[Megathread] Star Citizen

[Drakain]

so..... Anyone knows when this will come out.
I bought the base game many many years ago shortly after the Kickstarter, and at that time they said it would be done in 2 years.

See, you only thought you were buying a space simulator, but you’re actually playing a ponzi emulator. Except for the emulating part..

[MrAnderson]

It will come out when it's ready. There's no need to provide artificial deadlines that put unnecessary pressure on the developers.

The company releases weekly videos showcasing work and road maps along with quarterly updates which is more than what most developers usualy reveal during the development of their games.

I think it was RDR 2 who took like 6 years in development before it was even announced.

Blizzard as been shush about the next diablo for what seems like an eternity now.

I guess if the companies aren't hurt for cash or with contractual obligations to release in a set date they much rather give the "when it's done" answer.

[Kyanion]

It will come out when it's ready. There's no need to provide artificial deadlines that put unnecessary pressure on the developers.

The company releases weekly videos showcasing work and road maps along with quarterly updates which is more than what most developers usualy reveal during the development of their games.

I think it was Read Dead Redemption 2 who spent like 6 years in development before it was even announced.

Blizzard as been shush about the next diablo for what seems like an eternity now.

I guess if the companies aren't hurt for cash or with contractual obligations to release in a set date they much rather give the "when it's done" answer.

Okay but what is the difference between those games? Which one is being funded through crowdsourcing and now purchases in their shop? The one that needs to provide actual deadlines.

[vitor210]

so..... Anyone knows when this will come out.
I bought the base game many many years ago shortly after the Kickstarter, and at that time they said it would be done in 2 years.

tbh no one should expect this to be a game in the future.

You're paying to help develop the engine which is gonna be probably the BEST space sim engine ever made and a standard for future games. If they still manage to release a full game like they keep talking about great! But if not, at least we're helping create a future engine.

And yes I also bought the game last year so I know what I'm talking about

[bloodwulf]

Okay but what is the difference between those games? Which one is being funded through crowdsourcing and now purchases in their shop? The one that needs to provide actual deadlines.

One of the three companies listed in MrAnderson's post has never released a game.
One of the three companies listed in MrAnderson's post has taken public money and should be held accountable to said public.
One of the three companies listed in MrAnderson's post is being run by a person who has a history of failed projects and overpromising/underdelivering.
One of the three companies listed in MrAnderson's post is still actively taking public money, yet producing no final products.

Yeah companies like Rockstar and Blizzard get a bigger pass, because they at the very least have a history of releasing content.

[Gorsameth]

One of the three companies listed in MrAnderson's post has never released a game.
One of the three companies listed in MrAnderson's post has taken public money and should be held accountable to said public.
One of the three companies listed in MrAnderson's post is being run by a person who has a history of failed projects and overpromising/underdelivering.
One of the three companies listed in MrAnderson's post is still actively taking public money, yet producing no final products.

Yeah companies like Rockstar and Blizzard get a bigger pass, because they at the very least have a history of releasing content.

Not taking money upfront is a much bigger reason to give somone a pass then having released games in the past.

People wouldn't have close to the issues with SC if they weren't publicly funded.

[bloodwulf]

Not taking money upfront is a much bigger reason to give somone a pass then having released games in the past.

People wouldn't have close to the issues with SC if they weren't publicly funded.

I agree, those were not arranged in level of offense. More that they have checked off a bunch of boxes that should allow the public to expect more and be pissed when they receive less. There are people defending SC with cultlike fanaticism yet the company has released what so far? A waiting simulator? Its cool that they have big name celebs doing voicework, glad to see the millions of dollars they have are being invested in fluff and not mechanical functions.

[MrAnderson]

Well but that's the nature of crowdfunding. Without it new projects that take risks would never be possible.

And saying that CIG has released nothing is just plain wrong. They've released plenty of content and what they keep releasing is good enough for their backers that seem to apreciate it going by the 30+ miilions a year they keep geting for 6 years now.

