The RSI Hermes is a durable and well-armed cargo hauler with a spacious interior and strong defensive capabilities, but it is held back by design flaws like a narrow cargo entrance and unbalanced landing performance. While functional and reliable, the ship lacks excitement and character, making it a solid but ultimately uninspiring choice for players.
The RSI Hermes is a reimagined ship based on the previously overhyped RSI Apollo, originally designed for medical gameplay but ultimately underwhelming in execution. The Hermes takes the expansive interior concept of the Apollo and repurposes it into a thick, durable cargo hauler with a strong defensive profile. Despite its promising specifications, the ship suffers from the same risk of overpromise and underdelivery that plagued its predecessor, making it a vessel that feels almost perfect but is held back by some critical design choices.
In terms of stats, the Hermes is notably robust, boasting an impressive 124,000 ship HP, significantly higher than comparable ships like the Asgard. It is equipped with dual size two power supplies, coolers, shields, and a quantum drive, along with a large fuel tank. Its armaments include four size four hardpoints, two of which are turret-mounted and can be independently controlled by a co-pilot, and 16 size two missiles housed in couch launchers. The cargo hold is a standout feature, offering 288 SCU of grid-mounted cargo space with a well-designed layout that includes walkways and a rail-run tractor beam, though the narrow cargo doorway is a notable limitation.
Externally, the Hermes carries the distinctive RSI design language with a glassy cockpit and strut-supported frame, which is visually appealing and functional for VR users. However, the landing struts are disproportionately large, and the ship’s landing performance feels unbalanced. Internally, the ship features an elevator connecting the cockpit to the cargo hold, a living area with bunks, a food dispenser, and other amenities that make it suitable as a mobile base. Despite this, the narrow rear ramp restricts the entry of larger vehicles like the popular mobile respawn bed, the Nurser, which has sparked controversy among players.
The creator critiques the Nurser’s influence on gameplay as a “lazy cheat code” that cheapens the experience, and he appreciates that the Hermes’ design intentionally prevents such vehicles from fitting inside. This bottleneck is seen as a deliberate choice to maintain gameplay balance and encourage the use of other ships. Combat-wise, the Hermes is respectable, with strong armor and firepower capable of holding its own, especially with its gatling guns and missile capacity, though speed limitations somewhat hamper its blockade runner role.
Ultimately, the reviewer finds the RSI Hermes to be a solid but uninspiring ship. While it ticks many boxes and offers durability, cargo capacity, and combat ability, it lacks character and suffers from design compromises, particularly the narrow cargo entrance. The ship feels like a “white bread” option—functional and palatable but not exciting. The reviewer enjoys the ship but does not feel compelled to keep it long-term, suggesting that while the Hermes is a good daily driver, it falls short of being truly great or memorable in the Star Citizen universe.