Does anyone else feel like Beyond is a graceful exit strategy ?

[ArchEmperor]

It will end when the rights to the simulator game lore is lost or restricted. This can happen if Disney buy FD and decides it will be put to sleep due to some profit reasoning.
It can also end by being too good simulation of the real universe, meaning the military will buy it and bury it. Giving restricted access to its own employees only.

So, the best way to keep Elite going, is to never let FD sell the rights. Wars have been fought over rights like these. It is not unlikely that will be the case.

 

[Jmanis]

No
3chars

 

[Neutronium]

I have exactly the same thoughts and feelings with the OP. Couldn't have said better. I don't care if space legs don't come. But no atmospheric landings will be a big dissapointment for me. But I understand the challenges involved.

 

[Dooguk]

I have exactly the same thoughts and feelings with the OP. Couldn't have said better. I don't care if space legs don't come. But no atmospheric landings will be a big dissapointment for me. But I understand the challenges involved.

Who from Frontier have even hinted there will be no atmospheric landings? Stop making stuff up!

 

[Eymerich]

Don't forget the core game improvements due in Q4. I have big hopes for that.

Those should be game improvment: and I have seen how engenner have become

 

[Lucifera Danzig]

It can also end by being too good simulation of the real universe, meaning the military will buy it and bury it. Giving restricted access to its own employees only..

Fortunately this isn't how NASA works. It's right in their charter that any and all scientific breakthroughs and advancements are to be made public.

 

[Majic-12]

If it is, it's not very graceful.

But I don't think that matters because I don't think they're quite ready to throw in the towel just yet.

 

[zombieapocalypse]

Amazes me that some of the same people have been at it for 4 years.

Still, if they keep it up, eventually they will be right. Perhaps in 5-10 years, the game will be dying, and then they can point back to the posts they made back in 2013 to show what prophets they were!

It's like those people who keep predicting the end of the world based on some bible code nonsense or something equally daft. Each time they're proven wrong, they simply "revise" the prediction. Perhaps one day they'll get it right, shame they won't be around to gloat!

But I think there is a small subset of people who clearly don't play the game any more but continue to hang around on these forums. They keep predicting the game will die, because they want to see it happen. Because they clearly bear the game and its developers a grudge. They can't just move on and play something else. It's a bit like hanging around outside a cinema, telling everyone that the film they're going to see is rubbish and will be a flop because you didn't like it.

The internet and the gaming community are strange places.

 

[SAB380]

It will end when the rights to the simulator game lore is lost or restricted. This can happen if Disney buy FD and decides it will be put to sleep due to some profit reasoning.
It can also end by being too good simulation of the real universe, meaning the military will buy it and bury it. Giving restricted access to its own employees only.

So, the best way to keep Elite going, is to never let FD sell the rights. Wars have been fought over rights like these. It is not unlikely that will be the case.

I like the cut of your gibe!

 

[Dooguk]

Amazes me that some of the same people have been at it for 4 years.

Still, if they keep it up, eventually they will be right. Perhaps in 5-10 years, the game will be dying, and then they can point back to the posts they made back in 2013 to show what prophets they were!

Having a look back at some of the moaners posts. Just found one who seems to change his opinion of the game as often as the wind changes.

You would think they would go and do something they liked. [haha] Strange bunch, maybe they have drank the Koolaid.

 

[Tobias Indigo]

It may evolve as it has done for a long time. The concept goes back 40 years (to the heady days of BBC B and programmers cramming good code into 128kb!) so a major rewrite may happen but not for a long time.

 

[HBK]

1 / It's not graceful.

2 / I doubt it's their exit.

Even though I like most of the changes, they basically amount to throwing the RNGineer system under the bus to implement a proper engineer system. Hardly graceful, if much needed.

And I reaaally doubt it's the end of Elite. They seem to be ready to hard-reset some now well-established mechanics, so it's possible we'll see some significant changes to trading/mining/exploring/etc (I mean more than a nifty interface to find profitable trades). That means the game could live for a few more years (at least) before throwing the towel.

 

[Louis Calvert]

Kickstarter launch - end 2012
Game launch - end 2014
Horizons - end 2015
Beyond - early 2018

They've launched their game and supported it with multiple updates.
They can argue they've fulfilled their expansion pass by providing multiple updates within the main game and Horizons and Beyond. Many released games have an Expansion pass that entitles you to 2 big expansions.
Beyond will likely go for well over 12 months by the time its done. At the point we'll be about 7 years out from the Kickstarter.
Many other games would have had at least one full priced sequel out by that point.

