Elite: Dangerous

[little P]

Well, as this is a game that falls under nearly every category we have for pc gaming, I thought I'd post it here to see who else is participating in the Beta or hoping to pick this up on release.

http://www.elitedangerous.com/about/

I've been playing the Beta for nearly a week and so far I'm absolutely loving it.

It really has the same feel as Elite II: Frontier; the game I played most as a kid on my trusty Commodore Amiga 500+

Anyway, if you haven't seen what it's about here's a couple of trailers;

[video=youtube;ISR4ebdGlOk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISR4ebdGlOk[/video]

[video=youtube;VE8B4KptyVI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VE8B4KptyVI&list=PL7glm5rbPHKzypO6DkxySwNCD87ZoNkjN[/video]

Full list of videos can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/user/FrontierDevelopments/videos

Even in it's Beta stage it is absolutely beautiful and the features they have planned for this title are very ambitious. Following David Braben as I have over the years, you better believe he will deliver on his promises; from seamless planetary landings from space (as you could in Frontier) to fps combat on space stations/planet surfaces(!)...

Some of my screenshots can be found here; http://s1026.photobucket.com/user/littleP/library/?sort=3&page=1

It is so well made that even at this stage of development I can run everything on max settings. But what's interesting is David and co. have built this from the ground up so it can be updated to take advantage of ever more powerful machines to keep getting better and better looking. Although quite how much better looking can it get?

Here's some screenshots from my photobucket, they don't really do it justice but I can't upload them all here.

A couple of my favourites;

As I was idling chatting to Quick and Shilka on Twitch, this star started giving an incredible display of solar activity. The flares were amazing to witness.

Still images really don't do the scale or level of detail justice. As the space station rotates the day/night cycle is complete and every little building is modelled with lighting that comes on individually etc. Eventually we will be able to explore down there, can't wait.

Not many games make you just stop and take in the view... I'm going to be getting an Oculus Rift just for this game. That's how much of an experience it is already. From what owners say with DK2 version of the Rift the feeling of immersion in Elite is 100%

I cannot wait for the consumer release...

Anyway, hopefully see some of you out there in the vast unknown

 

[Shilka]

I must admit I was kind of impressed watching your stream, it looks awesome for sure!
Not really a fan of spacebattles myself though. Could you play this game being a pure trader while avoiding battle most of the time?

 

[little P]

I must admit I was kind of impressed watching your stream, it looks awesome for sure!
Not really a fan of spacebattles myself though. Could you play this game being a pure trader while avoiding battle most of the time?

Definitely, that's always been the beauty of Elite, you can be whatever you want to be.

Not sure if you saw it earlier but I was playing around with the silent running as I was trying to smuggle some goods in under the radar. The running silent thing is a meta game in itself, trying to balance heat buildup vs shutting systems down. You can even go as far as switching life support off, it is so complex and deep yet immediately accessible. It really does give you (even in this Beta stage) the tools to be whoever you want to be. A pirate, a smuggler, a lawman, a military officer, a trader, a mercenary, the list goes on. The best bit is you don't have to "choose" a class etc. you just carve your way through space the way you want to do it. I love that freedom, and it's a rare thing these days.

You could trade completely legally between systems with law enforcement to protect you if you wanted to do that for sure.

 

[Shilka]

Sounds interesting. Had a look at the official page, but boy, 60 euro for beta access seems a bit steep, especially with the preorder of final being 40 euro's... I guess I got spoiled by thinking early access would be cheaper then final, not 50% more expensive...

 

[little P]

Oh yeah definitely wait for release unless you are a massive fan of the Elite series like I am. You do get some cool things for paying for the Beta (mercenary edition of the game extra dlc etc.) but again, only worth it if you are a fan, I saw them as a bonus as I'd gladly have paid £50 just to play this at this stage. It's the only Beta I've ever paid into, and I would probably never do it again.

I wasn't bringing this up to get people to pay into the Beta (it is a lot of money to chuck into something you've just found out about) just a little heads up on what's to come. It's a game that lends itself perfectly to social gaming too, so will be a good one for a group to play together :icon_cool:

 

[Kenadian]

If I wanna be a Space Pimp can I be one?

 

[Solo4114]

If I wanna be a Space Pimp can I be one?

The game is called "Dangerous."

[video=youtube;UJUk45l4h8c]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJUk45l4h8c[/video]

Do the math.

 

[Shilka]

Well, still very impressed by the game as far as I could see on the stream. Had it been 25 euro's I might have been playing with you this evening already

 

[little P]

If I wanna be a Space Pimp can I be one?

You can actually become a slave trader so a space pimp is one small step for mankind away I guess?

I'm imagining Commander "Do 'em" Duke with a neon green feather poking out the top of your spaceship lol

 

[little P]

The game is called "Dangerous."

[video=youtube;UJUk45l4h8c]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJUk45l4h8c[/video]

Do the math.