[Malibutomi]

3.4 is already in evocati testing

https://i.redd.it/b5x1lsrxpn221.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/yxiwvWI.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/nVPgMVh.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/8LmDPdM.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/tOl3w0P.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/zI99nMw.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/P0gQpak.jpg

For the sake of folks mobile data let's not embed tons of huge images in the thread please, thanks. -Edge

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So why are people so set about deadlines?
Just asking.
Are you a backer? Did you spent more than you should and you have regrets? Reasonable adults should understand the nature of crowdfunding that is has a chance to fail, so enyone should only spend as much as they are ready to lose and don't care about. I've only spent the minimum on it, i did my part to support the dream, when it's ready i'll be happy to play, until then i have other games, have a life, i don't jump up and down waiting for it. If it fails (which i highly doubt at this stage) i still did my part, it never happened, the inside look on the development alobe worth the few $.

Are you just an onlooker from the sideline? Then why do you care, why do you get worked up about a game/company you are not invested in. Move along live your life.

It's that easy.

[Kyanion]

Are you just an onlooker from the sideline? Then why do you care, why do you get worked up about a game/company you are not invested in. Move along live your life.

It's that easy.

And why do you care if we discuss this game in positive or negative tones? You don't get to decide what people choose to talk about. I find it fascinating that a game that has taken in this much money has failed to produce a game by this point. So far they are one of the biggest cautionary tales about crowdfunding and I want to see if they go splat or actually manage a game. If they do manage to put out a game I want to see what that much money managed to create.

[Zandalarian Paladin]

So what's going on with this game? Checking from time to time. Fairly hyped about it, although I'm careful considering the humongous target the game has set for itself. How's it going?

[DarkAmbient]

3.4 is already in evocati testing

https://i.redd.it/b5x1lsrxpn221.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/yxiwvWI.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/nVPgMVh.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/8LmDPdM.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/tOl3w0P.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/zI99nMw.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/P0gQpak.jpg

Looks cool, what can you do there?

[Malibutomi]

And why do you care if we discuss this game in positive or negative tones? You don't get to decide what people choose to talk about. I find it fascinating that a game that has taken in this much money has failed to produce a game by this point. So far they are one of the biggest cautionary tales about crowdfunding and I want to see if they go splat or actually manage a game. If they do manage to put out a game I want to see what that much money managed to create.

I don't care how you discuss the game. I was asking because i was curious why ppl going on about bashing something they have no connection to. Like i tried Elite Dangerous, didn't like it, and still i don't go to ED forums bashing it why it hasn't got space legs when they promised! I don't like WoT and don't go on forums telling ppl that i think it's a bad game. I just don't care.
I guess we are not the same, and some ppl like the drama.

Also taken in this much money doesn't mean it will be ready faster. Some games have their budget on hand from the beginning not slowly built up as in this case and interestingly they still take 4-5 years to make. By established studios.

[Malibutomi]

So what's going on with this game? Checking from time to time. Fairly hyped about it, although I'm careful considering the humongous target the game has set for itself. How's it going?

Well as of now it seems they laid down the core tech, and started adding more places, content, professions.
In short they started to fill up the world. I would suggest you look for a free fly weekend (you just missed the free fly week sadly), and try it out for free and see for yourself if it gives enough for you, or not yet. The game is still alpha, so bugs are plentyful, and it just started to take shape, so you can see how much potential it has, if it doesn't have enough content for you, then come back again in a few months and try it again for free.
Only put in money if you feel like it's worth it for you.

[Val the Moofia Boss]

So what's going on with this game? Checking from time to time. Fairly hyped about it, although I'm careful considering the humongous target the game has set for itself. How's it going?

They've established planetary tech; now they need to make more planetary assets so they can create additional planets without simply duplicating what we've already seen in Hurston. They're also working on creating new mission types and scenarios. Up until this point, what we've seen was CIG laying down the foundation, now we're starting to see them use those systems to create content.

Currently we have:
- over two dozen different flyable ships right now, including multicrew ships that allow people to man turrets. More systems like engineering, tractor beams, medbays, etc, are in the works.
- spinning moons and planets to land on, with settlements to visit and do missions in and around. With the system implemented, the team needs to develop more planet and settlement assets.
- Space stations (large like Port Olisar and small like a gas station) to land at, shop, and maintain the ship.
- One small colony on Delemer, Levski, and a large city to visit, Loreville, on Hurston, with multiple districts, trains connecting them, etc. The next one, Arc Corp, is on the way.
- a crime system, with the ability to commit crimes, be attacked by guards, be attacked by other players, and ability to reset crime status at the Security Post. will be expanded upon.
- ground vehicles with weapons
- Basic player customization, DNA system and female characters to be added later.
- FPS combat, able to buy armor and weapons and kill other players
- Racing (ground vehicles or spaceships)
- Mining
- missions: fight AI bandits in ships or on the ground, haul cargo, salvage wrecks, fix satellites, and questgivers. More mission types, such as investigating crashes, will be added.