At that point they can say they've continued to build and support Elite for many years. (The quality of some of the additions are certainly open to question.)

Simple cosmetic upgrades will keep coming as thats just free, easy money.
There will almost definitely be some quality of life improvements that keep rolling out, depending on how well the cosmetics sell.

Does anyone still think we're going to get complex atmospheric worlds and/or space legs?

I'm thinking back to how Frontier handled the offline mode.
Or how they simply closed down the DDF after hyping that so people backed to higher $ levels.
And how the answers to complex additions (space legs) have gotten more vague instead of more specific over the last couple of years.
I expect something similar to their offline strategy here. I don't believe they will let us know that the huge complex additions aren't coming until a fair way after Beyond finishes up - probably late 2020 some time.

Even so, I would say I still got my money's worth.
By the end of Beyond, I'll have played this game on and off for over 7+ years. I can't say that about any other game, ever!

Thoughts?

You're forgetting that what's been released so far for the Beyond plan this year does not include the paid-for premium expansions - we've only been told about the free content so far. That model could continue indefinitely - free updates bracketed by new premium content. I fully expect that Atmo content and space legs will be part of future paid expansions (in some form).

I for one am already saving my pennies

 

[Saool]

No, op.

I think the reasons why not have been well covered in the last seven pages.

And I must say, I gave found this a very positive thread to wake up to.

 

[[VR] Mad Mike]

Kickstarter launch - end 2012
Game launch - end 2014
Horizons - end 2015
Beyond - early 2018

They've launched their game and supported it with multiple updates.
They can argue they've fulfilled their expansion pass by providing multiple updates within the main game and Horizons and Beyond. Many released games have an Expansion pass that entitles you to 2 big expansions.
Beyond will likely go for well over 12 months by the time its done. At the point we'll be about 7 years out from the Kickstarter.
Many other games would have had at least one full priced sequel out by that point.

At that point they can say they've continued to build and support Elite for many years. (The quality of some of the additions are certainly open to question.)

Simple cosmetic upgrades will keep coming as thats just free, easy money.
There will almost definitely be some quality of life improvements that keep rolling out, depending on how well the cosmetics sell.

Does anyone still think we're going to get complex atmospheric worlds and/or space legs?

I'm thinking back to how Frontier handled the offline mode.
Or how they simply closed down the DDF after hyping that so people backed to higher $ levels.
And how the answers to complex additions (space legs) have gotten more vague instead of more specific over the last couple of years.
I expect something similar to their offline strategy here. I don't believe they will let us know that the huge complex additions aren't coming until a fair way after Beyond finishes up - probably late 2020 some time.

Even so, I would say I still got my money's worth.
By the end of Beyond, I'll have played this game on and off for over 7+ years. I can't say that about any other game, ever!

Thoughts?

I hope not..... and i suspect those who paid ....was it 120 quid ? for the lifetime pass when horizons launched would feel a little peeved!.

The Devs has said more premium content is coming, we just do not know in what form yet

 

[Naskoni]

I hope not..... and i suspect those who paid ....was it 120 quid ? for the lifetime pass when horizons launched would feel a little peeved!.

The Devs has said more premium content is coming, we just do not know in what form yet

Don't worry, FD don't know that either.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

Don't worry, FD don't know that either.

Pretty sure they do as it is meant to be coming this year.

 

[SAB380]

You're forgetting that what's been released so far for the Beyond plan this year does not include the paid-for premium expansions - we've only been told about the free content so far. That model could continue indefinitely - free updates bracketed by new premium content. I fully expect that Atmo content and space legs will be part of future paid expansions (in some form).

I for one am already saving my pennies

That’s a good point.
I hope ‘Premium content’ is game changing stuff.

 

[Goose4291]

You're forgetting that what's been released so far for the Beyond plan this year does not include the paid-for premium expansions - we've only been told about the free content so far. That model could continue indefinitely - free updates bracketed by new premium content. I fully expect that Atmo content and space legs will be part of future paid expansions (in some form).

I for one am already saving my pennies

Which is where some are having issues. Giving such a detailed list of what's coming in Beyond, but not even giving anything beyond a vague 'we've got stuff planned' is what is setting alarm bells ringing at the back of my head.

 

[Lucifera Danzig]

Which is where some are having issues. Giving such a detailed list of what's coming in Beyond, but not even giving anything beyond a vague 'we've got stuff planned' is what is setting alarm bells ringing at the back of my head.

They only gave us a relatively short list for Beyond 3.0, too, when they first announced it at FrontierExpo. And now it's upon us...look at the veritable novella's worth of changes, fixes, and additions. So I wouldn't worry so much.