Star Citizen everything we know overview

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Star Citizen is a PC space simulation in active alpha, built to blend first person on foot gameplay, detailed ship flight, and a shared online world. It draws attention for its long running development, ambitious scope, and a funding model that invites players to pledge during development. Cloud Imperium Games leads the project and describes a long term vision that includes a large scale Persistent Universe and a separate single player campaign called Squadron 42. This guide focuses on Star Citizen everything we know from official developer communications and in game facts, avoiding any speculation or unverified claims.

Who Is Making Star Citizen

Cloud Imperium Games, often abbreviated as CIG, is the developer and publisher responsible for Star Citizen. The company operates multiple studios, including teams in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany, with additional development and online services support in Montreal through Turbulent, which CIG acquired. These studio groups collaborate on gameplay, art, engine technology, and online services.

Chris Roberts is the creator of the project and serves as the key creative leader. Erin Roberts has held senior leadership roles on the production side. Tony Zurovec has been publicly identified as the director for the Persistent Universe. Brian Chambers is a senior development leader tied to the engine and core tech efforts. Other leaders head live operations, content pipelines, and online infrastructure.

Roberts Space Industries, or RSI, is a brand within the project that functions as the official website and account portal. In the fiction, RSI is also an in universe manufacturer. In practical terms, the RSI site and launcher handle accounts, pledges, and patch notes, while Cloud Imperium Games is the development company that builds and runs the game and its services.

Star Citizen Everything We Know About Development History

The project was announced in 2012 with a pitch for a PC space sim built on high fidelity systems and a large scale online universe. Public crowdfunding began that same year, using both a campaign platform and the official RSI website. Development started with a staged module plan that allowed early testing.

Key public milestones included:

The Hangar Module in 2013, which let players load into a personal hangar to view pledge ships.
Arena Commander in 2014, adding ship combat, racing, and early flight testing.
Alpha 2.0 in late 2015, the first slice of the Persistent Universe with space stations, missions, and multi crew flight.
Alpha 3.0 in late 2017, opening up planetary moon landings, surface outposts, and a basic trade loop.
Alpha 3.3 in 2018, introducing object container streaming and the first large planet and city landing zone in the Stanton system.
Continuing quarterly updates since then, expanding locations, adding professions, and deepening backend services.

Over time, CIG shifted from the original CryEngine base, adopted and then diverged from Amazon Lumberyard, and now refers to its heavily modified stack as StarEngine. On the gameplay side, the alpha expanded across the Stanton system with four major corporate worlds and their moons, along with many space stations, missions, and events.

Development has remained public facing, with regular patch notes, video updates, and a roadmap that explains what is in testing, what is live, and what remains in development. CIG consistently marks features and timelines as subject to change.

Funding Model And Business Approach

Star Citizen uses a long running crowdfunding model built on pledges made through the RSI site. Players can purchase game packages that include access to the Star Citizen Persistent Universe, and in the future, Squadron 42 if included by that package. There are also standalone ships and vehicles offered as pledges that do not by themselves grant game access unless they are part of a game package.

A pledge is framed as support for ongoing development. The developer also states that ships and many items can be acquired in game with earned currency once those gameplay loops are active, and that pledge items are not required to play. Ship upgrades, often called cross chassis upgrades, let backers change one pledged ship to another within the store. Some pledges include lifetime insurance as a perk, which is distinct from in game claim and insurance mechanics.

There are periodic Free Fly events that allow players to try the game without a paid package for a limited time. The store sometimes rotates ship availability and may run event based sales.

Star Citizen Everything We Know About Technology And Engine

CIG now refers to its engine stack as StarEngine. The codebase began on CryEngine, later integrated Amazon Lumberyard elements, and has since forked into a custom engine with significant internal systems. Public tech pillars include:

Object Container Streaming: Streams parts of the world in and out to manage memory and performance.
Gen12 Renderer: A rendering architecture modernization, with future plans publicly discussed for Vulkan integration.
Physics Grids and Local Grids: Allow detailed simulation inside ships and stations while those entities move in space.
Planetary Tech: Supports large scale planets and moons with procedural terrain plus hand crafted landing zones.
Persistence: Persistent Entity Streaming (PES) saves physicalized items and states to a backend database.
Replication Layer: Synchronizes gameplay state across clients and servers and underpins persistence.
Server Meshing: A scalable system planned to distribute the simulation across multiple servers. CIG has discussed static and dynamic server meshing as phased goals.

