Borg (game)

Introduction (blurb)
Star Trek: Borg is an action-adventure, interactive movie with over 120 minutes of video spread across three CD-ROMs. The game is fully authentic, having been filmed on the actual Star Trek sets. Simon & Schuster Interactive marketed the game as being indistinguishable from any other Star Trek episode.

Star Trek: Borg was released in 1997 along with another interactive movie, Star Trek: Klingon. Both Borg and Klingon were written by Star Trek TNG writer, Hilary J. Bader. Borg was directed by Star Trek veteran director James L. Conway while Klingon was directed by Jonathan Frakes. The story is told completely from a first person point of view. The player interacts with objects and makes decisions by using the mouse to click on objects of interest or to make choices that will take the player on a mission of extreme danger, difficult choices, and surprising results.

The player's choices determine the progress of the game. Rather than presenting simple right or wrong choices, the choices grow more and more complex as the game progresses. Incorrect choices often reveal subtle clues to required information that the player would have not known otherwise. Some choices are not immediately revealed to be incorrect until later on in the game. Unlike most video games, the player does not have a set number of lives. Q will alter the space-time continuum in order to give the player another chance. At least, until the player "upsets or bores" him.

For those who are not die-hard Trek fans, the game provides access to a special tricorder which the player can access at any time. This tricorder gives the player a plethora of information on a wide range of topics, far beyond what is required to complete the game. In addition, the third CD-ROM contains "The Picard Dossier" which is a small electronic encyclopedia with entries on a wide range of Star Trek topics.

Summary
(Broken subspace radio call.) “...intercepted two Borg vessels on a direct course for Sector 001. If you can read this do not send help. WE ARE LOST. Warn Starfleet. THE BORG HAVE RETURNED!”

When he was only nine years old, Qaylan Furlong’s father was tragically killed during the Battle of Wolf 359. Ten years later, Furlong is still haunted by the loss of his father and wishes to avenge him. During a field trip to the USS Cheyenne, Cadet Qaylan Furlong learns that the ship has received a distress call from the USS Canalie warning that two Borg vessels are on a direct course for Sector 001 to assimilate Earth.

Furlong, along with the five other cadets on the Cheyenne, is called to a briefing where Lieutenant Shoreham (Juli Donald) informs the group that Starfleet is amassing a fleet of ships in Sector 001. However, the Cheyenne's captain has ordered all non-essential personnel, including Starfleet cadets, to be shuttled to a nearby medical facility.

While Lt. Shoreham sympathizes with Cadet Furlong, she informs him that the captain has denied his request to remain onboard to avenge his father's death. Back in his quarters, Furlong throws his clothes into a suitcase when suddenly Q shows up. He gives Furlong a choice: to avenge the death of his father or head for the safety of the shuttle.

"You want action. You want to avenge your father's death. You want to kill Borg. What senescent but still barbaric bi-pedal hominid wouldn’t?”

Furlong makes the choice to fight so Q gives him a phaser and a unique tricorder that Q made personally. Q then transports Furlong back in time ten years to 2367. On the bridge of the USS Righteous, Cadet Furlong witnesses the Battle of Wolf 359 along with the death of his father Ralph Furlong. Q explains that the Righteous’ Chief of Security, Lieutenant Coris Sprint (Tarik Ergin) was killed four hours earlier and replaced by an inexperienced junior officer. When a lone Borg drone beams onto the bridge in the middle of the battle, the incompetent officer is unable to stop the drone from commandeering the ship and dropping the shields. The Borg then vaporize the Righteous with one shot. Having seen how his father died, Cadet Furlong is transported back in time four hours. The Righteous started following the Borg Cube just after the USS Enterprise's failed attempt to destroy it by using the Enterprise's navigational deflector. The Borg apparently do not see a lone Excelsior-class ship as a threat. Rather than destroy the ship, the Borg send over a drone to download the ship’s computer files. During the confrontation that follows, Lt. Sprint is killed.

If Sprint had lived, Q wonders, could he have saved the ship four hours later? Q then allows Cadet Furlong to take Sprint’s place. To everyone except Q, Cadet Furlong appears as Lieutenant Sprint. Q takes the place of the ship's doctor, Quint, so that he can accompany (and torment) Cadet Furlong along the way.

''“The Borg has control of Tactical. The shields are dropping. We’re all going to die. And it’s your fault.”''

