data crystal" in so many words, no less. Unfortunately, most of the data on it is corrupted, though there is some useful information in it.
49* DeusExMachina: The Unity device is precisely this; a technological machine capable of doing literally anything. It could instantly destroy any fleet of ships that threatened it, and that is stated to be the least of its power. It can create sentient races from nothing, and even destroy (or create) an entire Galaxy if its owner so wished. Fortunately it is never seen to be used like this and essentially remains a MacGuffin.
50* DistressCall: As per the ''Star Trek'' idiom, these occur constantly. The game even starts with one, as a Garidian scout-ship carrying political refugees attempts to race across the Romulan Neutral Zone to seek asylum in the Federation. This is the IncitingIncident that triggers all other events in the game.
51** Another distress call is received as soon as the matter with the Garidian refugees is resolved, when the ''Enterprise'' receives a call to investigate an attack on the ''Mertens'' Federation advanced research facility.
52** Another one is issued when [[spoiler: The Romulans invade Federation space in search of the Unity Device]].
53* DoUntoOthersBeforeTheyDoUntoUs: When Mertens Station comes under attack, Worf speculates that the Romulans attacked the station because it was developing a method to detect cloaked vessels - potentially nullifying their key tactical advantage.
54* DysonSphere: The Unity Device is one, though the inside seems to be full of other things as well, not just along the inner surface. It is certainly the size of a Dyson Sphere: 314 million kilometers in diameter.
55* EnduranceDuel: The Chodak "Second Challenge" is a simple game where three contestants zap one another until only one remains. It is hinted that the challenge traditionally continues until all but one have been killed.
56* EnemyMine: During the tests on the Unity Device, Picard and Pentara quickly realize that if Brodnack gets control of the device he would turn the Federation, Garidia, and every other civilization in the galaxy into second-class citizens (read: slaves). They agree to work together to defeat him.
57* EscapedAnimalRampage: This is the B-plot during the Morassia mission. A rare mistagged animal that eats energy managed to knock out the power generators at the animal enclosure, breaks out of its cage, and incapacitates several Watchers. It then goes on a rampage, sucking the energy out of multiple other specimens at the preserve.
58* EvilGloating: Once Admiral Brodnack reveals his true identity [[spoiler: as the commander of the Chodak Star Fleet]], he goes on to explain his empire's intentions as well as the nature and capabilites of the Unity Device, thinking that Picard will never be able to do anything about it.
59* FantasticCasteSystem:
60** The Garidians have a two-caste system comprised of the Patricians and Plebians, as established in their original founding texts, the "Four Scrolls". A major portion of the game revolves around the search for a fifth scroll, which codified the rights of the Plebians while rebuking the Patricians. The discovery of this fifth scroll [[spoiler: sets off a violent revolution on Garid]].
61* FantasticRacism:
62** The Morassians treat their males as second-class citizens, viewing them as inferior. They extend the same disrespect to the males from the Enterprise... except for Worf, who gets the same level of respect as the female Enterprise crew-members because he is Klingon. The nature of this exception is left unexplored.
63** The Morassians are highly suspicious of the exotic animal trader Aramut simply because he is a Ferengi, despite having had no real contact with the man. Of course, it doesn't help that their contact to him it through the SmugSnake Iydia.
64* FictionalUnitedNations: In the canon ending, Picard manages to convince Pentara and Brodnack that one must be set up in order to decide how to use the powers of the Unity Device once they've taken control of it.
65* FlingALightIntoTheFuture: The Chodak [[spoiler: rebels did this with the Unity Device, not because the Chodak empire was dying, but because they felt it SHOULD die, as it had become corrupt and evil. The Unity Device was the source of Chodak dominance and the rebels felt it was too powerful and dangerous to be used for such petty reasons.]]
66* ForYourOwnGood: In their final statement before stealing the Unity Device, the Chodak scientists explain how they were doing this for the good of the Chodak people. They were right - it was destroying the entire universe.
67* FragileSpeedster: The Romulans, whose Warbirds are typically a serious danger to Federation vessels, turn their ships into Fragile Speedsters in order to race through the Federation border into the Ztarnis Nebula. This is what allows the ''Enterprise'' to take on several Warbirds in combat and win.
68* GenocideDilemma: Appears when [[spoiler: the Unity Device]] offers Picard the option to eradicate the Borg forever.
69* GhostPlanet: Allanor, the capital of the Chodak Empire. Many of its facilities are still functional thanks to an army of maintenance droids.
