What scheme would that be? You can buy the game for as low as $30. Earning your way into something like a Hornet has been planned for a handful of days and something like a Constellation about two weeks. Buying massive capital ships won't necessarily do you any good, because you won't be able to afford the maintenance, fuel, and equipment costs to even fly the thing at release. All you get is the base hull with basic fittings. Ships also fulfill certain roles, so there is far far more lateral mobility in hull purchases than vertical. It's been my perception that the more vocal people are about doomsaying Star Citizen, the less they actually know about the game. And that's not to say it's even going to be a huge success—there are a lot of uncertainties related to seeing all of the various modules/systems to the game come together as one cohesive whole. But they've been making consistent progress, and while their have been some delays, they are explained and fall within the usual scope of development uncertainty.