Cadet Furlong’s first actions as Sprint are useless. At first, Furlong tries to shoot the Borg, but the drone ignores his attack. Then the Borg struggles with Furlong, killing him. Q taunts Furlong by saying that Sprint surely would have tried the obvious. On his next attempt, Furlong tries using his tricorder which also gets him killed. Q then takes Furlong to task by asking him if he was going to scan the Borg to death. When all of the obvious choices turn out to be wrong, Q (as Quint) uses a hypo to disable the Borg. When the crew tries to remove the drone a few minutes later, it suddenly awakens and begins interfacing with a bridge station. Ensign Targus tries to stop the drone. It begins choking her while continuing to download information from the computer. Another officer tries shooting the Borg which is also useless. In the excitement, Q tells Furlong to shoot her and Furlong complies. Targus falls dead while the rest of the bridge crew glare at Furlong. Q snaps his fingers to “pause” reality and tells Furlong that he would appreciate it if Furlong would attempt to make correct choices. Q takes Furlong back in time a few seconds and Furlong shoots the computer station which explodes, killing the Borg drone. After the encounter, the captain of the USS Righteous, Nikolai Andropov (Barry Lynch) orders Furlong (as Sprint) to reconfigure the security console. While a seemingly simple task, Furlong is at first, injured then on a second attempt, killed when he does not utilize Q’s tricorder to learn the proper procedure. When Furlong is killed, Q complains to the crew that Furlong is “just too stupid to live”. Finally, Furlong learns to disconnect the console's power supply before making the requested changes.

“It’s good to be a Q.”

As a Bijani, Lt. Sprint lacks the ability to speak; therefore he must enter destination codes in the turbolift control pad. While Cadet Furlong is in Sprint’s body, he too cannot speak. While trying to reach the Righteous’ Computer Core Control Room, Furlong enters the wrong destination code which leads him to the Righteous’ crew quarters. Q is waiting for him in a corridor while lounging in a beach chair and dressed in a Hawaiian shirt. Behind him are two lovely and scantily clad women. Suddenly, Captain Andropov appears dressed in a waiter’s outfit and presents a fruity alcoholic beverage to Q. Then, the faux Andropov lip-synchs to the real captain’s voice over the com system telling Furlong to report immediately. The two beauties pass by Furlong, who is mesmerized by them. Q then places his hand over Furlong’s face to block his view of the ladies. Q pushes him back into the turbolift. Q tells Furlong: “Why? Because I can.” Then Q leaves to join the two women.

Eventually, Cadet Furlong manages to find the Core Room where he his subjected to a dressing down by Captain Andropov for his tardiness. The Righteous’ crew has discovered a Borg Assimilation Implant attached to the computer core. This device is overriding the ship's security controls. Since Sprint is the security officer, Cadet Furlong has to figure out a way to disable the device. In his first attempt, Furlong cuts the device off of the console with a laser cutter. At first this seems to be successful, however a few moments later the Righteous’ computer announces that the self-destruct has been activated. Captain Andropov orders the computer to cancel the self-destruct. However, all controls are locked out and the ship is destroyed a few seconds later. Q then tells Cadet Furlong that he dislikes human ignorance and that if the Borg had any personally at all, he might spend time with them. On his next attempt, Cadet Furlong decides to leave the device alone. The crew surmises that another Borg soldier must have transported onboard during the brief time that the ship was in transporter range.

“Better dead than Borg.”

While attempting to find the second Borg drone with the internal sensors, Ensign Anastasia Targus (Marnie McPhail) and Lieutenant Ralph Furlong (Jeff Allin) make a pact that they will not allow each other to be assimilated. They seal this pact along with Cadet Furlong (as Lt. Sprint) by using a special handshake whereby the three of them would grasp the forearm of the other with their left hand in an overhand grip thereby forming a triangle between them.

Since the Righteous crew cannot locate the second Borg by using the internal sensors, Cadet Furlong (in the body of Sprint)accompanies his father Lt. Ralph Furlong into the bowels of the ship to find the other Borg. The two close in on the Borg in a junction of Jefferies’ Tube 6. Lieutenant Furlong proposes that one of them should stay behind in case the Borg doubles back. Since both of them want to go, Lt. Ralph Furlong decides to settle the matter with a game of chance. He takes off his combadge and hides it behind his back. He then presents both of his closed hands and asks Cadet Furlong to choose. When Cadet Furlong does nothing, First of Four (a Borgified Q) suddenly appears and assimilates both of them. On his second attempt, Cadet Furlong choses the left hand of Lt. Furlong, but it is empty. Lt. Furlong proceeds into the next Jefferies’ tube. A few minutes later, the Lieutenant reappears as a partially assimilated Borg drone. To Cadet Furlong’s horror, his dad demands to be killed rather than leave him a Borg. After killing his own father, Cadet Furlong is surprised by the Borg drone and assimilated. Unable to resist the commands of the collective, the Borgified Cadet Furlong proceeds to the Righteous' bridge and assimilates everyone.

