Star Citizen Devs Talk Ship Piracy, The Carrack & Battle Royale

Star Citizen's Carrack isn't in the 2018 ship pipeline, but it's still be worked on. Star Marine will get some updates this year, though. Star Citizen is in alpha for PC backers.
Star Citizen's Carrack isn't in the 2018 ship pipeline, but it's still be worked on. Star Marine will get some updates this year, though. Star Citizen is in alpha for PC backers. Cloud Imperium Games

Star Citizen ’s latest episode of Reverse The Verse streamed Friday and we’ve got a recap. Directors Todd Papy & Brian Chambers recently sat down to discuss the topics of piracy, the infamous Carrack and the potential for Star Marine Battle Royale.

The issue on the top of many citizen’s minds over the past few days focused on the subject of piracy. While a CIG rep recently claimed that stolen ships can’t be kept, Papy has since clarified that those assertions were taken ”out of context.” According to his description, stealing a ship in the PU will function on a system of gradually increasing punishments similar to Grand Theft Auto. While the team hasn’t worked out precisely how those rules will function, pressure from bounty hunters or law enforcement will eventually become so strong that you’ll probably lose the ship eventually.

Similar to modern state and federal regulations, the laws in Star Citizen will vary based on solar system, which means it may be easier to steal goods in certain parts of the universe than others. The prior comments may have dismissed the role of piracy in Star Citizen, but the end goal is still to make it a viable career path for those who’d like to live that lifestyle.

Piracy ships like the Cutlass Black will still be critical for certain jobs in the PU.
Piracy ships like the Cutlass Black will still be critical for certain jobs in the PU. Cloud Imperium Games

That’s the good news, but those hoping for an upcoming development on the $400 Carrack may want to manage their expectations. The highly anticipated ship is not part of the 2018 pipeline, so it could very well be 2019 or later before explorers can gather a group of five of their closest friends to take the verse by storm.

Also forgotten on the Star Citizen roadmap is the game’s first-person shooter module, Star Marine. The game is apparently still in development, and this year is all about getting its front end to function in the new Personal Manager App interface. A new mode and updates to shooting and EVA mechanics should make the experience better. That being said, that new mode probably won’t feature Battle Royale concepts. Papy don't rule out the idea, but insisted that if it were to be done, it must offer a totally unique Star Citizen spin. In other words, it won’t be a clone of Fortnite or PUBG.

Those were the major topics discussed during this week’s Reverse The Verse, but here are a few additional tidbits you may be interested in:

  • Arena Commander racing and balancing will be looked at too, but Papy expressed concern that offering Star Citizen players too many modes might split the audience size.
  • The team hasn’t talked about night vision yet, but it should work once the systems for specialized weapon scopes are in place.
  • Hacking will allow you to manipulate lots of stuff, but its exact implementation hasn’t been decided. It will be a form of non-invasive breach.
  • Hurston will have large plant compounds kept by residents. Think of resorts in Vegas.
  • Ship lights will get brighter.
  • The most cinematic the PU will get is during longer missions with mission givers. The true cinematics will be saved for Squadron 42.
  • Distress will be the first form of beacon followed by currency transfers.
  • Non-lethal weapons aren’t being worked on yet, but they’ll be essential for bounty jobs.
  • Buying ships with aUEC is waiting on the creation of a kiosk. It’s a high-priority task with no release date.
  • Once ship docking mechanics are ready, lots of larger ships can be added to the game.
  • Key bindings aren’t being worked on at the moment, but the intent is to give players as much freedom as possible.

That’s pretty much all you need to know about this week’s Reverse The Verse. For more Star Citizen, be sure to tune in to Calling All Devs on Monday.

Star Citizen alpha 3.0.1 is live for backers on PC.

What are your thoughts on piracy and Battle Royale in Star Citizen? Tell us in the comments section!

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