Why I think Elite Dangerous is going to dominate the Space MMO/Space Sim genre

[Muzz UK]

This post is bound to divide opinion and create some arguments but I firmly believe Elite Dangerous is going to be the dominant multiplayer space sim. I just feel Frontier have already started and gotten ahead in the space sim/space mmo modern genre and they are going to start to pull away from the competition. Why you ask!

Firstly it's fully released and works (yes it has bugs needs more contact) but Star Citizen is no where near being released and No Man's Sky has no multiplayer on release and that's having issues too. Evochron Legacy is nice but I found after a couple of hours if offered nothing different over this game. For all it's problems we know why Elite works and we know pretty much where development is going.

Star Citizen just feels like several mini games and modes not quite connected or ready yet. Elite has launched with the bare basics and they are adding things over time. Star Citizen don't get me wrong this is an epic idea for a game but how much has this cost and do they really have much more to show? Elite shows us exactly how hard creating a game on that scale is going to be. It's blindingly obvious Star Citizen is going to launch to a world of issues because a closed test environment can never ever create or prepare for the sheer amount of people, data and connection issues incoming.

I just feel by the time Star Citizen actually gets to a stable working release Elite Dangerous will include most of the features that we are being promised by Chris Roberts like first person mode and walking around things. In 2 years of Elite we've had so much added and in another 2 just think where we are going to be.

As for No Man's Sky this looks very good but I feel this is more of an exploration and sandbox game than Elite Dangerous.

Let's not forget Frontier are experienced at space games and though Elite isn't perfect it's pretty incredible for a small company. Anyway preparing myself for the incoming hate but have a nice weekend everyone!

 

[Thebadmf]

It's had some missteps, it's certainly not perfect but even in the current state it's immense fun and trying to cater to many types of player which is to be commended. It should be lauded for attracting such a passionate fanbase though...

I just hope FD can start building the house before the fans get bored of waiting for the foundations to set.

 

[FrodoHobbits]

Excellent post. Have some rep

 

[Alec Turner]

You'll get no hate from me. While it's not a competition and I hope all of those games succeeed, I do think Elite is the most solid and it's already been out over a year and a half and has had all that time to bed down, weed out bugs, get balanced and generally stabilise and evolve. When NMS and SC are launched they'll be back at square one (where ED was back in December 2014) in terms of mass play testing and feedback. But like I say, it's not a race. Exciting times for fans of the genre!

 

[Thetele]

Become good game yes, become dominate the market no.

There is so much hype behind No man's sky and star citizen. Those games will go past elite just because the hype and masses. The no man's sky probably have more pre-orders than elite will sell ever. If those games fail this kind of games will fail, if those success then more games will try come on market. In big picture elite doesn't matter at all. Many people don't even know that the game exist even if they are hyped for no man's sky or star citizen or pre-ordered one of those.

Why elite isn't as big success as those other big space games? Marketing and advertising not finished game as finished game. Elite would have much better atmosphere behind it if it were early access game and not released game. Because now most players think that elite is on its high point and that its unlikely to elite to become better or fix its problems. Its better to wait than release game that lack contend and have quit buggy mess. When star citizen or No man's sky release they will get pass on some of the bugs (like elite did when it released) for sometime but elite doesn't have anything to defend that still after 2 years after release it has so many bugs and unfinished stuff.

Of course i see its good thing if elite get a lot of new features, but remember elite has negative publicity from having a lot of stuff in dlcs when No man's sky and star citizen will have many of those features in base game.

For players or customers the size of the dev team or money/time they put into the project doesn't matter at all. All that matter is that they know about the product and the quality of the product on release. Most times the dlcs don't matter, minority of players will buy space game because its dlc have some cool features than space games which base game have a lot cool stuff.

Elite and frontier have played their cards and they had the head start to other space games. If if those other games play their cards just little bit better than elite then they have won.

 

[Cosmo]

Become good game yes, become dominate the market no.

There is so much hype behind No man's sky and star citizen. Those games will go past elite just because the hype and masses. The no man's sky probably have more pre-orders than elite will sell ever.
............
Why elite isn't as big success as those other big space games? Marketing and advertising not finished game as finished game. Elite would have much better atmosphere behind it if it were early access game and not released game.

A recent report said Elite Dangerous sold 1.7 million copies across all platforms (PC, Xbox One and Mac). Star Citizen and NMS have more hype and perhaps bigger fan base, but I think neither of them will dominate, because Star Citizen is PC-exclusive and NMS is a cartoony depiction of space exploration.

Elite Dangerous will have to take the best bits of Star Citizen (first person gameplay and large-scale multiplayer, cinematic storytelling) and No Man's Sky (sandbox crafting, randomly generated alien lifeforms) to compete with those games and get those players to join Elite.

 

[Iskariot]

Why I think Elite Dangerous is going to dominate the Space MMO/Space Sim genre

As with every game there's always something one doesn't agree with, but in general I can say that I love Elite Dangerous.
I can see myself playing this spacesim for many years to come.
I do hope it will be developed to it's full potential and that potential is huge.

I will also play No Man's Sky, but unless I am very much mistaken I think it will be a short term involvement for me.
The ships don't seem very interesting to me and the flight model appears to be very basic and shallow.
Also the simulation of the universe with it's cartoony bright color palette will put me off eventually. I like the style of ED much more.
I also like the much more realistic simulation of the universe in ED in general.

Star Citizen... Not much to say about it. I will believe it when it gets finished. In general I do not like the limited space box sector approach and I do not like most of the planes in space ship designs. I hate the pay to win sales model and I have lost trust in what is going on with the developer.
I used to visit the website on a daily bases, but I got fed up with what is going on there. I mostly ignore SC now.

