Star Citizen free-to-play event offers access to a wide range of premium ships

Cloud Imperium Games' yearly Invictus Launch Week Free Fly event has returned, and that means Star Citizen has gone free-to-play for the duration. Lasting until May 30, the in-game festival offers the currently available chunk of the sci-fi universe to explore, as well as a multitude of space ships, vehicles, and more to try out without having to spend anything,

The ships showcase is happening at the Bevic Convention Center, which can be found in the city of Area18 on planet ArcCorp. New players spawning straight into ArcCorp can watch this short video to find out how to get to the showcase floor from their apartment via a transport shuttle. Players flying in can land at the Riker Memorial Spaceport before following the signs to take the correct shuttle over to the convention hall.

Every 48 hours, the in-universe manufacturer that's showcasing their wares on the show floor rotates out for another company, letting players keep returning for new hardware.

With the event just now having kicked off, available to rent and try out for free at the time of publishing are ships from MISC, Mirai, and Crusader Industries. Aegis Dynamics is slated to hit the stage on May 21, followed by Anvil Aerospace on May 23, and so on. The schedule for each manufacturer and ship availability during the entire event can be found here.

Also available as part of the event are tours of the 'UEES War Hammer' Javelin destroyer plus a fleet of other navy ships. These AI-handled ships will dock at various harbors across the Stanton system as the event progresses, letting players take tours of the rare and gigantic military vessels. The fleet's current location can be seen on info panels at landing zones.

Lasting until May 30, the Star Citizen Invictus Launch Week Free Fly event can be accessed by making a free account on the developer's web portal and downloading the game. An FAQ regarding the event can be seen here.

The in-development title is nearing $600 million in crowd funding, and its most recent update, Alpha 3.19, landed earlier this week with a major city upgrade, salvager missions, a handy tractor beam upgrade, and more.