Star Citizen: A Vast Universe, or a Vast Unfinished Project?
"The galaxy is waiting. Your story begins now." This famous line is usually part of a video game trailer, a tantalizing taste of the immense. But Star Citizen? Is it just hype, or is this truly an amazing, a humongous creation? Let's dive in, explore, and find out!
What is Star Citizen?
Source: kindpng.com
Star Citizen isn't just a video game; it's a whole space experience, a massively-multiplayer online game (MMORPG), offering:
- Vast space exploration
- Building a customized ship
- Encountering other players
- Creating stories with others
(Think space exploration meets a huge role-playing game like something from a sci-fi movie).
Source: cloudfront.net
The Hype and the Reality
Star Citizen's ambition is huge, like building a gigantic space kingdom from scratch. Players build ships and their entire space operations in a huge universe. Early access videos show awesome flying through stunningly created worlds (wow!), and they make people really excited.
This early access thing is an ongoing game for everyone. So people try their own stories within the system. And some say there are real chances to grow their ideas within this universe. So many players give great compliments!
Player Reviews
"It's truly impressive, a world created with many efforts from many individuals! Really good work," says Alex, an active player.
"It's worth it!" exclaims Maria, another enthusiast. (And it seems others agree!).
However, some complain that things aren't always easy in the online spaces, such as player interaction or general progress speed (the difficulty is, I see).
The Scale of the Universe
Star Citizen's size is astounding (literally!). Imagine millions of stars, thousands of planets.
It's a lot to take in.
There are amazing spaceports. The different spaces can feel alien and different. Also, there's amazing architecture!
(Comparison: imagine comparing this universe with something you find impressive locally. This makes it easily digestible!)
Gameplay and Exploration
Source: starship42.com
The gameplay experience involves exploration, a big part of the excitement.
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Traveling to different planets
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Encountering many stars. (How cool!)
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Working together, or against other people
Star Citizen offers diverse gameplay options from building (like a real life space station), to space fights and many other possible interactions. It's all up to what the players decide. The vast possibilities truly engage the players (players truly have power here!)
Possible Gameplay Choices
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Exploring unknown star systems
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Becoming a trader/businessman (great ideas!)
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Space mining (get resources).
(A very vast spectrum. Very impressive, you need a lot of energy.)
Technical Challenges
Building such an expansive game isn't easy! Sometimes the technical challenges become the topic of heated discussion in player groups. Many players spend hours chatting on discord and other channels sharing details about possible bugs (like technical issues).
Source: imgur.com
So far, these kinds of talks seem quite common but it's something people should talk about openly. I know several individuals complaining of bugs and crashes! So far this creates frustration at some points.
There have also been delays (oh no!), problems (not happy!) , and technical difficulties which frustrate many people.
How to Fix the Problems
I think openly sharing this issue can greatly help players (great cooperation with companies!). More detailed discussion forums/news letters can help inform, guide, and help! These might help reduce tension! Transparency really helps when big games take a big risk! (It's important that companies open their communications. People seem to like honesty more than the alternatives!)
Table of Frequently Encountered Issues:
| Issue | Description | Player Reaction |
|---|---|---|
| Crashes | Game crashes unexpectedly, leaving players frustrated. | Frustration |
| Performance issues | Slow performance, causing gameplay to lag/break often. | Frustration |
| Bugs / Glitches | Glitches affecting functionality. | Frustration/ Anger |
| Update-related issues | Many errors from update releases. Sometimes the update introduces even more! | Frustration |
Important Questions to Consider:
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Can this universe sustain an active and healthy community?
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Will these challenges be overcome as the game continues its progression and journey? (It is important to understand if they can achieve it).
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How are future development goals being discussed and prioritized? (So this needs active transparency from the people in charge)
(In simple words, people really like to know if the companies are being careful about progress) (and do something about issues)
Source: redd.it
Conclusion
Star Citizen presents an enticing experience (I see people very passionate!), a space with grand opportunities (you are a player!). But (be aware) along with its overwhelming promise also comes a noticeable number of challenges. The ongoing and complex building phase suggests that progress will probably involve some problems and disappointments from time to time. But the possibility for this kind of future is truly exciting. Is the journey worth it? The real answer might differ from player to player but one thing is for sure: the universe is being built from all sorts of interactions from various kinds of players. There's hope!
