Many predicted that it’d happen during DefenseCon, and it indeed did: the space simulator Star Citizen just passed one billion dollars in crowdfunding.
Specifically, the total at the moment of this writing is $1,000,416,718, while the number of registered users is 6,543,222.
It’s worth mentioning that ot all of these six million-plus accounts are paying players, as many create free accounts to take part in frequent Free Fly Events or simply as alternative accounts.
That being said, with one billion dollars under the belt, it’s obvious that the support for Star Citizen is strong among players, and it’s only getting stronger.
Star Citizen’s funding tally for 2025 has beaten all records from previous years by a large margin, and 2026 is on track to beat 2025 if things continue as they are.
The gaming press has written pages upon pages of doom and gloom about Star Citizen, alleging pretty much everything there is to allege short of barratry and high treason, and yet this ship appears to be unsinkable regardless of how much polarized negativity is thrown at it.
Indeed, the nature of its extended crowdfunding campaign and the fact that it has been in development for over a decade have drawn a lot of criticism. Yet, the game’s unique ambition and scale, alongside many features that sci-fi fans obviously want and are offered by no other experience, also forged a strong fanbase willing to put its money where its mouth is.
As usual, we recommend listening to neither of these polarized sides. Yours truly happens to think that Star Citizen is awesome, and has the potential to be even better, but I would be a fool or a liar if I told you that I believe that it’s for everyone.
With the frequency of the Free Fly Events, which let you try the full latest build without spending a dime for a limited time, our recommendation is simply to take advantage of the many opportunities to test Star Citizen (if you’re interested) and let your own experience forge your own opinion.
If you’re unfamiliar with Star Citizen, it’s a PC exclusive, crowdfunded project directed by Chris Roberts of Wing Commander fame. It’s a multiplayer sandbox space simulator that has been in development for over a decade and in alpha for several years. Update Alpha 4.8 has just been released.
A single-player campaign titled Squadron 42 is also in active development with a recently confirmed 2026 release window, starring an exceptional cast of famous actors, including Mark Hamill, Henry Cavill, Gary Oldman, Liam Cunningham, Gillian Anderson, and more.
Since the project has been in development for over a decade, you can see how Squadron 42 has evolved since its first reveal.
Full disclosure: the author of this article has backed Star Citizen’s crowdfunding campaign.
