Elite Dangerous FAQ: Difference between revisions

== What is "Elite: Dangerous"? ==

: '''''[http://www.elitedangerous.com Elite: Dangerous]''''' is the [http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=dcbf6b86b4b0c7d1c21b73b1e&id=f9f6f99d01#4 ''4th'' installment of the game], which includes [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Is .22Elite: Dangerous.22 an MMOG.3F|mass-multiplayer]] as an integral part, while still allowing [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#How will single player work.3F Will I need to connect to a server to play.3F|singleplayer.]]

: The subtitle "Dangerous" refers to the 3rd best [http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=dcbf6b86b4b0c7d1c21b73b1e&id=f72c0f91b2#Badge%20of%20Honour Elite Rating] you could achieve during combat in the [http://elite.frontier.co.uk/media ''Elite'' games.] In the new game it has been [http://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6279 expanded] to include more than combat.

: The origin of the series is ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elite_%28video_game%29 Elite,]'' the genre defining [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srlJVE50mCI&list=SP9E1E1F7AA6193498&index=1 open world sandbox space / trading / combat simulator] first released in ''1984''.

: It spawned two sequels ''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynXwvSqsCek Frontier: Elite II]'' in ''[https://frontier.co.uk/games/older/frontier_elite_ii 1993]'' and ''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0_WewBEGew Frontier: First Encounters (Elite III)]'' in ''[https://frontier.co.uk/games/older/frontier_first_encounters 1995]'', which already attempted to [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#How big will planets and star systems.C2.A0be.3F|simulate a realistic Milky Way galaxy]] with [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AK-NMyDaPAg realistic star systems] and [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yc9o_ldmlVs&t=72 seamless freeform interplanetary] and [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0_WewBEGew#t=53 atmospheric flight] and landing on [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Will planets rotate and orbit around stars.3F|moving planets]], with [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0_WewBEGew&t=265 realistic day/night cycles].

: ''Elite'' also [http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/134644/the_replay_interviews_gary_penn.php inspired the creation of the "Grand Theft Auto (GTA)" series.]

: Official Pages:

: Community Pages:

==='''What are the main features of "Elite: Dangerous"?'''===

: The game will be expanded with ambitious features such as [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Will it be possible to manually land on planets.3F|seamless freeform (manual pitch/yaw/roll) atmospheric flight and landings]] and [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Can I walk around the ship.2C planets and space stations.3F|walking around and boarding ships, walking in stations and on full 1:1 scale populated living planets and more.]]

: More detailed information on a lot of the features of the game can be found in the [http://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=25164 Design Discussion Archive.]

==='''On what platforms will "Elite: Dangerous" be released?'''===

: [http://elite.frontier.co.uk Elite: Dangerous] is planned to be released for:

==='''Where can I buy "Elite: Dangerous"?'''===

: [http://elite.frontier.co.uk/about Elite: Dangerous] will be available for ''[https://store.zaonce.net/elite-dangerous-cat/elite-dangerous.html £35.00 / €40.00 / $50.00]'' on both [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#On.C2.A0what platforms will .22Elite: Dangerous.22.C2.A0be released.3F|Windows PC and three months later on Apple Macintosh]] computers.

: ''The Beta is available only on Windows.'' You will be able to download the released game on Windows and/or Macintosh computers once it is available, at no extra charge.

: Current beta release schedule for the PC:

: [https://store.zaonce.net/elite-dangerous-standard-beta.html/ Standard Beta (£50.00 / €60.00 / $75.00)]

[https://store.zaonce.net/elite-dangerous-cat/elite-dangerous.html Elite: Dangerous full game (£35.00 / €40.00 / $50.00)]

Pre-Order open now – ''planned release is Q4 2014,'' exact release date to be announced.

 

: [http://elite.frontier.co.uk Official "Elite: Dangerous" website]

==='''What are the minimal system requirements to run "Elite: Dangerous"?'''===

: While the full release of ''[http://elite.frontier.co.uk Elite: Dangerous]'' will be available on both [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#On.C2.A0what platforms will .22Elite: Dangerous.22.C2.A0be released.3F|Windows PC and three months later on Apple Macintosh]] computers, the beta only supports Windows. Everyone who bought beta access, will be able to download the game for Windows and/or Macintosh computers once it is available, at no extra charge.

