Never mind a cohesive, complete game, the ever-increasing cash black hole that is Star Citizen has announced its latest stretch goal: animals.
This post originally appeared on Kotaku UK.
If the game hits its $64 million funding stretch goal (which at this point is simply a matter of setting an egg timer and waiting for the ding) then this is what the latest Letter From The Chairman says is on the way:
Pets
We have repair bots, we have fish… but we haven't implemented a traditional pet system in Star Citizen yet. At $64 million, that changes. From Jones the Cat in Alien to the Battlestar Galactica's Daggit, pets have a place onboard starships… and we want to give you that option in Star Citizen. Expect traditional terrestrial options, plus anything exotic we can dream up in the Star Citizen universe! (Those Torshu Grey crabs that keep escaping are just the start.) This stretch goal is in honor of Paddington, Strike Dog of the UEES Paul Steed. In one of our first videos Paddington helped us get to $4 million back in the initial campaign, and sadly passed away recently.
Currently, the game consists of a series of modules, of which only two are playable (not finished, but playable). The rest are promised, partially revealed, or possibly scribbled on the back of a receipt in someone's pocket. The two playable bits are the Hangar, which lets you look at your ships (some of which cost hundreds, if not thousands, of actual real pounds) and the Arena Commander bit, which is a dog-fighting and flight-sim section. Both of those are listed as 'still in development'. Other sections, such as the mission adding Squadron 42, are aiming for a late-2015 release, while the idea of the whole thing being complete is targeting 2016.
The problem Star Citizen seems to have at the moment is that it's reached a critical mass of cash generation. It can't not make money now, and has to offer up something in return. I wonder how weird and superficial the rewards are going to get in the future, as they run out of things to reasonably add. "How about shoes? Not just any shoes, though. Space shoes."
This post originally appeared on Kotaku UK, bringing you original reporting, game culture and humour with a U from the British isles. Follow them on @Kotaku_UK.