Newcomer / Intro Where to download/install my kickstarter £80 "Digital Download Pack. This includes a single digital download of the game, and any expansions" game?

Zak Gordon

Zak Gordon
So it's been a longtime since i have been around here, and as of yet i have still to start the game proper. I have an old standalone version i was playing the offline training missions on about 3-4 years back, but it has been a while since i looked at that, or anything about ED in general.

Now as it looks i might have time to actually give the full game a try, i'm looking for some pointers on where to start. It seems a lot has changed since those kickstarted backers days, and i don't have the Steam version (or use Steam for anything), just the version i bought from Frontier via the kickstarter.

So guys, where do you suggest i start looking to see:

1. Where i can get the game from
2. How i go about installing it and setting it up

That will probably do for now, as i can find play guides around this forum easily enough. Thanks in advance :)
 

Zak Gordon

Zak Gordon
Ok so it was not quite as easy as that ;) The main issue was since the kickstarter finished i just downloaded the installer one time, way back before the majority of the updates and expansions had been done, i never even played the game on-line (just the tutorial missions!). So some of my old passwords were not working and i needed to send support a few details etc.

I'm now sitting on the Elite Dangerous Launcher screen (thanks support guys :) ) and i have another question. It says i can Install 'Elite Dangerous, Elite Horizons, Elite Odyssey' as the main game options, so erm.....which should i pick, keeping in mind i'm 100% green to the game and do not know any of the gameplay systems and will likely play in 'Solo' mode until i feel i'm getting it?

Do the versions (Odyssey being the latest) stack or are they specifically standalone versions with different gameplay aspects (like does one maybe favour multiplayer over another etc). I'm so out the loop on where ED is currently, but i am looking for the most comfortable slippers to get into with more emphasis on solo over mp if possible. So which version to install?

Maybe hardware plays into the decision as well? in that case my specs are:

CPU: Ryzen 5 1600
RAM: 16 GB
GPU: 1650 Super

Windows 7 (yes i know).

So definitely low-middle range in terms of gaming.

I'm reading through zombieapocalypse's guide currently to orientate myself a bit, it's a good read :b

Thanks again for any suggestions.

Edit: Ok so i see the potential for difficult discussion re 'Odyssey or Horizon?'. Just had a 5 min look about that subject and it can upset some people it seems, so i just want to clarify i have no skin in all that, just a total newbie with a very newbie question that got the game back in 2015 (ish.....iirc).
 
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Factabulous

Factabulous
Zak Gordon said:
I'm now sitting on the Elite Dangerous Launcher screen (thanks support guys :) ) and i have another question. It says i can Install 'Elite Dangerous, Elite Horizons, Elite Odyssey' as the main game options, so erm.....which should i pick, keeping in mind i'm 100% green to the game and do not know any of the gameplay systems and will likely play in 'Solo' mode until i feel i'm getting it?
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Odyssey. If it doesn't run on your machine then go down to Horizons etc, but you'll get less functionality. The 'save' is the same so you can switch between them at any point.
 

Zak Gordon

Zak Gordon
Factabulous said:
Odyssey. If it doesn't run on your machine then go down to Horizons etc, but you'll get less functionality. The 'save' is the same so you can switch between them at any point.
Click to expand...

Ok i forgot to add i was on Win 7, which would have changed your answer. I'm sorry for that oversight. So it looks like i will be installing Horizons. And just because i'm curious, what about default Elite Dangerous? Does anyone still play that version and does it have any advantages over Horizons?
 

Northpin

Northpin
Zak Gordon said:
Ok i forgot to add i was on Win 7, which would have changed your answer. I'm sorry for that oversight. So it looks like i will be installing Horizons. And just because i'm curious, what about default Elite Dangerous? Does anyone still play that version and does it have any advantages over Horizons?
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Go for Odyssey.
Set it to 1080p low settings, up the gamma a notch and see how it goes in terms of FPS (in space, near a planet, in the concourse of an outpost, in the concourse of a starport, then down on the planets in a settlement and then the harshest conditions - in a settlement combat zone)

If you dont get more or less stable 30 fps, install horizons, but i think it should be playable on your system (gtx 1650S is not that bad)
And if you get decent framerates, up the settings to medium :)
 
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Zak Gordon

Zak Gordon
I'm an original Elite player (that settled on an awesome modded FFE version for the decades there was no current Elite game) and i played for the special Elite space trading, combat and exploration. That DNA coupled with the Win 10 requirements for Odyssey means i am currently waiting for Horizons to 'Sync Files' (it could take a few hours maybe!?).

