# Star Citizen is the Future of PC Gaming, and it \[was\] Free to Play this week (Edit: No Longer Free) **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** video-games-e-games\ **Created:** [October 13, 2015, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528 "2015-10-13T06:29:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 30
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/581 "2020-10-13T18:48:19Z")
This thread is five years old! Happy birthday! ---
**Author:** ![Hoopy\_Frood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoopy_frood/32/8452_2.png) [@Hoopy\_Frood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoopy_Frood)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/582 "2020-10-13T18:52:25Z")
Funny thing is, the game has only been in development for a bit over half the time it took Duke Nukem Forever. It’s got another 7 years or so to beat it. I have faith they’re up to that task. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2020, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/583 "2020-10-13T18:59:12Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > Heh. Now their Gathering of Fanbois has gone from May 2021 to “we’re not sure”. Maybe they’re waiting until the _Squadron 42_ component releases, which is supposedly “in close out mode” but won’t be released this year and “will be done when it’s done”. > **[Star Citizen's Squadron 42 Campaign Won't Release In 2020, But It's In The...](https://www.gamespot.com/articles/star-citizens-squadron-42-campaign-wont-release-in-2020-but-its-in-the-close-out-phase/1100-6483232/)** > > The single-player campaign is nearing completion, but it won't be released until it's ready. Have they even finished the anti-cheat measures? > **[Star Citizen anti-cheat systems are being worked on - Violators being banned](https://www.pcinvasion.com/star-citizen-anti-cheat-systems-worked/)** > > CIG are now looking to address the problem of Star Citizen aimbots and wall hacks with players being banned of they are found to be cheating. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2020, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/584 "2020-10-16T13:55:51Z")
> [@Hoopy\_Frood](#): > > Funny thing is, the game has only been in development for a bit over half the time it took Duke Nukem Forever. > > It’s got another 7 years or so to beat it. > > I have faith they’re up to that task. DNF wasn’t actually being developed for most of that time though. In terms of time in which an actual project was going on it’s beaten it quite easily. In terms of person-hours invested it’s probably beaten it ten times over. The only thing now that will cause a working product to actually be completed is if Roberts/CIG is forced to do so by a party that holds the financial reins and insists on a product being released. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2020, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/585 "2020-10-16T20:58:02Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > In terms of person-hours invested it’s probably beaten it ten times over. Allegedly. The only way we’ll know if anyone was actually working is if they ever release a game. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2020, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/586 "2020-10-16T21:03:20Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Allegedly. The only way we’ll know if anyone was actually working is if they ever release a game. There are plenty of eyewitness accounts that the game really is being worked on. That’s absolutely not in question. The problem is they have no structure. By all accounts, there are no limitations, no schedules, no time constraints, no clear picture of what the boundaries of the project ARE. Under that sort of nonexistence project management, of course it will never be done. If you don’t know where the finish line is how do you know when to stop running? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2020, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/587 "2020-10-16T21:09:06Z")
But they have a roadmap of a roadmap of a roadmap. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/588 "2020-10-17T08:58:20Z")
I dunno - it just seems fishy to me. Eyewitness accounts can be anecdotal and unreliable. I’m sure they’re doing enough work to produce the occasional demo, but why would they waste money on doing any more? They’re making far more money by not releasing the game than they ever will be releasing it. Making any progress is against their business model. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/589 "2020-10-17T12:21:55Z")
FINISHING the game is against their business model, and also against their best interests in a legal sense. Incremental progress keeps the suckers spending money. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/590 "2020-10-17T14:41:30Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > I dunno - it just seems fishy to me. Eyewitness accounts can be anecdotal and unreliable. There has been at least one extensive article written about the Star Citizen fiasco where the journalist was literally at CIG for an extended period of time and saw hordes of people working on it. Oh, it’s had lots of work done on it, I have no doubt of that. What we have in SC is a perfect example of [Parkinson’s Law](https://www.atlassian.com/blog/productivity/what-is-parkinsons-law#:~:text=Parkinson's%20Law%20is%20the%20old,for%20the%20Economist%20in%201955.). It’s a perfect example of why those people at work who irritate you by saying “no” and limiting your ability to do things and imposing budgets and timelines are, in fact, doing you a huge favor. It is possible that SC has morphed into a true, outright scam - actually, I’d say the probability of that approaches 1 the longer this goes on. Things like this often go that way; they start out sincere and become scams. But it was truly a sincere effort to make a game, and likely still is on the parts of a lot of people involved. