The video highlights the best April Fools’ jokes created by Cloud Imperium Games for Star Citizen since 2016, showcasing their creativity and playful engagement with the community through humorous concepts like an intergalactic food delivery career and the “smell over IP” fragrance. Each prank, from the “Origin 404” ship to the 2024 “MK Raptor” maintenance vehicle, emphasizes the lighthearted spirit of the developers while poking fun at the game’s ambitious features.
In the video, the host discusses the amusing tradition of April Fools’ jokes created by Cloud Imperium Games (CIG) for their game Star Citizen, highlighting some of the most memorable pranks since 2016. These jokes often poke fun at the community while showcasing the developers’ creativity, ranging from absurd game mechanics to ridiculous ships. The host invites viewers to take a nostalgic journey through these playful antics, emphasizing the spirit of fun behind them.
The first notable prank mentioned is from 2016, where CIG introduced the concept of an “Intergalactic Food Delivery” career path. This joke played on the food delivery craze, suggesting players could become delivery drivers in space, navigating dangers like piracy and asteroid fields to deliver meals. The idea included a reputation system based on delivery speed and customer satisfaction, blending humor with a concept that, while absurd, felt somewhat plausible within the Star Citizen universe.
In 2019, CIG took the humor to the next level with their “Quantum” fragrance and the introduction of “smell over IP.” This elaborate prank featured a marketing campaign for a unisex scent designed for players, claiming it could replicate in-game environments’ aromas. The joke was complete with a commercial, showcasing CIG’s creativity and willingness to engage with the community in a lighthearted way, even incorporating a fictional technology that would allow players to “smell” the game.
The following year, in 2020, CIG announced a fake “Planet Tech V5,” which humorously proposed to flatten all celestial bodies in the game into pancake-like surfaces. This satirical take on performance optimization poked fun at the game’s ambitious planetary technology and made light of the challenges developers face in rendering complex landscapes. The community’s reaction was filled with jokes about the practicality of such a change, highlighting the playful interaction between the developers and players.
In 2021, CIG introduced the “Origin 404,” a ship that could not be found, playing off the internet’s infamous 404 error. The ship was marketed as ultra-luxury with stealth technology, only for players to discover it was a joke, resulting in a flurry of memes. The following year saw the introduction of a dating app for Star Citizen players, humorously suggesting that those invested in the game might want to connect with like-minded individuals. Lastly, the 2024 prank involved the “MK Raptor,” which turned out to be a maintenance vehicle instead of a combat ship, showcasing CIG’s cleverness in teasing the community. Overall, the video celebrates the joy and creativity behind these annual pranks, reminding players not to take things too seriously while hinting at potential future game features.