Undoubtedly they are difficult systems. Unfortunately, there seems to be an unwillingness to acknowledge that those systems - notably the BGS, combat, the flight simulator, and how they interact with multiplayer functions - are the foundation of what makes Elite a game rather than a tech demonstration. They must be managed, regularly, if the goal is to retain and/or attract players.
I worry FDev is now pursuing a business model akin to most mobile-gaming platforms: rapidly develop underbaked features, deploy them with associated revenue generators boosted by hype for new features, repeat ad nauseum until the revenue dips below a certain saturation target...
...then stop developing. Maintenance mode, slow burn fixes to keep whales involved, begin work on next major product. Because the gaming market has demonstrated, for decades now, that the vast majority of consumers put little stock in developer or publisher credentials and reputation. Blizzard faces the worst of the worst verifiable scandals, and Diablo 2 Resurrected - a glorified reskin - is flying off the shelves.
We still watch movies with awful actors and actresses, we still buy games from shady companies, we still purchase products from downright corrupt corporate entities, we still send money to verified criminal religious organizations and leaders. Nevermind how politics in most countries work. Before I sound like a broken socialist record from a few decades ago...the point is that FDev don't have to fix any of this.
They literally have nothing to lose. Which is quite unfortunate, but is what it is. That is why my optimism is so abysmally low for Elite. I want it to be fixed. Not better, improved, or expanded. Just fixed. Balanced. Appropriately assembled with the parts already in the darn box. Because when I look at the parts, and I look at the picture...holy moly, this could be a really freaking fantastic game.
