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[Mengy]

That's the issue exactly. The only motivation you have to play is to gain more money to upgrade the ship or upgrade to a better ship. That's it. There's nothing else in the entire galaxy to motivate you. No great cause to get behind, no faction to help rise up or help destroy. No opposing forces at all other than enemies you make via criminality or those that wish to do you harm or steal your cargo for the sake of it. It's a massive empty and bland world with amazing vistas going to waste.

So, I'm curious, how many of you played the original Elite? For me, the game looks like a modern improved version of the game that I played for dozens, no probably well over a hundred hours back on my C64. The things you people are complaining about didn't bother me thirty years ago, and this new Elite Dangerous already seems to be a much better game than that was.

And with the features and expansions coming down the road that Frontier is talking about, I really don't see me getting bored with the game for a long, long time. To me it sounds like it will one day be the best space game ever made.

I'm super anxious and excited. Maybe having not played the beta I'm just not as burned out as you all seem to be?

 

[Wreav]

Agree completely, Mengy. And, as FD have said over and over, they aren't making Elite: Dangerous for you; they're making it for them. This is a true hardcore throwback of a game, and a totally open sandbox. The goal of the game is to become Elite. How you do that is 100% up to you.

If the game isn't appealing to you, know that FD aren't going to kowtow to angry hashtags or forum posts. They have their vision laid out in the FDD, and that's that. The open forum for input on the game's roadmap and content has been closed for some time.

 

[DrBo42]

Agree completely, Mengy. And, as FD have said over and over, they aren't making Elite: Dangerous for you; they're making it for them. This is a true hardcore throwback of a game, and a totally open sandbox. The goal of the game is to become Elite. How you do that is 100% up to you.

If the game isn't appealing to you, know that FD aren't going to kowtow to angry hashtags or forum posts. They have their vision laid out in the FDD, and that's that. The open forum for input on the game's roadmap and content has been closed for some time.

This is such a shit attitude that's echoed everywhere the game is discussed. No one is asking for a cinematic storyline with you as Luke Skywalker taking down the Empire with a two proton torpedoes. People are asking for something to make the galaxy feel alive and lived in. That's more than fair.

 

[Wreav]

This is such a shit attitude that's echoed everywhere the game is discussed. No one is asking for a cinematic storyline with you as Luke Skywalker taking down the Empire with a two proton torpedoes. People are asking for something to make the galaxy feel alive and lived in. That's more than fair.

Someone hasn't read the FDD. This shit is gonna take time. We all knew what we'd be getting at release, and we're getting it. FD has said upfront they will be adding content as they go, unlike Star Citizen where you'll get it all up front but the game will take 5 years to bake.

 

[cheesetom]

They'll be adding content only if the game is a money maker. If they release something as barebones as it exists today, say goodbye to those promised expansions.

But so far their record is under-promising and over-delivering. So my hopes are still up.

I mean, have you seen how long the release notes were for BETA3!?!?

 

[Buggy Loop]

Wow, this thread went hostile. Just wait till gamma everyone. These guys had star refueling working internally at least as far back as beta 1 and it was introduced in beta 3. Who knows how many features are being worked on for gamma & release. What they are stress testing since alpha is the multiplayer. Afterall, its their first time and they have to figure out the bubble instancing and the network code.

The cogs behind the PvE universe, such as the dynamic universe where goverments wage war, or expand in a new system, the reputation for all faction sides, the economy etc are mostly algorithms that they've probably known for a while now since its probably an evolved system of the previous elite games and they are not starting from scratch. There will be procedural stories/missions, aswell as dev injected stories and events along with book tie-ins. Same thing with probes & Npc interaction, it was done in their past game.

So in the end, these guys have been delivering content by the truckloads in a matter of a few months, and even if it launch without feature X, be damn sure it wont be long after. I remember EVE online early in its life was a skeleton of what it has become today. Frontier does not consider ED as a yearly franchise or a retail launch ala elite II (where online patching/upgrades would be a lot more problematic), its a project that will evolve over the years.

