Star Citizen

[AndyJWest]

1 minute ago, 56RAF_Roblex said:

 

Not my thing but they plan to be out next Summer.

 

 

They also planned to have it out in 2014. And 2016. 

https://www.kotaku.co.uk/2016/10/10/star-citizen-single-player-campaign-delayed-into-2017

[Thad]

Salutations,

 

I am a very early backer of Star Citizen. 2012.

 

It will be three years this January that I had taken it off of my computer. It became just to upsetting to endure the continual bugs and the constant 'alpha' excuses.

 

Since then I frequently check in on their forums. Unfortunately, I have seen no compelling reasons to put the game back on my computer. There are still constant bugs and delays.

 

If you are completely new to this product, I doubt you will enjoy the free play experience. It has rather strenuous learning curve to even get it set up to run yet alone putting up with the bugs during play.

 

Graphically, it is impressive if you have a strong system to run it.

 I still have my account but don't consider it worthy of putting back on my computer yet.

 

In conclusion, I turn 69 next month and have started to actually doubt that I will live to see the completion of Star Citizen. Oh well, live and learn. ?

 

 

Edited October 27, 2019 by Thad

[LLv34_Flanker]

S!

 

 Roberts had his moments with Wing Commander. A series many remember. Now he has gotten a budget of more than a blockbuster movie yet game is still in "alpha". I wanted to jump in because of Wing Commander memories, but after a brief trip to the forums I decided to pass. Better to just have golden memories from Wing Commander. I wonder what IL-2 devs could have done with this kind of money, propably a lot more and beyond.

[AndyJWest]

1961: NASA announces plans to land a man on the moon.
1969: NASA lands men on the moon.

 

2011: CIG announces plans to release a flying-around-in-spaceships game.
2019: CIG announces plans to release the same flying-around-in-spaceships game.*

 

*With extra features of course. Like more running-around-in-corridors simulation. And a waiting-for-a-bus simulation. And a digging-holes simulation. And less planets. Because planets are unnecessary fluff in a space game...

[Creep]

I became a backer in March 2014 and donated regularly until 2016 when they missed their release date for SP. Got a refund then, so glad that I did considering the state the project is in now. How anyone can still support this dumpster fire today is beyond me.

[kestrel79]

I think I paid $40 early access in 2012 or 2013. When I built my new PC I didn't even bother to install it. I'll keep waiting.

[RedKestrel]

I remember when I first heard of this the only reason I didn't go in was that I had a crappy laptop that would no way in hell run that game or any modern game, but it made me wistful for the 90s space sims and flying sims when I was a teenager. So I bought the entire Wing Commander collection on GOG for like 10 bucks on sale and indulged in a load of nostalgia for a while.  This was in 2013 or so I think.

My laptop died a while back, I got a mid-range PC to replace it, and I bought into Il-2. At the same time, I figured I might be able now to get into Star Citizen, as it was supposed to be released long before so I figured it would be pretty mature by now. 

When I looked into it I was shocked it wasn't released yet - I remembered that when I first heard about it it was projected to be released within a year or two. I went down a rabbit hole for a little while trying to figure out the timeline and the whole process that had happened. The whole project had bloated beyond recognition, they were selling in-game ships for more money than I spent on videogames in a decade, there was a first person shooter module(why?), there was a lot of walking around stations, there were trains, etc. But the actual space combat and action seemed buggy and not much fun.

It seems like the game went from an ambitious but doable space sim to trying to be all things to all people. Lots of 'wouldn't it be cool if ______ was possible?' was apparently answered with 'Sure, of course we'll do that!' without considering how it fit into the game. Like there is a hospital ship that's been sold, for example. How does that work? It sounds like there is supposed to be some harvesting mechanic or land claims thing...it begs the question of why? It would be like Il-2 having the option to tend the squadron cabbage garden.

I feel like they could have released a solid or even revolutionary space sim by now if they had focused on core gameplay and making sure that what they wanted to do could actually be done. If its planned as  a space MMO, after 7 years and literally hundreds of millions of dollars it should be capable of being a stable space MMO with P2P combat, a variety of mission/quest types that work well, and lots of places to go. But they have just a fraction of the content they've promised since the beginning, and stuff seems to get added at random with no priority.

It's also something of a bad sign that they are still working on making the servers capable of supporting everything they've already put into the game.

