CIG's April Fools' Prank: The MISC Hull B Behind the Ships That Never Was

Cloud Imperium Games has never been shy about leaning into the community, and this April Fools' they committed fully — producing an entirely fake Behind the Ships episode for the long-awaited MISC Hull B. What followed was a straight-faced descent into chaos, starting with a genuine-sounding overview of the Hull C and Hull A before arriving, inevitably, at the Hull Bee. As in, the insect. The real Hull B reveal is confirmed for next week.

The Hull Bee

The episode wastes little time getting to its centrepiece. The Hull C is briefly framed as the premium heavy freighter for players chasing big cargo profits, the Hull A as the entry-level hauler for newcomers — and then, following the alphabet as instructed, comes the Hull Bee.

The design team walks through the Hull Bee with complete sincerity. The original concept apparently suffered from a cross-shaped cargo layout that stopped it from landing, so the team went back to the drawing board and landed on a diagonal grid arrangement. Real-world heavy lifters served as inspiration — creatures capable of carrying enormous loads on their backs. The extended cargo grids are accessible, not overly complicated, and the rotating cargo system is presented as a genuine feature. The wings provide actual lift. The antennas, the designer admits, do nothing — they just look cool. There is a noted network performance concern, so players are advised not to bring too many Hull Bees into the same area at once.

It is, from start to finish, an entirely straight-faced pitch for a ship that is an insect.

The Variants

Apparently pleased with the Hull Bee's success, the team decided to explore what else the Hull series could offer. This is where things escalate.

Hull G (Ground) — Revived from an old unused Caterpillar concept, the Hull G was designed to slow cargo gameplay down and let players truly savour every moment of the journey. One detail was slightly overlooked in development: cargo grids. Players wishing to move cargo may tow it behind the ship.

Hull M (Military) — An eleven-year passion project. The designer's stated mission since joining CIG has been to introduce a ship that truly punches above its weight class, and the Hull M is that ship. It carries the Idris chin-mounted rail gun, two Idris beam weapons on its flanks, and a number of bomb and missile racks quantified only as "yes." Cargo space was not considered a priority. Power management, it turns out, is also optional. Attempts to data mine the weapon files will crash and display a developer's face. His message to the community: "just play the game, nerds."

Hull O (Origin 404) — A collaboration with Origin Jumpworks. The ship is invisible. This was presented without irony...

Hull P (Port Alisar) — Described plainly as an excuse to revisit Port Alisar. No further justification was provided or apparently required.

Hull X (Extra Long) — Designed without a designer. It is very long. It keeps being long. Retrothrusters were not included. Turning is anticipated to be a challenge.

Hull WTF (Xi'an Tech) — A crossover leveraging Xi'an transformation technology, with a nod to MISC's history with the alien manufacturer and a quiet Reliant reference tucked in for good measure. The ship transforms mid-presentation. This is described as enabling "emergent gameplay for this highly probable situation."

The Real Hull B Is One Week Away

The episode closed with a candid acknowledgement: this fake episode ran longer than a real one. The team signed off with an apology that was, by their own admission, not entirely genuine, and confirmed that the real MISC Hull B Behind the Ships will arrive next week.

For a ship that has been in development limbo for years, the wait is nearly over.

Source: Robert Space Industries – Behind the Ships - MISC Hull B