 

[Faith]

This game with the Oculus Rift and my Saitek X52 Pro and this Hans Zimmer track from Interstellar after watching the movie...what an amazing experience!

 

[la_briola]

Well, that is awkward.

 

[flyinpiranha]

Wow, this thread went hostile. Just wait till gamma everyone. These guys had star refueling working internally at least as far back as beta 1 and it was introduced in beta 3. Who knows how many features are being worked on for gamma & release. What they are stress testing since alpha is the multiplayer. Afterall, its their first time and they have to figure out the bubble instancing and the network code.

The cogs behind the PvE universe, such as the dynamic universe where goverments wage war, or expand in a new system, the reputation for all faction sides, the economy etc are mostly algorithms that they've probably known for a while now since its probably an evolved system of the previous elite games and they are not starting from scratch. There will be procedural stories/missions, aswell as dev injected stories and events along with book tie-ins. Same thing with probes & Npc interaction, it was done in their past game.

So in the end, these guys have been delivering content by the truckloads in a matter of a few months, and even if it launch without feature X, be damn sure it wont be long after. I remember EVE online early in its life was a skeleton of what it has become today. Frontier does not consider ED as a yearly franchise or a retail launch ala elite II (where online patching/upgrades would be a lot more problematic), its a project that will evolve over the years.

I'm hoping they are keeping all the PVE faction stuff out of the Betas so people can't just 'farm' it when it goes live.

I read a couple posts about the 'vertical slice' and it makes more sense how 'bare bones' our demos our.

I'm a lot more hopeful than some but I do believe the 'open ended' and 'do what you want' gameplay will take a bit to kick in for me. Playing MMOs, SP adventure games like Skyrim have me conditioned to be 'guided' but I think I will look at this like a racing game. I don't need a story to play that for hours. All I do is tune my car, change the paint, see what next car is on my 'to buy list', etc ... Racing games are similar (although the UNIVERSE is a pretty big track, lol) because every person kind of makes it their own (at least with sim racers that I play mostly). You choose the cars you enjoy, the tracks you enjoy, the stuff you enjoy and try to improve.

So, with a fresh outlook on what the game 'could' be (for me personally) I'm back to being super hyped.

 

[Mengy]

They'll be adding content only if the game is a money maker. If they release something as barebones as it exists today, say goodbye to those promised expansions.

I don't know, I don't own ED yet but I've kept up on it fanatically and watched dozens of videos of gameplay, and maybe it's just because I grew up with the old Elite games but it doesn't look "barebones" to me. Sure it could use some fleshing out I guess, but even as it is now it's everything I could have ever wanted in a modern Elite remake.

I really hope it sells well so they can make all of their future plans for the game happen. I'd be terribly sad if a modern Elite of this caliber tanked.

 

[flyinpiranha]

I don't know, I don't own ED yet but I've kept up on it fanatically and watched dozens of videos of gameplay, and maybe it's just because I grew up with the old Elite games but it doesn't look "barebones" to me. Sure it could use some fleshing out I guess, but even as it is now it's everything I could have ever wanted in a modern Elite remake.

I really hope it sells well so they can make all of their future plans for the game happen. I'd be terribly sad if a modern Elite of this caliber tanked.

I think the bolded is the main reason for the arguments you see everywhere. I hope that the old as well as the new can keep it going. I just wonder how many of the 'new' crowd will stick around if there's no carrots to follow outside of upgrades and spreadsheet stuff.

I'm getting my money's worth for sure, I can spend a couple hours a week just exploring once I get the controls down. Have no need for multiplayer stuff, just want a good experience solo and unfortunately to create that dynamic there has to be a more 'guided' experience kind of, or you just feel like you aren't 'accomplishing' anything. As strange as that sounds.

 

[Sectus]

I don't know, I don't own ED yet but I've kept up on it fanatically and watched dozens of videos of gameplay, and maybe it's just because I grew up with the old Elite games but it doesn't look "barebones" to me. Sure it could use some fleshing out I guess, but even as it is now it's everything I could have ever wanted in a modern Elite remake.

