Star Citizen: A Galactic Gamble?
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." – Lao Tzu (That's what I keep telling myself.)
This game, Star Citizen, is more than just a game; it's an experience. A long one. And it seems many, many others agree with me. They’ve dedicated themselves to this huge universe (in the best way!).
Introduction to the Massive Multiplayer Online Game (MMORPG)
Star Citizen is an ambitious, space-faring game that puts players in a simulated, open world of epic proportions. You can be a hero, pirate, explorer, pilot, anything you want. (That sounds great, right?). The problem is getting there…
What Makes Star Citizen Different?
Source: theimpound.com
- It's massively expansive, taking hours, days, weeks of time.
- It has been developing for years (almost longer than I have lived!)
- It demands a serious time commitment (very very hard)
Star Citizen’s “Ever-Evolving” Universe: A Double-Edged Sword
So many options are here, from racing ships (like an amazing fast car in space) to exploring alien worlds, which have their problems (more like a lot more problems!).
It's the open-world appeal mixed with a significant ongoing commitment to build something really big, like building a spaceship one step at a time.
Player Reactions to the Waiting Game
The ongoing "waiting" part of the game, though, is quite frustrating for many. A lot of gamers are, frankly, annoyed about the wait for the next update or major addition.
What's Good About This Universe
- Amazing visuals and effects.
- Cool ships that are visually exciting, that's obvious, just like seeing a very cool racing car
- Community support and interaction (I mean it's important). Players make it more interesting with creative use
Why Are So Many Players Saying… “Hold Up?”
Source: theimpound.com
Many players describe feeling… a touch "trapped," having given their money to the game creators while hoping that some day their game would be ready, for real!
Pros:
Cons:
- Development and launch (a long story)
- The wait: A major negative experience (like an excruciating wait!).
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Star Citizen: A Financial Commitment
The problem of funding games… This problem goes along a way:
To enjoy the true experience (if ever!), one would have to have an appropriate financial commitment. The amount depends on how much effort the gamer invests. It sounds expensive (even my grandma said so).
A Review of Current Status
A few players have said…
“Star Citizen is still far from what it promised, so that’s where the problem begins and continues.”
It appears like, so far, it still has many issues for this community of players, issues such as the ongoing delays (for gamers this might be extremely frustrating and depressing).
The gameplay footage shows impressive feats, (with stunning details!), and this fuels the hype, however the delays also lead to many concerns from gamers. This does appear a very long project, which has a clear, understandable negative aspect: Waiting time (and for long periods of time).
The Waiting Game – A Constant Challenge
There is definitely an expectation that, somehow or other, games like Star Citizen just do happen; in essence they arrive and are good to play with no issues; in contrast many experiences of gamers have found waiting an inescapable part of their time spent on the games like this.
Many fans say… it's like they need more than one life to complete all these stages, right!?
What Makes Players Stay
Source: imgur.com
- Enthusiastic supporters
- Visuals & anticipation
- Ongoing stories to follow and contribute to.
Source: cloudbase.gg
A Conclusion
So… Is it worth it? The answer is, very personally, in this personal opinion:
Possibly. (but in reality it's extremely debatable, really), But only if your time isn't that important. Only if one’s ability to “live in a dream state,” is strong enough, as this long time game has become, a dream to many gamers in terms of what they see for a possible finished product. However there are several ways one might look at it: time-based investment. If one has this kind of ability it is possibly more valuable to them than it may appear to someone who needs their time back.
Q: What about the ongoing investment required for future parts and add-ons of the game?
A: As many say it's "not the same without it" – these add-ons seem really important. However to play such an expansive game, it has a lot more needs that you might consider as someone who might want to have that time back.
Q: What about all the delays of the games in development?
A: For many it seems quite challenging, but it could mean for players this might be one very interesting investment in a potential long term reward to players!
The personal experience that each player might bring (and many may bring!) might be entirely different from each player, considering each different aspect that might arise with their individual investment in the experience.
So yes, the answer remains an extremely interesting but hard one! One needs to ask this to each potential player. What’s important is finding a game that matches your unique expectations. Is Star Citizen yours? You are your only judge.
