Squadron 42's new gameplay video once again feels too good to be true

I plunged into the new gameplay video for Star Citizen: Squadron 42 full of curiosity and cynicism. An hour-long look at a game that's been delayed multiple times, even though developer Cloud Imperium said it would basically be finished in 2023 and only needed some last-minute polish? The standalone companion to Star Citizen, a game that hovers in a kind of limbo between early access, beta and alpha? A largely fan-funded project starring famous actors like Henry Cavill, Gillian Anderson, Gary Oldman and Mark Hamill? I'm a little lost and confused. I swear this game came out like four years ago. Apparently not. It is still under development. Despite it.

The whole story feels like a fever dream, and this gameplay overview is the culmination of a bad trip: an elaborate marketing stunt for future investors, both public and private – and yes, I'm looking at you, backer 747, $10,000 deep Star A citizen who boasts a handful of fancy ships.

Star Citizen will be just like Starfield – mediocre at best

Unfortunately, big budgets and long development times do not make a good game

Star Citizen was largely funded by its players, and it's likely that a large portion of the $700 million went to Squadron 42. Squadron 42 will apparently release in 2026, three years after the developers described it as “feature complete.” Understandably, this all raises many red flags, and yet…

I wasn't expecting to see the full hour of play, but wow, it looks absolutely incredible. During the battle scene between the United Empire of Earth (UEE) and the invading lizard-like Vanduul, I felt more emotion than in the last Star Wars films, even though I knew nothing about the people involved.

The story revolves around Admiral Bishop (Gary Oldman) and his deputy, Captain Thomas Wade (Mark Strong), who command the UEE fleet from their flagship. Your role as a player in the story assumes the role of a regular Navy gunner aboard a ship under the command of Captain MacLaren (Gillian Anderson). Henry Cavill is also there somewhere, as a pilot of the famous Squadron 42 – an elite group of fighter pilots. Don't worry, if all the names make you dizzy, it'll get even more crowded when you see the cast list.

Mark Hamill, Liam Cunningham, John Rhys-Davies, Andy Serkis, Sophie Wu and Gemma Whelan, to name just a few, make up an absolutely star-studded cast. And who would have thought: it works. Gary Oldman's speech as Admiral Bishop as the Vanduul fleet charges at them is fantastic: I'm immediately hooked, even though I have no idea what's going on. A rousing theme – a combination of bagpipes and horns – sounds like the theme of humanity. The giant spaceships look exactly the same, which makes sense. Cloud Imperium Games, the developer of Star Citizen, has been releasing new ships and ship concepts since at least 2011.

42 Squadron, huge space battle, two fleets

The gameplay makes your character feel insignificant, which is pretty much the case given the impending defeat against a massive alien fleet. The gameplay mostly consists of an extended cutscene with intermittent sections of turret shooting, but it works. The camera pans from your tower to the control room where Captain MacLaren commands her ship, and as the story progresses the camera pans back to your tower. It's fluid, cinematic and serves as a pretty good introduction.

The battle rages on with some spectacular set pieces and high stakes. In terms of visual fidelity, the game looks well above average. There are a few visual glitches here and there – Gary Oldman's hair bounces around in the middle of the cutscene, for example – but that just proves to me that what we're seeing is real gameplay. I can't believe Squadron 42 looks this good.

And therein lies the problem. I actually can't believe Squadron 42 looks this good. My gamer cynicism is too strong, and that's a healthy way to be when it comes to games like Star Citizen. I don't want to say that the developers are trying to squeeze as much money as possible from their fans, because that's (probably) not true.

Star Citizen isn't a scam, not necessarily, but rather a game that will likely be updated forever as the completion targets are always moving. Will it ever actually be released? At this point I doubt it. I feel the same way about Squadron 42: a project that started with good intentions and has just gotten completely out of hand.