[Hoots]

Is it mainly Elite but with added walking around? What’s the difference in gameplay?

 

[AndyJWest]

Very little resemblance to Elite. If you want to learn about gameplay, there are endless videos. Mostly consisting of people telling you how much fun they are having. They have to tell you, because the fun usually isn't obvious. Or if it is, it is the sort of fun you can have in any generic MMO, goofing around with your friends. Oh, and lots of videos on game glitches, like falling through the side of your spaceship and loosing the generic fetch-quest boxes you've spent hours collecting.

[56RAF_Roblex]

I own Elite Dangerous and enjoyed playing it but I stopped playing  because IMHO they messed up the gameplay with the whole 'Powers' thing plus they started adding extensions that cost as much again as the original game.  I know we have that (and more) with new BoX extensions but With ED the extensions are not new game areas,  they are new facets of the existing game area so it is more obvious that you are a second class player if you don't pay extra.  Slow as they may be at releasing them, at least with Star Citizen all new content is free to everyone even if they only made a small investment years ago.  If they ever achieve their dream of having hundreds of star systems and thousands of ports (and I know that is a big 'if') you can still be a part of it without paying extra.   

I think that is what attracts me to Star Citizen,  there is no concept of 'I must grind to the next level & get the next title and next ship' .  It is a sandbox and if you want to spend all your play time flying a cheap basic trader and taking on the occasional dodgy job while exploring the Universe then it is just as fun as ruthlessly pushing yourself to save enough in-game credits to own a luxury yacht or you could even stay planetside and pay employees to fly your fleet of ships and grow your business empire (or crime cartel)    If Elite allowed me to explore the interiors of those big stations and cities on planets on foot for no extra cost then I could be tempted to return though.

[Cybermat47]

Thanks for the heads up. Might give it a try, but at this point I seriously doubt that the damn thing will ever get released. And why would it, when the devs have already made a profit?

[Tycoon]

I would love to see star citizen succeed, it's a great concept but at the massive scale they've been trying to attain I just don't see it happening at this point. I don't blame the die hard fans  for hanging on though,if it reaches it's goals it would be spectacular, one can hope I guess. 

Edited October 28, 2019 by Tycoon

[Cynic_Al]

On 10/27/2019 at 5:55 PM, 56RAF_Roblex said:

 

 Have you seen the one hour gameplay video?

 

 

If anyone with a British accent calls you 'lootenant', you can shoot them as an impostor.

[Creep]

On 10/28/2019 at 1:45 PM, RedKestrel said:

It seems like the game went from an ambitious but doable space sim to trying to be all things to all people. Lots of 'wouldn't it be cool if ______ was possible?' was apparently answered with 'Sure, of course we'll do that!' without considering how it fit into the game. Like there is a hospital ship that's been sold, for example. How does that work? It sounds like there is supposed to be some harvesting mechanic or land claims thing...it begs the question of why? It would be like Il-2 having the option to tend the squadron cabbage garden.

 

Nailed it; very well-said! It became pretty clear to me that they weren't the least bit concerned with scope creep. The reason I initially backed was because I loved the old WC games and Lucasarts X-Wing & TIE Fighter games. I wanted that... not leather space pants, a first-person space shooter, and hover bikes. 

Aside from all of that, the core gameplay did truly suck. Very early on in the alpha it was fun - but I'm talking like 0.8. Before they implemented "interactive mode" that allowed mouse users to play a point and click adventure game with gimballed weapons. When they made that switch and their community manager openly mocked those in the community that wanted to play a space sim combat game that took some skill, I was done.

[RedKestrel]

16 hours ago, Cynic_Al said:

 

If anyone with a British accent calls you 'lootenant', you can shoot them as an impostor.

"Over here Loo-tenant!"
BLAM BLAM
"Argh, I meant Lef-tenant! Don't blame me, blame Chris Roberts, he wrote the bloody script!"

[56RAF_Roblex]

17 hours ago, QB.Creep said:

It sounds like there is supposed to be some harvesting mechanic or land claims thing...it begs the question of why? It would be like Il-2 having the option to tend the squadron cabbage garden.

