ArkanisOverlay

Arkanis Overlay for Star Citizen

A Next-Generation Overlay Companion for Star Citizen

Created by FatalMerlin, co-founder of the in-game organization Arkanis Corporation,
and TheKronnY, an engineer and IT PhD student.

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/f932f4c3-913c-4064-9174-566f0e755046

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🚀 What is Arkanis Overlay?

Arkanis Overlay is a usability-focused, in-game companion overlay for Star Citizen. It aims to provide players with direct access to essential tools and information without having to leave the game or juggle external websites. Inspired by the RatScanner project from the Tarkov community, this project is built with a strong focus on reliability, extensibility, and community collaboration.

The overlay is currently in active development and driven by a clear mission:

Minimize friction, maximize immersion.

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✨ Key User Features (MVP)

• In-Game Search Tool — Find general and commonly-needed game information fast — no more alt-tabbing to search websites.

• Integrated Community Data — Seamlessly connected with the UEX Corporation and other community tools (in the future) to enrich in-game decision-making.

• Automatic Startup — Launches automatically when you start Windows and Star Citizen, so you’re always ready to go.

• Installer & Auto-updater — A self-updating installer that ensures you always have the latest version of the overlay.

🤝 Community Focus

• Community-Driven Development — Built in collaboration with players and devs who actively use and shape the tools.

• Open Source — The project is open source, allowing anyone to contribute, suggest features, and report bugs. We welcome all contributions, whether big or small. Check out the contributing guidelines for more information on how to get involved and let us know you are up for the challenge by joining our Discord server or opening a new discussion on GitHub.

🖥️ Tech Stack

• Microsoft .NET 8 — The application is built using the latest .NET technologies, ensuring a modern and efficient (developer) experience.

• WPF-Hosted Blazor Windows App — Built in C# using modern UI technologies for smooth performance and simple extensibility.

• ASP.NET Core Server — The backend is built on ASP.NET Core, providing a robust and scalable foundation for future features.

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[!TIP] You can check out the in-browser demo of the overlay at overlay.arkanis.space! It features an identical UI and functionality as the in-game version, just without the game integration.

🛠️ Getting Started

This section provides a quick overview of how to install and use the Arkanis Overlay application.

Installation

Follow these steps to install the Arkanis Overlay application on your Windows system:

1. Download an installer for the latest (stable) release from:

   • the Overlay in-browser demo page
   • or the Arkanis Overlay homepage
   • or the GitHub releases page

2. Run the installer to automatically install the application with a self-updater.
   Windows may prompt you with a UAC (User Account Control) dialog to confirm the installation. This is a standard security feature of Windows to ensure that you trust the application you are installing. See the screenshots below for reference. After confirming, the application will be installed to %LocalAppData%/ArkanisOverlay.

   Installer - Windows UAC Step 1	Installer - Windows UAC Step 2

3. Launch the application from the Start Menu or by double-clicking the desktop shortcut. Both are named Arkanis Overlay.

Application Behavior

Once launched, the application runs in the Windows system tray. It does not display a window by default. From the tray icon, you can open the preferences dialog or exit the application entirely.

Overlay Activation

The shortcut can be customized through the preferences dialog, allowing you to set a key combination that best suits your needs.

Preferences and Configuration

The preferences dialog is accessible either from the system tray icon or directly within the overlay interface itself.

Within the preferences dialog, you currently can:

• Enable or disable automatic launching of the application when Windows starts.
• Choose whether the overlay application should automatically exit when Star Citizen is closed.
• Customize the keyboard shortcut used to activate the overlay.
• Adjust other application-specific settings related to appearance and behavior.

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🔮 Roadmap & Planned Features

We’re dreaming big — here’s what’s ahead:

🧩 Core Enhancements

• Seamless self-updater and installer
• Keyboard shortcuts for quick access and navigation within the overlay
• Improved reliability and usability
• Configurable display: layouts, themes, behavior
• Localization

🔎 Smarter Search

• Full-text search across entity database (commodities, locations, items, etc.)
• Improvements to fuzzy search and result ranking]

🔗 Integrations & Tools

• Game entity search sourced from UEX Corporation
• UEX CLI and MFD screen integration
• Embedded tools and services (permissions required)
• API-driven data enrichment from the community (Wiki, JSON exports, etc.)
• Additional social features (Discord, orgs, etc.)

🔍 OCR-Driven Intelligence

• UEX data extraction (prices for commodities, items, fuel, ores, etc.)
• Regolith Co. integration
• Player location-based map awareness and contextual recommendations

🧭 Long-Term Vision

• Gameplay enhancement tools:
  • Task & progress tracking
  • Party, session, squad, and advanced org management utilities
  • Inventory management
  • Note-taking & planning aids
• Plugin support for third-party extensions (exploration stage)

[!NOTE] Do you have other ideas for features or tools you’d like to see integrated into the overlay? We’re all ears! Open up a new discussion on GitHub, and let’s make it happen. Together.

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💡 Philosophy

Star Citizen is vast — and at times, frustratingly so. Especially for citizens newly embarking on their journey in Stanton and beyond. Arkanis Overlay doesn’t aim to change the game, but to make the experience better. For everyone. It’s your always-on wingman — helpful, seamless, and never in the way.

Key principles:

• Reliable UX: The overlay must be stable. The game has enough bugs already.
• Incremental growth: Release early, improve often.
• No exploits: This project will never include cheats, automation, or game-breaking features.

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🧑‍💻 Development Status

Project Lead: FatalMerlin
Language: C#
Frameworks: WPF and WebView2 for the Windows client, Blazor

Currently developed in bursts due to time constraints (because, you know… real life). We are now a small dev team — progress is slow but deliberate. We are looking for fellow motivated and able citizens to join us on this journey.

[!NOTE] Have you found a bug? Would you like contribute to the project? We are always looking for help with feature development, application testing, and better UI/UX design. Open a new discussion, an issue or contact @FatalMerlin directly. We’d love your input!

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🙌 Community & Support

Big shout-out to:

• UEX Dev Team for their continued support, testing, and our future collaboration.
• Everyone in the Arkanis Corporation and broader Star Citizen community who has provided feedback and ideas.

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🧭 Why “Arkanis”?

The name pays tribute to the Arkanis Sector, a frontier region of bold explorers — just like the developers and the users of this tool. We aim to embody the same spirit: discovery, utility, and frontier innovation.

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📜 License

This project is licensed under the PolyForm Noncommercial License 1.0.0.

In simple terms:

• You can use, modify, and share this software freely for noncommercial purposes.
• You cannot use this software for commercial purposes. That includes selling it, using it in a business, or any activity intended for commercial advantage or monetary compensation.

See the LICENSE.md file for the full text of the license.

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🌌 Final Words

This is only the beginning. Arkanis Overlay is designed to grow with the game and the community. Let’s make Star Citizen a little smoother — together.

“A ship is only as good as its crew.” — Unknown

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