: ''Development of the game is ongoing, and so recommended specifications are currently only available for the Beta builds.''

: Supported Operating Systems:

: For the final game the minimum hardware specifications may be lower as further code optimisations are completed.

=== '''Are there plans for other platforms to be supported?''' ===

: Frontier Developments have confirmed that they are evaluating support for the next-gen console platforms XBox One and Playstation 4[http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2014-07-14-how-about-elite-dangerous-on-ps4-and-xbox-one] and also Linux desktop[http://www.tuxradar.com/content/interview-david-braben-0], but the initial release is only planned to support Windows and Mac OS X.

: There will be [http://elite.frontier.co.uk/i_gal/ed-capital_ship_battle.jpg capital ships] in the game, but initially you won't be able to control or own them, but they will [http://www.pcgamesn.com/elite-dangerous/elite-dangerous-standard-beta-begins-next-week-last-chance-grab-lifetime-expansion-pack player controllable] in an [[Elite:_Dangerous_FAQ#What_is_the_expansion_pass.3F|expansion]]. <!-- <ref>{{YT|url=fR4G2W7bCHY#t=110|text=Test1 @0:59}}</ref><ref>{{YT|url=P3bVeRpvctQ&t=815|text=Test2 @0:59}}</ref> -->

=== '''What are the general differences between "Elite: Dangerous" and "Star Citizen"?''' ===

: The differences are predominantly in issues surrounding scale, complexity of background simulations, adherence to recognised science of the universe and release schedule.

: ''Elite: Dangerous'' is projected for a general [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Where can I buy .22Elite: Dangerous.22.3F| release in Q4 2014.]]

: Both ''Elite: Dangerous'' and ''Star Citizen'' will have an on-going [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#I have heard that the .22Elite.22 series have no actual storyline. Is that true.3F|background story]] which will be influenced by the players and augmented with developer injected events.

: ''Star Citizen'' comes with a [http://starcitizen.wikia.com/wiki/Squadron_42 single-player focused cinematic scripted campaign] and is projected for general episodic releases starting from mid 2015, which will later be updated with [http://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/comments/1zjv88/stupid_question_dont_upvote_has_there_been_any/cfubctr paid DLC expansions.]

: In ''Elite: Dangerous'', the [http://i.imgur.com/vXLnJea.png ships] are relatively [https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/33305725/Elite/comparison.jpg larger] for [[Ships#Faction Ships|their class]], with capital ships in the [http://elite.frontier.co.uk/images/newsletter_2013_09_06/schematic_flat_FEDCAP.png 2 km range] and atmospheric capable ones are engineered to be [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Why are the ships simpler in design compared to other games.3F|aerodynamically streamlined and symmetrical]], and therefore carry their weapons within a bay. This provides ships with hulls that are able to enter and [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Will landing and docking be seamless in .22Elite: Dangerous.22.3F|freeform (manual pitch/yaw/roll)]] fly through 1:1 scale planet atmospheres at hypersonic speeds.

: In ''Star Citizen'' the ships are less aerodynamically streamlined and carry their weapons outboard, some are [http://starcitizen.wikia.com/wiki/Scythe asymmetrical.]

: ''Elite: Dangerous'' has freeform (manual pitch/yaw/roll) [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#How will we travel those vast distances in such a huge glaxy.3F|interplanetary fast travel]] with combat maneuvering. Due to the [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#How big will planets and star systems.C2.A0be.3F|realistic 1:1 scale galaxy]] with proper distances, it necessitates [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#How will we travel those vast distances in such a huge glaxy.3F|faster than light speeds]], up to 2000 times the speed of light (2000C), to make travel times practical with [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Will there be detailed ship managment and avionics.3F|very long range sensors and combat interaction]] and you will be able to seamlessly enter [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#How will we travel those vast distances in such a huge glaxy.3F|hyperspace]] to travel from anywhere to another star.

