how does ED compare to SC ?

[nats]

I will get around to backing Elite Dangerous soon and I will probably buy SC when it is released.

I quite liked Wing Commander but I never liked the Privateer games much - very awkward conversations in bars etc is not for me. And I hated the limitations on where you could go and being scripted along a path. I am the kind of person that is I see an invisible straightjacket I will immediately try to see what happens if I do something I am not supposed to. usually this means I end up being in a boring game with nothing going on because I am away from the scripted events. But I have to say the cockpit design of the Privateer games was lovely.

But the Elite games for me have always been about the exploration of fascinating astronomical environments and freedom of travel with a bit of trading and assassination thrown in for good measure. I love the way you can lose yourself in the game and just sit in one place watching the game revolve around you if you want to. I love the unexpected events that good unscripted AI programming can bring - I loved Falcon 4 for this very reason and that game is still going strong now years and years after release. And I think Elite Dangerous will be going long after Star Citizen has disappeared.

I will play both with interest but my heart belongs to Elite.

 

[izzy]

I've backed both but I will probably play ED more than SC
DB and CR are great game designers, I think ED and SC will be great games

 

[Styggron]

I have backed both and both will be fantastic and both will be quite different to each other.

Elite will always be special to me.

 

[natte hond]

I will get around to backing Elite Dangerous soon and I will probably buy SC when it is released.

I quite liked Wing Commander but I never liked the Privateer games much - very awkward conversations in bars etc is not for me. And I hated the limitations on where you could go and being scripted along a path. I am the kind of person that is I see an invisible straightjacket I will immediately try to see what happens if I do something I am not supposed to. usually this means I end up being in a boring game with nothing going on because I am away from the scripted events. But I have to say the cockpit design of the Privateer games was lovely.

But the Elite games for me have always been about the exploration of fascinating astronomical environments and freedom of travel with a bit of trading and assassination thrown in for good measure. I love the way you can lose yourself in the game and just sit in one place watching the game revolve around you if you want to. I love the unexpected events that good unscripted AI programming can bring - I loved Falcon 4 for this very reason and that game is still going strong now years and years after release. And I think Elite Dangerous will be going long after Star Citizen has disappeared.

I will play both with interest but my heart belongs to Elite.

all very well put.
especially how you see Elite last for a long time.
this was exactly why I had no problems in digging deep from the jar.

 

[Razorwire]

I backed both, SC to minimum required to get a game copy, E;D to Beta1.

I don't go on the SC forums, as I don't like a lot of the attitudes there (0.1% idiots here is, what? 30 idiots? Over there its hundreds).

 

[Memnoch]

I'm not sure I like the idea of subscribing to a game that doesn't even exist yet but then again if I did that, by the time it is release I might end up spending less money than on E.

I was having a quick look at some of the pledging levels, all the way up to the $5000 one! So, for the ships that you get for that money, are they permanent? If you were to jump in there and lose them all in the first weekends play it would be a disaster.

 

[Hellhawk666]

I was having a quick look at some of the pledging levels, all the way up to the $5000 one! So, for the ships that you get for that money, are they permanent? If you were to jump in there and lose them all in the first weekends play it would be a disaster.

Yes, they are permanent as long as you have insurance, which will be a regular cost along with other upkeep and maintenance (unless you have lifetime insurance). In fact your ships are the things that really represent you in SC. The "character" model of a pilot you run around in can die, in which case it is replaced by a new character who inherits your ship.

You can tweak your ship's systems over time to improve performance, and presumably add on alien tech if it is found etc but the human character has no skills or perks.

 

[Capt. Hook]

how do SC requirements compare to E D minimum requirements as stated?

 

[Cosmos]

Thanks for the info guys.

Went on pledging for the premium boxed version. As for SC I guess I will just buy the copy when it comes out...if I am disappointed by ED.

My biggest fear is the multiplayer facet, which I will probably only use for cooperative gaming. I always envisioned sandbox games as single player experience. I always felt that the multiplayer aspect puts an expiry date on the game, although you might argue that no one would play the game enough to see server emptied from their players.

I read the comparison, doesn't say a lot to be honest, mainly on flight physics. I hope the essence of the elite series will remain in ED and that at least all features we had before will still be there.

Looking forward receiving the newsletter if there are still sending them out.

An finally, hello to all the fans, its nice to be with you after so many years.

Welcome on board. You know it makes sense.

You might want to catch up on the newsletters, the dev diaries and the archive DDF proposals. There is a tonne of stuff to read up about and very soon they'll be Alpha going on which will be all over the internet too.
Dont forget to watch the Capital Ship Video.. that will really blow you away if you haven't seen it already.

I've never been greatly impressed with the pitch of Star Citizen and didn't back it - I really question what is going on with that project and how its subsequently been marketed. When it comes to this genre I consider the ultimate of sandbox space/sandbox to have no equal other than David Braben's Elite.

We'll see how it goes but my money (quite literally) is on Elite Dangerous.

 

[Tinman]

how do SC requirements compare to E D minimum requirements as stated?

Well, the SC Hangar module has these requirements:

Windows Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8
DirectX 11 graphics card with 1GB Video RAM
Quad core CPU
8GB Memory

They have written 8Gb of Ram, but probably more because that's pretty much the standard in today's computers. On the other hand Michaels graphics card had 2Gb of memory compared to just 1Gb in these specs. So pretty much the same. They might require more when dog-fighting module is released though...who knows?

