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[LectureMaster]

“CIG has blown millions of backer's money on frivolous rubbish,” says a former Star Citizen dev, criticizing Squadron 42 - NewsBreak

CIG under fire. Ex Star Citizen developer slams Squadron 42 and claims most gameplay is just “walking and talking”. This info “CIG has blown millions of ba

www.newsbreak.com

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Star Citizen, the game that's been in development forever and has faced plenty of flak from its own community, is hitting another record-breaking year in 2025. Revenue keeps climbing, even with players grumbling about the supposed VIP perks of the Concierge club or all the microtransactions. On top of that, a former dev has now come forward with some pretty harsh words about Cloud Imperium Games (CIG) and the upcomingSquadron 42.

Squadron 42 – Stunning Visuals, but little actual gameplay

Yesterday, YouTuber Camural posted a video about Squadron 42 demo, and ex CIG developer Robert Petersonchimed in with some personal thoughts on what it was like working on Star Citizen.

I'm a former dev at the Frankfurt studio. I can say right now that the buckets of money they spent in the UK studio is about the same that they spent at the Frankfurt studio. CIG has blown millions of backer's money on frivolous bullshit.

In Robert's view most of Squadron 42's gameplay consists of "walking and talking" sequences where the player has minimal interaction, essentially following characters like Mark Hamill through scripted scenes. While visually impressive, they believe the game offers very little actual gameplay and consider it one of the worst games created, stating they won't spend money on it.

Squadron 42 will be a beautiful thing to look at, but it will no doubt be one of the worst "games" that was ever conceived...let alone made.

Robert was a level designer for the PU, but apparently wasn't allowed to design actual in-game levels, artists did that instead, even though they didn't really get why. Robert and lead level designer quit in 2022.

Squadron 42 is currently slated for a 2026 release. While CIG remains confident they can meet that timeline and deliver a truly immersive and unforgettable experience, growing concerns from fans, and even former developers, suggest the reality may fall short of expectations.

 

[nemiroff]

Cool story bro.

 

[Kenneth Haight]

 

[Paasei]

And just like SC it is of no concern that the game will also never be completed?

 

[Avid Reading Horse]

 

[nemiroff]

And just like SC it is of no concern that the game will also never be completed?

It'll release in 20-42, am I right?? Man, I'm such a good comedian

 

[Gonzito]

 

[bitbydeath]

 

[RetroGamingUK]

Wasn't Squadron 42 unveiled like a decade ago?

 

[Hero_Select]

 

[Shubh_C63]

We should keep a list of people who still wants to buy or have bought Squadron 42.

Maybe they are the problem.

 

[clarky]

Disgruntled ex-dev throws shade at ex-employers.

News at 11.

 

[FIREKNIGHT2029]

Good thing I got Squadron 42 free as an early backer.


We'll see what it's like when or if it releases next year. I don't know what to believe about SQ42 at this point. This ex-dev could be telling the truth or he could just be a disgruntled employee trying to cause chaos, time will tell.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Uh?That's what PC gamers love, am i right?

 

[clarky]

Uh?That's what PC gamers love, am i right?

Its releasing on Playstation at some point so it might find an audience there.

 

[LectureMaster]

 

[StueyDuck]

So its a big budget modern game then...

Thats literally most games these days, go to marker, person blabs for 30 minutes about utter shit, poorly written then the quest is to get teabags

Which inevitably ends up being , go to marker, do thing, press action button when it says action button, text says "got teabags" then you go back to quest giver marker and they blab some shit again... rinse and repeat, AAA gaming

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Its releasing on Playstation at some point so it might find an audience there.

 

[clarky]

So its a big budget modern game..

Thats literally most games these days, go to marker, person blabs for 30 minutes about utter shit, poorly written then the quest is to get teabags

Which inevitably ends up being , go to marker, do thing, press action button when it says action button, text says "got teabags" then you go back to quest giver marker and they blab some shit again... rinse and repeat, AAA gaming

This is more of a cinematic campaign type of game with liner levels from what little has been shown.

 

[clarky]

They are fucked either way. If it does ever release and isn't 10/10 mind-blowing (highly unlikely on both counts) it'll get creamed.

 

[StueyDuck]

This is more of a cinematic campaign type of game with liner levels from what little has been shown.

Oh yeah I know... im just saying anyone "upset" about it like people seem to get with anything star citizen should probably look harder at the AAA space in general cause thats like the majority of games today.

Heck even some indie games, the spunky warrior game or whatever it was called with the little dude who can hop between 2d and 3d just never shut the fuck up

 

[nemiroff]

Yeah, who needs all that talking stuff. Just remove it, including the campaign, and turn it into an mmo space game instead. Everyone would be happy about that!

 

[The Cockatrice]

They have enough money to fund and inflate all the critic scores to 20 out of 10. I can guarantee you these scammers will go at any lengths.

 

[Ribi]

So death stranding

 

[Fafalada]

This ex-dev could be telling the truth or he could just be a disgruntled employee

Sure, though from ppl I've known on the inside, every one was 'disgruntled' when they left.
And no that isn't exactly normal.

 

[Skifi28]

Its releasing on Playstation at some point so it might find an audience there.

We just don't know which Playstation. Maybe 7, we'll see.

 

[YOU PC BRO?!]

I'm not a backer and don't have any interest in the PU component but the long section from the beginning of Squadron 42 looked good. I personally don't mind a little depth beyond simple combat.

 

[Kikorin]

People liked The Last of Us tho, so they'll should be fine.

 

[YeulEmeralda]

JFC they had already perfected this kind of game in Starlancer.

All they needed to do was improve the graphics.

