Video game raised $148 mn from fans. Now it's raising concerns

As the dollars have mounted, the ambitions of Cloud Imperium Games have grown

Mark Kearns, 38, a web designer and gamer from Chicago, stumbled upon a new video game called Star Citizen while online in late 2013. The game, which was in development, promised to revive the spaceflight simulation genre with a sprawling universe for players to explore.

Intrigued, Kearns decided to pledge money to see the game come to fruition. In total, he donated $175, which gained him access to Star Citizen’s alpha version — a playable version of the game in its early stages — plus a virtual ship to use in the game.

Kearns and others have now vaulted Star Citizen into