I really hope it sells well so they can make all of their future plans for the game happen. I'd be terribly sad if a modern Elite of this caliber tanked.

It definitely has more content than the old Elite games. I like that when just flying around you can stumble upon police hunting criminals, large haulers transporting goods, or pirates trying to rob you.

I do think the bulletin boards needs more variety though. If they can add a bunch more mission types for randomized missions, then I think the game has plenty enough content for me.

 

[FrunkQ]

II do think the bulletin boards needs more variety though. If they can add a bunch more mission types for randomized missions, then I think the game has plenty enough content for me.

There are quite a few folks here that suggest the universe is empty. Boring even.

I get what they mean - it does seem kinda flat as the game is currently a series of game-play systems which have just intersected into a "complete" open universe... but I half agree - it is not yet a complete "game".

But I disagree with people saying there is nothing there. There are factions - possibly thousands, but 3 main ones just now: Alliance, the Empire, and the Federation. The interface to all the possible intrigue between these factions is a rather flat set of news screens and some mail. Realistic maybe, but hardly inspiring.

But with the core game-play systems in place it is not a massive leap of development to provide emergent versions of these plot points into the game as you get interdicted and challenged with radio messages. This will smack you in the face the menu options you ignored on the last trade run. I would certainly read the Galnet news after that. Sprinkle in "who they are looking for" and you become a bounty hunter without realising. You could scoop up a cargo module that contains something "unusual" and leads you on a paper-trail chase across the galaxy.

These are not big things. Should they be in the game before they release it... well that could be argued. Should they have more factions? Aliens, corporations, pirates? Probably.

Will these happen? Sure. They will probably be introduced along with GM lead events in the initial weeks of the game - in the new year when folks are back from holiday. By that time we should have graduated beyond the basic ship and have a few credits in our pocket.

These examples are all server side evolutions that could probably work fine in the current game-play engine.

Judging a game like Elite from its final beta is a challenge, and reviewers are going to have to balance their expectations when it is initially released; it is more MMORPG in the way it will evolve - even if you play solo. I imagine most review scores will be in the range of 6/10 unless it is clear that these systems exist and are being exploited to provide the player with greater immersion, more variety and FUN! If they let it bake some more the score WILL go up, and it is a tricky balancing act that Frontier have to manage. Currently the game is "Old School Elite" with a lot of potential. Let's hope enough people buy in to realise this potential before it is too late.

 

[Wreav]

Given that most of the "THIS GAME IS BORING, RELEASE IS DOOMED" folks have put 50-100 hours into this game already.

I just can't take it seriously. I remain poised until gamma. Braben is life, Braben is love.

 

[FrunkQ]

Given that most of the "THIS GAME IS BORING, RELEASE IS DOOMED" folks have put 50-100 hours into this game already.

I just can't take it seriously. I remain poised until gamma. Braben is life, Braben is love.

Hehe - I agree. I personally think "Old School Elite" with DK2 and a HOTAS setup is my childhood dream made real. There was enough to do in Elite back in the day setting your own objectives and just "getting out there" to explore.

I have been with it through Alpha and Beta and kept my playtime lowish... as the wipe process is soul destroying if you are making some headway. I saw those as "tasters" and build up some useful docking skills (down to 20 seconds). I still can't dogfight for toffee, but at least know some good trade routes to start off.

The Alpha/Beta and resultant wipes can induce a fatigue, which many are feeling now. I have barely touched it since Beta 1 and have been surprised how much content has arrived with each release. All the key systems are in place... it is fun to fly the ship, the economy is there, there are 3-4 ways of raising money, exploration is in place and dogfighting is satisfying.

Content to fill this can be rapidly iterated as we have seen, with barely a month between significant content dumps during beta. I think they owe us the roadmap for the first 6 months at the launch event... which I will be going along to. Personally I would prefer a lot more variety in missions provided by more than just the terminal and development of emergent "plot" to keep things interesting. Then bring on planetary landings and the FPS side. It is easier and more important for a game like Elite where you spend most of your time in a ship.

