Humanity is in peril, and I am ignoring it.
From so long as I can keep in mind I’ve had a fascination with exploring online game worlds. After I was launched to The Legend of Zelda on the NES in the early ’90s, the quest to avoid wasting Zelda got here secondary to seeing each display the recreation needed to supply. That curiosity has continued to this present day, with video games like Loss of life Stranding the place story and content material wasn’t as necessary to me as happening foolish little walks, delivering parcels, and discovering the world that Kojima Productions had constructed.
So it isn’t stunning in the slightest that exploration is the space of Elite Dangerous that has captivated me most, and continues to take action with the recreation turning ten years outdated this month.
When the information unfold that Thargoid forces had been invading Sol and a colossal Titan was en-route, I used to be busy outfitting my shiny new Mandalay exploration ship in preparation for an expedition into unexplored area, a ship so enjoyable to make use of that it has seen the retirement of my beloved ASP Explorer (affectionately named Dora the Asplorer) after over 4 years of fixed use. After a short cease off at Earth and Mars to assist evacuate some residents, dodging Thargoid hearth as I went, I docked my exploration ship on a fleet provider certain for Colonia (22,000 gentle years away) understanding that it could have been the final time I am going to see Earth in the recreation.
Elite Dangerous is one of these video games that may be approached nevertheless you want. If large explosions and flashy lasers is your factor, I am advised by those that partake that there isn’t a finer simulation of area fight accessible. Should you fancy your self as an area trucker working commerce routes to maintain programs provided with important assets, that is additionally an possibility. Maybe you want flashy lasers and explosions however not after they’re firing in your path? Outfitting a ship for mining and scouring asteroid belts for minerals could possibly be for you. You may even resolve to have one of the prime 1% passenger liners on the market, taking passengers and vacationers throughout the galaxy. However I like issues slightly quieter.
It has been a troublesome yr for the video games trade, and Elite Dangerous has been my ever current escape from the stresses that has introduced
Mechanically, exploration is fairly easy. I am going to leap to a brand new system andperform a discovery scan to point out what number of planetary our bodies are in the system. I am going to then load up my Full Spectrum Scanner, which lets me scan all these our bodies from a distance to find what kind they’re. If there’s any useful programs there – specifically water worlds, Earth-like worlds or terraformable planets – I am going to make my manner over to inside a number of thousand kilometres of each and launch probes to map the floor. If there is a planet with a number of organic life indicators, I am going to land on the floor and search myself out some alien plantlife to scan. Nevertheless it’s not the gameplay loop that is hooked me – it is the issues to see alongside the manner.
Frontier has constructed the most immersive simulation of area that I’ve ever seen, and but it is at its most charming once I’m alone on a distant planet with nothing however the sound of wind, my footsteps on alien soil. I like trekking throughout huge desserts, navigating chasms too deep to see the backside or mountains over 4 instances taller than Mount Everest. An expedition to deep area for me can final anyplace between three to 12 months, and I am going to go that total time with out encountering one other participant or AI-controlled ship. It is peaceable, lonely, calm, and there is nothing else prefer it on the market.
A good friend as soon as described Elite Dangerous as a “space-based screenshot generator,” and so they’re not too far off the mark there. Elite is a stupendous recreation, at instances breathtakingly so. The sport is ten years outdated this month, and as of December 2024 solely 0.06% of the galaxy has been explored. Group-led exploration device Elite Dangerous Star Map estimates that it will take the playerbase 44,000 years to completely discover Frontiers 1:1 illustration of the Milky Manner galaxy. Your probabilities of discovering one thing that no different participant has seen are very excessive
Experiencing a second that makes you pause in marvel, earlier than screenshotting your discovery and heading to EliteExplorers on Reddit to share your discovery could solely happen as soon as each 100 hours of playtime, however they’re so value the wait. Vibrant deep area nebulae, a planet engulfed by a neutron star, and huge forests of metallic crystals amongst enormous expansive asteroid belts are just some of the sights I’ve had the pleasure of discovering over the years.
2024 has been a resurgent yr for Elite Dangerous, and for my part it has been the finest yr for the recreation to this point. Communication from Frontier themselves has been prime notch with frequent ‘Frontier Unlocked’ developer updates posted to YouTube, recreation updates have been frequent, and so they have been significant. New ships have been added to the recreation for the first time since 2018, the recreation’s powerplay system (which permits gamers to affect factions’ management of core programs) has been revamped, and the Thargoid conflict has escalated with quite a few group raids towards Titans.
Frontier has constructed the most immersive simulation of area that I’ve ever seen, and but it is at its most charming once I’m alone on a distant planet with nothing however the sound of wind
Introduced updates for the future even have the group abuzz with a colonisation characteristic coming in early 2025 that may permit gamers to determine their very own area stations and planet-based amenities to increase humanity’s attain by means of the galaxy. After the disappointing launch of Odyssey, Elite Dangerous’s second and newest paid growth, the future lastly feels vibrant for Elite and the content material added to the recreation reveals no signal of slowing down.
It has been a troublesome yr for the video games trade, and Elite Dangerous has been my ever current escape from the stresses that has introduced. I’ve performed some great video games over the previous 12 months – Balatro, Animal Nicely, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Knowledge, or Sea of Thieves – that proceed to be the dominant attraction for gaming classes with my associates, video games that this text might simply have been about, however all roads have led again to Elite, the seek for that subsequent awe-inspiring sight, and my subsequent screenshot.