: ''Star Citizen'''s interplanetary fast travel will allow a speed of up to 20% the speed of light (0.2C), which necessitates [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5M5DXzcMmg&t=1066 scaled down] star systems to compress [http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=dcbf6b86b4b0c7d1c21b73b1e&id=f9f6f99d01#4 spatial distances] to make travel times practical. It also won't be freeform (Autopilot Only) nor have combat maneuvering in this mode, [http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/12grru/i_am_chris_roberts_creator_of_wing_commander/c6uxa22 so you will not have the ability to specify an exact random location in space. You can navigate to known locations or tag a ship they want to track or ambush.] Also you must fly through [https://forums.robertsspaceindustries.com/discussion/comment/1738871/#Comment_1738871 wormhole-like jump points (which will allow some interactivity) at fixed locations to other star system.]

: In ''Elite: Dangerous'' the [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#How big will planets and star systems.C2.A0be.3F|galaxy will be scientifically accurate]] and include around&nbsp;a 100 billion star systems (around 400 billion stars considering most systems contain multiple stars). The ''Elite'' Universe is modelled on current galactic charts. [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Will planets rotate and orbit around stars.3F|Planets and moons will rotate and orbit in 1:1 scale real-time]], therefore constantly changing a system's environment.

: ''Star Citizen'''s galaxy will have [http://starcitizenreview.com/star-citizen-star-systems-review 120 star systems] at launch, with [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXqoyZxI_GE&t=1286 time compressed to 2 hours for each day (1:12 scale time)] and a more [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5M5DXzcMmg&t=1066 casual take] on [http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=dcbf6b86b4b0c7d1c21b73b1e&id=f9f6f99d01#4 spatial size and distance of celestial bodies], meaning [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwTsSkUhQhU&t=482 planets won't be properly scaled] and they might also not orbit. To give an example, ''Elite: Dangerous'' will have [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_known_stars stars] alone that can engulf whole star systems of Star Citizen multiple times. Also see [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEheh1BH34Q this video] to give a sense of scale.

: ''Elite: Dangerous'' has lightspeed pulse and [[Beam Laser|beam lasers]] on all ships fitted with energy weapons, as opposed to ''Star Citizen'' which has [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE_xZdeakEw&t=873 slow moving beam weapons] only on capital ships. The remainder of the ''Star Citizen'' fleet will have [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE_xZdeakEw&t=883 slow moving laser bolts] like one would see in Star Wars.

: ''Elite: Dangerous'' will have [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Can I walk around the ship.2C planets and space stations.3F|freeform (go wherever you want) planetary exploration]] on full 1:1 scale planets.

: In ''Star Citizen'', planetside movement will be restricted to specialized locations, such as star ports, bars and FPS arenas, while the rest of the planet is off limits.

: In ''Elite: Dangerous'' there is [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4-gyDLRMXg&t=219 no artificial gravity], so [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Will landing and docking be seamless in .22Elite: Dangerous.22.3F|space stations]] are [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6AxOoBF7SM&t=34 designed to rotate] as opposed to ''Star Citizen''.

: There are major differences in how each game handles close combat flight (as you can see from [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VY5x85F-DKM this video]). There is an [http://forums.frontier.co.uk/showpost.php?p=123326 inherent flaw] with the premise of close combat space flight leading to endless turreting and circle-strafing especially in PVP multiplayer due to the lack of terrain features in mid space.

: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KAJuR5giGo&t=3 You can turn flight assist off], so you will have have to manually adjust the thruster forces to control the skidding and counteract the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angular_momentum angular momentum], the flight control computer however is still active to keep you [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TrvJoViw8w within safety parameters.]

===What are the expansions?===

 

The expansions will include features such as seamless freeform (manual pitch/yaw/roll) [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Will it be possible to manually land on planets.3F|atmospheric flight and landings]] and [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Can I walk around the ship.2C planets and space stations.3F|out-of-ship activities]] (such as FPS combat, walking around and boarding ships, walking in stations and on full 1:1 scale populated living planets), [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Will I be able to hire crew for my ship.3F|multi-player crew]] and [[Elite: Dangerous FAQ#Can I own and control capital ships.3F|player executive controlled capital ships]].

Frontier intends to release small, free updates after launch. Expansions that include significant new features and content will have to be purchased.