I am a fan, but I can see why many modern gamers who did not live through Elite 30 years ago are more demanding. Games these days are different. And Elite DOES need to address this quickly or be regarded as a curious fossil. But as long as these are coming I think the current sandbox is a good enough start for us "older gamers" who like a half-familiar, gigantic sandpit to play in.

 

[flyinpiranha]

Hehe - I agree. I personally think "Old School Elite" with DK2 and a HOTAS setup is my childhood dream made real. There was enough to do in Elite back in the day setting your own objectives and just "getting out there" to explore.

I have been with it through Alpha and Beta and kept my playtime lowish... as the wipe process is soul destroying if you are making some headway. I saw those as "tasters" and build up some useful docking skills (down to 20 seconds). I still can't dogfight for toffee, but at least know some good trade routes to start off.

The Alpha/Beta and resultant wipes can induce a fatigue, which many are feeling now. I have barely touched it since Beta 1 and have been surprised how much content has arrived with each release. All the key systems are in place... it is fun to fly the ship, the economy is there, there are 3-4 ways of raising money, exploration is in place and dogfighting is satisfying.

Content to fill this can be rapidly iterated as we have seen, with barely a month between significant content dumps during beta. I think they owe us the roadmap for the first 6 months at the launch event... which I will be going along to. Personally I would prefer a lot more variety in missions provided by more than just the terminal and development of emergent "plot" to keep things interesting. Then bring on planetary landings and the FPS side. It is easier and more important for a game like Elite where you spend most of your time in a ship.

I am a fan, but I can see why many modern gamers who did not live through Elite 30 years ago are more demanding. Games these days are different. And Elite DOES need to address this quickly or be regarded as a curious fossil. But as long as these are coming I think the current sandbox is a good enough start for us "older gamers" who like a half-familiar, gigantic sandpit to play in.

Yep. I haven't really 'dug in' yet because I hated the first wipe. Knew it was coming, understood it, was planning for it, but just starting over with no contacts and ship upgrages kind of sucked. So now I mainly play around with performance tests and tweaking and just practicing some things.

I just REALLY hope you can customize your ship layout/color when the game launches. If every ship has the same exact radar and layout that will be somewhat boring. A great part about racing games is the completely different feel you get when in cockpit view with cars, I'm hoping there are some differences here also, but not very hopeful as I would assume they'd have been in the different ships in the game.

 

[Wreav]

Don't hold your breath. The most you'll get is changing the color of the HUD.

 

[Mengy]

I just REALLY hope you can customize your ship layout/color when the game launches. If every ship has the same exact radar and layout that will be somewhat boring. A great part about racing games is the completely different feel you get when in cockpit view with cars, I'm hoping there are some differences here also, but not very hopeful as I would assume they'd have been in the different ships in the game.

At most you might someday be able to change HUD colors, but the layouts will probably remain fixed. Different ships have different cockpit models and viewports, but the HUD's are pretty consistent. I'm okay with it as I like the look of the HUD but it's one thing Star Citizen seems to have going for it over Elite when it comes to ships feeling more distinct.

I'll eventually own both Star Citizen and Elite Dangerous, I know that already. It will be very interesting to see which one over the next couple of years turns out to be the better and more interesting game.

 

[Ronnie]

Can I ask a bit of hardware advice for this game? I'd be interested in people who have been playing the beta so thought it better to post here than the build me a PC thread.

Having not played the beta I'm a little unsure about what specs are needed, I've narrowed it down to three CPU/GPU choices for my new PC build:

1: i5 4690K + GTX 970 (£440)
2: i7 4790K + GTX 970 (£530)
3: i7 4790K + GTX 980 (£707)

To be used with an Apple 27" Cinema display. Ideally I'd like to be stutter free as possible, with a really great frame rate. DK2 a possibility at some point too. Obviously the third option would be best, but is it really necessary, given the high price? Does anyone have one of the above set-ups and if so what's performance been like?

Oh and it'll be putting in 8 (or maybe 16?) gig of RAM.

 

[Wreav]

The 980/i7 is overkill honestly. I run on an ancient i5-2500k, gtx 660ti, and 8gb of RAM, and easily get 60fps. This game is not super graphics intensive, despite being very pretty.

