Speculation on the new era

[Dagwit]

Probably be console only, PC joining the Mac guys!

Ever since I read the August 2018 announcement, which seemed to me more concerned with not saying something than with anything it was saying, I've had the feeling that there's something that Frontier doesn't want us to know about the New Era.

My main guess is that the New Era won't run on current consoles and older PCs - the game's almost as as old as the current generation of consoles, and at some point Frontier will have to abandon backwards compatibility if they want to keep the game up to date.

But it has also occurred to me that Sony might just have bought the rights to the New Era as at least a timed console exclusive - because Sony wants to boost the PSVR on PlayStation 5, and ED is a famously good VR title. Whether Frontier would throw PC players under the bus - I doubt it, but Frontier is a business and if they're offered enough money....

 

[Rat Catcher]

I think that main issues we have had in the last update have all been to do with the Arx you get for playing the game. Obviously code has had to be added into virtually every part of the game which could cause a lot of issues.

Hopefully a lot of the bugs will be ironed out in the next 6 months. Not that I have encountered many. Only had a disconnect with a crimson krait error so far. Everything else seems to be working okay.

It is very odd that the same game that we all play has such a range of bugs that affect each of us differently.
Ignoring the stuff that was 'fixed' following the September Update, I have very rarely encountered serious bugs, and never any 'game breaking' ones. Naturally, from my own perspective I don't see why 'fixing' the bugs is going to take 6 months and delaying further the release of FC's - but that is just me

I get the occasional CTD switching to Galaxy map, but that is much rarer than 6 months ago, and miss the moon orbit lines in VR...

 

[Rat Catcher]

Ever since I read the August 2018 announcement, which seemed to me more concerned with not saying something than with anything it was saying, I've had the feeling that there's something that Frontier doesn't want us to know about the New Era.

My main guess is that the New Era won't run on current consoles and older PCs - the game's almost as as old as the last generation of consoles, and at some point Frontier will have to abandon backwards compatibility if they want to keep the game up to date.

But it has also occurred to me that Sony might just have bought the rights to the New Era as at least a timed console exclusive - because Sony wants to boost the PSVR on PlayStation 5, and ED is a famously good VR title. Whether Frontier would throw PC players under the bus - I doubt it, but Frontier is a business and if they're offered enough money....

That would be contentious
Unless 'New Era' was primarily combat focussed and lacked the 'learning curve' of the current game I doubt Sony would be prepared to invest in such a niche game - better to grab something spectacular and loud...

Perhaps 'New Era' is FD's equivalent to Portal's cake?

 

[Dagwit]

Perhaps 'New Era' is FD's equivalent to Portal's cake?

If that's the case then I know what ED players will be getting for Christmas 2020 - a truckload of salt!

 

[Rat Catcher]

If that's the case then I know what ED players will be getting for Christmas 2020 - a truckload of salt!

I thought that a reasonable retort to the first bit of the posters comment

In my slightly jaded way, I forsee whatever arrives doing just that. There is so much speculation around a 'leak' from an unreliable source that it appears some have decided it is factual, despite no communication from FDev to confirm/deny such.

I don't really mind, if FC's actually arrive (cynical again) I hope to have enough 'new' to do to keep me busy regardless

 

[Dagwit]

I don't really mind, if FC's actually arrive (cynical again) I hope to have enough 'new' to do to keep me busy regardless

When I complete a final LTD triple hotspot session this afternoon I'll have my ten billion credit Fleet Carrier Purchase Fund. Won't have a Fleet Carrier to purchase, but, you know, hey ho!

 

[Rat Catcher]

When I complete a final LTD triple hotspot session this afternoon I'll have my ten billion credit Fleet Carrier Purchase Fund. Won't have a Fleet Carrier to purchase, but, you know, hey ho!

Wow! I like mining, but not that much
My 2 accounts with 502 mill and 240 mill respectively appear like paupers in comparison! But when we know how much they cost to buy I'll decide how to raise the funds, currently having fun on my alt levelling up my NPC fighter pilot

 

[Dagwit]

Wow! I like mining, but not that much
My 2 accounts with 502 mill and 240 mill respectively appear like paupers in comparison! But when we know how much they cost to buy I'll decide how to raise the funds, currently having fun on my alt levelling up my NPC fighter pilot

Wise man!

Though if you're allowing yourself to be extorted by an NPC fighter pilot then the meagreness of your fortune comes as no surprise!

 

[Rat Catcher]

Wise man!

Though if you're allowing yourself to be extorted by an NPC fighter pilot then the meagreness of your fortune comes as no surprise!

I got her at Harmless... now Novice so only 3% - although it won't be long before she has more credits than me with the way things are going... I'll be asking HER for a salary

(being of low finance on both accounts may have been influenced by nearly a billion on each to buy/outfit Corvettes...)

 

[Dagwit]

I got her at Harmless... now Novice so only 3% - although it won't be long before she has more credits than me with the way things are going... I'll be asking HER for a salary

Still, 3% ... I'm a Scotsman. Between an NPC fighter pilot and my credit balance, I know what my heritage demands I choose.

 

[VR SenseiMatty]

Or Kerbal Space Program

Or Elite Dangerous New Era

Spoiler

...try again Matty...

