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Squadron 42 Steam Wishlisting Arrives After 14 Years of Waiting
Cloud Imperium Games has brought Squadron 42 to Steam, opening wishlists for its star-studded single-player space adventure ahead of a planned Q2 2027 release.
Ordinarily, a Steam page appearing several months before launch would barely raise an eyebrow. For Squadron 42, however, even reaching Valve’s storefront feels like another milestone in a development story that began 14 years ago.
The game’s roots stretch back to the original Star Citizen crowdfunding campaign in 2012, where appropriate pledge packages included access to what was then described as a 30-mission campaign. Its scope subsequently grew alongside the wider project.
Players can now wishlist Squadron 42 on Steam, where the listing reiterates Q2 2027 as its planned release window. There is still no specific release date or price.
Another Release Window Does Not Erase a Complicated History
That distinction between a target window and a locked date is especially relevant here. Squadron 42 was publicly expected in 2016 before Cloud Imperium confirmed it would miss that year. The developer later declared the campaign feature-complete in 2023, before committing to a 2026 launch at CitizenCon the following year.
That 2026 target eventually slipped as well. As we previously reported when Squadron 42 moved into Q2 2027, Chris Roberts cited the enormous attention surrounding Grand Theft Auto VI as one reason for avoiding the end-of-year window.
A Steam page is therefore tangible evidence that Cloud Imperium is preparing for a commercial release, but players who have followed the project for years have understandable reasons not to treat it as the finish line just yet.
What Does This Mean for Backers?
For longtime backers, the most immediate question is whether Steam changes how they will receive the game. Cloud Imperium’s support documentation currently says RSI accounts that own a pledge containing Squadron 42 will be able to download and play it once development is complete and the game releases.
The new Steam listing does not change that existing entitlement, nor has Cloud Imperium announced that legacy backers will receive Steam keys. Some supporters have effectively been waiting more than a decade for something they funded years before Steam wishlists entered the picture.
The wider Star Citizen project has now surpassed US$1 billion in player funding, although that total covers the broader ecosystem and should not be mistaken for Squadron 42’s individual development budget.
Still Has Plenty of Blockbuster Ambition
What Cloud Imperium is offering remains enormously ambitious. The new trailer again highlights its cinematic military sci-fi campaign, mixing spacecraft combat, on-foot missions, exploration and interactions aboard enormous capital ships.
Its performance-captured cast includes Mark Hamill, Gary Oldman, Gillian Anderson, Henry Cavill, Andy Serkis, Mark Strong, Jonathan Bailey and more. There is little doubt that Squadron 42 looks substantially closer to being a finished product than it did during many previous points in its development.
After 14 years, though, “closer” is no longer quite enough. Q2 2027 is the window Cloud Imperium now has to turn years of trailers, milestones and promises into an actual game players can finally launch.