70* GreaterScopeVillain: At the mid-point of the game, [[spoiler: The Romulans invade Federation space in an attempt to reach the presumed location where the Unity Device will reappear]]. Shortly afterwards, [[spoiler: The Chodak invade as well for the same purpose]]. They are significantly stronger, and far more dangerous [[spoiler: since the Unity Device used to belong to them]].
71* HiddenElfVillage: The Lawgiver and his followers escaped Garid and arrived on the planet Frigis, now in Federation space. In order to ensure that the Garidians never find them, they used a Chameleon Field device they found on Frigis to disguise their entire planet as an inhospitable one, so that no one would think to search it.
72* HiddenPurposeTest: When Picard, Pentara and Brodnack enter the Unity Device they are told that they will undergo a test to discover which among them is worthy of controlling it. At the very end, it turns out that [[spoiler: the test was actually designed to teach Brodnack that the device must never be used at all, mentally preparing him to volunteer to help keep the device from tearing the universe apart]].
73* HumanPopsicle: Aelont, leader of the Seekers, inadvertently turns himself into one when he manages to get past the guardian of the Path of No Return and stumbles into a Chodak facility, where a security device places him in stasis. He stays that way for several months until the ''Enterprise'' away-team finds and releases him. Fortunately, he was in full stasis and did not even realize any time had passed.
74* IComeInPeace: During their initial encounter, Picard tries to convince Brodnack that the ''Enterprise'' away team has only come to Allanor as part of an archaeological expedition. Brodnack [[spoiler:only pretends to fall for this]], but also mentions that the Romulans had claimed the same thing when they visited the planet [[WeComeInPeaceShootToKill and sabotaged its transporter system]].
75* IdiotBall: The Seekers are a sect of Garidians who believe in always admitting ignorance and seeking truth. In their temple is a massive door that has been there for a thousand years, guarded by a mechanical statue that will only open the door if you answer a series of questions correctly. Yet no one had gone through that door until about one month before the ''Enterprise'' arrived; In fact, Riker is the second person to ever get the answers right and go through. This means that in about a thousand years, none of the Seekers have managed to figure out that [[spoiler: the statue wants answers that '''admit one's ignorance''']]. How could you possibly fail that, Seekers?!
76* ImplacableMan: Pentara argues that they should use to the Unity Device to completely wipe out the Borg, arguing that they would never negotiate even if they knew what the Device was capable of.
77* ImproperlyParanoid: While Dr. Vi Hyunh-Foertsch is ProperlyParanoid about someone smuggling illegal animals into the Morassia wildlife preserve, she blames literally ''everyone'' for being in on the conspiracy, including even the person who had brought the issue to her attention in the first place! She suspects the ''actual'' culprit too, but the trope is inverted when [[IdiotBall for some reason]] she still agrees to have dinner with [[spoiler:him]], leading to the doctor getting [[spoiler: drugged and gagged and held captive in his quarters]].
78* InsufferableGenius: Dr. Griems on Mertens Station berates the ''Enterprise'' away-team for distracting him while he's trying to stabilize the PerilousPowerSource he had set up on the station. Geordi must impress the doctor with his engineering prowess in order to get him to allow the team to help stabilize the device before it blows.
79* IntelligentGerbil: In a departure from ''Trek's'' [[RubberForeheadAliens normal way of doing things]], the [[spoiler:Chodak]] are some sort of anthropomorphic bivalve that possess a face with two eyes and a mouth, plus bilateral bodily symmetry including a pair of spindly arms and legs. Their memorable appearance would have been extremely difficult and expensive to portray in a 1990's [=TV=] show, which is fortunately no obstacle for an animated videogame.
80* InvisibleMonster: One of these got loose on the Morassia nature preserve. Turns out it isn't only invisible, it also eats energy.
81* InvisibilityCloak: Aside from the familiar one used by the Romulans (and their allies the Garidians), the ''Enterprise'' now has to contend with a new interstellar power using something called a "Chameleon Field" which can disguise an object as another innocuous space object such as an asteroid. It primarily works by masking against sensor scans, but doesn't fool the naked eye. The Chameleon Field is encountered multiple times during the game, at one point used to [[spoiler: mask an entire inhabited planet as an uninhabitable one]].
82* LeaveNoWitnesses: Consultant Iydia blames the Watchers for having "disappeared" Dr. Hynuh-Foertsch to prevent her from blowing the lid on their animal smuggling operation. It turns out that [[spoiler: Iydia himself did exactly that. The watchers were never involved]].
83* LostSuperweapon: [[spoiler: The Unity Device]]. It has the ability to literally alter reality.
