Star Citizen - spiritual successor to freelancer and wing commander

[Qman]

So how does it feel to have paid real moola to be a alpha stage tester? Was looking at joining at the weekend but seems ridiculous to spend hundreds of dollars on in game ships to be a alpha tester.

You don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars, all you need is a starting package as you can now purchase ships with ingame curreny😋that was the plan all along btw.

The next patch(mid November) will bring the 1st full sized planet and hero landing zone(a massive city) along with another 4 moons with outposts and unique environments.

Check out the roadmap on their website, exciting stuff happening in Q4 as well!

https://robertsspaceindustries.com/roadmap

 

[Pickled_Dick]

Can someone PM me when the MMO part of this game is out.

 

[BARGUILD]

Can someone PM me when the MMO part of this game is out.

Lol, lets hope Carbonite is still around in the year 2948 ;D

 

[BARGUILD]

Who all here has tried out the PTU now? Consistently getting 1 to 2 updates a day now. Pretty great tbh. The current build is VERY stable. Was able to play a solid 2 hour run without any crashes.

Super happy with the current build. CAN'T WAIT for Loreville!

 

[AAAH NUUU BRU]

Who all here has tried out the PTU now? Consistently getting 1 to 2 updates a day now. Pretty great tbh. The current build is VERY stable. Was able to play a solid 2 hour run without any crashes.

Super happy with the current build. CAN'T WAIT for Loreville!

Im playing the PTU, very impressed. Some patches have been horrible but all in all its pretty good. Loreville is going to be terrible haha, like its going to be the coolest place they have put into the game but the framerate is going to suck balls.

I cant wait for my my z390 maximus to arrive so i can see what kind of frames this game can put out

 

[CRE4MPIE]

Im playing the PTU, very impressed. Some patches have been horrible but all in all its pretty good. Loreville is going to be terrible haha, like its going to be the coolest place they have put into the game but the framerate is going to suck balls.

I cant wait for my my z390 maximus to arrive so i can see what kind of frames this game can put out

I was rather disappointed with the game performance after having played in offline mode a few patches back. In offline mode there was no server sync restrictions and I was running well over 100fps all the time anywhere ... After the update they "fixed" the offline mode and I was running 30 - 35 fps on the same settings... Unplayable from a PcMasterRace point of view.

Will patch up and check it out again - hopefully it runs better xD

 

[AAAH NUUU BRU]

I was rather disappointed with the game performance after having played in offline mode a few patches back. In offline mode there was no server sync restrictions and I was running well over 100fps all the time anywhere ... After the update they "fixed" the offline mode and I was running 30 - 35 fps on the same settings... Unplayable from a PcMasterRace point of view.

Will patch up and check it out again - hopefully it runs better xD

When was the last time you played ?

 

[CRE4MPIE]

When was the last time you played ?

About 2 months ago

 

[AAAH NUUU BRU]

About 2 months ago

O wow na man you were playing on 3.2 then. Go onto the site and copy your account to PTU and download 3.3, you will get 80-100 fps (if not more) on the online servers with your build no problems

 

[Montezuma]

Gonna jump in here, 20 pages so if this has been covered I apologise.

How playable is it in its current state? I know it is still Early Access but I was so excited for this initially but eventually gave up after what seemed like a) their sales model seemed very pay to win, spend big moolah for the big ship, b) most accounts seemed to indicate that they were running out of money having blown budget so final release may be vapour-ware and c) for me it seemed like suddenly the focus was on running around planets etc. rather than what got me hooked which is basically a spaceship combat sim.

So basically, if I'm looking for something to scratch the "X-Wing vs Tie-Fighter" and "Wing Commander" itch will this fill the bill or should I carry on and look elsewhere? Everspace was too arcadey and Elite, whilst being awesome in its own right, is too sandboxy to scratch the space combat sim itch.

 

[AAAH NUUU BRU]

Gonna jump in here, 20 pages so if this has been covered I apologise.

How playable is it in its current state? I know it is still Early Access but I was so excited for this initially but eventually gave up after what seemed like a) their sales model seemed very pay to win, spend big moolah for the big ship, b) most accounts seemed to indicate that they were running out of money having blown budget so final release may be vapour-ware and c) for me it seemed like suddenly the focus was on running around planets etc. rather than what got me hooked which is basically a spaceship combat sim.

So basically, if I'm looking for something to scratch the "X-Wing vs Tie-Fighter" and "Wing Commander" itch will this fill the bill or should I carry on and look elsewhere? Everspace was too arcadey and Elite, whilst being awesome in its own right, is too sandboxy to scratch the space combat sim itch.

