Fiction A criticism of Elite's timeline

[MentalParadox]

300 years ago: we sailed the seas on wooden ships, relying entirely on the wind and the tides.
200 years later (100 years ago): we have massive steam ships (Titanic style)
110 years ago: first aeroplane takes to the skies.
20 years ago: the internet is invented.
5 years ago: the first smartphone.
In 100 years, cars have gone from a crappy bicycle on four wheels, to the highly advanced, almost self-driving beauties we drive today.

And yet I'm supposed to believe that the ship I'm flying in 3300, was invented before the year 3000. Meaning it's 300 years old.
It's the equivalent of taking a wooden clipper from the 1700's, and expecting to be able to defeat a Mimitz-class aircraft carrier.

Meaning I'm supposed to believe that even though we have accelerating change and technological advancements in the 1900's and 2000's, space ships barely changed in THREE-HUNDRED years. AI is apparently still a thing that's in need of being developed - personally I'd expect human-level AI by 2100, realistically. And we still haven't beaten silly diseases in 3300, while organ printing and perhaps some day whole body printing is becoming a reality in 2014?

My criticism of Elite's backstory is that the huge gaps between events feel arbitrary, unnecessary and most of all - unrealistically pessimistic.
Many of the events could easily be "compressed", and judging from the technology of humanity in Elite - I think 2300-2400 would be far more appropriate than 3300.

 

[Susimetsa]

This is a topic that's been discussed quite a lot in the past (especially on the writers' forum). Here are some possibilities:

- Perhaps something's happened that's slowed down the development of technology or caused a "Dark Age" of sorts. Perhaps this is especially relevant to the development of AI's...
- The names and basic shapes of ships may be similar to what they were in original Elite, but if you compare their insides, you'll see lots of differences. For example, the latest types of hyperspace engines were developed only in 3280's and have replaced the engines in all ships in use. In short, the ships are very modular and the modules have progressed tremendously over the centuries even if the hull designs are very similar (but not identical) to the originals.

 

[MentalParadox]

Yeah, I never played the original ELite. I'm completely new to the series.

I did play the whole X series, though, and I was pretty annoyed with the surrealistic timeline there, too. It also took place around 3000. But they least they had a good excuse: the terraformer wars (Yes, AI) beat the humans back to Earth and into the stone age.

 

[EAGLE 5]

I think that technology in the Elite Universe got to a point where further research would have meant an enormous expenditure of resources which would have otherwise detracted from the human expansion outward from Sol. Basically from the 25th century onward it was like the old west in the US where people packed up and took off for the Frontier with what they had and made it work for them. After a while it became obvious that if it ain't broke don't fix it was a viable way of life so they settled with what they had.

 

[QuantumTron]

What's to say that there can't be new breakthroughs in technology in the ED universe as game development progresses through our 2015?

 

[Tettric]

With the extraordinarily modular nature of ships in the Elite universe coupled with the fact that most of space is just like any other part of space for the most part a good hull design remains that way for an as of yet unreached about of time...

 

[Adept]

The tech has plateaud, it's a classic Sci-Fi troupe. Additionally they had rogue AI trouble, and do not trust sophisticated IT tech.

 

[EAGLE 5]

Guess we finally hit the absolute limit of Moore's law.

 

[Rhaedas]

On the AI thing...isn't there a big thing in some factions (Empire?) about machinery vs. people labor, and that's one reason why indentured servants is so accepted? A bit like the whole Battlestar Galactica, where some worlds had laws against robots, even though they could build them.

 

[EAGLE 5]

Ai is universally restricted due to risks involved with it. The main difference between the factions comes down to other factors like... The Empire is pro slavery and cloning while the Federation it's into robotics and medical robotic prosthetics/augmentation. Still in FFE androids were mentioned. I wonder if that got taken out for simplicity.