 

[jamieboo]

I backed both.
Although I've contributed considerably more to ED than SC.
I'm just much more excited by the work of David Braben than Chris Roberts. Saying that actually feels a bit naughty because I worked with Chris way back in 1999 - I was in his ropey 'Wing Commander' movie - and he's a lovely chap.
But it was originally Elite that ignited the tinder of my space adventurer's imagination!

 

[rgb_astro]

If SC has landing on asteroids, I'll definitely play it more! Take that, Mike Evans!

 

[Gibbon]

Pretty much what HellHawk666 said. I've backed both and am looking g forward to both in their own merits.

Same here and agree with the sentiment.

Elite got me into gaming when it came out on the ZX Spectrum, played every version via the Atari ST to the PC. Still play Oolite if i want the original experience with plenty of addons. Really looking forward to ED and have backed it accordingly.

Played the Wing Commander series to death, Starlancer and Freelancer so know the Roberts style well, plus have modded Freelancer for years with some quite successful mods and ship packs. That said, Chris Roberts has a habit of being late with releases, though i think with this much money in the kitty, passed $26 million now, and the fact the fans have paid for it all up front (me included), i assume he will be more together this time with a release date.

Both games are different enough to warrant being backed, and i have high hopes for both of them, as they have been created by two respected programmers in the gaming industry. Can't wait for the release of both.

 

[Mephane]

While I am occasionally looking at SC's progress from a distance (i.e. I read news posts and updates about it on gaming news sites), I have little interest in it. I don't like the scheme where you get ships with lifetime insurance for backing a lot and early. Plus I am tired of the fixed-zones approach in MMOs in general, space games in particular. ED had me when I learnt about the procedural galaxy with free roaming within solar systems.

 

[Tranquility]

Love the question. The differences are primarily cultural which is somewhat ironic given Chris Roberts ethnicity. Given my own I am happy in either universe but at home in neither. Having first played Elite however I assume I will prefer it.

 

[Jenner]

While I am occasionally looking at SC's progress from a distance (i.e. I read news posts and updates about it on gaming news sites), I have little interest in it. I don't like the scheme where you get ships with lifetime insurance for backing a lot and early. Plus I am tired of the fixed-zones approach in MMOs in general, space games in particular. ED had me when I learnt about the procedural galaxy with free roaming within solar systems.

The logic behind LTI for early backers is that it just eliminates the need to buy insurance in-game. Even Roberts has said that anyone who is making money in the game (ie-not 'losing') will have no trouble purchasing limited insurance in-game. The LTI is just an incentive to back early and skip that.

Say what you will about ship purchases, I think we can all agree that it's been phenomenally lucrative for Robert's company.

 

[atome]

The logic behind LTI for early backers is that it just eliminates the need to buy insurance in-game. Even Roberts has said that anyone who is making money in the game (ie-not 'losing') will have no trouble purchasing limited insurance in-game. The LTI is just an incentive to back early and skip that.

Say what you will about ship purchases, I think we can all agree that it's been phenomenally lucrative for Robert's company.

Your spot on, how can you argue against it, look at the revenue, almost 30mil! Still prefer ED though lol

 

[kilvenny]

Only one game sends a chill down my spine to even think about it, let alone play it. That game is Elite.
I am of course going back 30 years, but it was a game where you went where you wanted in the manner you wanted and for its day it appeared limitless. The first true sandbox.
I cannot wait to play again. My wife thinks I am a child and she's right I feel 21 again.

 

[Mephane]

The logic behind LTI for early backers is that it just eliminates the need to buy insurance in-game. Even Roberts has said that anyone who is making money in the game (ie-not 'losing') will have no trouble purchasing limited insurance in-game. The LTI is just an incentive to back early and skip that.

I fully understand that, and I can see how effective the crowdfunding model of SC is. It also terrifies me, because their model puts me under heavy psychological pressure: go in with a lot of money for possible long-term benefit, which may not be of use even if the game is fantastic and I will be playing for years, but not flying the ship with LTI; go in just with enough to get the game, regret forever not having LTI for what eventually turns out to be my favourite ship.

I fully expect to be in a minority here, SC's success is proof of that. Which I find also terrifying, because it means so many people are completely at ease with a model that my mind just can't peacefully accept.

I am not sure whether I am making sense here for anyone reading this. It's really difficult for me to explain. But the situation is, I was interested until I learnt about the LTI model; within a second the pieces clicked into place in my head and I just had to get the hell out of there. That way I could escape the pressure and just shrug it off as another game that on a fundamental level is just not made for me*. Luckily I had not yet backed at that point (which means more money for ED, yay).

*To clarify, I am in no way implying SC will be bad or their crowdfunding model is bad. To my twisted brain however it merely feels deeply flawed.

 

[Slawkenbergius]

LTI has been blown out of all proportions really. It's not that big a perk by the sounds of it, as regular insurance is just as good and doesn't cost a vast number of credits. You're basically saving a few creds every few months, and the devs have said a few times how much they regretted introducing it.

Limited edition ships is more of a psychological thing, and it's something that gets exploited in other games, like collectible card type games. Extra Credits did a couple of episodes on it recently.