SpaceSimCentral

Three modes: Solo (no players), Group (only players in your group), and Open (anything goes).

I've just made a litlle enquiry about any sort of Single Player mode. Actually there is what is called "Solo play" mode which hides all players and puts you against NPCs. The other mode is "Open Play" which you chose for PvP or MMO. For anyone interested, here is a good description of the difference between the 2 by FalconFly: https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=28540&page=2[/url] This just adds to my reluctance of playing MMO. A total chaos is what generally results. I really hope FD makes a pure Single Player Offline Mode available, I dont' care if the universe will be somewhat smaller (how smaller is the XBox universe, and is it Single Player and offline?). XenonS Well, although I'm not sure about the XBox release, I'd be surprised if the universe was any smaller and there was a offline mode. Except for the case of unstable internet connections, what is the issue with playing a solo online mode? Yes, an offline version could deploy and perfect certain aspects of the game, including eventual modding, but if it was exactly the same game...

Except for the case of unstable internet connections, what is the issue with playing a solo online mode? Yes, an offline version could deploy and perfect certain aspects of the game, including eventual modding, but if it was exactly the same game...There are several extremely good reasons why Elite should be offline and why, more generally, a game should follow an MMO model if and only if being an MMO is absolutely crucial to the core mechanics of the game. You just hit on a very good one right there: modding. Modding is a pretty big deal (think of games like Skyrim or Sins of a Solar Empire). Probably the best reason, which may seem trivial but is actually quite a big deal, is the ability to PAUSE THE GAME. Pausing is important. If I'm paying money to play a video game, which is a thing made to entertain me, I should be able to pause it. Sometimes I just want to pause it for no particularly good reason, other times I actually have to use the bathroom. It is also good to at least have the option to return to a game in exactly the same state I left it in (even if there are restrictions on saving). Maybe I don't want to see other players' ridiculous names plastered all over all the nearby systems that they were exploring because I didn't feel like doing any exploring quite yet, because I want to do other things in Elite first, am playing other games, or because I have a life outside of video games. Another huge reason NOT to make a game an MMO, which I think people often miss, is that it necessitates balance on a much grander scale than is necessary or even desirable in single player games. In Elite this problem manifests itself partly in the need to strictly limit players' ability to individually affect the game world, even in individual systems. I think this is one of the design principles which most contributes to Elite feeling so grindy. Then there is the more often discussed problem of connectivity. Occasionally servers go down or have bandwidth limitations that adversely affect the game. In my mind almost none of the games ever made have a legitimate justification for always being online. At the moment, the only example that comes to mind is EVE online. I personally think that even most traditional MMO's, like WOW or Old Republic, which don't require player interaction at anywhere near the level of something like EVE, would be far better off with some sort of large-scale match-making system than actually being MMO's. Elite doesn't even come close to having a good enough reason to be always-online, at least in its current state. Don't get me wrong, I really like Elite Dangerous, I have well over 100 hours in it and I don't intend to stop playing it anytime soon. (I also believe I have posts in this thread defending it.) I just think that this is one of the areas in which FD has really screwed up. I'm not sure why developers have such a hard time understanding why people are so keen on having an offline mode. David Braben's statements about the gameplay reasons for being always-online are baffling to me, I'm actually more comfortable with the explanation that it would be very technically challenging on their end.

Some very good points there. I have another: making your games online-only limits the lifespan of the game, because there's got to be a server around somewhere to let you play it. Suppose you want to fire up your old copy of Elite: Dangerous 20 years from now, by running a PC emulator on your brain-implant Holo chip (or whatever ) - well, you'll have to hope that Frontier are still in business and their server is running, or that someone has managed to make a homebrew replica. Lots of the old abandonware games from the '80s and '90s that people still enjoy would not be viable if they'd all required an active server connection. auryx

ExpandingMan, you raise good points, and being a offline game would allow ED to be quite different in many small but very significant aspects (different balancing, maybe the return of time compression / better transition between "speeds"), that all combined would also produce a quite distinct game from the online ED version. Personally I'd love to have it but that entails that FD is willing and there is market to a quite different but similar game.

Video time about Horizons. Good material there: 

Three years on - and I don't know whether to laugh or cry!

Three years on - and I don't know whether to laugh or cry! Comon Cody. At least they making progress along the way :gamer: So far this is the only space sim with the latest graphics that we can play. Even with all it short comings and flaws.And if people think that this is a money grab. See what SC is doing, 4 years on ... I don't know whether to laugh or cry!

