New version of Elite for PS5?

I wonder, when the PS5 comes out, will we be getting a new version of Elite on the PS5?

I know we will probably be able to run the PS4 version on the PS5 as it will be backwards compatible, but in order to get the most out of the better hardware it seems like a better version of Elite might have to be made for the PS5.

I could be wrong about this, and I hope I am. I'm hoping we just get an update to the PS5 for game we have already bought that will improve Elite's graphics, stability, and make it run optimally on the superior console.

Also, if there is a better PS5 version of Elite, we'll have to consider that if we buy it, our data/ships won't transfer over to the PS5 version.

It was confirmed today, in an interview with members of Frontier that they have no plans to bring Elite Dangerous to PS5.

Source: https://twinfinite.net/2020/08/elite-dangerous-odyssey-interview/ (fixed link, credit to MickyG1982)

Quote:
Ed: Looking into the future and for the longevity of Elite Dangerous, are there any plans to port to PS5 or Xbox Series X?

Bottone: As for the platforms and where we’re headed, I’ll tell you that we’re looking at PC, Xbox and PS4, as far as what we’re pushing it to, it’s not currently planned for PS5 or the Xbox Series X. We’re continuing to evaluate.

Hughes: When we deal with those platforms, we want it to be special.
 
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It was confirmed today, in an interview with members of Frontier that they have no plans to bring Elite Dangerous to PS5.

Source: https://twinfinite.net/2020/08/hyperdimension-neptunia-ps5-go-go/

Quote:
This does not surprise me. It was clear to me long ago that Frontier has abandoned the consoles. Sure, they update the game code for everyone, but the core Cobra engine has been neglected for some time now. It's one of the reasons I decided to switch to PC rather than XBox for a better ED experience. There hasn't been a "console team" since a few months after the PS4 version was released. Lloyd and the rest of the core PS4 engineers were moved to other projects shortly after 2.4 dropped.
 
It was clear to me long ago that Frontier has abandoned the consoles. Sure, they update the game code for everyone, but the core Cobra engine has been neglected for some time now.

I struggle to parse this bit. If nothing else it is clear that one of the things FD definitely does not ignore it is their Cobra engine, which itself has nothing to do with platforms at all. :unsure:
 
I struggle to parse this bit. If nothing else it is clear that one of the things FD definitely does not ignore it is their Cobra engine, which itself has nothing to do with platforms at all. :unsure:
You are wrong - it has EVERYTHING to do with platforms. The Cobra Engine is the one thing that has to be customized to the platform, and then the base code is written to the Cobra engine without need to consider the platform. Think of Cobra Engine like a Java Virtual Machine, whereas ED itself is more like the Java "write once, run everywhere" code. The PS4 version of the JVM Cobra Engine has become buggy and sluggish over the years, not able to keep up with some of the changes made to ED, yet Frontier hasn't done anything to fix it. This is why shadows look absolutely terrible on PS4 (they actually looked good when the game first released), framerates have plummeted, the network stack is buggy beyond belief, etc.

Now I do think Frontier continues to make generic changes to CE with PCs in mind, but a limited system like a console needs extra optimization and attention to work right, and without a team to take these generic PC-minded changes and optimize them for consoles, the CE for consoles has only gotten worse over time instead of better.
 
You are wrong - it has EVERYTHING to do with platforms. The Cobra Engine is the one thing that has to be customized to the platform, and then the base code is written to the Cobra engine without need to consider the platform. Think of Cobra Engine like a Java Virtual Machine, whereas ED itself is more like the Java "write once, run everywhere" code. The PS4 version of the JVM Cobra Engine has become buggy and sluggish over the years, not able to keep up with some of the changes made to ED, yet Frontier hasn't done anything to fix it. This is why shadows look absolutely terrible on PS4 (they actually looked good when the game first released), framerates have plummeted, the network stack is buggy beyond belief, etc.