You can check the roadmap here.

As of right now, Star Citizen is the type of game where you make up your own fun. The game is now running much better, and I'm getting decent framrate (improvements have been made with each patch and it's reportedly smooth, haven't logged in since the patch to check) at Loreville, with the rest of the game being smooth on my GTX 670 on the lowest settings. If you're a solo player, there's not much to do besides doing those handful of contracts. Contracts give so little money, the cost of ships and vehicles are so high, and the servers reset so often that I recommend that you do not try to save up for a bigger ship/vehicle and instead just pour that money into buying ground based weapons and armor and go stalk players leaving and approaching Loreville/Levski/Port Olisar/GrimHex/Security Post Karreah. GrimHex has a small armistice zone around it so you can nab people before they're able to land or quantum jump out, and you can wait inside the security post and try to kill whoever comes in. Obviously, you'll have a much more fun time if you're able to join a group or you're able to attend a coordinated event.

Quick tip: don't bother trying to save up for a ship or a vehicle, so just spend your free 15000 starting credits on personal armor or weapons. Levski (a small base with a shop on the moon Delamar) has a cool light armor set with a cloak if you value aesthetics, as well as grenades.

There isn't much in the way of content, so you'll have the most fun if you can find other players to play with. I've found manning turrets on multicrew ships to be more entertaining than flying my own ship hunting down NPC bandits, because with turrets there is a social aspect and the teamwork involved in trying to angle the ship so that the turret can hit the target. BEWARE STOWAWAYS! Ofcourse, if you want to go alone, you can just try to ambush and kill other players. If you want to do so, jump to the moon around Crusader, Celin, and then to Security Post Karreah, and kill whoever you can. With the upcoming patches that will add more content in the area around Loreville, you will also be able to hunt players who leave the safety of the city, either on foot or in the air. Alternatively, if you're feeling really nasty, you can group up with other players, and while they're piloting the ship... you can kill everyone on board and steal the ship for yourself! RIP your reputation though and finding any other groups for the day.

As always, I recommend the people interested in the game that the buy in only if they like the game as it is right now. I myself have had a ton of fun in the current state of the game and got my money's worth, and I eagerly look forward to new additions to the game. If you're going to buy in, I'd advise you to only buy the base game package, MAYBE a small ship if you want to start out in something bigger than an Aurora or a Mustang.

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What makes Star Citizen's development incredible in the field of game development:

[stellvia]

And why do you care if we discuss this game in positive or negative tones? You don't get to decide what people choose to talk about. I find it fascinating that a game that has taken in this much money has failed to produce a game by this point. So far they are one of the biggest cautionary tales about crowdfunding and I want to see if they go splat or actually manage a game. If they do manage to put out a game I want to see what that much money managed to create.

I think what he takes offense at, which isn't necessarily on you specifically, is it always seems like the most vocally against the game have the least actual exposure to the game or they wouldn't be making the statements they come here saying. Certainly, the game has had many setbacks ranging from management and structural issues, to numerous seen and unforeseen technical complications. But they've clearly been making consistent and steady progress for about the last 1.5 years. To deny that means someone either hasn't been looking, or doesn't want to and is just throwing a tantrum about how they Want it Now.

Studio Lead of Rockstar North, Rob Nelson stated that production for Red Dead Redemption 2 started shortly after the release of RDR in 2010 and took the better part of 8 years to develop. He stated it required them to do significant internal restructuring to allow for all their studios to work as one unit. GTA5 reportedly cost $265M to make (sans marketing costs) and the likely budget for RDR2 is somewhere in the range of $300M given those costs and the number of developers Rockstar has said were working on the project in primary production.