''“You just called your fellow Borg up to the bridge and had them assassinate all of your friends. Don’t feel bad. If it ever goes to trial, don’t worry, you can just claim that the Collective made you do it.”''

Having failed yet again, Q transports Cadet Furlong back in time to give him a second chance. Back in the Jefferies' tube, this time, Cadet Furlong picks his fathers right hand which is the only remaining choice. However, this hand too is empty. Lt. Furlong again heads down the other Jefferies' tube and ends up being assimilated. Cadet Furlong is also assimilated again. However, this time the Borgaifed Cadet Furlong shoots and kills the bridge crew. When Furlong shoots Q (in the body of Dr. Quint), Q fakes his death. Leaning over Q's supposed dead body, Q suddenly rises and says, "Great now I'm dead!". Before giving Cadet Furlong another chance, Q whispers to him that Lt. Furlong is cheating. Back again in the Jefferies’ tube, Cadet Furlong knows that both of his father's hands are empty. So, this time, he punches his father in the face which knocks him out for a short time. Cadet Furlong then gets stuck in a short temporal loop during which various failures end up resulting in his death or the destruction of the ship. Frustrated with Furlong’s lack of progress, Q proclaims: ''“Have you noticed that I keep sending you back to the same place? Do you think that I do these things just to be perverse? Well, yes, I suppose I do. I’m an omnipotent being. I could send you anywhere. I’m sending you there for a reason. Try to get it right this time. I’m tired of replaying this moment.”''

Finally, Furlong remembers to reprogram his father’s phaser so that when the Borg drone attacks, his father will be able to save him. Searching the dead Borg, Lt. Furlong finds the Borg Designator Circuit.

The Righteous' crew attempts to analyze the circuit, without sucess. Realizing that the circuit has an auto-neural interface, they decide to link the circuit to Ensign Targus' medical implant. Despite the risk to her, Targus volunteers to interface with the Borg circuit. Q uses a hypospray to immobilize Targus and the Borg circuit is linked to her implant. Ensign Targus learns that the Borg circuit is in constant contact with the Borg Collective. She tells Lt. Furlong to re-modulate the Righteous' shields to a certain frequency that will block the Borg signals. This gets the attention of the Borg Cube which fires on the Righteous. After a few tense moments, Lt. Furlong is able to complete the modifications to the shields and the Borg cease their attack.

''“I’m starting to wonder about you Cadet. Maybe you just aren’t up to saving the Universe. That’s the great part about being omnipotent, I can always give you a second chance. As long as you don’t bore me.”''

When the Borg circuit is cut off from the hive mind, it begins to damage Targus' brain, causing her great agony. Lt. Furlong attempts to remove it, but receives an electric shock. Targus begs her friends to kill her. Q says that he can't give her any more medicine as that would leave her a vegetable for life. Cadet Furlong must decide whether to use the hypo or to remove the device. When he reaches to remove it, Q asks if he is sure which causes Furlong to doubt himself. Because Furlong hesitates, the Borg circuit has time to take control over Targus’ mind. Targus attacks the bridge crew and they are forced to kill her. Q gives Furlong another chance after a stern warning not to disappoint him again or he will let Furlong die for real. On his next attempt, Cadet Furlong grabs the circuit and goes into a Bijani pain trance during which he is unconscious while his body acts on "autopilot". After several minutes of unconsciousness, Cadet Furlong revives. Ensign Targus glady thanks Cadet Furlong for her rescue.

Meanwhile, Lt. Furlong has volunteered to go on a reconnaissance mission inside the Borg cube. Targus and Cadet Furlong also volunteer. Before leaving the Righteous, Q gives an emergency medkit to Targus which he says contains a programmable hypospray while casting a sly look at Cadet Furlong and asking if he knows how to use it.

''“We few, we happy few. We band of Borg.”''

