The question remains whether the experience justifies the investment.
The question remains whether the experience justifies the investment.
The cost is intended to support growth, not purchase the product outright. From what I see, $45 feels like a low price for what’s essentially a pre-release. Since most high-end titles sell for around $60, Star Citizen seems aimed at going further than usual for a typical AAA experience. That makes sense from a perspective. But if you’re looking for a complete game or world to dive into immediately, now isn’t the best time. I doubt Squadron 42 (the single-player campaign) will be fully launched until early or mid-2017. They might be in a free-flight phase for E3, so you can play it as-is now for free. Still, don’t expect a polished final product—there are still bugs, missing features, and unfinished promises. Compared to last year’s progress, they’re making solid headway. Remember, major titles usually take years; Star Citizen is sharing the development journey openly.
It hinges a lot on your expectations. Are you looking for a game with occasional breaks between updates, offering some enjoyable segments for a short time? Then you might want to hold off until the single-player mode, Squadron 42, is released—likely more polished than the current version. Otherwise, explore the Discord community in my profile; they discuss various topics and share updates about Star Citizen.
I wouldn't invest any money into it. Right now I really doubt the game will ever see the light of day. "Alpha" and the modules aren't worth it. I'm talking about the finished product, not the ongoing development. They keep delaying it and adding new features, which only pushes back the release. It would be better if a publisher forced a launch. Clearly, Chris Roberts isn't managing his time well, and he's rushing the release without proper preparation. This used to be the game I was most looking forward to, but now it's completely out of my interest.