Star Citizen Newsletter - The Road Ahead: The 3.0 Production Schedule

[FLDMARSHAL]

April 14th, 2017

Greetings Citizen.

After many months of estimating and planning I am excited to share with you the Star Citizen Schedule and Roadmap for the rest of this year. First, I would like to take a moment to thank the outstanding producers around the company who have worked with the Directors and Leads to bring this schedule to the point we feel comfortable sharing it publicly. Creating a proper production schedule is a Herculean task in and of itself and then knowing that it will be visible to over a million eager supporters around the world is a daunting prospect. The schedule you are now looking at is built from the estimates of hundreds of developers around the company, collected and integrated against our overall objectives for the game. To give you an idea of the work that goes into building and maintaining a schedule of the complexity needed for Star Citizen, I would like to share a video with you, it’s well worth your time to see just how much work and thought is needed to schedule manage something of the scope of Star Citizen. The next Release is a major milestone for us, as it will be the first time the community will get to experience the Planetary Tech in a Live build. Like the Star Citizen Alpha numbering change from 1.3 to 2.0 for the move to Large World, with its 64-bit precision and Local Grid physics tech, that allows us to deliver a game of our detail at a solar system scale, 3.0 represents a giant jump in gameplay potential from the code in the 2.x branch. For a start, it will contain about nine months of our main development branch beyond 2.6.x as well as almost two years of Planetary Tech development that the Frankfurt Engine team embarked on in the last half of 2015. The Planetary Tech opens up a whole new landscape (pun intended) for adventure. In the same way that Large World and Physics Grids created new possibilities in gameplay by allowing players to go from walking around a space station to boarding a ship, flying it hundreds of thousands of kilometers, exiting their pilot seat, walking to an airlock, opening it and EVAing over to a derelict station, all from the same point of view, the Planetary Tech takes it one massive leap further. When you see a Planet or Moon, you will be able to fly there, land and explore on foot, or from your ship or a ground vehicle you have brought with you. All seamlessly, all with the incredible first person detail that Star Citizen is known for. With this we are delivering something that goes way beyond the initial promises and conception of Star Citizen; we will be simulating a First person Universe with almost no limits. It’s a great illustration of how with the support of a Community as great as Star Citizen’s anything is possible. With the debut of 3.0 at the end of June we’re starting with the three Moons around Crusader; Cellin, Yela and Daymar. In addition, we’re hoping to also get the Planet-like Asteroid Delamar and its landing zone Levski in as a “Stretch” goal. Then as we move through the year the universe will expand to include all the main landing zones for Stanton. We had originally hoped to deliver most of the Stanton Landing Zones with the first release of Planetary Tech, but that proved optimistic once the talented team at Behaviour, who had built ArcCorp, Levski, Grim HEX and had begun work on the remaining landing zones of Stanton, moved off Star Citizen and onto another Behaviour project in December. We had been steadily shifting our reliance away from external resources and we felt it would be unfair to block them from the opportunity to work on their own game. Unfortunately, replacing an Environment team of over 20 is no small task, which has set back the progress we had originally planned to make on the landing zones of Stanton. As of today, we have just abut replaced the team with internal hires and we are continuing to hire additional environment artists as fast as we can find ones that meet our quality bar. The Environment Team is now some 37 artists strong, so long term we feel we are better situated to deliver the vast amount of locations that Star Citizen and Squadron 42 needs. Rather than make everyone wait for the landing zones to all be completed we decided the best course of action would be to get the Planetary Tech and the other improvements in everyone’s hands as soon as possible. Our goal for 3.0 is to again do what we found so valuable when building Arena Commander: involve the community as soon as possible. More than any other process, it is YOUR feedback that helps further Star Citizen’s development… which means that we need you on our moons with this next release. The worlds we’re creating are massive, and giant planets mean we need a lot of eyes (and mice, keyboards and flight sticks) making sure they’re up to par. How big do I mean? It takes about four and half hours to circumnavigate the Cellin in a Dragonfly at full afterburn or twelve and half days of walking! If every single person registered through RSI today stood on the same moon at the same distance, they wouldn’t even see each other. There’s a lot to explore and a LOT to test in this massive step forward for Star Citizen. While the Planetary Tech is maybe the biggest headline, it is just one of the many new pieces of tech that will debut with 3.0. With the increased detail of the Weekly Studio reports, you’ve been seeing glimpses of fundamental systems that we have been building that will dramatically increase the ability to interact and be immersed in the universe of Star Citizen. Systems like Item 2.0 with its new Player Interaction Mode that allows for a much wider variety of actions and gameplay, such as managing a wider array of your ship’s functions to using and manipulating items like you can in real-life. Or the Entity Owner Manager that will allow us to persist proper state on Players, Ships and Items no matter where they are, even if not in memory or owned by a Player. If your ship is shot up, it will still be shot up when you log back in or return to spot you left it on a Moon. Or the completely new dynamic Physics Grid System that handles the needs of planets and the wide-open reaches of space. You can stand on a Moon as it rotates on its axis, watching the sun rise and fall! Or Cargo and Kiosks that will open the possibility of Professions by allowing Players to earn money as a Trader, Hauler or Pirate. Of course Haulers need protection and Pirates need hunting, which creates opportunities for Mercenaries and Bounty Hunters via the new MobiGlas Mission App. Or the debut of Subsumption’s Mission system which provides a scalable and flexible system that is tightly integrated with our new AI systems, allowing us to generate challenging encounters and scenarios on the fly as well as creating a structure for multipart and narrative missions longer term. I could go on for a few more pages as there are so many new features and content that will be arriving in the next release but in the spirit of TL;DR go to here; to see a detailed list of the Star Citizen Alpha 3.0 Features. Star Citizen 3.0 Alpha is just the first step though. We’ve decided to share our longer roadmap through the rest of the year, so you can have visibility on what parts of the Stanton System come online and when, along with the associated gameplay. Our plan is to have two more releases in the LIVE branch of Star Citizen this year after 3.0 that fill out the Stanton System beyond what we outlined last year. It’s a pretty big deal to share the schedule of our longer term roadmap, but we felt that it would help with everyone’s visibility on when certain features and content can be expected and understanding when things take longer or priorities shift due to unforeseen problems. We would not be here without all of your support and in some ways the Community is an extension of the development team providing the funding and the feedback on the huge undertaking we are doing. No one has ever attempted to build a game as ambitious as Star Citizen and I doubt any Publisher would have the patience or stamina that it requires to build something that breaks molds the way Star Citizen does. 3.0 with its Planetary Tech is a testimony to the power of Crowdfunding and an enthusiastic, empowered Community. Myself and the team and eternally thankful to be able to build Star Citizen the right way, being able to take the time to engineer things for the long term, a way that will allow the universe to flourish for years to come. Together we are making history. See you in the ‘Verse!

