Yesterday, Cloud Imperium Games put out their 3.10 alpha update for Star Citizen. Subtitled the “Fight & Flight” update, a variety of new items and revamped systems have been added in.
“Today’s launch of the Alpha 3.10: Flight & Fight Update marks a significant step towards our final vision for Star Citizen,” said Cloud Imperium Games CEO and Star Citizen creative director Chris Roberts. “The enhancements to flight and combat systems are just the beginning of the continued overhaul we intend to iterate over time with the help of our community and represents our continued commitment to deliver meaningful updates that improve the Star Citizen experience.”
Some of the highlights of the update are:
- Dynamic Flight Mechanics – Over 100 ships of various types are currently in Star Citizen, and apparently all of them will have transatmospheric capabilities. Vessels with more aerodynamic characteristics will have an easier time entering and moving through atmospheric conditions while larger vessels with blockier lines will have a more bumpy ride. Each ship will have its own unique characteristics moving between atmosphere and vacuum.
- Improved Ship Combat – The combat model has undergone a significant update. Flying at lower velocities will allow targeting systems to achieve missile lock more quickly and produce firing solutions faster, creating a dynamic combat environment where going full throttle all the time is not always the best way to operate. Manned turrets are also getting updated in an effort to improve coordination between pilots and gunners.
- Player Trading App – Not content to fiddle around with in-game mail attachments to send your buddies money and gear? The Player Trading App makes transferring funds between pilots easier, and may potentially grow out to include actual items instead of just cash.
- Tech Improvements – Under the hood, changes to core technologies have been rolled out, such as dynamic lighting improvements for day/night cycles, ocean improvements (the announcement is unclear if it’s merely textural or if there’s a fluid dynamic system involved), and an all new “body dragging” mechanic which will open up potential gameplay options involving bounty hunting (stuffing prisoners in a shipping crate), medical (dragging injured people to safety), and stealth (only sloppy spies and assassins leave the bodies of inept guards laying out for their buddies to stumble on).
You can read the full patch notes for the update here.
There is still no official release date for Star Citizen at this time.