84* {{Matriarchy}}: Morassian society is a matriarchy, with males considered inferior to females and unfit for leadership positions. Curiously, the Federation actually considers admitting Morassia despite the obvious inequality.
85* MeaningfulName: The game was made at the time ''The Next Generation'' was winding down after seven years on the air, and there was a lot of publicity surrounding the series finale. The title of the game, "A Final Unity", was themed around all of this.
86* MistakenForGranite: The statue guarding the Path of No Return on Frigis. It is actually an animatronic (or possibly a living being).
87* MortonsFork: The final choice in the game, [[spoiler: whether to destroy a Borg fleet or the entire Borg race]]. Except that [[spoiler: an observant player will [[SubvertedTrope notice]] they can TakeAThirdOption.]]
88* MyFutureSelfAndMe: The Unity Device [[spoiler: attempts to trick]] Picard by showing him an image of himself, claiming that it is him from the future coming back to warn him that Pentara and Brodnack will betray him. The image hands him a device to be used later in order to win the test.
89* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Watcher Tzudan discovered the first mistagged animal at the Morassia nature preserve, and brought it to Dr. Hyunh-Foertsch so she might investigate where the animal came from or why it was mistagged. In return, she accused ''him'' of operating an animal smuggling ring.
90* NotSoExtinct: The escaped animal at the Morassia nature preserve bears a strong resemblance to a now-extinct animal that once lived on Garid. However, it turns out that the Lawgiver had taken several animals from Garid when he left - including this one. Learning this helps the ''Enterprise'' track down the animal's origin to the planet the Lawgiver escaped to.
91* TheOmnipotent: The Unity Device is literally omnipotent, capable of altering reality itself.
92* OnlySmartPeopleMayPass:
93** The fifth scroll is housed in a room with a logic puzzle barring access to it.
94** Inverted, in a way, with the Door of Enlightenment. You can only pass if [[spoiler: you honestly admit that you don't know the answer to any of the questions]].
95* TheOnlyWayTheyWillLearn: The Lawgiver was fed up with the infighting between the various sects forming among his Followers, so he hid the Fifth Scroll away from them and told them that they would need to cooperate in order to ever find it again. Unfortunately, a thousand years later, they had never done so.
96* PerilousPowerSource: Dr. Griems was developing one on Mertens Station, using a singularity (a black hole) as a power source. The power plant is inherently unstable, though it wasn't actually dangerous until the station came under attack.
97* PlanetSpaceship: Actually a ''Star'' Spaceship, given that the Unity Device is 314 million kilometers in diameter. For comparison, if the device had been placed where our Sun is, the Earth would be orbiting close to its inner surface.
98* ThePowerOfTrust: Brodnack and Pentara must both be shown this by example, in order to get the canon ending.
99* ProperlyParanoid: Dr. Vi Hyunh-Foertsch, at least generally-speaking. When a mistagged animal is brought to her attention, she begins to suspect that someone in the Morassia wildlife preserve has been importing illegal animals. Her only problem is that she's also ImproperlyParanoid, blaming various innocent people for being in on the scam, and thus [[CryingWolf losing all credibility for her claim]].
100* {{Precursors}}: The Chodak. And [[spoiler: you're not going to like them returning]].
101* PsychologicalProjection: Brodnack has trouble understanding that Picard actually means what he says when he tries to get the other captains to cooperate in the Unity Device test, instead believing that Picard was only doing so because he felt weak and needed allies. This is due to Brodnack's upbringing, which pushes the individual to excel at the expense of others.
102* {{Railroading}}: The game does dip into this territory on occasion. In particular, there's the ShmuckBait mentioned below - if you need to use the pulsar, the game will make you go into Romulan space to outrun the light of the pulsar and observe it in what would otherwise be a pretty clever acknowledgment of real physics and what would be possible with FTL travel. The only thing is... a star, even a pulsar, is a ''sphere''. Even if you just need to be on the pulsar's former plane of ecliptic to fully observe the pulse, you should be able to go in any direction in 360 degrees from it to make your observation - including the opposite direction away from Romulan territory! However, that part of the game world doesn't exist (the pulsar is positioned in a way as to make that part of the Federation unreachable on the map), so you have no choice but to violate the Neutral Zone to make your observation.
103* RecurringCharacter: Not strictly a character, but a ship: The Klingon cruiser ''Bortas'', already seen in several ''[=TNG=]'' episodes including "Redemption" and "Heir to the Empire", where it served as Gowron's flagship. In this game, it is the first Klingon vessel to arrive to help defend the Federation against a Romulan invasion.