If you aren't a dev, I wouldn't bother with a DK2, the low refresh rate and resolution are deal breakers for long term use. Text in game can be extremely hard to read. Wait for the consumer version.

 

[LeBart]

Can I ask a bit of hardware advice for this game? I'd be interested in people who have been playing the beta so thought it better to post here than the build me a PC thread.

Having not played the beta I'm a little unsure about what specs are needed, I've narrowed it down to three CPU/GPU choices for my new PC build:

1: i5 4690K + GTX 970 (£440)
2: i7 4790K + GTX 970 (£530)
3: i7 4790K + GTX 980 (£707)

To be used with an Apple 27" Cinema display. Ideally I'd like to be stutter free as possible, with a really great frame rate. DK2 a possibility at some point too. Obviously the third option would be best, but is it really necessary, given the high price? Does anyone have one of the above set-ups and if so what's performance been like?

Oh and it'll be putting in 8 (or maybe 16?) gig of RAM.

I have a 2600K and a 970, both at stock clock speeds, the game runs at a constant 60 at 1440p/max settings.
I can get it to run at 120 fps but for some reason it doesn't go above 60 inside stations, so I lock it at 60.

I haven't tried 3D or Oculus, but I'm gonna say you'll be fine.

 

[Anton Sugar]

New Mighty Jingles video explores the current state of faction "Combat Bond"-type missions. He explores distress signals and conflict zones.

 

[Mengy]

The 980/i7 is overkill honestly. I run on an ancient i5-2500k, gtx 660ti, and 8gb of RAM, and easily get 60fps. This game is not super graphics intensive, despite being very pretty.

I just ordered a new GTX and a 24" monitor, and I did it largely for this game. Elite might not be demanding graphically but I'm hoping to downsample the game to really make it look super sharp and smooth. When it comes to space games I like them looking awesome.

Plus, Euro Truck Simulator 2 will be incredible once I can crank the graphics up all the way. Not to mention that it will be sweet to finally run Skyrim on something greater than medium settings....

 

[Big Takeover]

Can I ask a bit of hardware advice for this game? I'd be interested in people who have been playing the beta so thought it better to post here than the build me a PC thread.

Having not played the beta I'm a little unsure about what specs are needed, I've narrowed it down to three CPU/GPU choices for my new PC build:

1: i5 4690K + GTX 970 (£440)
2: i7 4790K + GTX 970 (£530)
3: i7 4790K + GTX 980 (£707)

To be used with an Apple 27" Cinema display. Ideally I'd like to be stutter free as possible, with a really great frame rate. DK2 a possibility at some point too. Obviously the third option would be best, but is it really necessary, given the high price? Does anyone have one of the above set-ups and if so what's performance been like?

Oh and it'll be putting in 8 (or maybe 16?) gig of RAM.

First off, if you're not going to overclock, you don't need a "K" chip. You can save a few bucks there if that's not in your plans. 8 gigs of ram is fine especially for the time being.

Videocard and Oculus - It's up to you whether you get a DK2 right now or not. It's amazing with Elite, but the drawbacks are clear (or rather unclear ;-)). It really is just an appetizer. The retail version is where you should be looking to build towards if you're interested in VR. It's going to need all the horsepower you can throw at it.

A single 970 probably isn't going to be enough for CV1 with all the bells and whistles on, so let's start right there. Hopefully Nvidia comes through with their plans to redo SLI so it can be used with VR. That would be a major breakthrough. So a 970 now and a second one when CV1 ships? Take a chance that a single 980 will cover you with the option to add a second one later if really needed? Insurance if SLI doesn't work as well as hoped for?

That's up to you, and what you're willing to spend.

My advice would be to A. make sure you get a SLI compatible motherboard, and B. get a power supply with enough overhead to cover two cards even if you only buy one now.

If you find you're not really interested in VR, that's all out the window. Go the cheap route in that case.

 

[Ronnie]

Thanks all that's really helped me out.

