Ubisoft took the plunge into VR with Star Trek Bridge Crew earlier this year. It’s a Star Trek bridge simulator that lets you be a bridge crew member aboard a starship in the Star Trek universe. Originally, it was only in VR, in attempts to get people onboard with the new technology. But now, it seems the bridge is yours even if you don’t have a VR headset.
The change comes in the form of a patch. While it allows fans to play without a headset, the patch also includes some graphical enhancements, creates specifically to take advantage of the horsepower left over from the absence of VR. On PC, however, these graphical enhancements are available to any players with beefy enough specs, VR or non-VR. It also brings support for Windows Mixed Reality headsets.
The idea behind taking a VR game, built from the ground up to be such, and making it non-VR is an odd move. But for many, a Star Trek bridge game sounds very enticing even when one cannot afford a VR headset to play it.
The best part about this update is that players with a VR headset can still play the game with those who do not. The connection is seamless, making it simply an emersion option. Obviously, the VR players will get the full ‘Captain on the bridge’ experience, but as far as gameplay goes, the two versions are one and the same.
Star Trek: Bridge Crew is out now on PC and PlayStation 4. The non-VR patch is also available starting today.
