Star Citizen’s latest episode of Around The Verse has arrived, showcasing a super-extensive look at Cloud Imperium Games’ ship pipeline. A new Ship Shape installment gives us an updated ship progress report, and the MISC Razor is the star of it all.
A DETAILED STUDIO TOUR
Before getting to those juicy details, though, the first half of this week’s ATV focuses on an introduction to the various teams that bring our dream spacecrafts to life. Spread across the U.K., Austin and Los Angeles offices, folks like Producer Luke Davis, Lead Ship Artist Chris Smith and Writer Dave Haddock combine forces to create amazing things. Ships like the Anvil Lightning F8, Hurricane, Mustang and Cyclone are all still in the thick of production. Those who want to know more about what each department does can learn more in the full video, but it doesn’t amount to much beyond basic introductions.
HOW SHIPS ARE MADE
With all these cogs at work, it’s no surprise the prospect of designing a single ship can be a daunting task with dozens of layers. As expected, most ships are born in the mind of CIG Director Chris Roberts, who’s drawn inspiration from sci-fi films, novels and even World War II aircraft to create every vehicle in his expanding virtual universe. From there, questions begin over how a ship will contribute to the game. If there’s a specific need that must be filled, like a desire to make a small mining ship, that void can be transformed into action.
Roberts also makes it clear that use cases are just one part of a two-pronged approach:
“One side is the design requirements, so like for instance we go okay well we need a ship that you can fight with or we need a ship you can mine with or we need a ship that you can carry cargo in and then … So that's sort of the logical game side of it and then there's the emotional side which is like if I'm thinking about what a ship.
"if I think about a … say a cargo ship or a fast cargo ship well you know perhaps I'm thinking about Serenity or I'm thinking about the Millennium Falcon. Right, and so you have an emotional attachment to those, because you've seen them say on a film or TV show and it kinds of reminds you of that, and so we balance the combination of the practical needs that we want to fill in from the game requirements with the sense of an emotional attachment, so it's not just a purely kind of cold pragmatic science.”
Once those two competing demands are met, a ship idea is passed along to someone like John Crewe on the design team. This group decides which of the three studios works on the project. LA generally takes on smaller jobs, while the U.K. often handles bigger ones. It’s also divided by manufacturers too. If a certain designer has more experience with MISC, for example, the chosen team might be tied to that. In most cases, the designer who makes the initial concept will be involved with the final product.
At the start of the creative process, a ship is essentially leveled and tweaked against the entire Star Citizen roster. In this phase, questions like purpose, size and relative power are once again brought into play. The goal amongst all that deliberation is to find niche where the ship can work. Sometimes, in cases like the Terrapin, the entire manufacturer will change during this process. Roberts makes the final call, and then it’s off to the races!
SHIP SHAPE - MISC RAZOR
Ship Shape begins with a bulleted progress report, so let’s get that out of the way.
- Avenger rework: Squadron 42 work is complete, so the PU team is taking over for its final art phase.
- Eclipse: Final art phase
- Hammerhead: Kitbashing of the remaining interior design is underway
- Mustang Alpha rework: Final modeling stage
- Idris: Final modeling stage
- 600i: Final modeling stage
- Hurricane: Grey box modeling
- Blade: Grey Box modeling
- Constellation Phoenix: Grey Box modeling
- F8 Lightning: White box
- Razor: Flight prep
- Terrapin: Flight prep
- Reclaimer: Flight prep
- Cyclone: Flight prep
Beyond those updates, we also get a fresh look at the MISC Razor, a speed-focused ship planned to debut in the 3.1 alpha this March. Inspired by the F1 legacy of the McLaren MP4-X concept, it’s become slimmer, sleeker and more elegant. Its four-stage cockpit canopy design ensures the interior envelops you when you get in your seat, and its interiors have become more luxurious to make racers feel at home. It’s faster than the M50, which makes the Razor a perfect contender for the Murray Cup race.
That’s all for today’s ATV, but check back tomorrow for our recap of Reverse The Verse. It features a special interview with Squadron 42 Composer Geoff Zanelli.
Star Citizen is in alpha for backers on PC.
What did you think of this week’s Around The Verse? Which upcoming ship release are you looking forward to most? Tell us in the comments section!