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/591 "2020-10-17T14:42:00Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > Incremental progress keeps the suckers spending money. True, but _showing_ progress isn’t exactly the same thing as _making_ progress, right? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/592 "2020-10-17T14:44:30Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > True, but _showing_ progress isn’t exactly the same thing as _making_ progress, right? There’s a playable ~~beta~~ alpha that appears to be receiving small but regular updates. Meaningful updates - and meaningful progress towards a launch - are another thing entirely. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/593 "2020-10-17T14:47:35Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > It is possible that SC has morphed into a true, outright scam - actually, I’d say the probability of that approaches 1 the longer this goes on. Things like this often go that way; they start out sincere and become scams. But it was truly a sincere effort to make a game, and likely still is on the parts of a lot of people involved. I agree that they started out sincere, but I really doubt they still are. I think that at this point they have no intention of releasing a real game, so why bother putting in real work? Plus, as I said, I think there’s some money laundering going on. Maybe the main office is working, but a lot of videogame work these days is outsourced, and I’d like to see proof that the subcontractors they’re using actually exist, and aren’t just funneling money back to the “investors”. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/594 "2020-10-17T15:03:25Z")
I admittedly don’t follow it closely enough for anything but a WAG here, but why bother with money laundering? Chris Roberts is under no legal obligation to justify anything to his backers, since CIG is not a publicly traded company. Both he and his wife draw a salary from their seemingly endless revenue stream, and some casual Googling tells me that nobody knows what their salaries actually are. He does have some actual VC money, though. I don’t know what kind of justifications or obligations he has to those guys. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/595 "2020-10-17T15:13:37Z")
It’s _because_ it’s a private company with no obligations and no supervision that it’s a perfect money laundering tool. Say I’m a drug dealer with $10 million of ill-gotten gains burning a hole in my pocket. I open a “software services company” that consists of a post office box in Sofia, Bulgaria. Then I “invest” the money in the game, and I ask - or instruct - Roberts to hire my company to do, I dunno, graphics rendering or something, for $9 million. He pays me a certain amount per month, all of which I keep, because I have no employees and am not doing any actual work. In the end, I get $9 million, clean and legal, Roberts gets to keep a cool million, and if the game never gets made, well, what can you do? It’s not like anyone can sue. Do I have any proof of this? Absolutely not. Am I reasonably certain something like it is happening? Yep. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/596 "2020-10-17T16:28:44Z")
Oh, I see what you mean. It seems like a silly risk to take when you’re already making hundreds of millions of dollars in perfectly legitimate, no-strings-attached, oversight-free money. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2020, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/597 "2020-10-17T17:07:08Z")
True, but there’s a lot of money moving around there with no oversight. That makes me suspicious. ---
**Author:** ![smilingbandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@smilingbandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smilingbandit)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2020, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/598 "2020-10-18T04:56:37Z")
The fact that random gaming magazines or reporters can’t see it doesn’t mean that, say, government agencies don’t have have as much oversight as anything. Plus, the banks are involved in various ways and can get into heaps of trouble if they facilitated those transactions. Chris Roberts isn’t in the position that literally anyone else on the planet isn’t in; there’s no Legion of Evil that needs him for anything and your suspicion makes no sense in this case. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2020, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/599 "2020-10-18T05:14:32Z")
> [@smilingbandit](#): > > there’s no Legion of Evil that needs him for anything Well…that you know of. I mean 2020 has been a pretty banner year for the forces of Evil. About the only thing in the plus column so far has been the cancellation of Tab soda. ---
**Author:** ![smilingbandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@smilingbandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smilingbandit)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2020, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528/600 "2020-10-18T05:37:38Z")
Ha! I’ll grant that. For the record, what Alessan suggested is not _impossible_. But there’s no reason to think it is **true**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528.md?page=29) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-citizen-is-the-future-of-pc-gaming-and-it-was-free-to-play-this-week-edit-no-longer-free/734528.md?page=31)