TL;DR
SaltEMike reacts to a Bar Citizen Q&A from a China event featuring John Crew (Vehicle Director) and Aaron Roberts (CDO), criticizing CIG for withholding the SCCL from global backers while extracting money from Chinese players. The Q&A reveals key details about ship tiering, radar systems, torpedoes, hangar customization, and hacking gameplay — much of which contradicts earlier Reddit summaries.
Key points
1
CIG showed an SCCL exclusively at a China Bar Citizen event, withholding it from global backers for weeks — SaltEMike calls this incompatible with 'open development'
2
Ship tier upgrades (e.g. Tier 5 Gladius) will NOT add weapon slots — they improve material stats like weight and acceleration only, contradicting a Reddit summary claiming new weapon slots
3
Hacking gameplay for ships like the F7C Ghost and Vanguard Sentinel is still tied to Squadron 42 development and has not been built for the PU, despite appearing in multiple monthly reports
4
Radar improvements will use a modifier system on ships like the Terrapin rather than adding multiple radar units — a disappointing answer for scanning-focused gameplay
5
Aaron Roberts confirmed explorers will be able to discover previously unknown jump points and potentially new undiscovered systems, hinting at Eve-style wormhole exploration
Key arguments
→
Do not expect stealth torpedoes for standard ships — CIG wants torpedoes to be visible on radar as a design choice; only stealth ships like the Eclipse benefit from proximity advantage
→
Cargo auto-loading will be optional and less efficient than manual loading — a separate drone tractor beam system is also being considered, though these two systems appear contradictory
→
Crafting on ships like the Carrack and Clipper is gated behind a cargo-grid crafting feature not yet implemented — do not expect on-ship crafting until that system is built
Notable quotes
“The only thing we have as backers now is waiting for CIG to post another video to find out how they changed the game that we backed 14 years ago.”
“Every time I talk about the fact that Squadron is the only thing in development — that is truly the only thing in development — there it is again.”
“Quantum travel as a gameplay thing is absolute dog shit. And the only arguments people have for it is it gives me a chance to go to the bathroom. Dumb.”
Worth watching?
⏭️
Worth watching the full video?
Skip the video — all the meaningful Q&A answers and SaltEMike's analysis are captured here, and the stream contains long tangents and reaction padding that add little beyond what is summarized.
Saved you some time? The creator still deserves a like.
Want this for your own channels?
Add the channels you follow. Every new video summarised and in your inbox the moment it drops. From £4/month.
Try it free