 

If you want to compare it to IL-2 then the answer is that If IL-2 was a simulator of living in Russia in WW2 then yes there would have to be functionality for growing cabbages.  IL-2 is purely about flight combat while Star Citizen is not a Space Combat game.  The harvesting is there for people who want to make a bit more money selling rare plants to biochemical companies or drug labs or *be* the drug lab.   There will also be a requirement in future to actually eat & sleep every now and then rather than zoom around the universe like a 24/7 robot though I suspect most people will buy food to stock their ships before a long exploration rather than forage as they go ?    I do agree though about feature-creep.  It would be nice if they just concentrated on getting everything necessary completed and working reliably and added more 'frilly bits' later.  The game as it stands,  when working reliably and with SSOCS & Server Meshing,  is well worth the £35 or so it currently costs to get into  the game with a starter ship.   If they want to charge extra to get permission to use the jumpgate to some new flashy star systems that come out in following years then I am OK with that. I can choose in the same way as I choose whether to pay for BoBp.

[56RAF_Roblex]

 

I found this video that succinctly shows why SC is a different kind of game to all others and also talks about the parts that are not finished yet but need to be finished before it can be what it is designed to be.

 

 

 

[AndyJWest]

It's 'different', certainly. as for 'game', and 'finished', I wouldn't hold your breath. There are probably more SC-shill videos out there than there are people actually playing the demo...

[69th_Mobile_BBQ]

Looks like it's shaping up to be a "player will only be good at it if treated as a near-total reality replacement" live service.  Next thing you know,  keeping your VR set on while using the toilet will also align with using the ship's latrine facilities as well.  I think "something for the off hours" type of gameplay is about the farthest I'm willing to go into the MeMORPuhGuh realm - if at all.

It's sad too, Wing Commander 1 was the game that made me the flight/space sim head that I am today.  

Edited October 31, 2019 by Mobile_BBQ

[Cybermat47]

A summary of every success, failure, and controversy up to October 2016.

Edited November 1, 2019 by [Pb]Cybermat47

[Gambit21]

2 hours ago, 56RAF_Roblex said:

 

I found this video that succinctly shows why SC is a different kind of game to all others...

 

 

That only means something if it becomes finished.

I would have watched that video if posted in 2013-14.

[Feathered_IV]

I hear that the ship’s computer will soon be voiced by Meryl Streep. 

[56RAF_Roblex]

12 hours ago, AndyJWest said:

It's 'different', certainly. as for 'game', and 'finished', I wouldn't hold your breath. There are probably more SC-shill videos out there than there are people actually playing the demo...

 

DigitalFoundry is hardly a SC Shiller  ?      If you look at the Youtube page and bring up the last 100 videos posted you will see ONE video about Star Citizen; this one.  That is why I chose it.  It is an unbiased review by someone who has a very wide and deep knowledge of PC  games.  He recognises what parts are way ahead of any other games on the market and what parts are lacking and must be addressed urgently.

Edited November 1, 2019 by 56RAF_Roblex

[AndyJWest]

An 'unbiased review' of a product that was announced in 2011 to be released in 2014 would discuss the endless delays. An 'unbiased review' wouldn't uncritically regurgitate CIGs latest misused-buzzword excuses for not delivering the features they sold the game on. The video is described as a 'very personal take' on the game - by someone who describe Star Citizen crowdfunding as 'pitch perfect' and states that he was 'hooked' immediately. Nothing it says is in any way distinguishable from the multiple other don't-talk-about-the-past-regurgitate-the-hype-about-the-future videos that have been appearing for years.

[Archie]

I read that the wage bill alone is $30 million, it's not going to last much longer. I've written off the $40 or so I spent years ago. Some people spent tens of thousands on pixel ships IIRC...

[OrLoK]

I'm hapilly waiting for the game to be released.

 

as long as i get my 40 quids worth im fine with it.

 

I'll judge the game when it's released.

 

my glass is half full

[Trooper117]

Same here... I want to get into it when it's finished, (maybe I'll be dead by then however).

At the moment there are plenty of games that keep me occupied I can't get round them all quick enough... lol!

[Creep]

@56RAF_Roblex How much time would have to pass with the project still in alpha before you would view it in less optimistic terms?

[Vig]

I downloaded it and spent an few hours trying to do something.  Didn't get very far.  Interface is OMG slow.  Character creator is nice.  Uninstalled.