Lieutenant Ralph Furlong, Ensign Targus, and Cadet Furlong (as Lieutenant Sprint) beam into the Borg cube. They look around the empty corridors before moving deeper into the interior of the Cube. Several Borg drones are regenerating in their alcoves along the walls. Suddenly, two Borg drones approach from another corridor. When they pass the trio, the second Borg is First of Four. The two Borg drones pass without incident and the trio continues their search. They eventually come to a large semicircular control panel with Borg writing. Targus comments that most Borg can interface directly with the ship. She questions why the Borg would need to use a console such as this. Lt. Furlong speculates that this must be the influence of the assimilated Jean-Luc Picard. Targus warns that the console may be part of some Borg duplicity, but Lt. Furlong doubts it. Therefore, they decide to risk accessing the console. As the security officer, Cadet Furlong (as Lt. Sprint) examines the console. He determines that access can be gained by entering an access code onto the console. However, they have no way of knowing what it is. Cadet Furlong decides not to tamper with the console. Suddenly, First of Four appears and assimlates him, much to Q's delight. On his next attempt, Cadet Furlong has no choice but to enter a random code. He enters the wrong code which results in his assimilation. Lt. Furlong and Ensign Targus manage to escape into the bowels of the Borg Cube. They refuse to beam back to the ship, hoping to rescue their friend.

After a time spent as a drone, repairng systems aboard the Borg Cube and completing other chores ordered by the Collective, Furlong discovers subtle clues to the access code. When Furlong misses several of the clues, Q points them out and tells him to “write it down if you can’t remember it.”

Although he has the information now to access the console, Q is not finished tormenting Cadet Furlong. As a slave to the Borg Collective, Cadet Furlong is ordered to hunt down Targus and his father who are hiding in the bowels of the Borg cube. Eventually, the assimilated Cadet Furlong is forced to kill both of them before Q finally resets the space-time continuum.

Once the correct code is entered, the Borg console displays several pieces of information including a deactivation code for the Borg Assimilation Implant, i.e. the Borg device hooked into the security system of the Righteous. However, Ensign Targus and Lt. Furlong realize that they need a new Borg circuit in order to interface with the implant. They decide to acquire one from an approaching Borg drone. Cadet Furlong decides to shoot the Borg with a phaser. They remove the circuit and return to the ship feeling like their mission has been accomplished. In the Computer Core Control Room, the Borg Assimilation Implant is still operating despite being cut off from the Borg Collective by the ship's shields. Analysis shows that it is operating on a pre-programed set of instructions. Since they have the override code, the Righteous crew can deactivate the implant. However, they must convince it that they are Borg. Ensign Targus takes the circuit from Cadet Furlong under the guise of linking it to the implant. However, she becomes overwhelmed by her addition to auto-neural stimulation and tries to attach the Borg circuit to her own medical implant. When Lt. Furlong tries to stop her, they struggle and accidentally hit the Borg Assimilation Implant which triggers the ship's self-destruct system and destroys the ship.

On Cadet Furlong’s next attempt, everything seems to go as planned until they realize the circuit is providing the implant with a records update. This update tells the implant that the Borg circuit is from a deceased drone. The implant realizes that someone is trying to tamper with it and drops the Righteous' shields. The Borg Cube realizes what is happening and destroys the ship.

Characters

 * Q
 * Starfleet Academy Cadet Qaylan Furlong

USS Righteous Crew
 * Captain Nikolai Andropov (Commanding Officer)
 * Lieutenant Commander / Doctor Bennington Biraka (First Officer/Ship's Counselor)
 * Lieutenant Ralph Furlong (Operations Officer)
 * Lieutenant Coris Sprint (Tactical Officer)
 * Ensign Anastasia Targus (Helm officer)
 * Dr. Thaddeus Quint (Chief Medical Officer)

USS Cheyenne Crew
 * Lieutenant Shoreham (Ship's Personel Officer)

Starships

 * USS Cheyenne (NCC-75435)
 * USS Righteous
 * USS Canalie

Locations

 * Borg Cube
 * Bridge of the USS Righteous
 * Computer Core Control Room of the USS Righteous
 * Jefferies tubes of the USS Righteous
 * Conference Room of USS Cheyenne
 * Turbolift of USS Righteous and USS Cheyenne
 * Quarters of USS Cheyenne

Species

 * Borg
 * Bijani
 * Human

Referenced: Vulcans, Romulans, Klingons

Information

 * Jonathan Frakes is mistakenly listed as the director of the original footage on the front and back covers of the audiobook's packaging; James L. Conway is correctly mentioned verbally during the audio's credits.

Connections

 * Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Best of Both Worlds
 * Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Emissary
 * Star Trek: First Contact