104* ReplayMode: The game allows the player to go to the Holodeck of the Enterprise where he/she can rewatch the game's cutscenes.
105* RubberForeheadAliens: Despite this being a video game where makeup and costumes are not a limiting factor, the Garidians -- a completely new race appearing only in this game -- are basically [=Romulans/Vulcans=] with deep forehead ridges.
106** Subverted with the [[spoiler: Chodak]], who look barely humanoid at all, though they do not cross fully into the StarfishAliens category. If anything, they somewhat resemble [[Literature/AliceInWonderland Humpty Dumpty]].
107** A Federation phytosociologist working at the Morassian Nature Preserve appears to be some sort of insectoid alien. There is no interaction with them during the game; only their portrait appears in the tricorder during that mission.
108* SacredScripture: The Garidian Scrolls, of which only four were publicly known until the very start of the game, written a thousand years ago by the Lawgiver. They are the founding document of Garidian society, and are seen with utmost reverence. When a fifth scroll is found, the revelations it contains upends their entire society.
109* SchmuckBait: Late in the game, you may find yourself needing to use a pulsar to determine the location of the Unity Device, only to discover that it has collapsed into a black hole. Data suggests using a complex solution involving warp drive, the deflector and subspace fields, while Troi suggests flying thirty light years away (into Romulan space, no less) in order to get an image of the pulsar prior to its collapse. Given their respective backgrounds, you'd probably expect Troi's solution to be completely idiotic, and Data's to be the correct one. You'd be wrong, though -- Troi's solution works so long as you can avoid getting blown away by the Romulans, whereas Data's will result in the instant destruction of the ''Enterprise''.
110* SealTheBreach: Must be done to prevent the destruction of Mertens Station after an attack causes its inherently-unstable PerilousPowerSource to become ''too'' unstable.
111* SecretTestOfCharacter: On the player. You'll need this [[spoiler: at the very end. See TakeAThirdOption]].
112* SealedEvilInACan: The Unity Device not only was being used for evil purposes, but had the potential to [[spoiler: destroy the universe]], leading to [[spoiler: Chodak scientists stealing it and phasing it out of time for nearly a million years]], until it could be found again by someone more worthy to use its powers. However...
113* SealedEvilInADuel: ...the scientists who [[spoiler: stole the Unity Device]] were actually [[spoiler: not hoping to find a more benevolent user for the device, but someone who would help contain the damage it had done to the universe. They've been struggling to seal the tearing of the space-time continuum it had caused, and will probably continue to do so until the end of time]].
114* SeriesContinuityError: As much as the game really does manage to evoke the feel of the ''TNG'' television series, its utterly impossible to fit it into the continuity, as the stardates mentioned throughout the game indicate it as taking place over the course of the entire final season: the first stardate mentioned in the game, 47111.1, actually places it immediately after "Descent Part 2", and the final stardate mentioned in the game is after the one used in ''TNG'''s final episode. So unless the search for the Chodak was happening "around" the rest of the final season, and therefore we only get to see those relevant bits here, it otherwise becomes very tricky to figure out...
115* ServantRace: The Chodak used the Unity Device to create at least one of these. They were termed "second-class citizens", but were most likely just slaves.
116* ShroudedInMyth: Although the Garidians acknowledge that the Lawgiver was a real person, details about his life and departure from Garid have passed into legend, replaced by his writings (those that survived, anyway).
117* SkeletonKey: Chancellor Laraq hands Picard one of these, a programmable key that can be used to access any Chodak computer.
118* SmugSnake:
119** Captain Pentara slips into this role towards the end of the game, [[spoiler: [[AndIMustScream to her own detriment]]]] when [[spoiler: she fails one of the many [[SecretTestOfCharacter secret tests of character]]]].
120** Admiral Brodnak is also this, constantly overestimating himself and underestimating everyone else throughout his time interacting with you.
121** Consultant Iydia at the Morassian nature preserve. He is dismissive of the ''Enterprise's'' investigation into Dr. Hyunh-Foertsch's disappearance, angry that it is taking away time from his important research, and condescending over anyone who tries to question him and everyone else at the facility to boot. In conversation it is quickly also revealed that he lacks any scientific ethics. Finally, [[spoiler: it is discovered that he had drugged and kidnapped Dr. Hyunh-Foertsch because she was about to expose his smuggling operation]].
122** Arch-Rashon Nachyl on Frigis is implied to be one based on dialog with Aelont, but no on-screen behavior really confirms this.
