CIG, the company behind Star Citizen, has purchased a new studio. At the same time, Chris Roberts, founder of CIG, states that Star Citizen will hopefully become a similarly big event as GTA VI, which everyone is waiting for. At least in terms of budget, both projects are quite similar.
What exactly happened? CIG, the studio behind the billion-dollar project Star Citizen, has acquired a Canadian company called Turbulent to expand its team. This is reported by the French magazine LaPresse.
LaPresse also explains that they conducted an interview with Chris Roberts, the founder of CIG. In this, the release date for the single-player component “Sqadron 42” is mentioned. Additionally, Chris Roberts states that he considers Star Citizen to be potentially the most important game next to GTA VI. The interview is also referenced by the English magazine MassivelyOP.
The trailer for Patch 4.3 of the Alpha of Star Citizen:
As important as GTA VI or at least just as expensive
What Chris Roberts says: In the interview with LaPresse, Roberts explained that Star Citizen will hopefully become a similarly large event as GTA VI. GTA VI, which is supposed to be released in early 2026, is probably seen as the biggest competitor to his space game:
We hope that it becomes almost as big an event [as GTA VI]. Aside from GTA 6, it is likely the AAA game with the largest budget.
He added that Squadron 42 will launch at a time in 2026 where it should not be overshadowed by the most anticipated game of the upcoming months, Grand Theft Auto VI. Star Citizen is intended to be released a year or two later, in 2027 or 2028.
Why is this statement exciting? Previously, Cloud Imperium Games and Chris Roberts had primarily refrained from naming a fixed release timeframe – as reported by both German and international media.
On Reddit, CIG and Chris Roberts are accused of making these statements just to extract money from new players. They aim to bait them with a possible release date. One person explains on Reddit:
This article is not for old players to reassure them, not for new players, not even for new “whales”. This is for new wallets that have never invested in the gaming industry, know nothing about SC’s history, and forget to do their homework before putting their money into something new.
Nevertheless, you should take Chris Roberts’ statement with caution: On one hand, the only source for the interview and the statement is the article from the French magazine LaPresse. On the other hand, Roberts has been delaying the release date for Squadron 42 and Star Citizen for years. In 2012, for example, he stated that Squadron 42 would be released in 2014 and Star Citizen two years later in 2016.
The Alpha of Star Citizen has received a new content update with 4.3. The major highlight is the missions revolving around the supposedly abandoned Onyx facilities. There are also several small yet significant improvements: Star Citizen is getting 2 small details that make the universe feel noticeably more realistic
