In this video, Ryan (aka Mac) provides a hands-on overview of Star Citizen’s new crafting and inventory systems, demonstrating how players can dismantle weapons to reclaim materials, craft new items, and manage inventory with an updated UI, while highlighting current bugs and limitations. He also discusses significant changes to mining resource distribution, blueprint availability, and ongoing balancing efforts, expressing optimism for further improvements in the upcoming 4.7 release.
In this video, Ryan (aka Mac) shares his hands-on experience with Star Citizen’s new crafting and inventory tech preview. He begins by describing his initial interaction with the fabricator, a heavy crafting station that he moved using a tractor beam. Ryan demonstrates dismantling an Ark light pistol on the fabricator, explaining how the process converts the weapon into raw materials like lindinium, copper, and Doivvine, which can then be used for crafting or selling. He highlights the importance of managing resources efficiently and notes that dismantling currently returns about 50% of materials for pistols, with variations for other weapons.
Ryan then explores the crafting system, showing how the materials obtained from dismantling can be used to craft new weapons, although he was limited by insufficient resources. He notes the existence of 24 FPS weapon blueprints available in the test and mentions the plan for more blueprints to become available over time through missions and reputation gains. Ryan also shares his experience trying to transport the fabricator in various ships, encountering bugs with clipping and cargo grid attachment that need fixing before the system goes live.
The video also covers updates to the inventory UI, which now features a cleaner, more modern design with clear body slot indicators and better organization of equipped items and attachments. Ryan praises the improved legibility and functionality, including new icons and filters, making inventory management easier. He also relays feedback from other testers, noting that currently only looted or crafted items (not store-bought ones) can be dismantled, and that crafted stats are not yet fully reflected in the inventory.
Ryan discusses significant changes in mining and material distribution, including the overhaul of ship minables to contain only one resource per rock and a reduction in the amount of materials per rock. He explains that while some players are concerned about the reduced complexity and skill required for mining, these changes are likely part of a broader balancing effort. Additional updates include the introduction of rare resources like janelite on planet surfaces and adjustments to material quality chances based on location security levels, emphasizing a risk-reward dynamic.
Finally, Ryan reviews the patch notes, highlighting ongoing balancing of crafting stats, the removal of ship weapons from initial crafting releases due to technical issues, and the introduction of blueprint rewards through missions. He acknowledges bugs and unfinished features, such as fabricator clipping and inventory looting buttons, but remains optimistic about the progress and the potential for crafting and inventory improvements in the upcoming 4.7 release. Ryan encourages viewers to provide feedback to the developers and supports his channel through affiliate links and subscriptions.