-- Chris Roberts

3.0 Schedule Update Today we published the production schedule for the long-anticipated 3.0 update. Find the timeline and all the proposed features here.

Monthly Report Now, each studio’s update is in one, easy to find place! Discover what the Los Angeles, Frankfurt, UK, Austin, and Turbulent offices have been working on here.

Around the Verse Sandi Gardiner and Forrest Stephan share the UK studio update and a look at the Aegis Javelin. See it here.

Citizens of the Stars Jorunn is in the Citizen Spotlight to talk everything Bar Citizen. Can IT Manager Dennis Daniel become the new Quantum Questions champion? Find this week’s Top 5, MVP, and more here.

Bugsmashers! Can Senior Gameplay Engineer Mark Abent crash a bug that kicks players out of Star Marine when their weapons are fully loaded? Watch to find out.

Happy Hour Friday Community Manager Jared Huckaby and special guests, LA QA Manager Vincent Sinatra and community broadcaster DeejayKnight, playthrough Star Citizen with a focus on support for 4K extra-wide resolutions and TrackIR that was introduced in Alpha 2.6.2. Check it out here.

LIVE Version : Alpha 2.6.3 PTU Version : None PTU Test Groups : None

Big Bennys Flair It’s the last weekend to subscribe and receive a Big Bennys vending machine! This flair goes out to all subscribers who are active by April 17. Sign up before Monday to enjoy this unique subscriber perk. Spring 2017 Star Ship Sale If you haven’t played Star Citizen, put a spring in your step by flying the Super Hornet for free! Already playing Star Citizen? Then get a basket full of mini ships; no egg hunt required. This package includes four short-range vehicles: the Dragonfly, Argo, Merlin, and Archimedes. Sale runs through Tuesday, so get these mini-ships while you can.