Confession: I was actually interested in Star citizen because I am old and played space sims.
Unfortunately the game became an MMO for no life whales.

 

[Hudo]

It wouldn't surprise me. Roberts already pushed the Wing Commander games to more movie-like experiences, with Wing Commander 4 being the "worst offender" (still a good game), at the expense of gameplay. When he left and Wing Commander 5 got made without him, it showed. It was an arguably better video game but the story wasn't as "bombastic" as the previous entries (still a good game).

I feel that if he maintains the balance of video game vs movie that he had going in Wing Commander 4, it will turn out alright.

 

[Laptop1991]

13 years later and they still haven't yet got into the cockpit lol, great!

 

[Vlodril]

Doubtful. If the game comes out anyway i expect it to have plenty of gameplay both on foot and in spaceship combat.

 

[SomeNorseGuy]

Isn't that the natural end-point when you embrace absolutely ALL the feature creep. A "second life" type of game. The space-flight sim part better be amazing to balance out all the fluff.

 

[crackajack]

If talking includes choices, than it is something that could be interesting. If it's not that type of game than the story must be very well to convince some people to "play" it.

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

A heavily cinematic GaaS experience. I could imagine Hermen Hulst begging Totoki to buy the studio, the one to take SIE to the stars.

 

[Rambone]

Looking back at the later Wing Commander games, cinematic sequences were always a core part of the experience. I doubt Squadron 42 will stray far from that formula. Honestly, it sounds like this former dev may not have played a Chris Roberts game before. Sure, it might lean heavily on scripted scenes, and that's not for everyone, but the cinematic work CIG has shown over the years has been consistently impressive. If the gameplay is light, that's a valid concern, but for me, the storytelling and visuals are a big part of the draw.

 

[poppabk]

Isn't it supposed to be a spiritual successor to Wing Commander? What he described is Wing Commander.

 

[Buggy Loop]

Cool story bro.

What do you mean bro?

Look, I work at Cloud Imperium Games too, my real name is Bob Doe, I worked in the Frankfurt division for the graphic engine in Germany, my name is not really German sounding and I'll never allude that I speak German too in my reply. You also won't find my LinkedIn profile, nor will you find my name in any of the searches related to CIG, it just be like that, you have to trust me bro.

I'll also not say for how long, nor what year(s) I worked there, as that would be too many details for perspectives on what the status of the project was. I also signed an NDA but I'll just openly shit talk about CIG with my real name on Youtube. That's how NDA works if you didn't know.

I'll also refer to a cutscene that everyone could see 2 years ago



But don't look at the rest of the footage nor the gameplay. I assure you there's really no gameplay to be had. In the 40 hours campaign, cutscene after cutscenes, I assure you.

The player will see cutscenes where he cannot interact, a long cinematic prologue. When he gets on ship there's Mark Hamill talking and talking, strategies about the fights, hanging around the ship and talking to peoples, there's even a freaking bar just for social interractions, what a bunch of fucking losers. Really one of the worst game ever

Spoiler

I just described Wing Commander series but I assume youtube comment section are too fucking dumb to see parallels

→ Youtube channel with 10k sc_refund members

Camural : "HOLY SHIT! My first dev posting in comments, wow wow wow! Can I interview you!?"

 

[VolticArchangel]

Good thing I got Squadron 42 free as an early backer.

No, you didn't.

You got the first episode, of three, as an early backer.

You still have to buy the remaining two, whenever they are released.

 

[diffusionx]

Chris Roberts always wanted to make movies, and he did make one, a very shitty one, so I am not surprised that, free from any sort of constraints either financially or creatively, he will end up just making another movie.

But we will see when it releases in 2026 (LOL).

 

[Loope]

Uh?That's what PC gamers love, am i right?

This has to be satire.

 

[Abysse]

It's perfect for PlayStation; they love games that look like movies.

 

[TheMan]

He comes across as pretty bitter if he calls it "one of the worst games ever created." That said he's seen the game and I haven't, but if his statements are really accurate that's a real fucking let down

 

[adamsapple]

Money laundering scheme going brrrrrrr

 

[KungFucius]

We should keep a list of people who still wants to buy or have bought Squadron 42.

Maybe they are the problem.

Does backing it in 2016 count? Fuck I don't even know how to get a copy. Looking at my email to figure that out, looks like I backed it in 2012. WTF

 

[Buggy Loop]

We should keep a list of people who still wants to buy or have bought Squadron 42.

Maybe they are the problem.

You can't buy Squadron 42 since years now, go ahead and try to buy it on official store. You can't.

Also what in the hell does your comment even have anything to do with the thread? The game is wing commander spiritual successor, "maybe peoples are the problem" ? Make it make sense.

 

[Shubh_C63]

You can't buy Squadron 42 since years now, go ahead and try to buy it on official store. You can't.

Also what in the hell does your comment even have anything to do with the thread? The game is wing commander spiritual successor, "maybe peoples are the problem" ? Make it make sense.

Isn't Sq42 part of Star Citizen made by the same developer, which is largely understood to be scamming people ?

 

[Buggy Loop]

Isn't Sq42 part of Star Citizen made by the same developer, which is largely understood to be scamming people ?

Nice attempt at deflecting the question. Can you buy SQ42? Yes or no?

If you can't discern SQ42 from SC PTU then its off to a very bad start and I don't feel like wasting my time. "It's a scam" is again, low effort, same as your previous attempt at it in the previous SC thread.

 

[kevboard]

a modern AAA "gamer's" wet dream. no gameplay, just slow walking!

 

[Utherellus]

It's a Wing Commander.
You fly spaceship and dogfight.

Everything else is a bonus at this point.