Given the parallels in trajectory between that and Star Citizen, I don't think what we've seen happen has been TOO much of a stretch. Especially given the fact Rockstar already had their studios humming along and RSI needed several years to build up and structure their operations properly. Issues, yes. Reasons for disappointment at times, yes. Justification to still be heavily against the game/"vaporware" at this juncture? None really.

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So what's going on with this game? Checking from time to time. Fairly hyped about it, although I'm careful considering the humongous target the game has set for itself. How's it going?

As a small addendum to what Val posted: Maybe I'm just bad, but I find that the 6DoF controls take a lot of getting used to via KBM. (Maybe I should just try using controller for now, I've heard good things) You need to use decoupled mode I think to make pitch/yaw work how I expect I think is my issue. They have a thin vertical slice in place right now, but it's still missing a lot of the key systems yet and there hasn't been any fine-tuning for things like travel time. Even when the game is finished, it's going to be a "slow burn" though: Much like Red Dead Redemption 2, it's meant to be a life simulator of sorts, so expect a lot of deliberate details to be needed. (Reminded of how deliberate the cooking and hunting systems are in RDR2)

Ignore Elecy though. There are several reasonable detractors from the game here that debate in good faith, he is not one of them. The majority of what he says has either been debunked many times or is exaggerated for disingenuous purposes.

[Dhrizzle]

As a small addendum to what Val posted: Maybe I'm just bad, but I find that the 6DoF controls take a lot of getting used to via KBM. (Maybe I should just try using controller for now, I've heard good things) You need to use decoupled mode I think to make pitch/yaw work how I expect I think is my issue. They have a thin vertical slice in place right now, but it's still missing a lot of the key systems yet and there hasn't been any fine-tuning for things like travel time. Even when the game is finished, it's going to be a "slow burn" though: Much like Red Dead Redemption 2, it's meant to be a life simulator of sorts, so expect a lot of deliberate details to be needed. (Reminded of how deliberate the cooking and hunting systems are in RDR2)

Ignore Elecy though. There are several reasonable detractors from the game here that debate in good faith, he is not one of them. The majority of what he says has either been debunked many times or is exaggerated for disingenuous purposes.

I wouldn't dream of playing this kind of game with KBM. With Elite: Dangerous I managed to work out a pretty nice system for an X-Box controller but if you think you're going to spend a decent amount of time playing I sincerely recommend getting some sort of HOTAS system. I got a pretty cheap Thrustmaster HOTAS-X (about £40) and it made the experience so much more enjoyable in terms of immersion.

[stellvia]

I'll likely get a HOTAS system eventually, but I'm holding off until they deliver the game. There are still a lot of IFs surrounding how all the combat and economic systems will work, so I won't go all in until I'm sure I'll stick with the game for a long time. I've also heard people say that due to gimbal guns and such it's actually superior to use a controller than a HOTAS atm.

[Val the Moofia Boss]

I haven't gotten a HOTAS yet because I have a small desk to play on (can hold my monitor, a keyboard, my stuffed Stitches from Blizzcon, and a couple bowls of food), and I have very little room on the bookshelf to put stuff. Plus, I'd prefer to be able to just open up the RSI launcher and hop into Star Citizen without having to spend five minutes removing a big setup from the bookshelf while knocking things over, unwinding cords, reaching over trying to plug them, trying to push my monitor slightly off of my desk to make more room, trying to change the distance from by chair to the desk, etc.

[Odeezee]

I'll likely get a HOTAS system eventually, but I'm holding off until they deliver the game. There are still a lot of IFs surrounding how all the combat and economic systems will work, so I won't go all in until I'm sure I'll stick with the game for a long time. I've also heard people say that due to gimbal guns and such it's actually superior to use a controller than a HOTAS atm.

nah, not from what i have heard for flight immersion it goes KB&M < HOTAS < HOSAS < HOMAS! but yeah i would wait until the game goes gold before buying into peripherals if you don't play any other space sims and maybe they would have finally found a partner for Star Citizen themed peripherals. i am hoping they go with Vorpil they seem to make great quality products at a more valuable price than like Warthogs. oh and FOIP is going to be something crazy once it's server side and has the software, accuracy, latency and de-sync issues sorted out it'll be amazing for general immersion and machinima.