Star Citizen still a perpetual money machine, will add first person ground combat at $20 million

Back when the global financial markets went on their extended package holiday, roughly 90% of the adverts on TV were hysterical men shouting about how you should be giving them all the gold you've hoarded away in your secret underground gold bins. I bet those people feel like idiots now, because, as Star Citizen is proving, the real money isn't in stockpiles of shiny metal, but in fictional recreations of space. Not only has the crowdfunded sim raised over $18 million, but now its developers have announced that if they raise $20 million - which they will - the final game will include first person ground combat.

"First person combat on select lawless planets. Don't just battle on space stations and platforms... take the fight to the ground!"

It suggests that Cloud Imperium have a plan in place to expand the game far beyond its initial scope as the money continues to flood in. In his latest community address , Chris Roberts calls the $20 million mark the "penultimate" stretch goal, but also explains that further funding milestones will appear. "While goals will continue after $21 million, they will take a new form representative of what additional funding can add to the game!" As yet, there's no information on what the final-but-not-final goal will be. Presumably, that will be revealed at the $19 million mark, which, given Star Citizen's continued success, will probably happen within the next twenty minutes or so.

For reaching $18 million, backers have been promised an exclusive solar system, initially available only to people who funded the game pre-launch. At $19 million, players will get to "compete to own and operate a limited number of space stations across the galaxy."

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.