Live in alpha today are core streaming systems, planetary tech, the Gen12 renderer, and persistent entity streaming. The replication layer supports the live service. Server meshing remains in development and is not yet part of the public live environment. The developer continues to mark these systems as evolving, with milestones and rollout steps subject to change.

Star Citizen Everything We Know About Modules And Playable Content

Star Citizen provides access through distinct modules that share a common account and launcher. Each serves a different test purpose.

Persistent Universe

The Persistent Universe, often called the PU, is the main shared online space. It currently centers on the Stanton system, with four major planets, their moons, and a network of stations and surface locations. Players can accept missions, trade, mine, salvage, fight, haul cargo, and explore. The PU runs on live servers and uses aUEC as in game currency. Progress may be subject to wipes as the alpha evolves, and the developer posts notices when a wipe will occur.

Arena Commander

Arena Commander is a module for instant access ship combat, racing, and free flight. It allows quick testing of flight models, weapons, and scenario based modes without traveling in the PU. Updates have added maps, modes, and quality of life changes over time. Arena Commander is a common place to practice flying or racing and to try combat setups in a controlled environment.

Star Marine

Star Marine is the first person combat module. It offers team based and free for all matches in FPS maps. Players can test weapons, armor, and movement on foot, with time to kill and medical gameplay elements aligned with the PU. This module is useful for learning FPS controls and refining loadouts before taking contracts in the live universe.

Test Universes And Special Access

The Public Test Universe, or PTU, is a separate environment used for broader testing before a patch goes to the live servers. Access is granted in waves and may include all backers or a subset. A closed test group known publicly as the Evocati Flight Test group, under NDA, tests early builds before the PTU opens. Characters and inventories are separate in these testing environments and may be wiped frequently.

Squadron 42 Relationship

Squadron 42 is the single player, story driven campaign set in the same universe. It is sold separately from Star Citizen unless a combined package is owned. Both projects share technology, tools, and assets. Ship flight, FPS mechanics, and engine systems are developed with both products in mind.

The developer has publicly stated that Squadron 42 reached a feature complete state in 2023 and moved into polish and optimization. No public release date has been announced. As with other development items, the studio notes that plans and timing are subject to change. Access to Squadron 42 is not included with a standard Star Citizen package unless the package explicitly states it.

Core Gameplay Systems

Star Citizen includes several gameplay loops in the live alpha, with more in development. The following sections describe what is available and what the developer has stated is planned.

Space Flight And Combat

Players pilot ships with detailed flight models, thruster behavior, and power management. Combat includes fixed and gimbaled weapons, missiles, countermeasures, and shield facings. Multi crew ships allow roles for turret gunners and system operators. In the PU, combat contracts range from bounty targets to security work against pirates. Law, crime, and reputation systems influence combat scenarios and security responses. Flight and combat are updated regularly as balance passes refine weapon behavior, shields, and handling.

First Person Gameplay And FPS Combat

On foot gameplay includes movement, mantling, EVA, and weapon handling across rifles, SMGs, pistols, and special tools. Armor types offer different protection and carry capacity. Medical gameplay provides healing with a multi tool attachment, medpens, and medical beds that treat or stabilize injuries. Certain locations, such as hospitals and clinics, support respawn and recovery. Inventory uses a physicalized approach with backpacks, armor slots, ship storage, and local inventory at locations.

Economy Trading And Cargo

Cargo hauling is a live loop in which players buy commodities at trade terminals and move cargo to sell for profit. Cargo grids and physicalized cargo boxes allow loading and unloading. Risk management matters, as ship destruction can result in cargo loss. Commodity pricing and stock vary by location. Smaller box delivery missions exist for ground and space pickups. The developer has stated plans to expand cargo with more physicalized interactions and deeper economy simulation over time.