Now I do think Frontier continues to make generic changes to CE with PCs in mind, but a limited system like a console needs extra optimization and attention to work right, and without a team to take these generic PC-minded changes and optimize them for consoles, the CE for consoles has only gotten worse over time instead of better.

Your original claim is FD has been 'neglecting the Cobra Engine'. They have been demonstrably improving CE since 2012 at the least, every year, via ED, Horizons, PC, JWE, PZ and now Odyssey, all of which run on continuously improved versions of CE. It is just a nonsensical thing to say they are ignoring or neglecting it. Odyssey itself (as well as PC and JWE) is also being released on consoles, so they are not ignoring that either.

You seem to be trying to come up with a theory for why you are unhappy with the PS4 version, but your conclusion makes very little sense at all. Or should I say VERY LITTLE SENSE. :p
 
To be fair, Frontier have stated they have no plans to port to the new consoles, and those are being released in a matter of months. A strong case for ignore/neglect can be made. Imagine the uproar if they had come out and said the same about support for , oh I don't know, VR?

Again; ignoring a platform is not ignoring an engine. They have nothing for either of the new platforms, they have demonstrably been working on the engine for the new DLC of ED on the current platforms. 'Engine' is used in gaming communities the same way as 'server'; terms vaguely used without any consideration of what it means to come up with conclusions and statements that have no true meaning and only serve to make an opinion or sentiment sound 'techy'.

Anyway, thats enough about that. I have to work on the pipelines for dinner 2.0, the core tech is in place but the content delivery is contingent on integrating various assets. I could show you a roadmap but our internal food development management strategies are not fully aligned with the software roadmap platforms available for public distribution.

Besides, I had no idea I was supposed to have done the dishes.
 
Actually, doing dishes in a sink with soapy water is probably a good analogy.... You can't just port the water (engine) to any old sink (platform) without making some considerations first. I'll equate "washing the dishes" to "playing Elite".

Indeed, some may consider both "A chore".
 
Again; ignoring a platform is not ignoring an engine.

You're coming across as being deliberately nit picky with this. I'm guessing you've got some experience with tech so you probably know enough to know that the Cobra engine will need to be modified to run on each specific platform. Sure developers will attempt to have some sort of abstraction layer so that at a certain point they're not having to consider which version of the Cobra engine they're developing for but the Cobra engine will still need to be customised for each platform and how it is customised for each platform will determine what's supported on that platform and how well it runs on that platform.

The Cobra engine ports on the XBox and PS4 platforms has been neglected unlike the Cobra engine port on the PC. This is what people are pointing and I'm sure you understand their point, even if for some reason you seem to be trying to nit pick it.
 
It was confirmed today, in an interview with members of Frontier that they have no plans to bring Elite Dangerous to PS5.

Source: https://twinfinite.net/2020/08/hyperdimension-neptunia-ps5-go-go/

Quote:

Just to point out, I clicked on that link, no mention of Elite dangerous at all.

You want this one https://twinfinite.net/2020/08/elite-dangerous-odyssey-interview/ and you want to read it in context.

I.e. the gist is that they have no plans at the moment to port ED over to the new consoles, but they also said WHEN we deal with those platforms they want it to be special...

They didn't say IF they said WHEN, generally that means that they have something in the pipeline but can't talk about it, so not really any need to make a mountain out of a molehill.
 
Just to point out, I clicked on that link, no mention of Elite dangerous at all.

You want this one https://twinfinite.net/2020/08/elite-dangerous-odyssey-interview/ and you want to read it in context.

I.e. the gist is that they have no plans at the moment to port ED over to the new consoles, but they also said WHEN we deal with those platforms they want it to be special...

They didn't say IF they said WHEN, generally that means that they have something in the pipeline but can't talk about it, so not really any need to make a mountain out of a molehill.

Ok - so if they say "Native PS5 support coming in 2022, but unfortunately no backwards compatibility in the meantime", that's ok? Players need assurances, not vague promises. Consoles launch in just a few months!

