Birth of the Federation received average to good ratings from critics, who praised the look of the game but were critical of the AI of enemy factions, the research technologies and the time it took to play. The game's release was intended to tie-in with the film Star Trek: Insurrection. In addition to the strategy mode of the game, Birth of the Federation also features a 3D combat mode which uses the Falcon 4.0 engine. Thirty other races from the Star Trek universe are included as minor races in the game.
The player takes control of one of five civilisations, either the Federation, Ferengi, Klingons, Romulans or Cardassians. The game is set in the Star Trek fictional universe, specifically related to Star Trek: The Next Generation. The game was initially released on for Windows personal computers. Star Trek: Birth of the Federation (also known as Star Trek: The Next Generation: Birth of the Federation and Birth of the Federation) is a 4X turn-based strategy video game developed by MicroProse and published by Hasbro Interactive.