Star Trek, as a franchise, isn’t really known for its horror elements. Sure, encounters with some alien species like the Borg can be quite terrifying, but for the most part, it’s not a show designed to scare. However, developer Played With Fire (Mixture) for their narrative survival game Star Trek: Infection has chosen this very route.
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An infectious beginning
Unveiled during Gamescom 2025, in Star Trek: Infection, you step into the boots of a Vulcan Starfleet officer tasked with a covert mission. Boarding the U.S.S. Lumen you discover something horribly wrong “where things quickly spiral into a psychological and physical nightmare.” As you may have guessed, the ship is infected, and so are you.
“The ship is empty. The crew is missing. But something sentient and sinister has taken hold of everything, and now… it’s inside your body too. Mutating you physically and unlocking dangerous new abilities at the cost of your renowned Vulcan mind and composure,” the synopsis explains. “Explore the USS Lumen. Fight or embrace the infection. And confront the darkness within the ship… and yourself.”
You’ll have a range of classic Star Trek tools at your disposal, including a Phaser and a Tricorder to scan for dangers and uncover vital resources. As a Vulcan, you’ll have the Vulcan nerve pinch to deal with threats, but more interestingly, the infection will give you abilities, albeit unstable abilities.
Reveal Trailer
Launch Details
Star Trek: Infection is being developed for Meta Quest 3 & 3S and PCVR headsets on Steam. Currently, the Quest version is slated to arrive in 2025, with the Steam edition landing at a later date.
This is very different from the franchise’s last foray into VR. Back in 2019, Ubisoft released Star Trek: Bridge Crew, a cooperative multiplayer game where each player had their own station to monitor, coordinating with up to three other crew members.
Are you a Star Trek fan? Think Star Trek: Infection will live up to the franchise’s history? Let us know in the comments.
