Elite Dangerous: Difference between revisions

*[[System Colonisation]] was added in 2025 and requires the Odyssey expansion.

In the tradition of the original [[Elite]] from 1984 and open-world games; there's no linear story. You can be a rich trader, a veteran bounty hunter, a feared pirate, a lonely miner, a notorious smuggler, all of them or something else entirely, based on your own actions.[[File:Type 9 mining.jpg|thumb|250px|Type-9 mining]]Among the trillions of people in the [[galaxy]] - you start off as an insignificant new member of the [[Pilots Federation]]. You receive an indefinitely loaned and insured [[Sidewinder]] and a small sum of [[credits]] from a secret benefactor. You've got a [[Ships|ship]] and some spare [[credits]] to get started. One day, you might gain fame, wealth or glory. Unlike RPGs, players in Elite Dangerous do not choose their role by customizing the stats and skills of their character. Instead, the player is free to pursue any career akin to real-life. The [[careers]] can be categorized as combat, covert, exploration, mining, trading, transportation and utility. Blaze your trail to fame and fortune as a [[Trader]], [[Miner]], [[Explorer]], [[Bounty Hunter]], [[Smuggler]], [[Courier]], [[Mercenary]], [[Assassin]], [[Xeno Hunter]], [[Pirate]] etc. Customizing your [[Ships|ship]] gears it towards specific careers. Hybrid careers are possible through emergent gameplay. For example bounty hunting while trading in a multipurpose vessel, or take long-range trade missions and explore uncharted systems along the way. [[System Colonisation|System colonisation]] lets you develop unpopulated [[Star system|star systems]]. There is a gigantic sandbox where you can leave your mark on the galaxy.<ref>[https://www.elitedangerous.com/ Elite Dangerous - website description] - 2026</ref>[[File:Anemones-planetary-ring.png|thumb|250px|Anemones and a planetary ring]]The player can customize his or her character's physical characteristics with [[Holo-Me]]. It allows deep character customization which can be done at any time. For example, players can change their [[Remlok Suit]], head, facial features, gender and other cosmetics. The fully functional [[Camera suite|Camera Suite]] enables  third-person views, sophisticated screenshots, machinima and control a ship or [[Vehicles|vehicle]] in third person.

Hundreds of [[ships]] can be owned by a player and customised for certain careers. Unused ships are stored in [[shipyard]] [[Hangar|hangars]]. They can be retrieved by returning to a [[station]] or [[settlement]] at any time. Ships can also be delivered to a station near your location if it has a shipyard.

[[File:Horizons-reveal-cobra-landing.jpg|thumb|250px|Planetary landing]]Since ED launched on 16 December 2014, the player was limited to experience the galaxy from a ship's cockpit or an [[Vehicles|SRV]] seat. However, [[Horizons|ED: Horizons]] update 2.0 added [[Planetary Landings|Planetary Landing]] on 15 December 2015. This made realistic, full-sized, airless [[planets]] and [[moons]] accessible.

Up until early 2021, the player was essentially the vessel: a [[Ships|ship]] or [[Vehicles|vehicle]]. Walking in person was a long awaited feature which the community dubbed "Space legs". In 2021, [[Elite Dangerous: Odyssey|ED: Odyssey]] added [[On Foot]] features which extended the level of detail to a first person scale. The player could finally walk around as an individual person rather than a vessel. Ships became extensions of the player. [[Atmospheric Landing|Atmospheric landing]] on planets with tenuous [[Atmosphere|atmospheres]] became possible. Players can set foot on unexplored [[planets]] and receive an accolade that recognizes their [[First Footfall]].<ref>[https://customersupport.frontier.co.uk/hc/en-us/articles/4405415875218-What-is-the-First-Footfall-system-in-the-Odyssey-expansion What is the First Footfall system in the Odyssey expansion? - 20 August 2021 - Frontier Developments]</ref> Visit [[Settlement|settlements]], [[outpost]]s, [[starport]]s etc. Drive around with [[vehicles]] or walk on-foot to explore the surface for [[materials]], alien [[species]] etc.

[[File:SRV-Scarab-Driving-Planet.png|thumb|250px|SRV Scarab drives on a planet]]The first available [[Vehicles|vehicle]] is the small [[SRV]] [[Scarab]]. It's primarily designed for [[Explorer|exploration]] to allow pilots to drive and jump across planetary surfaces. It's also useful for [[Miner|mining]] [[materials]]. The [[Planetary Vehicle Hangar]] module provides a hangar space on-board a ship to carry and repair an SRV. It's equipped with a [[Wave Scanner]] which is an unidirectional long-range forward facing scanner that detects a variety of vehicles and points of interest. The [[Scorpion]] is a 2 seater combat SRV that was added with [[Elite Dangerous: Odyssey|ED: Odyssey]] in 2021. The large [[Rhino]] is designed for surface mining with a [[Mining Rig|mining rig]].

[[File:Elite-Dangerous-Hero-Connected-Artwork.png|Elite Dangerous hero connected artwork|thumb|250px]]''Elite Dangerous'' is set in the 34th century, 50 years after the events of ''[[Frontier: First Encounters]]'', starting in the year 3300 (which equals 2014). The alien [[Thargoid|Thargoids]], introduced in ''[[Elite]] (1984),'' have returned. This caused the [[First Thargoid War|First]] and [[Second Thargoid War]]. ED and the classic ''Elite'' games have a shared fictional [[Elite Universe|''Elite'' ''universe'']].

 

Elite Dangerous features a shared narrative which is influenced by players on all platforms. This occurs with community events like [[Salomé]], community goals and [[Powerplay]] activities. All of the meta data for the galaxy is shared between players. It's not traditional storytelling, rather an interactive, overarching narrative. Players have influenced and changed the course of events. The story unfolds in real time, in which players decide the outcomes and can be the stars.<ref>[https://www.polygon.com/2014/12/16/7402069/elite-dangerous-launch-campaign-single-player-story Polygon: Elite: Dangerous actually has a story, here's how to find it]</ref> The latest news on in-game events and remarkable stories are reported on [[GalNet]]. See the [[Elite Dangerous Timeline]] for a chronological list of events.