Mining Refining And Industry

Mining is available in both ship and hand held forms. The MISC Prospector and ARGO Mole are examples of mining ships designed for this loop. Players scan for deposits, manage laser power, and extract ore, which they can sell or take to refineries. Refinery stations provide multiple refining methods with different outputs and durations. The loop is integrated into the economy with hauling to market once refined goods are produced. Balance passes and gadget tools have been introduced to deepen mining choices.

Bounty Hunting And Missions

Bounty hunting in the PU includes lawful and unlawful targets, with contracts picked up in the mobiGlas contract manager. Reputation with bounty groups unlocks higher tiers. Missions also include delivery, salvage, investigation, security, and dynamic events. Mission difficulty and payment are influenced by reputation and crime rating. Some mission givers provide bespoke contracts at landing zones and outposts. The law system tracks crime stats, and crimes can be cleared through lawful means or prison time if captured.

Exploration And Navigation

Quantum travel connects locations within a system. Players plot routes, align, and spool quantum drives to move between planets, stations, and markers. Navigation tools include star maps and location services. Space and surface points of interest offer exploration and loot opportunities. Jump points to other systems are part of the project vision, but inter system travel is not live in the public alpha. The developer has shown a second system, Pyro, in demos and marked it as in development.

Salvage Repair And Maintenance

Hull scraping salvage is live, allowing players to strip materials from derelicts or wrecks using ships such as the Drake Vulture or Aegis Reclaimer, and tools on foot. Salvaged material can be sold or used for basic hull repair with the right equipment. Broader salvage and repair tiers, including component work and deeper damage states, have been described by the developers as in development. Maintenance costs, wear, and repair are represented through service terminals and item durability.

Medicine And Survival

The status system tracks health, stamina, temperature tolerance, food, and hydration. Players can sustain localized injuries that affect performance. Medpens and the multi tool medical attachment can stabilize or heal. Medical facilities at landing zones and clinics handle regeneration and treatment. Portable medical beds and ship medbays provide field care with tiered capability. Survival elements require attention to atmosphere, suits, and environmental hazards, especially during EVA or on harsh moons.

Ships Vehicles And Manufacturers

Ships and ground vehicles are grouped by role, size, and manufacturer. Roles include combat, transport, industrial, exploration, and support. Size ranges from snub craft to capital class hulls, though many large ships are not yet flyable.

Manufacturers in game include:

Roberts Space Industries
Anvil Aerospace
Aegis Dynamics
Drake Interplanetary
MISC
Origin Jumpworks
Crusader Industries
ARGO Astronautics
Consolidated Outland
Tumbril Land Systems
Greycat Industrial
Banu and Xi’an makers, such as Aopoa

Players can acquire ships by pledging on the RSI site, renting in game at kiosks in major spaceports, or buying ships with in game currency when available. Loaners are temporary ships provided when a pledged ship is not yet flyable. Insurance in the live alpha functions as a claim and replace system at terminals, with wait times and optional expedite fees paid in aUEC. Pledge insurance perks like lifetime insurance are distinct from the current gameplay claim system. Paints and items can be equipped to customize appearance and loadouts, and many ships support component swaps for power, shields, and coolers.

Progression Reputation And Organizations

Reputation systems track standing with mission providers, security forces, and groups. Higher reputation unlocks missions, improves payments, and enables access to specialized contracts. Mission givers found at landing zones and outposts offer progression lines. CrimeStat impacts access and security response.

Organizations, or orgs, are player run groups managed through the RSI account portal and in game identifiers. Orgs provide tags, roles, and basic group identity. The developer has discussed deeper org features for the future, but as of the current alpha, orgs function mainly as social and identity structures with chat and grouping.

Account progression includes entitlements on the RSI account. In game progression, such as aUEC balance and inventory, is subject to persistence rules and occasional wipes during alpha.

