With a movie (Gravity) about floating through a debris storm in space winning over audiences at the theaters and rumors about who will be cast in the next Star Wars sequel surfacing every other week, it only seems right that video games are also preparing to return to the final frontier. The space combat sim has been just a fond, but distant memory for years now, but the Star Citizen fundraiser is proof that gamers are ready to return to the stars.
Financial support for Cloud Imperium Games’ now fully funded space combat sim has continued to pour in this fall. Star Citizen officially became the most successful crowd-funded project ever four months ago and has continued to break records every few weeks. Less than a week ago, backers of the project unlocked the Xi’an Scout ship by surpassing the $23 million stretch goal. The group at Roberts Space Industries barely had time to celebrate before the next milestone was reached.
Yesterday, fans reached the $24 million stretch goal and unlocked the Public Transportation System. Thanks to the extra million, the in-game galactic transport system will be expanded to included star liners, long range transports, charter ships, and flyable shuttles. The goal of the transport system is to make yet another effort to allow Star Citizen players to become part of a living, breathing environment. The developers hope that building an interactive transport system, rather than a fast travel option like you would find in World of Warcraft or Star Wars: The Old Republic, players will never stop feeling immersed in the sprawling universe of Star Citizen.
The 283,000+ backers, or Star Citizens, are already well on their way to the next million. The project currently only needs to raise $520,000 more to unlock the Enhanced Alpha perks that come along with the $25 million stretch goal. It’s strange to say only in front of $520,000 dollars, but it seems appropriate in the grand scheme of Star Citizen’s accomplishments.
If all this Star Citizen talk has you in full on space sim mode, then you won’t want to overlook the trailer for Marauder Interactive’s upcoming Enemy Starfighter.