First off, if you're not going to overlock, you don't need a "K" chip. You can save a few bucks there if that's not in your plans. 8 gigs ram is fine especially for the time being.

Videocard and Oculus - It's up to you whether you get a DK1 right now or not. It's amazing with Elite, but the drawbacks are clear (or rather unclear ;-)). It really is just an appetizer. The retail version is where you should be looking to build towards if you're interested in VR. It's going to need all the horsepower you can throw at it.

A single 970 probably isn't going to be enough for CV1 with all the bells and whistles on, so let's start right there. Hopefully Nvidia comes through with their plans to redo SLI so it can be used with VR. That would be a major breakthrough. So a 970 now and a second one when CV1 ships? Take a chance that a single 980 will cover you with the option to add a second one later if really needed? Insurance if SLI doesn't work as well as hoped for?

That's up to you, and what you're willing to spend.

My advice would be to A. make sure you get a SLI compatible motherboard, and B. get a power supply with enough overhead to cover two cards even if you only buy one now.

If you find you're not really interested in VR, that's all out the window. Go the cheap route in that case.

I can't imagine I'll ever overclock, didn't realise that's the only reason for the K in the chips. Thanks for the tip!

I'm not massively fussed about VR to be honest, I'm quite interested in picking up a DK2 and giving it a try but I imagine I'll spend most of my time playing without it. When CV1/the consumer model comes out in the next year or two I can reassess and see whether I'm still actually playing ED.

Thanks for the two tips at the end. I guess I'm now leaning more towards getting an i7/970. Frame rate drops just really annoy me and I would hate to have that gorgeous hyperspace animation interrupted by stuttering, it would completely take me out of the experience.

 

[Wreav]

In my experience, any stuttering is more server/lag related than anything else.

 

[RadioactiveLobster]

In my experience, any stuttering is more server/lag related than anything else.

I would agree except my stuttering/lag is accompanied by drops to 0% GPU usage.

 

[Big Takeover]

Thanks all that's really helped me out.



I can't imagine I'll ever overclock, didn't realise that's the only reason for the K in the chips. Thanks for the tip!

I'm not massively fussed about VR to be honest, I'm quite interested in picking up a DK2 and giving it a try but I imagine I'll spend most of my time playing without it. When CV1/the consumer model comes out in the next year or two I can reassess and see whether I'm still actually playing ED.

Thanks for the two tips at the end. I guess I'm now leaning more towards getting an i7/970. Frame rate drops just really annoy me and I would hate to have that gorgeous hyperspace animation interrupted by stuttering, it would completely take me out of the experience.

i7/970 is a solid choice. E will run wonderfully on your Cinema Display , and will handle DK2 no problem.

One option I didn't give you either is, obviously, skipping out on making any SLI concessions now, and just replacing the 970 with another, more powerful singe card later for CV1. That'll might cost you more down the road, but you may or may not care that much.

The Rift is fantastic however, and I'm convinced that anyone that enjoys "seated" sims/games is going to regard it (CV1) as an absolute must-have item. You'll be fussed, trust me. However you want to approach it is up to you, but I think you're going to want a plan of some sort.

 

[epmode]

In my experience, any stuttering is more server/lag related than anything else.

My microstutter every few seconds appears to be entirely unaffected my network traffic. It's easy to test by launching the game, going into a tutorial mission and disabling my network adapter.

I even tried a full reformat. No go. Haven't heard anything about it from Frontier since I originally reported the issue several months ago.

I'm trying not to get discouraged but the microstutter has been present for me since day one of the premium beta.

 

[Ronnie]

i7/970 is a solid choice. E will run wonderfully on your Cinema Display , and will handle DK2 no problem.

One option I didn't give you either is, obviously, skipping out on making any SLI concessions now, and just replacing the 970 with another, more powerful singe card later for CV1. That'll might cost you more down the road, but you may or may not care that much.

The Rift is fantastic however, and I'm convinced that anyone that enjoys "seated" sims/games is going to regard it (CV1) as an absolute must-have item. You'll be fussed, trust me. However you want to approach it is up to you, but I think you're going to want a plan of some sort.

