Elite Dangerous Alpha 4 progress

[Karnak]

I know a number of us here are really looking forward to this one so I figured I'd share some videos of Alpha 4 that I found out and about YouTube.

A clumsy, but ultimately successful docking with an Anaconda:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u245AeXhxZU

Dogfight on the edge of a gas giant's ring system:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Kc0YytUw8g&list=UU2hd_CWewql3eaLsTcmP76A

Another view of said ring system:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrqJa0-lCBM

A trade run.  I liked how when the navigation target was selected the HUD circled the target star and noted the distance of 5.4 light years.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2mQgQdUXug

I also noticed that Flossy was called out, among others, in their latest newsletter for ordering the developers some pizza.  The newsletter also has a shot of a very nice looking new space station.

[Tinkles]

Reminds me of Star Wars Galaxies (in cockpit) space fights... obvious with better graphics.

 

[Flossy]

I also noticed that Flossy was called out, among others, in their latest newsletter for ordering the developers some pizza.  The newsletter also has a shot of a very nice looking new space station.

LOL yeah, I'm an Alpha Backer, along with my husband, Wrongway (was Zeb here) and we are both involved with Alpha testing.  We were (im)patiently waiting for Alpha 4 coming out and although the date had been given we didn't know what time it would be released.  An Elite Dangerous Skype chat group we are both in decided to club together for a pizza after another member asked what time on the forums and was told "Pizza Time"!     On the due day, an order was made to a nearby pizza shop and several pizzas, garlic breads etc were duly delivered just before noon, in the hope that it would have the desired result!  Unfortunately we still had to wait until about 7:30 in the evening (possibly because they had all eaten too much pizza and fallen asleep?   )

We've also become involved in an Elite Dangerous themed podcast, about the everyday life and experiences of a group of space station 'dockers'.  I play the part of a pink onsie-wearing manager of McThargoids called May Swallow and Wrongway plays a dodgy customs officer called Finn Gerrin.  It's a great laugh to produce and so far one episode has been completed with a second one well on the way to completion.  

Dockers - Episode 1 if you would like to hear it.    

[zack1234]

 

[Karnak]

LOL yeah, I'm an Alpha Backer, along with my husband, Wrongway (was Zeb here) and we are both involved with Alpha testing.  We were (im)patiently waiting for Alpha 4 coming out and although the date had been given we didn't know what time it would be released.  An Elite Dangerous Skype chat group we are both in decided to club together for a pizza after another member asked what time on the forums and was told "Pizza Time"!     On the due day, an order was made to a nearby pizza shop and several pizzas, garlic breads etc were duly delivered just before noon, in the hope that it would have the desired result!  Unfortunately we still had to wait until about 7:30 in the evening (possibly because they had all eaten too much pizza and fallen asleep?   )

We've also become involved in an Elite Dangerous themed podcast, about the everyday life and experiences of a group of space station 'dockers'.  I play the part of a pink onsie-wearing manager of McThargoids called May Swallow and Wrongway plays a dodgy customs officer called Finn Gerrin.  It's a great laugh to produce and so far one episode has been completed with a second one well on the way to completion.  

Dockers - Episode 1 if you would like to hear it.    

Thanks, Flossy.  I'd liked to have backed the game (I have very found memories of Elite going all the way back to the mid '80s and the C64 version), but money has just been too tight to justify it. I am very much looking forward to the release version though.

[Serenity]

I'm a HUGE sucker for space-sim type games. How does this compare to the X series of games? What types of ships are available, and what kind of impact can you have on the universe? Can you build/own spaceports?

[Karnak]

I'm a HUGE sucker for space-sim type games. How does this compare to the X series of games? What types of ships are available, and what kind of impact can you have on the universe? Can you build/own spaceports?

Ships range from small, one man ships that are more fighters than cargo ships up to ships that can carry hundreds of tons of cargo.  You can't own stations, no.  I know players can impact the economy, but I am not sure beyond that.  It is basically a huge sandbox game where you decide what you want to do, pirate, bounty hunt, trade, mine, explore, work for a faction, so on and so on.  The entire Milky Way galaxy is modeled.

Planetary landings will be added in the first expansion.

[Serenity]

Ships range from small, one man ships that are more fighters than cargo ships up to ships that can carry hundreds of tons of cargo.  You can't own stations, no.  I know players can impact the economy, but I am not sure beyond that.  It is basically a huge sandbox game where you decide what you want to do, pirate, bounty hunt, trade, mine, explore, work for a faction, so on and so on.  The entire Milky Way galaxy is modeled.

Planetary landings will be added in the first expansion.

Any capital ship availability?

[Hoarach]

 

So....this or Star Citizen

[Wiley]

So....this or Star Citizen

Why not both?

Wiley.

[MrRiplEy[H]]

All that fancy future tech and nobody invented a cheap docking computer... 

Something I always wondered in Elite. Oh the joy when you got your first auto-dock

[Karnak]

Any capital ship availability?

Maybe eventually, but not at first for sure.  There are capital ships, but not player controlled.  IIRC the Anaconda masses about 1000-2000 tons and will be about the largest ship available initially, the only playable ship in the original Elite was the Cobra Mk III of about 100 tons.  More ships will be added.  First expansion will add plantetary landings.

So....this or Star Citizen

Well, Elite Dangerous is likely to be out far earlier so no conflict really.  Get Elite when it comes out, then Star Citizen when it comes out.

All that fancy future tech and nobody invented a cheap docking computer...  

Something I always wondered in Elite. Oh the joy when you got your first auto-dock

Probably because it adds a challenge to the game that is fun.

[Lusche]

Probably because it adds a challenge to the game that is fun.

It's also a matter of tradition. It was a central part of the original Elite, which was a rather simplicistic (for todays standards, not for it's time!) space 'sim' written by two 20 year olds.
I'd guess about every old player having wasted his youth with this would be very disappointed if that 'feature' had disappeared

[Flossy]

All that fancy future tech and nobody invented a cheap docking computer... 

Something I always wondered in Elite. Oh the joy when you got your first auto-dock

There will be docking computers in the future but as Karnak said docking is half the fun! 

[Karnak]

It's also a matter of tradition. It was a central part of the original Elite, which was a rather simplicistic (for todays standards, not for it's time!) space 'sim' written by two 20 year olds.
I'd guess about every old player having wasted his youth with this would be very disappointed if that 'feature' had disappeared

Indeed I would.  I fondly recall Elite on the C64 in the mid '80s.

There was a docking computer in that too, that could be bought for, IIRC, 5000 credits.  They could have had it baseline even in the original, but where's the fun in that?