Its playable but it is still in pre alpha so there are a bunch of bugs and crashes.

Is it pay to win? Kinda and no. If you want to drop big cash you can get a sick ship that will be a lot better than a small ship but at the same time the bigger the ship gets the more people you need to pilot it. With the patch last week you can now buy ships with in game currency so if you grind a bit you can buy a nice ship (however the servers do get wiped from time to time with it being in pre alpha and all). TBH you can get really awesome fighting ships for like $90-120 so its not that bad but what you can do which will also be great for "scratch the "X-Wing vs Tie-Fighter" and "Wing Commander" itch" is play in (go google this) "arena commander" in the game, its like a separate part of the game the has a few ship fighting only modes, you can fight team vs team or against AI or do this thing called vanduul spawn which is waves of Ai and its good fun. So that is just per dog fighting, you get spawned into the arena and you fight it out. After each game you get an in game currency called "REC" which you can then use to rent ships or parts for your ships like bigger guns, so its very possible to start out with a small cheap ship, earn some rec and then rent ships that are meant for dog fights and then you will do really well.

 

[Eon]

This officially dethroned Duke Nukem Forever for the life time vaporware award

 

[Montezuma]

TBH you can get really awesome fighting ships for like $90-120

$90 to $120? Ya, about that... Unfortunately not in the movie of paying $90 to $120 for a game that may or may not ever leave alpha. Do I at least get some training missions/campaign/story mode for those $90? (I know Squadron 42 or whatever it is called is coming out at some point but I mean besides this).

Edit: oh, and I can't visit game sites at work so can't quickly google for it

 

[AAAH NUUU BRU]

$90 to $120? Ya, about that... Unfortunately not in the movie of paying $90 to $120 for a game that may or may not ever leave alpha. Do I at least get some training missions/campaign/story mode for those $90?

I have spent $120 on a lot worse things haha.

So basically you need to buy the game, cheapest package is $45 i think which gets you the game and a small ship then you can upgrade the ship after that to a bigger one or buy more ships.

There isnt a campaign per say yet, thats still coming but there is a bunch of missions you can go do. There is delivery missions (pick up a package from somewhere, drop it off somewhere else), escort missions (flying around with a cargo ship shooting pirates), there is missions that require you to go shoot down pirates then land your ship and run around shooting pirates. There is racing missions. And a bunch more.

In the next big patch which should be out before the end of this month there will be a massive planet with a fully functioning massive city and then a bunch more big missions that will be more story line type. Currently there is just space stations and a few moons to land on

 

[Montezuma]

Thanks for the info. Man, really on the fence for this, but I reckon I'll wait a bit more for now. Already got Elite and Beyond Chapter 4 is coming out soon, so plenty of delivery missions in VR. I think it's the campaign/mission type aspect that's missing from Elite that I want to fill but seems like Squadron 42 is what I need.

 

[SCHUMI4EVER]

This officially dethroned Duke Nukem Forever for the life time vaporware award

No. This exists. It may not be anywhere near what was promised yet, but it still exists.
Now Beyond Good and Evil 2 on the other hand.........

 

[BARGUILD]

You know, I am a fan of Star Citizen. But, I wouldn't classify myself as a 'fanboy'. However, I totally get where they come from when people make comments such as the ones I have seen above.

Let us discuss a few things and consider the illogical state of statements like "vaporware" or waste of many of anything along those lines.

Did YOU have to buy the game? No. If YOU are bitching about buying the game and it not being released, it is not the companies fault, it is your fault.

The issue most people have with the game is the fact that they don't understand how development works. Nobody here can safely say that they have EVER played a game A- this early in its development phase, and B- of this scope.

Let us use a game title with relevancy right now, RDR2. Anyone know how many years it has been in development? Well, most credible sources give it between 5 and 8 years. What is fascinating about that is that NOBODY here saw the game in its state 4-8 years ago. At all. And, one must remember that the game is VASTLY more minute in scale and technical acheivement.

So, is Star Citizen taking FOREVER to be completed? The answer is a resounding no. If you compare it to a lot of titles, then it has a very very similar development if not a MUCH faster development time when you consider what is actually going into the game.

A few truths though. Did they miss deadlines? Yes, in fact they missed the 3.3 Live release deadline 2 days ago. But, the reason is because the scope of the game has increased drastically. Is this a problem? I guess. Feature creep can be a problem but one must remember that this game is run by the backers effectively. They don't have shareholders or publishing companies to deal with. And so the game they are making currently is a result of what the Star Citizen community wants.

