One of the biggest problems with the time commit to successfully play the game is that I believe it is limiting FD's sales of the game.
Ordinary people work for a living. That alone limits the amount of time they can devote to any game. I've tried to interest family, friends, and co-workers. They see the graphics, I explain the game, and they get interested...until they learn about the time commitment.
I read that FD has sold over a million copies of this game. Why not 10 million copies? It is arguably the best starship simulator in existence, with a terrific game built around it. So, why haven't sales been off the charts?
Consider a player that can earn $1 million credits per hour. To buy an A-rated Python will require upwards of 200 million credits. If an ordinary person can only play 5 hours per week, that means they will have to play for 40 weeks to buy that ship. That's too long for most people to stay focused. The carrot is too far out of reach to be motivating.
I contend that the most successful games are the ones sold by word-of-mouth advertising. But it's hard to generate enthusiasm in potential purchasers when they find out the time commitment. Most people have lives. They don't live to play games.
As players, we see Elite Dangerous as a game. Frontier Development sees it as a business, a source of revenue. F.D. could produce a lot more revenue by selling many more copies of this game. To do that, they must make it appeal to more people.
I had more to say about this subject in another post:
https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showt...Lost-Business-Opportunity?highlight=maad+dawg