You've been a massive help thank you. Any idea when CV1 will be out? From reports it sounds like it's at least a year away? It may not be the most cost effective way of doing things but I think I'll settle for a 970 now and either add a SLI a second if VR supports it, or just replace it with a 980 and put the 970 up for sale to get a few quid back.

As long as I can get 1440p and a locked 60 fps on ED with i7/970 (without VR) I'm happy.

 

[ichtyander]

Anyone know what the release price will be? I see it's 40€ to preorder but I'm guessing it'll be more at release?

 

[Big Takeover]

You've been a massive help thank you. Any idea when CV1 will be out? From reports it sounds like it's at least a year away? It may not be the most cost effective way of doing things but I think I'll settle for a 970 now and either add a SLI a second if VR supports it, or just replace it with a 980 and put the 970 up for sale to get a few quid back.

As long as I can get 1440p and a locked 60 fps on ED with i7/970 (without VR) I'm happy.

I think anywhere from March to December, probably skewing towards the latter for ship date, but possibly skewing towards the former for ordering. Just an uninformed guess.

Sounds like a good plan. Happy to help.

EDIT: and I'm sorry, the 4790K is actually clocked higher than the standard 4790 (first time that's happened iirc), so opt for that.

 

[Mengy]

Anyone know what the release price will be? I see it's 40€ to preorder but I'm guessing it'll be more at release?

Yes it is $50 (40€) now to pre-order but I've read it will be $55 after December 16th.

I'm buying the mercenary edition this week, might as well save those $5. My only BIG question, and one that has not been answered yet by Frontier, is will mercenary edition owners get gamma access on November 22nd? The last newsletter contradicts what Braben himself said a few months ago on this matter, so no one truly knows at this point.

 

[ichtyander]

Yes it is $50 (40€) now to pre-order but I've read it will be $55 after December 16th.

I'm buying the mercenary edition this week, might as well save those $5. My only BIG question, and one that has not been answered yet by Frontier, is will mercenary edition owners get gamma access on November 22nd? The last newsletter contradicts what Braben himself said a few months ago on this matter, so no one truly knows at this point.

Thanks, I'm thinking of pre-ordering right now as well. As for the gamma access, I stumbled on the discussions on the Frontier forums while I was looking for the release price info and yeah, contradictory info everywhere. Although, I'd imagine there's a greater chance that only the earlier alpha and beta backers will get access on November 22nd.

Either way, I've waited almost two decades for an Elite game, one more month isn't that bad.

 

[Mengy]

If anyone was still wondering as to whether or not Mercenary Edition owners will get gamma access on November 22nd or not, it appears that the answer is no:

Hi Patrick,

The Gamma phase will be open to all players that purchased the game via one of the Kickstarter pledge tiers, or any player that purchased Alpha/Beta access from the store.
The Gamma will not be open to standard pre-orders made after the Kickstarter campaign had ended.
I hope this answers your query, please let us know if you have any further queries.
Thanks,

Not my email but saw it on the ED forums. Kind of disappointing as originally they said all pre-orders would get gamma access, but oh well, can't really do anything about it.

 

[Wreav]

The wait for noon CST tomorrow is long and arduous. I'm pretty much on an ED hiatus until launch, unless there is a new gamma feature that I'd like to learn the mechanics of. So far I'm thinking there won't be.

 

[Ronnie]

Do you mean the wait until the newsletter? Technically, there's another two to go before gamma begins so it would probably make more sense to leave such info for the day before, on the 21st Nov newsletter.

 

[Wreav]

They have said that we're getting gamma details tomorrow.

 

[Ronnie]

They have said that we're getting gamma details tomorrow.

Ah cool didn't know that. Promising that there's details to share rather than just beta 3 with lots of bugs squashed and not much else.

 

[DrBo42]

They have said that we're getting gamma details tomorrow.

Good. Gooooooooooooooooood.

 

[GeoGonzo]

Keep expectations in check, we'll probably get one or two teases or confirmations of new mechanics... don't go expecting a full list of features just yet!