 

[Allen Stroud]

My criticism of Elite's backstory is that the huge gaps between events feel arbitrary, unnecessary and most of all - unrealistically pessimistic.
Many of the events could easily be "compressed", and judging from the technology of humanity in Elite - I think 2300-2400 would be far more appropriate than 3300.

Okay. That's a view. Not seeing where you want to discuss anything?

The backstory's not going to change much and as you've said, you weren't around when it was initially written, so perhaps some of the romance of the connection to the 1984, 1993 and 1995 games is lost on you.

 

[Crotaro]

Well, I'd say "That's just the universe that was written back then"
If you look at Alien then you notice that even tho it takes place in the year 2122 they still use super analogue tech and are more low-fi than sci-fi

It's because people back then imagined it would be like that in the future...
And yea, so the storywriters of Elite imagined the future would/might look like this. Nothing to argue a lot about because it's like asking why on a remote planet they might still just be working with stone tools and fighting off amphibious sabre-tooth killerwhales whilst we today are in the year 2014 and exploring space.

In one sentence: Just because something is a certain way here doesn't mean it is like that everywhere.

 

[Calico Jack]

Science doesn't always advance at a furious pace. Off the top of my head, I think medical knowledge was very slow to progress between the Classical period and the Renaissance, due to the Church banning dissection. A ban on AI could have stalled a lot of things.

 

[CMDR Byr Goefin]

May explain why Sidewinders are so cheap they are free... they have a 300 year stockpile to go through.

 

[Evagg1974]

I can think of a science fiction tv show where even though they have colonized a whole new solar system, many colonies still ride horses!

 

[MentalParadox]

Okay. That's a view. Not seeing where you want to discuss anything?

The backstory's not going to change much and as you've said, you weren't around when it was initially written, so perhaps some of the romance of the connection to the 1984, 1993 and 1995 games is lost on you.

Oh, what a GREAT argument *rolls eyes*.
That's a pretty weak attempt at discrediting my argument, tbh. Me not being around in 84 doesn't make my point any less valid, and you being a veteran doesn't mean you're above logic.

 

[MentalParadox]

Science doesn't always advance at a furious pace. Off the top of my head, I think medical knowledge was very slow to progress between the Classical period and the Renaissance, due to the Church banning dissection. A ban on AI could have stalled a lot of things.

I used AI as an example. WHat about ship design? WHy are we still using a stick/steering wheel? I would fully expect mind-controlled ships by then. We are already beginning to master mind controlled prosthetics in 2014!

And te person claiming Moore's Law kind of "ran out": not all technological breakthroughs rely on miniaturisation of computer parts, which is the ONLY thing Moore's Law describes. Once we reach the "limit", I have no doubt there'll simply be a paradigm shift that sets us on a parallel trajectory, once again opening up endless potential for improvement.

 

[Andrew Sayers]

In 100 years, cars have gone from a crappy bicycle on four wheels, to the highly advanced, almost self-driving beauties we drive today.

And yet I'm supposed to believe that the ship I'm flying in 3300, was invented before the year 3000. Meaning it's 300 years old.
It's the equivalent of taking a wooden clipper from the 1700's, and expecting to be able to defeat a Mimitz-class aircraft carrier.

I like to think of it as similar to the AK-47 - a design that's nearly 70 years old ("47" is the year it was created) and yet is at the centre of most wars to this day. The reason is simple - it works, it's cheap, and it's made everywhere. Imagine some engineer at a backwoods station getting a pile of parts and some bootleg schematics, then hammering together a Cobra and selling it for a profit.

You've got me with input devices though. I guess there comes a point where you have to accept Elite is a romanticised version of space, or you end up with unmanned turrets shooting each other at the speed of light.

 

[Crotaro]

I can think of a science fiction tv show where even though they have colonized a whole new solar system, many colonies still ride horses!

*cough cough*firefly-awesome*cough cough*

 

[InMemoriamSirocco]

THAT's the main issue you have with Elite's timeline? How about thousands of exoplanets being fully terraformed in less than 1300 years, including planets that cannot actually hold an atmosphere?