(thanks for fixing the link)
 
They may be waiting to see how well each console's backcompat on the new hardware mitigates some of the failings the game has on the current gen of consoles in the wild, prior to looking into a full overhaul that they can sell down the line, after this window of "free version upgrades" subsides.
 
I.e. the gist is that they have no plans at the moment to port ED over to the new consoles, but they also said WHEN we deal with those platforms they want it to be special...

They didn't say IF they said WHEN, generally that means that they have something in the pipeline but can't talk about it, so not really any need to make a mountain out of a molehill.
Frontier have something unplanned in the pipeline! Sounds ..... unpleasant.
 
A very strange turn of phrase and hopefully something that was said without understanding the implications.

Sony have said:

Mark Cerny said:
System architect Mark Cerny stated that the company has been testing the top 100 most played PS4 games, and "almost" all of them will be working as intended when PS5 arrives. Sony has also assured it has already tested "hundreds of titles" and will be testing "thousands more as we move toward launch".
The short answer is that almost all your PS4 games should work on PS5 from day one.


Elite Designer / Elite Art Director said:
Bottone: As for the platforms and where we’re headed, I’ll tell you that we’re looking at PC, Xbox and PS4, as far as what we’re pushing it to, it’s not currently planned for PS5 or the Xbox Series X. We’re continuing to evaluate.
Hughes: When we deal with those platforms, we want it to be special.
It does not make sense - getting Elite Dangerous: Odyssey working on a base console such as the Xbox One and then not have it working on the more powerful consoles (PS5 or XBox X Series) but allow it to work on high end PCs with varying graphics cards, processor chips, motherboards, screen resolutions etc.

I can only believe that Gareth and Jonathon didn't understand the question in the way that it was asked.
 
Just to point out, I clicked on that link, no mention of Elite dangerous at all.
You want this one https://twinfinite.net/2020/08/elite-dangerous-odyssey-interview/ and you want to read it in context.
I.e. the gist is that they have no plans at the moment to port ED over to the new consoles, but they also said WHEN we deal with those platforms they want it to be special...
They didn't say IF they said WHEN, generally that means that they have something in the pipeline but can't talk about it, so not really any need to make a mountain out of a molehill.

It sounds like the Elite Dangerous team do not have access to a PS5 or XBox X Series console. (I wonder if they could pop alone the corridor to the Planet Coaster team and borrow one of theirs?

Reading between the lines on the confirmations and clarifications in the piece, they have been working on certain aspects fof the game on the the existing hardware estate. They were caught out on the question about changes to the flight dynamics within an atmosphere - 'It's something we are instigating' so if the quesioning sequence followed what was reported and wasn't changed by editorial choice it would stand to reason that they weren't necessarly thinking straight when the future console question was asked.

By when, they could be hoping that the game will port across to the new consoles with minor disruption but haven't yet got to that point of regression testing so thought they were not causing problems by answering the question in a vague manner.

It looks like it is a point of Clarification for Steve Benedetti to clear up (at least as far as 'we expect you to be able to play Elite Dangerous on the new consoles')
 
They didn't say IF they said WHEN, generally that means that they have something in the pipeline but can't talk about it, so not really any need to make a mountain out of a molehill.
Optimistic.
When they wanted to dodge talk about PSVR or the Cobra MK4 we got very similar statements.

If Odessey counts as a "game", and not a PS4-DLC upgrade, we may only get the minimum PS5-compatible required for certification. If it does count purely as a PS4-DLC then it may not even need that, and may not even be downloadable on the PS5 (via the store).

If anyone is like me, the path is going to be:
  • buy PS5 / Xbox (whatever the sequence X's and S's is) Oct/Nov 2020
  • shift all content to new console
  • sell / store old console
  • Elite playable? (not|visible on store)
  • Odessey launches... 2021

Seems to me game is doomed(tm) on PS5 with current statements. A community manager should really jump onto the PS4/Xbox forums to clarify, but not holding my breath on that :rolleyes: If it's not playable on PS5 at all, then thats it for me (or fire up my old PC account).
 
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