Horizons Beta is live - and it seems to be quite interesting:  (not mine)

It's kinda cool :)Just landed on a planet myself for the first time:

What can you do on the planets? Or what is planned that you will be able to do? The preview video from FD didn't really show off what you will be able to do and all of the planets they landed on were dead.

For now, dock at starports, gather materials for crafting of ammo, fsd-injection, repairs, fuel for the srv etc. You can salvage from wrecks and other point of interests, attack bases, steal, hack and mybe some more stuff I don't know about yet.

I know I haven't been following Elite Dangerous: Horizons closely so excuse my ignorance here but I thought this was an expansion dlc or addon content not a standalone title? FD is selling this as a standalone game...! WTF is their problem? Charging an additional $60 for a stupid expansion, this should be part of the core game and not a $60 addon.... well excuse me you get 25% off if you own E:D. I am so glad I haven't bought this game yet and I won't until I have a GOTY type addition with all this content in it. So now they are going to milk $60 from their fan base for content that should be just addon DLC. Sorry folks I cannot believe FD is doing this to the fans of the game. And I certainly hope Star Citizen doesn't end up like this. Well now I know why E:D was on sale three weeks ago for $14, I guess people are not buying the game anymore and they are trying to get more funds. But $60 is a steep price for what looks like minimal content. For those playing with the new Horizons is the planet experience that good to warrant $60? For those that are interested, here is the steam link: http://store.steampowered.com/app/419270[/url]

Oddly enough I keep finding myself wanting to vigorously defend Elite Dangerous which initially I had such mixed feelings about. First off: yes, their business model is bullshit. The way the gaming market is these days, charging $45 for an expansion is crazy, almost no matter what is in it. If it weren't for what I'm about to say below, I definitely wouldn't buy it. We should keep in mind that if you are playing something like EVE, you pay much MORE than that per year for all those expansions, but I'll agree that that business model just can't compete considering all the downward pressure on prices these days. That said, I really don't get why there has been so much negativity and vitriol over Elite Dangerous since it was first released. Yeah, it has its problems but, WHAT ELSE IS OUT THERE THAT COMES CLOSE TO IT? There just isn't anything. It has no competition. This is SO much more than what beloved X-Wing and TIE Fighter ever were. If you want an open-ended space sim, that's really it, and there are so many amazing things about it. I think the new planets are absolutely goddamn gorgeous. They are just about the most convincing planets I have seen in any science fiction ever. The idea that I can land on any atmosphereless planet in the galaxy is just mind boggling. On top of that, it has perfectly smooth and consistent performance, so it's quite impressive on the technical side. I don't know, I think I am biased because I have a science background and getting to fly around in a realistic, convincing and, most importantly, to-scale galaxy is completely blowing my mind. I can't imagine anyone saying it isn't worth it. Even if I couldn't do anything else other than fly up to these amazing, unbelievably realistic planets and land it would be worth every penny of $45 to me. Gameplay-wise probably the most important feature in Horizons will be the overhaul of ship modules. I'm just starting to dig into this so no opinion yet. I think getting that right will be a huge part of whether the game will be worth sinking hundreds more hours into.

To be perfectly honest, FD did make it apparent from the get-go that they would be releasing the game in "seasons" and that we'd be paying for each one individually, unless we picked up the lifetime pass or backed at a certain level. While that's somewhat unappealing, it has been stated from the kickstarter days. I'm actually OK with it, because I can make the determination on whether or not a season's content looks worthwhile to me, and they are finally kicking discounts like the Steam sale out occasion. Base game owners still get access to a fair bit of new content and new optimizations, while those who bought into Horizons will continue to get new content for an entire season. As far as the game itself goes, it can be breathtaking as well as underwhelming. FD has built an absolutely amazing galaxy for us to explore, but the NPC element isn't up to the task of bringing it all to life. Yet. This isn't a huge problem for someone like me, who is really just happy to have a Space Engine type simulator where I can load up a ship and head out into the black. Horizons lets me do something more than just swing by planets, now I get to go out and get my space boots dirty. I can watch nebulas and ringed gas giants dominate the skyline while trying not to kill myself cruising around in the SRV. It's truly an experience. Even though I don't feel I get the most out of all the content, I feel like Horizons was well worth my money. If you are questioning purchasing ED & Horizons, I'd suggest picking ED up on the next steam sale. The base game is well worth $15 and it will let you determine whether or not Horizons is of interest to you. Just my 2c