The biggest issue with the game and people understanding how the game works and is being made is the development issue. Nobody has ever experienced early development like this on such a scale and so people bitch about it not being ready. And yet if you played RDR2 2 or 3 years ago, or Skyrim before it was released, or Elite, or anything really. You likely would have similar comments and statements to make.

Also, the game does not have a pay to win nature at all. Ships don't mean you win. A big ship is not inherently better than a smaller ship. They perform different functions and have different roles. And, take note, that ship sales are artificially controlled so that we DON'T have a million capital class ships flying around because that would be unrealistic.

Give it time. Also, they are nowhere near running out of money. I can't find the link yet but they were profitable last year.

The game has 2 money making models. Pledges which involve ship sales. If you buy a ship then you directly support the game creation. Then they have merch sales, events, subscriptions, etc etc etc. That is the profit model for now at least until release.

 

[Eon]

No. This exists. It may not be anywhere near what was promised yet, but it still exists.
Now Beyond Good and Evil 2 on the other hand.........

I wasn't making a joke nor did it come from me. It is also irrelevant if it exists (for Wired.com). Wired.com officially replaced the life time aware held by Duke Nukem Forever (how apt was the DNF abbreviation?) with Star Citizen in 2016 already. They said they will consider revoking the reward when, or rather if the game ever officially gets released. They base the award on actual release, not the game being in alpha or beta or early access etc.

 

[BARGUILD]

I wasn't making a joke nor did it come from me. It is also irrelevant if it exists (for Wired.com). Wired.com officially replaced the life time aware held by Duke Nukem Forever (how apt was the DNF abbreviation?) with Star Citizen in 2016 already. They said they will consider revoking the reward when, or rather if the game ever officially gets released. They base the award on actual release, not the game being in alpha or beta or early access etc.

Wow, that is even more illogical. Interesting. Sorry for my reply sounding like it came from you. Didn't realise you based it off something else. Should have caught the reference.

 

[Eon]

Let us discuss a few things and consider the illogical state of statements like "vaporware" or waste of many of anything along those lines.

You are obviously not a big fan of Wired.com's annual tongue in cheek vaporware awards.

My issue has nothing to do with a single thing you mentioned, and I actually read that long post. My issue, similar to a lot of gaming sites, has to do with the money, by 2017 they had received 150 million dollars through crowd funding. That is more money than a lot of games sell for post release. I would love to know how much money with the stuff they have sold they are sitting on. This reminds me a lot of communism, the people working on this project has little incentive to work as fast or hard as they can cause their salaries are sorted for the next 10 years.

I work for one of the biggest firms in SA and I know what we can turn out in a year with three agile development teams consisting of 8 members each, especially if you give me over 2 billion rand. I don't buy it, these guys should have been done ages ago.

 

[Eon]

Wow, that is even more illogical. Interesting. Sorry for my reply sounding like it came from you. Didn't realise you based it off something else. Should have caught the reference.

My apologies if we seem to be talking past each other, I think we are typing responses at the same time.

 

[BARGUILD]

You are obviously not a big fan of Wired.com's annual tongue in cheek vaporware awards.

My issue has nothing to do with a single thing you mentioned, and I actually read that long post. My issue, similar to a lot of gaming sites, has to do with the money, by 2017 they had received 150 million dollars through crowd funding. That is more money than a lot of games sell for post release. I would love to know how much money with the stuff they have sold they are sitting on. This reminds me a lot of communism, the people working on this project has little incentive to work as fast or hard as they can cause their salaries are sorted for the next 10 years.

I work for one of the biggest firms in SA and I know what we can turn out in a year with three agile development teams consisting of 8 members each, especially if you give me over 2 billion rand. I don't buy it, these guys should have been done ages ago.

I totally agree. I don't necessarily agree with the incentive part. I get where you're coming from but from what I can see that isn't slowing the development.

The part I agree with is being done early enough. I think they made a few fundamental mistakes with how the game is being made. Numero Uno is the fact that they decided to use Cryengine (or a derivative in Lumberyard) to make it. That was a dumb decision. I think most players will agree.

But still. I don't think anything in gaming has ever come close. They are laying ground work for a lot of the technology they are using. The engine they are currently using is definitely NOT Cryengine or even a derivative. They've had to rework it a million times.

Also, GTA V cost in the region of 265 million USD to make. So I think we can assume that RDR2 cost in a similar vain. And that was only 1 game. CIG are making 2 games. So I wouldn't necessarily believe the money Vs time aspect.

But we shall see I guess.

 

[SCHUMI4EVER]

I wasn't making a joke nor did it come from me. It is also irrelevant if it exists (for Wired.com). Wired.com officially replaced the life time aware held by Duke Nukem Forever (how apt was the DNF abbreviation?) with Star Citizen in 2016 already. They said they will consider revoking the reward when, or rather if the game ever officially gets released. They base the award on actual release, not the game being in alpha or beta or early access etc.