April Subscriber Flair - ICC Probe Holographic Model Today, all subscribers get two pieces of subscriber flair: an out-of-this-world holographic space station displayed on a holotable. Vault Update-Vintage Vault! Vintage Vault- A look back at where things started. This week: old hangars!

ELIMINATION Nikolay b0nus LAST STAND Sifo

ELIMINATION PENTA LAST STAND Angels of the Warp

BATTLE ROYALE [RS] TemplarOne VANDUUL SWARM COOP WolfishEU SQUADRON BATTLE [RS] TemplarOne PIRATE SWARM COOP WolfishEU

BATTLE ROYALE Renegade Squadron VANDUUL SWARM COOP Australian Co-Operative SQUADRON BATTLE Renegade Squadron PIRATE SWARM COOP Renegade Squadron

OLD VANDERVAL B4ckBOne DEFFORD LINK CATS_740 RIKKORD MEMORIAL CATS_740

OLD VANDERVAL TEST SQUADRON DEFFORD LINK TEST SQUADRON RIKKORD MEMORIAL TEST SQUADRON

Star Citizen: The wonderful Drake Caterpillar BSA Frustmaster created this awesome video highlighting the beauty that is the Drake Caterpillar. See it here. Posted by BSA_Frustmaster FRUSTMASTER Hauling my Merlin for a Sunday Ride Check out this piece by Jack Frak that highlights the transport of a P-52 Merlin inside of a Starfarer for a flight around Yela. Posted by [XPL] Jack Frak JACK_FRAK TNGSC Competition: Episode 2 Slayer TNT released the second episode of their Next Great Ship Commercial series. This episode follows the competitors as they work through their projects. Posted by Slayer SLAYER_TNT

Gladius Land Combat Test The UEE’s go-to patrol fighter is the Aegis Gladius. This light and well-armed spacecraft is known for its offensive capabilities. See it here in action on Yela.

[Tron]

@FLDMARSHAL I presume you play Star Citizen? I heard about it at Pax Prime a couple years ago but have never tried it. What are your thoughts on it? Does it have a very steep learning curve until you are able to enjoy playing?

 

Thanks...

[FLDMARSHAL]

the game is fantastic tron u can get it now any ship u like once u pick ur ship u get the 3 games in one if u ever seen the program firefly its the same combat space sim u can be a bounty hunter trader or a pirate in space u can fly to planets and land or go to different space station and u can also jump in your m8s ships and do team battles in space u can use ur m8s ships or just jump in there and be a gunner i also stream it on twitch.tv/fleldmarshal sorry about spelling and gramma lol i will give u this info to help u and believe me it was the best money i spent a price of the game is the price of the ship u pick and also u get a hanger that come with the ship and once u got the ship u can upgrade it for free in game and u get money to spend in game for weapons or stuff to make ur hanger look nice or save the money u make in game to buy a bigger and better ship its all up to u but here u go the info 

Getting Started in Star Citizen

https://youtu.be/HaJx4TdshFA

 

What is Star Citizen?

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Travel across the vast expanse of space in a cargo hauler with a friend or two in the turrets, land on an alien landscape to pick up a bit of smuggling work only to be ambushed by unscrupulous outlaws and fight your way from the ground back into space. All in one seamless experience.

More than a space sim, more than an action shooter, more than an MMO: This is Star Citizen.

• Hundreds of systems from the dense cities to vast alien landscapes, each artistically crafted with our hybrid procedural planet tech.
• A massive variety of ships, components, weapons and equipment offering infinite customization options to tailor to your play style.
• Live how you want to live: shift from a cargo hauler to an outlaw whenever you want.
• Interact with a diverse and dynamic population. Whether they’re handing out jobs or running a store, Star Citizen’s NPC population have full day/night cycles thanks to our proprietary AI Subsumption technology.
• A dynamic community. Not only do we regularly share updates, behind the scenes videos and developer commentary, we also have made available early builds of the game, so that our backers can test and provide feedback while Star Citizen is in development.

 

 

 

 

 

What Can I Experience Now?

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Star Citizen is currently in Alpha which means that the technology and designs that bring the game to life are still in development. To help us refine and improve as we continue development, we have divided the game into several modules that are available now for early testing. With your Star Citizen game package, you can start playing all of these modules today and help provide us with much needed insight and feedback.