ED has been a wild ride from back when the kickstarter was announced. However, I really can't hate on Frontier, they gave me my money back when they announced that the game would be Online only. (No offline play whatsoever.) So I can't even be mad. I eventually moved and got my internet sorted...only to find the game just isn't that much fun. I got some new ships, and flew around, but the universe is utterly dead outside of certain locations. I get it, space is big. However, how come I only find pirates at the little sun warp point things? How come I never meet any AI ships anywhere? At least more around stations. I dunno, the galaxy felt dead and lifeless. The trading was much more difficult than similar games, the missions where really poorly generated (18 jumps to get this one item and bring it back to join the federation? Are you kidding?) I bounced off ED pretty hard a few months back, and havn't really felt like I missed much. Horizons doesn't really seem to change the core problems. Who cares about driving around on a planet? I can do that in any old grand theft auto game. How about adding some vibrant and exciting content? I want that feeling that FFE had. The danger of trading, the pirates attacking etc. Anyway, I guess what I'm trying to say, is that Horizons doesn't look like its worth the money at all.

I know I haven't been following Elite Dangerous: Horizons closely so excuse my ignorance here but I thought this was an expansion dlc or addon content not a standalone title? FD is selling this as a standalone game...! WTF is their problem? Charging an additional $60 for a stupid expansion, this should be part of the core game and not a $60 addon.... well excuse me you get 25% off if you own E:D. I am so glad I haven't bought this game yet and I won't until I have a GOTY type addition with all this content in it. So now they are going to milk $60 from their fan base for content that should be just addon DLC. Sorry folks I cannot believe FD is doing this to the fans of the game. And I certainly hope Star Citizen doesn't end up like this. Well now I know why E:D was on sale three weeks ago for $14, I guess people are not buying the game anymore and they are trying to get more funds. But $60 is a steep price for what looks like minimal content. For those playing with the new Horizons is the planet experience that good to warrant $60? For those that are interested, here is the steam link: http://store.steampowered.com/app/419270[/url] Full marks for the realisations of the awful truth! "Frontier" are evil IMO. Simply evil. Even as bad as Zynga, or even Kixeye (anyone whos played WarCommander or Battle Pirates will tell you). Not only do they expect you rebuy the whole game AGAIN for even more than the first version - look at the merchandising on their webstore. £10 for ship paintjobs and decorative "bobbleheads" for your cockpit - ie £10 for a bunch of pixels! Not only that but I believe Frontier are planning to do this same trick every year for the next 10! By 2025 it's plausible the end product of Elite Dangerous will have cost you over £1000.Except it's NOT likely to get that far. Judging from the intense backlashes over what they've done with "Horizons", the screams of "boycott!" and the demanding of David Brabens severed head and extracted jet-black heart to be burnt at the stake..... well, I think it's over for Elite : Dangerous already. Well done, and thanks, to all the po-faced money vampiric suits at "Frontier".

ED has been a wild ride from back when the kickstarter was announced. However, I really can't hate on Frontier, they gave me my money back when they announced that the game would be Online only. (No offline play whatsoever.) So I can't even be mad. I eventually moved and got my internet sorted...only to find the game just isn't that much fun. I got some new ships, and flew around, but the universe is utterly dead outside of certain locations. I get it, space is big. However, how come I only find pirates at the little sun warp point things? How come I never meet any AI ships anywhere? At least more around stations. I dunno, the galaxy felt dead and lifeless. The trading was much more difficult than similar games, the missions where really poorly generated (18 jumps to get this one item and bring it back to join the federation? Are you kidding?) I bounced off ED pretty hard a few months back, and havn't really felt like I missed much. Horizons doesn't really seem to change the core problems. Who cares about driving around on a planet? I can do that in any old grand theft auto game. How about adding some vibrant and exciting content? I want that feeling that FFE had. The danger of trading, the pirates attacking etc. Anyway, I guess what I'm trying to say, is that Horizons doesn't look like its worth the money at all. Indeed it is not, *yet*! Maybe if DB has a change of face and heart, drops the giant rip-off scam, restores the faith of the fanbase then maybe, in a few years time Elite : Dangerous will catch up with EF-FE for content/gameplay. Then I would be happy to pay £40 again for the game. As for paying another £40 for E:D Horizons as it is *now*, after paying £30 only a few months ago for the 1st version..... they can go :suicide: themselves! Right now E:D is just an criminally overpriced empty container. Once it starts getting filled with hi-quality goods, then it will become worth it. However, looking at the current levels of unrest over "Horizons" it may never do so. We may be witnessing it's death knell right here.

Looks like the 'Horizons' expansion is now included in the base game for free now, kinda makes sense since Odyssey expansion is coming soon.

Well... Finally made the leap I bought Elite Dangerous Not sure when I will start to play it but its at least in the Steam library now so I am one step closer to playing it .... but I have said that about the X games and I have had those for years I been trying to play through my steam library .... so little time and too many games I guess I should quit buying them.