I never played, but my son did. I myself was a huge fan in my high school and college days of the Trek board game, Starfleet Battles. Eventually, they made a computer game addition, Starfleet Command. They got the tactical engine right (something it seems STOL didn't), but the campaign games and multi-player sucked. Too many problems with both to list here.
Some years ago, some friends of mine and I formed our own company, modeled on HiTech's success, to build an MMOL space combat game that would correct all the flaws of Starfleet Command (using our own intellectual property, and with no connect to Star Trek). Development stalled after our ADHD primary computer programmer couldn't stay focused enough to move beyond a bare bones demo. The tactical game was going to be similar to Starfleet Command in many respects, but would have a "Starblazers" feel to it: Space battleships with massive gun turrets, ship-killing torpedoes, etc. The game mechanics and game "universe" were pretty well fleshed out, and I'd created almost a dozen 3D models of ships and bases. We had a five-year development plan that would eventually add planetary assault in a RTS style and FPS (boarding parties for ship capture and raiding), all tied together into an on-going war to control a portion of the galaxy. Kind of like AH's main arena war, but in space; planets to capture, convoys to raid or protect. Real-time arena balancing and a system of rank (and thus ship capability) were included. Instead of building personal stats like in World of Warcraft, combat experience would equate to improved stats for your bridge crew (engineering, helm, weapons officer, EW). The software spec was pretty impressive. Ah, if only...