I'm reading through the players guide as well as zombieapocalypse's guide i mentioned above. I have my old Logic 3 Star Fighter joystick dusted down. Will my rural internet be a problem i wonder? I also have a couple of external resource sites standing by (Coriolis, ED Shipyard, EDDB and INARA). I can see running a two monitor setup being a good idea (or maybe using my laptop alongside as i game). So many new things to work out over xmas, which is appropriate as ED was a xmas gift from my then girlfriend (now my wife).

Will it feel the same as that first time you looked at the 8-bit spinning Cobra loading screen and heard the Blue Danube? Will it feel the same as the first time you watched the opening title sequence for FFE and got to land and take off from actual planet surfaces for the fist time in Elite? :)
 
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Zieman

Zieman
Zak Gordon said:
Will it feel the same as that first time you looked at the 8-bit spinning Cobra loading screen and heard the Blue Danube? Will it feel the same as the first time your watched the opening title sequence for FFE and got to land and take off from actual planet surfaces for the fist time in Elite?
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Did for me. The good old roll & pitch flight from ELITE combined with some yaw for precision. (y)
Can't land on all planets in Odyssey either, in Horizons we get only planets / moons without atmosphere, but there are LOTS of them. :)
Beware of high gravity, at least if you plan to play iron-man -ish.
 

xzanfr

xzanfr
Zak Gordon said:
Will it feel the same as that first time you looked at the 8-bit spinning Cobra loading screen and heard the Blue Danube? Will it feel the same as the first time you watched the opening title sequence for FFE and got to land and take off from actual planet surfaces for the fist time in Elite? :)
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I'm in a similar position as you ref old games and kickstarter backer and for me, the big wow moment was going in to the station for the first time!

Did you choose an NPC name back in the day as part of your KS reward?
If so keep an eye out as you might bump in to them. (FD split the first and second names so you might find at least one of them while you're about). If you have access to the backers forum people in this thread may have met them.

Take your time and enjoy (y)
 

Zak Gordon

Zak Gordon
Happy to report it is doing a good job of carrying on the tradition of Elite i have enjoyed for decades :)

It took me a while to find my way around the interface options (and still learning), but the tutorial scenario's and other guides are very decent to help a newbie out. I think on balance i like some of the features from FFE more (the whole navigation/orrery view stuff), where it just felt i little more easy to negotiate around those screens (more focus on mouse and icons over the keyboard perhaps?), but in general i'm just seeing improvements all over the place.

The flight model is perfect, flying via frame-shift drive gives that fluid transition i manually worked to get in FFE and in general all the aspects of flying around feels super slick and natural (even just using a non hotas stick and mouse+keyboard). That feeling coupled with the visuals has put it at my current number 1 space flight/sim game, and i was not expecting that in truth (i'm a pretty hardcore elite FFE purist).

I am sad we do not have the amazing planetary landings we had in the previous game (ok we do have the no-atmosphere and airless moon landings here), and even if they just did it like in FFE, with just a colour tone change (green for grass/forest and blue for sea/water) and had some land based starports and towns, i would be happy. I guess they really want to go the 'Star Citizen' route and just have that as in a modern day FPS type game (which is just too machine intensive for a game like Elite Dangerous) to keep that part of the game to as high a standard as the rest? So i understand why that has not happened.

I'll be in Solo for now while i slowly explore the options around me, i did make my first trading rank so i'm working out the trade system and general day-to-day. Overall I'm impressed, thank you Frontier and the community for getting this new (old!) Elite game out there. It took me six years or so to finally 'cash-in' my kickstarter contribution (is that a record?!) :)
 
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Zak Gordon

Zak Gordon
xzanfr said:
I'm in a similar position as you ref old games and kickstarter backer and for me, the big wow moment was going in to the station for the first time!

Did you choose an NPC name back in the day as part of your KS reward?
If so keep an eye out as you might bump in to them. (FD split the first and second names so you might find at least one of them while you're about). If you have access to the backers forum people in this thread may have met them.

Take your time and enjoy (y)
Click to expand...

I don't think i did the NPC naming thing? I did pick one for my guy though, and i'd forgotten about it until the support guys were able to activate my account properly! That was a nice surprise :) And i will indeed take my time and enjoy (y)
 
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