 

[TheSisko]

I think a lot of people are forgetting that The New Era is optional DLC.

So no, no core-engine rewrites and certainly no Sony exclusive content on consoles (thank god). Not unless Frontier doesn't like my money, which I'd be happy to spend elsewhere.

 

[LanceLord]

I'm just hoping they can add Space legs and Atmospheric Planets. With RNG points of interest (like lost stations shown in video below) with which we can craft/build/explore and interact with. ED needs the ability for Cmndrs to interact with earth like worlds. Jusl like how Space Engineers seamlessly implemented spacelegs for earth like planetary world exploration in this video:

 

[Dagwit]

I think a lot of people are forgetting that The New Era is optional DLC.

So no, no core-engine rewrites and certainly no Sony exclusive content on consoles (thank god). Not unless Frontier doesn't like my money, which I'd be happy to spend elsewhere.

I've just reread Zac Antonacci's August 31 2018 post and he makes a point of not saying that the 2020 content is going to be optional DLC. All he commits to is that LEP holders will get it for free:

Naturally, there will be community questions that might come up from this information. We aren’t going to be ready to talk about what method or model the content will be. What we can say is that it’s expected to be a major milestone in the history of Elite and will be paid content. Lifetime Expansion owners will obviously receive the content as part of their pass.

But perhaps there's been some announcement since that I've missed?

And yes, if LEP owners are going to get it then it has to be available for PC - though not necessarily the PC that LEP purchasers owned when they bought the LEP. Nor does it rule out Frontier doing a deal with Sony for a Sony console exclusive, since XBox players aren't LEP holders. Though I take Ratkatcher's point that Sony may not think ED a good fit for the tastes of their core audience.

 

[Kzak]

I think a lot of people are forgetting that The New Era is optional DLC.

So no, no core-engine rewrites and certainly no Sony exclusive content on consoles (thank god). Not unless Frontier doesn't like my money, which I'd be happy to spend elsewhere.

There's nothing stopping FDev from doing at least a partial rewrite and launching the DLC as far as I know.

 

[TheSisko]

I've just reread Zac Antonacci's August 31 2018 post and he makes a point of not saying that the 2020 content is going to be optional DLC. All he commits to is that LEP holders will get it for free:



But perhaps there's been some announcement since that I've missed?

And yes, if LEP owners are going to get it then it has to be available for PC - though not necessarily the PC that LEP purchasers owned when they bought the LEP. Nor does it rule out Frontier doing a deal with Sony for a Sony console exclusive, since XBox players aren't LEP holders. Though I take Ratkatcher's point that Sony may not think ED a good fit for the tastes of their core audience.

Every update has been optional, The New Era included, which Frontier want us to pay money for. What are they gonna do to players who don't buy The New Era DLC? Present a black screen with white text saying "To continue playing, buy the New Era. Ta." ?

As for consoles, Xbox players like me were the first on console to pay for this game, so any Sony-only deal would not sit well with me. That would make no sense whatsoever, not sure where that is coming from. Sony players aren't LEP holders either.

 

[TheSisko]

There's nothing stopping FDev from doing at least a partial rewrite and launching the DLC as far as I know.

You think they can do all that by December next year? Without breaking the game? September update (a fraction of the size of New Era) was a cluster-frack and Fleet Carriers were caneclled again, six weeks from launch. I don't share your confidence in Frontier right now.

 

[Rat Catcher]

You think they can do all that by December next year? Without breaking the game?

If the engine has been re-written (not impossible given the timescale) for stability and expandability, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch of the imagination that an 'update' would be released that replaced the outdated code with the new engine minus the DLC. Although it would have to be assumed that Horizons would be incorporated into the base game to minimise version incompatibility.
Just thinking aloud...

 

[VR Golgot]

I've just reread Zac Antonacci's August 31 2018 post and he makes a point of not saying that the 2020 content is going to be optional DLC. All he commits to is that LEP holders will get it for free:

But perhaps there's been some announcement since that I've missed?

He made a direct comparison to Horizons / Beyond deeper into that thread

The future content that has started in production is a whole new era/chapter/milestone in Elite. Much like Horizons was and like Beyond was/is

They clarified later that it will be 'in-game' content. (That seemed designed to address claims at the time that it would be a reboot, not an additional DLC).

What does 'The Next Era' contain?
The Next Era update will be in-game content and, as we've said previously, as development progresses, we will share more news and announcements on features, as well as timelines regarding this upcoming content for Elite.

Seems pretty clear it's a paid expansion to the existing game. Which would fit with the old plans etc.

 

[Dagwit]

Seems pretty clear it's a paid expansion to the existing game. Which would fit with the old plans etc.

Except - if it's just DLC like Horizons or Beyond, why not say so in so many words? Instead we get careful circumlocutions: 'a whole new era/milestone in Elite', 'much like Horizons was' ('much like', not 'the same as'), and as for Will's 'in-game content' that means no more than 'it will be recognisably Elite'. The most you could perhaps make of that phrase is that it won't formally be Elite Dangerous II.

There's something they're trying not to say, and I can't be sure what that is, but I'm pretty certain it's not, "Oh, it's just another DLC."