123* SomethingOnlyTheyWouldSay: In order to get the Lawgiver's Followers to reveal themselves on Frigis, Picard allows T'Bak to broadcast a quote from the Lawgiver. He specifically chooses the last words of the Lawgiver before he left Garid, where he rebuked the Garidian ruling council for its misinterpretation of his words. This lets the Followers know that they are not simply dealing with Garidians (whom they were trying to hide from), but ones who recognize that the Lawgiver was not a traitor.
124* SpaceStation: Other than the many Starbases you can visit for repairs and torpedo replenishment, Mertens Station is the only Space Station relevant to the story. It is an advanced scientific research station that has been developing a variety of new technologies, among which are means to detect cloaked vessels as well as an experimental power source similar to the one used by Romulans. Unsurprisingly, it comes under attack fairly early on, though [[spoiler: not by the Romulans]].
125* StrikeMeDownWithAllOfYourHatred: Brodnack tries to get the ''Enterprise'' to fire on his ship by locking weapons on it, knowing that the Unity Device would destroy the ''Enterprise'' for its violent behavior. Picard doesn't fall for this.
126* SuicideMission: [[spoiler: The Romulans]] are well aware that many (if not most) of their ships will be destroyed in Federation space as they race to the Ztarnis Nebula, but they believe that enough ships will be able to reach [[spoiler: The Unity Device]] and use it to destroy the Federation instantly.
127* TakeAThirdOption: [[spoiler:The only correct solution to the final dilemma in the game. You are informed of an impending attack by a Borg fleet and can use the unity device to either destroy the fleet or [[FinalSolution the entire Borg race]]. On the surface, it looks like [[ButThouMust you absolutely must]] choose one option or the other to proceed with the game - unless you notice that the control panel that presents the options has an off switch...]]
128* TalkingTheMonsterToDeath: Picard ''hopes'' to do this to [[spoiler: Brodnack]] during the [[EnduranceDuel Second Challenge]], since otherwise he might die during the challenge. Unfortunately it fails, but fortunately Brodnack yields before the challenge can kill him.
129* TheGuardsMustBeCrazy: When the Morassian guards go to arrest [[spoiler: Consultant Iydia]], he tells them to wait while he grabs some stuff and uses the time to escape the planet entirely. Constable Lliksze is rightly furious at their incompetence.
130* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Picard, Pentara and Brodnack are each on the receiving end of one of these near the very end of the game, when being confronted by an alien who demands to know why they should be allowed to [[spoiler:control the Unity Device]].
131* TheyDontMakeThemLikeTheyUsedTo: Remnants of Chodak technology are said to be nearly a million years old, yet work like they are brand new after eons of disuse. Only some minor data corruption is seen. Geordi even [[LampshadeHanging comments]] on how improbable this is.
132* TwoLinesNoWaiting: The mission on Morassia has two concurrent plots running: The disappearance of Dr. Hyunh-Foertsch, and the mysterious power-outages that have been plaguing the nature reserve. The two incidents initially appear to be connected, but are gradually revealed to be completely separate events. They both must be resolved before the mission ends.
133* UnwinnableByDesign: Happens in the very last mission, if you either [[spoiler:kill Admiral Brodnack, or fail to assist Brodnack and Pentara in crossing the chasm in the Unity Device]].
134* WaitingPuzzle:
135** At several points in the game, there's nothing to do except wait for a message to come in from Starfleet, or wait for some analysis to be completed. This can take upwards of 10 seconds sometimes.
136** During an Away Mission while on Ensign difficulty (or if you chose the correct people for the Away Team yourself) the characters occasionally speak with one another and plainly state what the solution to the current problem is, or what your next step should be. The interval between them speaking up is random, and can sometimes take up to two minutes.
137* WhatAreRecords: On Allanor, Picard's team finds a paperclip. Being from a society that has never used paper documents, they've never seen one and are confounded by its purpose. Amusingly, they then have to use the paperclip [[TechnologyMarchesOn for a purpose that's already obsolete even in our time]]: [[spoiler:manually ejecting a piece of equipment from a computer, a-la [=CD-ROM=] drives]].
138* WithOurSwordsScene: This is the only peaceful way to escape the room where the "Second Challenge" takes place. Picard must convince the two other captains to hand over their disc parts, and then use all three parts to divert the energy inside a force field mechanism to turn it off.
139* YouAreTooLate: Once [[spoiler: The Romulans invade Federation space]], they believe the Federation is already too late to stop them from reaching the Unity Device and essentially ending the war instantly in their favor.
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