Star Citizen is free to fly for the next two weeks

Star Citizen, which surpassed an astronomical $300 million in crowdfunding in June (it's up to $313 million now), is holding another "Free Fly" session for the next couple of weeks, giving prospective pilots a chance to get behind the controls of some of the game's most popular ships at no charge.

This time around, free fliers can choose from among 16 ships chosen by members of the Star Citizen community as "prime representatives of the best and most iconic spacecraft in the game." This "Ship Showdown," as it's called, is actually an annual event that will see community voting on the best ship continue through brackets, until the best of the best is crowned. I'm not sure if there's any point to it beyond bragging rights, but if you're impressed with what you see and want to commit, discounts on starter ship packs are also being offered throughout.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.