Star Citizen's annual Foundation Festival has begun, and it comes with a Free Fly event allowing players to pilot one of six ships for a limited time. Star Citizen's Free Fly events are a great opportunity for potential citizens to give the game a shot before deciding if they would like to purchase their very own ship.

Star Citizen is an extremely ambitious immersive space sim under development by Roberts Space Industries, and it has been in the works since 2011. The game has earned a reputation for being one of the most heavily crowd-funded games in history, with Star Citizen receiving upwards of $400 million in funding over the years. Rather than buying the game, players purchase individual ships with prices ranging from $40 to packages that go into the tens of thousands of dollars. The game has a tight community of players eager to welcome newbie pilots into the fold, which is what the Foundation Festival is all about.

As part of the annual Foundation Festival, Star Citizen is free to play until July 15th. Free Fly players have six ships to choose from, allowing them to experience a variety of gameplay possibilities available in the 'verse. Some of the free ships include the $40 Dragonfly Black, $55 Avenger Titan, $75 Arrow, $40 Aurora MR, and the $65 100I. This selection gives players the chance to try out ships from different price points, which will be helpful when deciding if a $75 buy-in is worth the investment over the cheaper $40 vessels.


Veteran players may take on the role of Guides who can take Recruit players under their wing by engaging in cooperative sessions for at least 30 minutes at a time. Both Guides and Recruits receive unique cosmetic rewards for their cooperation, providing some incentive for veterans and new players to participate in the community. A referral program is also taking place during the Foundation Festival that rewards referrers and referees with their very own hoverbike in Star Citizen. Players have until July 18th to purchase a starter pack with a referral code if they want to receive the bonus hoverbike.

While still in its Alpha stage, frequent major updates for Star Citizen add new content and refine its gameplay. Star Citizen is a notoriously difficult game to master, which is why these community mentorship events are so important. Without a guiding hand, many players will give up before surmounting the game's steep learning curve.

Star Citizen is available on PC.