Currently Available Modules:

• Arena Commander: An arcade-style dogfighting and racing mode that allows us to test our ships and physics-based flight model as players battle alongside and against their friends in multiple arenas and game.

• Star Marine: A fast-paced battleground where players put our unique FPS gameplay through its paces, testing the seamless third and first person unified animations, zero-G combat, and a variety of high-tech weapons.

• Area18: Originally designed as a test for planetside interactions, Area18 is an ultra-detailed cityscape for you and your friends to explore, go shopping, or just see the sights.

• Hangar: Your own personal space to look at your ships up close, edit your loadouts, and see your special reward flair and decorations.

• Persistent Universe: Commonly known as the PU, this mode combines all the other modes and allows players to explore a small section of one of our solar systems. Here you and your friends can do missions, engage in ship or FPS combat, or explore asteroid fields for long forgotten wrecks. This has all been built on our 64-bit game engine that provides seamless travel from inside a space station, to a spaceship so large that you and your friends can walk around inside while flying thousands of kilometers through space. All in real time. All without load screens. It’s here in the PU that you begin to see the real promise of Star Citizen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How Do I Play?

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You can join Star Citizen by purchasing a Star Citizen ‘starter pack.’ Every starter pack includes an in-game ship ready for you to fly and access to all currently available game modules.

Pick up a starter ship pack with either a reliable Aurora or a nimble Mustang spacecraft and launch into your interstellar adventure today!

Note, we offer additional ships and in-game items that can be purchased through the Roberts Space Industries website, but they are to allow our backers to provide extra support to the development. All of these ships will be available in the game if desired and they will never be required to play the game.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Starter Packs

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There are a number of ways to get started in Star Citizen. Below are just a few of the many options available.

AURORA MR SC STARTER- Package

$45.00 USD

IN STOCKMORE INFOBUY NOW

MUSTANG ALPHA SC STARTER- Package

$45.00 USD

IN STOCKMORE INFOBUY NOW

 

You can find other starter packages here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Would You Like to Know More?

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If you are interested in learning more, staying up to date with the latest news and developments, as well as becoming more involved with our active community of supporters, the links below are a great place to start.

 

COMM-LINKSPECTRUMTWITTERFACEBOOKHELP

 

 

 

NEWSStay up to date on everything Star Citizen.

• Transmissions – Our home for announcements, development updates, sales information and more.
• YouTube – Find our weekly shows, livestreams, and trailers.
• Social Media – Plus, a ton of other ways to stay connected! Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Twitch
  
   

 

 

 

 

COMMUNITYThere are thousands of fellow backers eager for you to connect and share.

 

• Spectrum – Here you can discuss topics with other backers, debate which ship is best, provide feedback, and share ideas with devs.
• Organizations – Looking to link up with like-minded individual? Check out our community organizations and find the right one for you.
• Issue Council – This is the place to share any feedback or bugs you find while playtesting the Alpha modules.

 

 

 

LOREStar Citizen takes place in a rich and deep universe that only continues to expand.

• Spectrum Dispatch – The home for the ever-expanding lore and fiction of the Star Citizen universe. In the weekly News Update series, the narrative team posts a new short piece of fiction set in the universe. Or you can check out the Time Capsules to understand the historical events that occurred between the present day and the 30th century.
• Writer’s Guide – This guide outlines the fundamentals of Star Citizen’s fiction and lore.
• Star Map – Explore Star Citizen’s solar systems in detail with this fully interactive map.
  
   

 

 

 

 

HELPFor additional assistance on any of these topics and more, visit our help page.

Edited April 21, 2017 by FLDMARSHAL

[Tron]

Cool...thanks for all the info. I'll definitely be on the lookout for the next time you are streaming on Twitch.

[Tron]

Just looked at the different starter packs...Can't decide between the War Pack for $5k or the Wing Commander for $10k lol

[Stringer]

wtf someone spent 750 on one ship wtf

 

[_tristen_]

interesting game

[FLDMARSHAL]

thank u all for reading my post well u think thats expensive take a look at the last ship on the list it has a few 000 on the end lol but like i said in my last post u dont need to spend that much u can earn money in game to get ships ov that price tag buy a basic ship package the same price as u would buy any game say like bf1 cost what £40 - £50 well i paid around £39 I think but it was worth every penny and i have upgraded my ship and hanger twice and it looks unreal and yes i will be streaming soon guys so if ur interested i will be on ts soon hit me up and i will tell u more