[graythreat]

Just an ask. I know a lot of SC players also play other flight sims and I’d like to find some people to put around with in both games. I’m an old backer of SC, but I’m just getting back into it. They’re releasing a new flight model soon that I’m hoping will make it worth investing my time in again.

[Feathered_IV]

I didn't back it all those years ago as I thought it would end up being a fiasco. 

[Archie]

Backed it years ago, spent a silly amount of money, got everything refunded and now have the cheapest ship possible. Not played it for a long time. Apparently Sq42 is supposed to release some time this decade so I might give it a go if I haven't died of old age waiting.
I bet a lot of the big money original backers already have. Some of them spent thousands on pixels and a fantasy.

[Trooper117]

I only bought into it because of Sqn 42... (sigh)

[scram77]

6 hours ago, Archie said:

Backed it years ago, spent a silly amount of money, got everything refunded and now have the cheapest ship possible. Not played it for a long time. Apparently Sq42 is supposed to release some time this decade so I might give it a go if I haven't died of old age waiting.
I bet a lot of the big money original backers already have. Some of them spent thousands on pixels and a fantasy.

Hey, how did you manage to get a refund?  I'm in the same boat but losing faith in them ever finishing it anytime soon.

[Archie]

2 hours ago, TP_Scram said:

Hey, how did you manage to get a refund?  I'm in the same boat but losing faith in them ever finishing it anytime soon.

Scram it was 2-3 years ago I think, when I lost faith in the game. IIRC a lot of people were getting refunds around the same time.

[RedKestrel]

Back when this originally was being pitched I had no money, a crap laptop and little time for games. Thank God for that, because I would have probably bought in at that point, I had big nostalgia for the original wing commander and a space shooter would have been right up my alley and I might have blown hundreds of dollars on it. Instead I bought the old WC games on GOG, then Il-2 1946 on GOG, and got tons of play time out of those before getting new Il-2 when I was able to get a better PC. So in a way Star Citizen can be credited with me getting back into flight sims. 

About a year ago I remembered the whole Star Citizen thing and I was like "oh, it must be out by now and maybe for cheap, maybe I could get back into a space sim..." and I found that not only was it still in development, it didn't even look close to complete. I tried to figure out what the hell happened to it all and its just a huge, twisting rabbit hole of hundreds of millions of dollars and insane scope creep. 

It's like, you know how every time someone around here said "Wouldn't it be cool if we could [X]?" and Jason says "No! No money, no time, you lunatics, we run this development on a shoestring held together by famous Russian stubbornness, gallows humour, and hope!"

Imagine if instead he said "Yes! And it will be the best ever and [insanely complicated modeling of the thing] and will come out next year, probably" and then it never came out. And also started to sell collector planes for hundreds of dollars. 

Man I just wanted a space pew pew game. 
 

3 hours ago, TP_Scram said:

Hey, how did you manage to get a refund?  I'm in the same boat but losing faith in them ever finishing it anytime soon.

From what I heard they changed the TOS at some point a few years ago (2015? 2016?), making it much, much more difficult to get a refund.

[Trooper117]

How many millions did they actually manage to get out of the punters in the end?... It was something quite staggering, and it's not finished yet!

[gn728]

10 hours ago, Trooper117 said:

only bought into it because of Sqn 42... (sigh)

Haha - same here - just checked my paperwork from Cloud Imperium - dated 7/9/2013 - they've milked it for 7 years - not bad, not bad at all......

[Charlo-VR]

34 minutes ago, gn728 said:

Haha - same here - just checked my paperwork from Cloud Imperium - dated 7/9/2013 - they've milked it for 7 years - not bad, not bad at all......

July 3, 2014 here, and yup, Star Citizen shows the power of “no” and focus that 777 has to create something amazing and immersive.

 

I use vorpX to fly around in Star Citizen whenever they release a new patch, and it can be amazing, too - but it is far more frustrating after six years of watching feature creep.

[DD_Crash]

This statment from CIG in an official update is causing merriment

no one has a clue what it is supposed to mean

 a quote from Mole a long time backer

Lots of cool things that are broken, some cool things that aren't but don't work properly and a lot of not so cool game bugs and server crashes. I haven't been able to launch the game for a couple of weeks due to some weird happenstance I can't fathom out...

Edited June 27, 2020 by DD_Crash