The developers of space sim Star Citizen are now talking about the 1.0 launch being within sight, some 12 years after the game launched its first crowdfunding drive.
Star Citizen is considered one of the most controversial projects in all video games. Over the 12 years since its crowdfunding drive began, it’s been called many things, including a scam by those who wonder whether it will ever properly launch. Its virtual space ships, some of which cost hundreds of dollars, are often the focus of criticism. At the time of this article’s publication, Star Citizen had pulled in an eye-watering $669,559,892 from players. Developer Cloud Imperium Games calls this money “funds raised.”
In a blog post, CIG chief Chris Roberts said 2024 will see the launch of Star Citizen Alpha 4.0 (yes, Star Citizen is still in alpha), and that the developer is working to bring features developed for Squadron 42, the standalone story-based game starring the likes of Mark Hamill and Gillian Anderson, to the persistent universe portion of the game “at an accelerated rate.”
This is all building up to Star Citizen 1.0, which, Roberts said, “is what we consider the features and content set to represent ‘commercial’ release.” “This means that the game is welcoming to new players, stable, and polished with enough gameplay and content to engage players continuously,” Roberts added. “In other words, it is no longer Alpha or Early Access.” However, there is still no release date or even release window for Star Citizen 1.0. CIG will share the roadmap later this year. For now, “Star Citizen 1.0 twinkles on the horizon!” Roberts said.
Roberts then touched upon changes at Cloud Imperium Games, some of which have to do with recent layoffs and a controversial relocation plan IGN reported on last month. Rich Tyrer is now senior game director, overseeing the development of Star Citizen and Squadron 42 alongside Roberts. Roberts said CIG had made the “difficult decision” to ask the Los Angeles development team to relocate to join other teams, primarily in Manchester, England, as well as Austin, Texas, and Montreal, Canada.
One member of staff called this “a mass layoff, disguised as a relocation of staff”, given the struggle in moving to another country “with little or no notice.” As previously reported, Persistent Universe Live Director Todd Papy is out. “As part of this reorganization, we sadly waved goodbye to the Persistent Universe Live Director, Todd Papy as he had moved back to the U.S. from the UK last year for family reasons, and after much soul searching, I determined that we cannot afford to have this role remote from the main team in Manchester for a good portion of the year,” Roberts said. “It is a sad moment, as Todd worked diligently for the last nine years on Star Citizen, making many important contributions and providing excellent leadership of his teams. I wish him the best of luck and look forward to seeing what he does next.”
As for Roberts himself, he’s moving from Los Angeles to Manchester, where he grew up. Speaking of Star Citizen’s over decade-long development, Roberts said: “The journey is longer and more difficult than I anticipated 11 ½ years ago, but the final destination is so much more exciting and fulfilling. I would have never in my dreams expected to have the opportunity to build something on the scale and ambition of Star Citizen, and because of this feel incredibly blessed by all of your support, and I am determined to finish strong.”
Roberts then quoted Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius: “In a marathon, they say the last mile is the hardest, but to quote the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, ‘What we do now echoes in eternity!’ “
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
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