Star Citizen Everything We Know About Universe Locations And Scale

The live PU centers on the Stanton system. It includes four major corporate planets:

Hurston with the city of Lorville
ArcCorp with the city of Area18
microTech with the city of New Babbage
Crusader with the floating city of Orison

Each planet has multiple moons with surface outposts, bunkers, and points of interest. Major orbital stations serve as hubs, such as Port Tressler above microTech, Baijini Point above ArcCorp, and Everus Harbor near Hurston. There are many rest stops at Lagrange points, refinery stations, and cargo hubs scattered across Stanton.

Surface locations include underground facilities, derelict settlements, caves, and mission sites. The scale allows long flights between worlds, with atmospheric entry and exit. A second system, Pyro, has been shown in developer demos and is marked as in development, not live. Additional systems have been referenced on the roadmap or in official fiction, but only Stanton is publicly playable today.

Events And Limited Time Activities

Recurring events include:

Invictus Launch Week, a military themed ship showcase that features tours and test flights.
Intergalactic Aerospace Expo, a large ship expo with rotating halls and Free Fly access.
Dynamic events such as Assault on Stanton (XenoThreat), Nine Tails Lockdown, Siege of Orison, and Jumptown, which add timed missions and server wide objectives.
Seasonal events with limited time rewards and missions.

During expos, players can enter show floors, inspect ships, and test fly many models for free. Dynamic events provide high payout group content with combat, logistics, and coordination. Event schedules are announced by the developer and can change.

Star Citizen Everything We Know About Roadmap And Development Process

The public roadmap is presented in two main views. The Release View lists features targeted for upcoming quarterly patches. The Progress Tracker shows teams, deliverables, and planned work over time. Both views include caveats that plans are not promises and that scope and timing can shift.

CIG communicates development through:

Patch notes and Known Issues posts with each release.
Video series such as Inside Star Citizen and Star Citizen Live, which cover features, teams, and Q and A.
Posts that summarize quarterly goals and event schedules.
CitizenCon, an annual showcase event with talks and gameplay demos.
Spectrum announcements and launcher messages.

Patch cadence is generally quarterly, with hotfixes and minor updates between major releases as needed.

Versions Platforms And Requirements

Star Citizen runs on Windows PC. Access requires an RSI account and the RSI launcher. Players need an active game package to enter the PU outside of Free Fly events. Updates are delivered through the launcher with options for the Live and PTU environments.

The developer recommends using a solid state drive, and official support materials state that an SSD is required for the game to function properly. A stable broadband connection is needed due to the online nature of the PU. The studio also provides guidance on graphics settings and troubleshooting within official support articles and patch notes.

Star Citizen Everything We Know About Current Alpha Status

The game is in an open alpha state. This means features are incomplete, bugs are present, and balance is in flux. The developer warns that wipes may occur to align databases and features. Persistent Entity Streaming helps keep items and states across sessions, but full persistence is still under active development.

Access tiers include Live servers, the Public Test Universe for pre release testing, and earlier pre PTU testing under NDA. Character and inventory states can differ between environments. Major backend features, such as server meshing, are not live yet, and the developer continues to mark them as in development and subject to change.

Monetization Store And In Game Earning

The official stance is that ships can be earned through gameplay as loops and inventories come online. In the current alpha, players can:

Earn aUEC by running missions and trading, then buy certain ships and items at in game shops.
Rent ships at rental kiosks found in major landing zones for specific periods.
Use pledge ships on their account in all modules.

Insurance in alpha functions through claim terminals. If a ship is lost, players file a claim and wait for delivery or pay an expedite fee. Pledge based lifetime insurance is a separate account perk for some items and does not change the current claim mechanics.

Purchases on the store are called pledges and are framed as support for development. Game packages grant access to the PU. Standalone ships that are not part of a package do not grant access by themselves.

Community And Support Features

CIG provides official community and support tools:

Spectrum, an integrated forum and chat platform linked to RSI accounts.
The Issue Council, where players can report bugs, upvote issues, and share reproduction steps.
PTU access waves for broader testing and feedback before live patches.
Support ticketing for account and technical help, along with knowledge base articles.
Community shows and developer Q and A sessions that surface questions and answers.

