The video discusses the recent announcement that Squadron 42, the single-player counterpart to Star Citizen, is now feature complete and entering its polish phase after 11 years of crowdfunding. Despite the slow progress and confusion surrounding the game, the video highlights the importance of this announcement for the future of Star Citizen.
Squadron 42 is a single-player campaign set in the same universe as Star Citizen, featuring impressive flight mechanics and Hollywood actors like Mark Hamill and Gary Oldman. It serves as a prequel to Star Citizen and aims to introduce players to the lore and worldbuilding of the universe.
CitizenCon, an annual event celebrating Star Citizen, showcased important technical breakthroughs in the game’s development, particularly the announcement of Squadron 42 being feature complete. This news came as a surprise to many, as it appeared to be the first glimpse of a playable game after years of slow progress.
The video highlights the differences between the recent gameplay trailer for Squadron 42 and previous showcases from 2017, indicating significant improvements in UI, gunplay, and physics. This realization led to the understanding that most of the development efforts have been focused on the single-player campaign rather than the multiplayer aspect.
Server meshing, a crucial technical hurdle for Star Citizen to deliver a seamless multiplayer experience, was also demonstrated live at CitizenCon. This milestone allows different servers to seamlessly interact with each other, enabling a massive multiplayer universe with no loading screens.
Another important development showcased at CitizenCon was CIG Star Engine, the heavily customized game engine used for Star Citizen. The engine features impressive capabilities such as seamless space-to-ground transitions and realistic planetary atmospheres. This opens up possibilities for CIG to allow other companies to use their engine, potentially generating more revenue.
Overall, the video expresses cautious optimism and reassurance that progress is being made in the development of Star Citizen. While acknowledging the challenges and the long road ahead, the announcement of Squadron 42 and the technical advancements demonstrated at CitizenCon provide hope for the game’s future. Despite its ambitious nature, the video concludes that Star Citizen has the potential to fulfill its ambitions, with Squadron 42 serving as a critical milestone for both the project’s legitimacy and financial sustainability.