Bill Duke is thinking in this video "I used to make movies like Predator now I'm sitting next to that listening to this"

To be fair I'm still tapping my foot lol

 

[little P]

I'm making some trading runs saving up for a Hauler at the moment, listening to Daft Punk's album Random Access Memories. I don't think I could be any more chilled. Bliss...

 

[Fireblade]

I've got access to the beta. Can share my credentials if someone wants to try it.

 

[little P]

That's a kind offer dude!

If anyone does want to try it, this helped me out a lot;

http://www.mediafire.com/download/5jxh750heuhzedw/Elite+Dangerous.Pilots+Guide.Manual.Tutorial.pdf from this thread; http://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=34437

It's a very helpful guide on the beta, as it doesn't come with any form of guide or instructions it can be a bit overwhelming to begin with but don't worry you can pick it up quite easily.

This guide is absolutely fantastic, I've read all of it

 

[tmtm]

I'm trying soooo hard to resist this game. I'm trying to be a good boy and wait to see how it shapes up before I invest the cash on the game and a new joystick.

 

[little P]

I'm trying soooo hard to resist this game. I'm trying to be a good boy and wait to see how it shapes up before I invest the cash on the game and a new joystick.

I'm not going to be able to help you resist...

Spent nearly four hours on this (in one sitting, I had no idea it had been that long when I finally snapped out of it) yesterday evening listening to chilled tunes and exploring, making trade runs, got attacked by pirates but managed to escape using an asteroid field for cover, discovered canisters full of explosives and gold, sold them on the black market in a station I found that was actually a pirate outpost, and loads of other stuff that happened that was not scripted or pre-determined. It constantly surprises me considering it is still just a Beta with most of the features of the final game not even in it yet. And you get so immersed if you allow yourself to. For someone who grew up in the 80's with all the sci-fi that was around during that time, this game is a dream come true

I'm using my old Saitek Cyborg Evo, and have ordered an ED tracker (think Track IR but it costs £25) to get me by until the Rift is released, the controls are spot on, the way they have done it allows you to control the ship fairly easily as long as you take it steady, but the system is there waiting for you (if you want to delve into it) to enable some funky maneuvering.

I regret nothing paying for the Beta, Elite is everything I hoped it would be and there is so much to come, I've played it for around 15 hours of the Beta so far and I've not even scratched the surface yet...

 

[little P]

Beta 2 will be released on the 30th September. The new features look awesome :icon_cool:

http://us2.campaign-archive2.com/?u=dcbf6b86b4b0c7d1c21b73b1e&id=e676783725#Newsletterpeekoftheweek

 

[Daunt]

I love games like this. Although I prefer capital ships to fighters, still looks amazing. I would like to see some gameplay from you. I think you said you had a twitch stream though I don't know where/what... do you have past broadcasts of you playing it?

I think very soon we will do a better job of linking up everyone's twitch accounts so it is easy to find who has what youtube, twitch stream, etc.

 

[little P]

I do have past broadcasts but I'm normally playing some nice relaxing music and Twitch mutes all audio if you do that. My twitch broadcasts might not be the best ones to watch anyway, I'm learning the ropes, trying to find good trade routes etc. and sometimes I just go off on a wander around solar systems checking out planets/suns etc. and I do still routinely fly into solid objects with alarming regularity. :icon_redface:

If you prefer capital ships, watch this

[video=youtube;VE8B4KptyVI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VE8B4KptyVI[/video]

I believe once the re-brand is under way we will be having a central location listing all members who broadcast with links to their channel.

In the meantime my channel is here: http://www.twitch.tv/little__p

I can't promise epic capital ship fights though, it's mostly doing trade runs trying to work up to a bigger ship, which may seem boring to some, but when you have got one of your favourite albums on and a (large) glass of Rum and Coke on the go it has to be one of the most relaxing ways to lose yourself in a game...

 

[tmtm]

I'll probably be able to resist until around the holidays, but after that my will might break...

 

[Daunt]

If you prefer capital ships, watch this

[video=youtube;VE8B4KptyVI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VE8B4KptyVI[/video]

I believe once the re-brand is under way we will be having a central location listing all members who broadcast with links to their channel.

In the meantime my channel is here: http://www.twitch.tv/little__p

I can't promise epic capital ship fights though, it's mostly doing trade runs trying to work up to a bigger ship, which may seem boring to some, but when you have got one of your favourite albums on and a (large) glass of Rum and Coke on the go it has to be one of the most relaxing ways to lose yourself in a game...

I watched that from your post earlier. I try to steer away from videos that AREN'T gameplay videos. You can make anything look good with a CGI video. I see that capital ships are going to be IN the game, but controllable?

I will take a look at your stream and maybe dig up some more actual gameplay videos. Thank you. Very tempting! I love any game that features an open-universe space ship game. I've played EVE on and off since 2005. Love the game but it is more of a lifestyle haha. Way too involved. My char for that game though is probably worth big bucks...