Organizations are created and managed through the RSI portal. Players can join, set roles, and represent org tags in game. Community meetups and official events such as CitizenCon and Invictus Launch Week broaden engagement.

Known Issues And Limitations

Each patch ships with a Known Issues list maintained by the developer. Common categories include:

Server stability issues, disconnects, and desync.
Inventory and item interaction inconsistencies.
Mission scripting problems that can block progression.
Vehicle retrieval, claim timers, and spawning issues.
UI bugs, performance dips, and rendering artifacts.
Persistence edge cases with items or cargo.

CIG addresses issues through hotfixes and point releases when feasible. Larger fixes arrive in quarterly patches. The studio notes that alpha features are still under active development and may change.

Changelog Of Major Public Milestones

Below is a concise, verified milestone table with dates or years, labels, and short notes.

Date Or Year	Version Or Milestone	What Changed
Oct 2012	Crowdfunding Launch	Public funding began with RSI account portal and campaign.
Aug 2013	Hangar Module	Players could view pledged ships in personal hangars.
Jun 2014	Arena Commander	Ship combat, racing, and free flight module released.
Dec 2015	Alpha 2.0	First PU slice with multi crew, stations, and missions.
Dec 2017	Alpha 3.0	Planetary moon landings, surface outposts, basic trade.
Nov 2018	Alpha 3.3	Object container streaming and first large planet city.
Jul 2021	Alpha 3.14	Crusader planet and Orison landing zone added.
Oct 2021	Alpha 3.15	Medical gameplay and inventory refactor introduced.
Mar 2023	Alpha 3.18	Persistent Entity Streaming and salvage gameplay.
2023	Squadron 42 Feature Complete	Developer announced feature complete, moving to polish.

Practical Getting Started Steps

Follow these verified steps to enter the game:

Create an RSI account through the official portal and secure it with two factor authentication if desired.
Acquire a game package that includes Star Citizen access, or wait for a Free Fly event to try the game without a purchase.
Download and install the RSI launcher. Log in with your RSI account.
In the launcher, select the Live channel to play the current public build. If invited to testing, select the PTU channel for test builds.
Install the game to a solid state drive as required. Ensure sufficient free space.
Launch the game and select your character. Choose a starting location within the Stanton system.
Use the ASOP terminals at spaceports to claim a ship. Follow on screen tooltips for basic controls.
Open the mobiGlas to accept entry level contracts such as delivery or bounty missions.
Visit clinics or hospitals to set your regeneration location before heading into riskier content.
If you want quick practice, use Arena Commander for ship flight or Star Marine for FPS matches.

Outlook Based On Official Statements

Based on public developer statements, near and mid term focus areas include:

Server meshing: Continued work on static server meshing as the next step, followed by dynamic meshing. Marked as in development and subject to change.
Backend services: Ongoing improvements to the replication layer, entity persistence, and database stability to reduce wipes and improve reliability.
Economy and cargo: More physicalized cargo interactions, deeper trade simulation, and risk mechanics linked to scanning and interdiction.
Professions: Expansions to salvage, engineering and repair, bounty systems, and mission variety, with balance and UI upgrades.
Locations: The Pyro system has been shown and remains in development. Stanton will continue to receive updates and refinements.
Squadron 42: The team has stated it is in polish and optimization. No public release date has been announced, and timing remains subject to change.
Usability and UI: mobiGlas apps, star map improvements, and user experience updates to reduce friction for new players.

All of these items carry roadmap caveats. As always, the studio notes that scope and schedules can shift as work progresses.

Conclusion

This Star Citizen overview gathers Star Citizen everything we know that is verified by the developers or visible in game today. The live alpha provides ship flight, FPS combat, trade, mining, salvage, and many missions across the Stanton system, with regular events and updates. The technology stack features streaming, persistence, and a replication layer, while server meshing remains in development. Squadron 42 shares the technology and has been stated to be feature complete and in polish, without a public release date. The roadmap, patch notes, and video updates outline what is coming next, but all future plans remain subject to change. This guide avoids speculation and reflects only confirmed details from official sources and the game itself.