 

[Lord Griegous]

Good thing is that the final wipe will be on the 22nd. There will be no wipe from "gamma" to release. Which is perfect for me since I will be on vacation for 20 days starting two days after release.

Can´t wait for the 22nd

 

[flyinpiranha]

Good thing is that the final wipe will be on the 22nd. There will be no wipe from "gamma" to release. Which is perfect for me since I will be on vacation for 20 days starting two days after release.

Can´t wait for the 22nd

Oh, interesting. Where did you see that? I'll be ramping up my playtime come the 22nd if that is true.

 

[Mengy]

Good thing is that the final wipe will be on the 22nd. There will be no wipe from "gamma" to release. Which is perfect for me since I will be on vacation for 20 days starting two days after release.

Can´t wait for the 22nd

It scares me a bit, because as a Mercenary Edition owner I won't get to play until December 16th, which means that a great many people will have three weeks of playtime before I even do the tutorials. I'll leave the starting station in my sidewinder and most likely get slaughtered by player gankers in Anacondas and Lakons right outside the hatch. I have this feeling that I'm going to have to pick a direction and travel far, far away from the start system simply to avoid noob campers.

Ah well, it ain't called Elite Dangerous for nothing I suppose!

 

[Ronnie]

It scares me a bit, because as a Mercenary Edition owner I won't get to play until December 16th, which means that a great many people will have three weeks of playtime before I even do the tutorials. I'll leave the starting station in my sidewinder and most likely get slaughtered by player gankers in Anacondas and Lakons right outside the hatch. I have this feeling that I'm going to have to pick a direction and travel far, far away from the start system simply to avoid noob campers.

Ah well, it ain't called Elite Dangerous for nothing I suppose!

I'm thinking the same but I get the impression that those players with a three week headstart will be the kickstarter backers and from the sound of things they seem a fairly respectful lot. Not sure there wil be that much PvP piracy going on? Could be wrong of course.

 

[Soi-Fong]

Damn!!!! I haven't played in a while.. Really have to get back into the thick of things!

 

[EGM1966]

It scares me a bit, because as a Mercenary Edition owner I won't get to play until December 16th, which means that a great many people will have three weeks of playtime before I even do the tutorials. I'll leave the starting station in my sidewinder and most likely get slaughtered by player gankers in Anacondas and Lakons right outside the hatch. I have this feeling that I'm going to have to pick a direction and travel far, far away from the start system simply to avoid noob campers.

Ah well, it ain't called Elite Dangerous for nothing I suppose!

You can always play Solo at first until you get the feel of things. So far as I'm aware you can switch from Solo to Online to Coop as you wish.

 

[Mengy]

You can always play Solo at first until you get the feel of things. So far as I'm aware you can switch from Solo to Online to Coop as you wish.

It's an option, but not one that I'm going to take. I plan on playing online full time and whatever happens just happens. Just like in the original, Elite isn't a game you ever "win" or "beat", it's a game you experience through playing it. If I lose my big ship and find myself down and out low on credits then I'll just make it my mission to build myself back up again, pure and simple.

Besides, I plan on playing a trader / explorer and getting far, FAR out into the galaxy. I doubt I'll be seeing too many human commanders a few days after launch.

 

[Ronnie]

I love how your save game is stored in the cloud so you can have two different installs on a desktop and laptop and just alternate between both whenever you want. Between PC and Mac apparently too which is perfect.

 

[Lord Griegous]

It's an option, but not one that I'm going to take. I plan on playing online full time and whatever happens just happens. Just like in the original, Elite isn't a game you ever "win" or "beat", it's a game you experience through playing it. If I lose my big ship and find myself down and out low on credits then I'll just make it my mission to build myself back up again, pure and simple.

Besides, I plan on playing a trader / explorer and getting far, FAR out into the galaxy. I doubt I'll be seeing too many human commanders a few days after launch.

Yeah, it totally depends on what everyone is looking for in the game. Getting gankers will obviously be unavoidable, but I think that if you are careful and keep enough money for the insurance you should be OK. Plus you could always switch to solo to get out of a ganking spot/station and then go back to multi just to avoid extreme griefing.