Star Citizen’s Squadron 42 delayed again, this time to avoid ‘the attention buzz saw of GTA 6’ says Chris Roberts
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Squadron 42, the long-awaited single-player campaign set in the Star Citizen universe, has been delayed again and is now expected in the second quarter of 2027. Cloud Imperium Games founder Chris Roberts said the timing is intended to avoid the intense public and media focus surrounding Grand Theft Auto 6, which is due in November 2026; the delay further extends development of a project announced more than a decade ago.
Roberts described Squadron 42 as a spiritual successor to Wing Commander and said it reflects 12 years of work. The game had previously been targeted for 2026, following several earlier postponements since development began in 2014, meaning its planned release will arrive several months after GTA 6.
- Squadron 42 is now planned for Q2 2027.
- Roberts cited GTA 6’s expected attention.
- The project has faced repeated delays since 2014.
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Star Citizen is a space-themed video game project funded partly by players who buy ships and other items before release. It includes an online multiplayer game and Squadron 42, a separate single-player story campaign set in the same fictional universe.
Cloud Imperium Games is the studio behind the project, led by Chris Roberts, who previously created the Wing Commander space-combat series in the 1990s. Squadron 42 has been in development for more than a decade and has been delayed several times, while Star Citizen’s online component remains unfinished.
Grand Theft Auto 6 is the next major game from Rockstar Games, whose Grand Theft Auto series is among the industry’s best-known and biggest-selling franchises. Large game releases can compete for media coverage, players’ time and spending, so release dates are often planned around other high-profile launches.
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The case for
Delaying Squadron 42 could be a prudent commercial decision: Grand Theft Auto 6 is likely to dominate games media, social discussion and players’ spending during its launch period, leaving little room for another major single-player release to be noticed on its own terms. Supporters would argue that a project with such a long development history deserves a launch window in which its marketing, reviews and audience attention can be properly focused, provided the extra time also protects quality and polish.
The case against
Critics would argue that citing GTA 6 risks making an already long series of postponements appear less accountable, particularly when Squadron 42 has been in development since 2014 and was previously expected in 2026. They may contend that a strong game should be able to find its audience even near a major release, and that further delay imposes real costs on backers and prospective players who have waited for clearer delivery commitments.