Ah k, thought it was just your opinon.
It still don't try agree with it though. Vaporware is typically defined as something that is seen now and then at a show but large periods, sometimes years, go by without news. And the defining charcteristic is that whilst gameplay may have been shown no one has managed to get their hands on it yet.

None of these apply to Star Citizen. Yes the original promise is still far off in the future, and we way even never get there, but it's already a lot more tangible than DNF or any other previous vaporware title.

 

[Eon]

So I wouldn't necessarily believe the money Vs time aspect.

It does become very difficult to judge without knowing exactly what they are doing. The old saying that is very applicable to software development "9 women cannot deliver a baby in 1 month", might be applicable here as development velocity does seem to hit a certain critical mass.

DNF got stuck in development hell exactly because of bad engine decisions. Just as they were half way with dev on the Unreal 2 engine Unreal 3 was released and they also effectively started over and then ran out of money.

The other issue is Chris Roberts. When he was busy with Freelancer for Microsoft, Microsoft admitted that he would never have released the game. He constantly wanted to add to it. They had to put a manager in place above him to draw the line on a Minimum Viable Product release. I am not sure Chris has the ability to draw the line and say okay, now we release. With every project he has every done I have got the idea that he is a phenomenal visionary and developer and a horrible business man. That is why his relationship with Microsoft became untenable. My gut says Chris has the inability to define the scope of a game and say okay from this point forward anything else we wish to add will be DLC post release. Which means Star Citizen will never see a final release.

 

[Montezuma]

Ah, screw it, I'm buying No Man's Sky

 

[AAAH NUUU BRU]

The other issue is Chris Roberts. When he was busy with Freelancer for Microsoft, Microsoft admitted that he would never have released the game. He constantly wanted to add to it. They had to put a manager in place above him to draw the line on a Minimum Viable Product release. I am not sure Chris has the ability to draw the line and say okay, now we release. With every project he has every done I have got the idea that he is a phenomenal visionary and developer and a horrible business man. That is why his relationship with Microsoft became untenable. My gut says Chris has the inability to define the scope of a game and say okay from this point forward anything else we wish to add will be DLC post release. Which means Star Citizen will never see a final release.

Sounds like the kind of guy i want making a game that im excited for, like id be happy if it never releases and they just keep added cool stuff to it haha

 

[BARGUILD]

I am not sure Chris has the ability to draw the line and say okay, now we release. With every project he has every done I have got the idea that he is a phenomenal visionary and developer and a horrible business man. That is why his relationship with Microsoft became untenable. My gut says Chris has the inability to define the scope of a game and say okay from this point forward anything else we wish to add will be DLC post release. Which means Star Citizen will never see a final release.

I think we see eye-to-eye on this point. Which (honestly) is an issue for me, but not for Star Citizen. Rather SQ42. I think SQ42 MUST have a final release. It is a single player game and I sincerely hope somebody (maybe his wife because she is there) is trying to pull some reigns in there.

With the MMO, I don't necessarily mind. I think if they keep it as an iterative release it might be a good thing. Nice getting new content for a MMO constantly.

At the moment they are focusing on core technology. I think once the core tech is done they will probably "release" it but then I think the game will still continue evolving and I hope it does.

OCS was probably a much bigger hurdle than they anticipated and with the way the game runs now, I can't even begin to imagine how smooth it will feel once OCS is implemented server side.

I genuinely think you and I are in a similar camp. From my perspective though, I play around 1.5 hours a day usually on SC. And those are always fun. Yes, I deal with the odd crash every now and then but the experiences I have had so far are so unique. I have never been able to experience in any other game. Because of that point, I am more than willing to wait another 5 years for content/core tech/release.

We shall see I guess is the best conclusion I can come to XD

 

[Mighty Meh]

I just want to get more than 25fps and I'll be happy.
Also trading is the most terrifying occupation because your game might crash after spending all your money's on goods XD

 

[BARGUILD]

I just want to get more than 25fps and I'll be happy.
Also trading is the most terrifying occupation because your game might crash after spending all your money's on goods XD

What specs are your pc? I consistently get above 75fps in PTU. If you're still playing 3.2 then yeah, wait for 3.3. big big upgrade. Should be released to live this week hopefully.

 

[Mighty Meh]

What specs are your pc? I consistently get above 75fps in PTU. If you're still playing 3.2 then yeah, wait for 3.3. big big upgrade. Should be released to live this week hopefully.

Great news I look forward to it!