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As I understand, questions about pre-release games are not on-topic because it is either speculation or subject to change. Only when the game is actually released will things be verifiable.

I wonder if Star Citizen (and similar games) could be an exception to this because:

  • It is being released in parts (there is something to look at for confirmation).
  • Devs are very open about the development process (a lot of official sources to reference).
  • Even after its official release it will keep continuously changing as development continues (questions will always run the risk of becoming outdated).

During their weekly show they answer a lot of questions about things that will be in the game or not. Also, on the forums and from interviews there is a lot information. It's just very hard to find between the reposts and discussions. Something the stackexchange format can solve.

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  • See: meta.gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/5539/…
    – 3ventic
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:29
  • I saw that one, but wasn't sure how that applied to Star Citizen. Only a small part has been released and they will release it more and more (e.g. hanger module, dogfighting module) even after official release. There could be questions about features that are not released yet, but are confirmed by for example Chris Roberts.
    – Matthijs Wessels
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:37
  • Chris Roberts previously announced most of the features in Star Citizen when he was making Freelancer, and look how many of those made it into the final game...
    – kalina
    Nov 25, 2013 at 22:18

2 Answers 2

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Our policy is "when a game is publicly available you can ask questions about it". This includes alpha releases and beta releases provided these releases are not restricted to the development team and/or close friends and family (like Blizzard do with their game releases). If you can get into an alpha through Kickstarter/whatever, this counts as publicly available. If you can get into an alpha through some form of phased rollout (like with the now-cancelled C&C game from EA), this also counts as publicly available.

Specifically with Star Citizen, that means you can currently ask questions about the hangar module and only the hangar module. Soon, you'll be able to ask questions about the dog fighting module (which is due sometime in December). As each module is rolled out to the public, it will become on topic.

However, asking about any of the unreleased parts of the game, regardless of whether commentary from the developer exists on the subject, is off topic. This includes any questions about what happens with the ships you've got in your hangar from purchases and/or pledges, as this information is not currently in the game and is therefore unreleased.

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In order:

  • It being released in parts is no problem; as long as questions are relevant to the bits that are available to the general public (so Closed/Open Beta is fine, "I'm in the Alpha and I have a question", less so. As 3ventic links, this is a pretty good benchmark.

  • Devs being open on the development process is irrelevant to our larger policy of closing questions amounting to "Why did X?". This is because it is not the availability of the sources that make these poor questions, but rather the lack of an objective, properly judge-able answer (shy of the dev. themselves).

  • This should not be a determining factor. See our history on this site with Minecraft and Terraria.

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  • What I meant with the devs being open is that they confirm a lot of stuff that is not released yet. Example: Will the oculus rift be supported? Yes, it has been confirmed (=link)
    – Matthijs Wessels
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:40
  • Questions should be limited to the content available to the average Joe at the time of asking.
    – 3ventic
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:41
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    @MatthijsWessels No, that kind of question is not okay. Either it is supported today, or it is not.
    – badp
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:43
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    @MatthijsWessels We've got an ample history of official announcements and subsequent 180°s; just think about the XBox One. We have enough burden as it is keeping the site up to date to the present, let's not also worry about the future.
    – badp
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:44
  • But those questions would be of the form "Is the oculus rift supported?". That question would be alright and the answer could be "no, but this and this link says it will be".
    – Matthijs Wessels
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:47
  • Also, the 180s can also be done on existing features due to the fact that the game is constantly changing.
    – Matthijs Wessels
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:48
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    @MatthijsWessels Yes, but the answer reflects the current state of the game as it evolves thus remaining useful and truthful throughout. This is not a news site and we should keep news reporting to news reporters.
    – badp
    Nov 25, 2013 at 21:50

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