 

[Muzz UK]

This all good but this theory goes on the basis Star Citizen will work when it releases. I had interest for about a year then all the negative press came out, their really bad E3 pitch a while back and all the broken promises but me off.

Medal of Honour 2010, Watchdogs and Duke Nukem Forever spring to mind 3 games with much hype!

 

[PhanttoM]

No Man's Sky will most likely be very successful, but from what I have seen it's also a far more casual/mainstream game.
Hyped up mainstream games generally do well, unless they turn out to be really bad or buggy games.

I'm gonna try out NMS, but I go into it with expectations of a space adventure game instead of an in-cockpit "space sim" with lots of HUD elements.
I doubt it will even support a basic HOTAS...maybe it will support a generic joystick. (I play Elite and similar games with HOTAS, Rudder pedals and TrackIR/headtracking)


As for Star Citizen. I'm a Rear Admiral backer of that game and have been in a guild since 2013 (I still am) — But that game is so far from release, that it's going to take a long time before it can be considered a competitor. (Fact is, it's still an alpha that doesn't even have core mechanics like trading, exploration or mining)

 

[h347h]

This all good but this theory goes on the basis Star Citizen will work when it releases. I had interest for about a year then all the negative press came out, their really bad E3 pitch a while back and all the broken promises but me off.

Medal of Honour 2010, Watchdogs and Duke Nukem Forever spring to mind 3 games with much hype!

For me it was the core gameplay. A boring flight model is the biggest issue. Then the lack of a true exploration side. Basically SC will only be as good as Squadron 42 is.

 

[Muzz UK]

No Man's Sky will most likely be very successful, but from what I have seen it's also a far more casual/mainstream game.
Hyped up mainstream games generally do well, unless they turn out to be really bad or buggy games.

I'm gonna try out NMS, but I go into it with expectations of a space adventure game instead of an in-cockpit "space sim" with lots of HUD elements.
I doubt it will even support a basic HOTAS...maybe a generic joystick. (I play Elite and similar games with HOTAS, Rudder pedals and TrackIR/headtracking)

As for Star Citizen. I'm a Rear Admiral backer of that game and have been in a guild since 2013 (I still am) — But that game is so far from release, that it's going to take a long time before it can be considered a competitor. (Fact is, it's still an alpha that doesn't even have core mechanics like trading, exploration or mining)

No one else worried... 100 mil and 3 years and all they have is a dog fighting sim :-( ah well

 

[cpbtrading]

I bought into ED fairly early, but I don't agree with the OP. However, that makes no difference, because for the OP, it is his opinion and belief and we all have an opinion and each of us is entitled to that. So if it rocks his boat, then that's great.
.
Space Engineers, another I have had for some time and it has out sold ED by some way (pc wise), but doesn't hold the MP side up, which I don't mind as I enjoy the SP sandbox space engineers game very much. But not having a really good MP game-play side yet, those that love MP, will have to hope and wait. It is getting better at MP though. Its a great hobby SE, I love the game.
.
Star Citizen, I bought into this pretty early too. But it is becoming clear that a huge amount of players in any one place, will grind the game to a halt, even more so if there is lots of action. The MP side will suffer I believe for SC, which is a shame because that's all there is. But for smaller groups, it may work well. I am looking forward to the time in SC, where I can just fly out on my own and explore in my Connie (without someone pinching my ship before I can find it ).
.
NMS, well we don't know yet. But I feel it could be a really fun game that I could well get lost in for some time (hobby perhaps), pure sci-fi and a 'SP' wonderland.. sorry wonder-universe (highly unlikely to meet anyone in MP, which doesn't matter for me much). I am looking forward to it greatly.
.
Infinity Battlescape, another I bought into very early. When I get to play this, I didn't get the higher pledge that some are playing, I'm hoping I'll enjoy it. MP in this could flatten all that went before, other than Eve perhaps. We'll see. I'm excited for it, but not as much as NMS to be honest. But luckily it won't be out for a while, so that may change.
.
Empyrion, a little bit of a let down. I got into when it had its (failed) KS. Then right after that when they said they were still pushing ahead. I play it from time to time, but I'm not as enthusiastic about it as some that play. Still good though, for those that play it.
.
Evochron Merc, great game, does ED better than ED for SP (imo). I do like the game a lot, but don't play it much now.
.
Interstellar Rift, nice game. Play it rarely though.
.
Rouge System.. Wow, a true space sim. But I don't play that much yet. But its a game that will slow burn for me, until it suddenly becomes a hobby too, just have that feeling.
.
.
That's' a few of the ones around. I like or love each and wouldn't go back and undo my backing. I'm happy I backed/bought each. Space games have returned and that's all that matters really.
...
Quick edit.......... Starforge.......... I would give that back if I could..[hehe]

 

[claymore2408]

I bought into ED fairly early, but I don't agree with the OP. However, that makes no difference, because for the OP, it is his opinion and belief and we all have an opinion and each of us is entitled to that. So if it rocks his boat, then that's great.
.
Space Engineers, another I have had for some time and it has out sold ED by some way (pc wise), but doesn't hold the MP side up, which I don't mind as I enjoy the SP sandbox space engineers game very much. But not having a really good MP game-play side yet, those that love MP, will have to hope and wait. It is getting better at MP though. Its a great hobby SE, I love the game.
.
Star Citizen, I bought into this pretty early too. But it is becoming clear that a huge amount of players in any one place, will grind the game to a halt, even more so if there is lots of action. The MP side will suffer I believe for SC, which is a shame because that's all there is. But for smaller groups, it may work well. I am looking forward to the time in SC, where I can just fly out on my own and explore in my Connie (without someone pinching my ship before I can find it ).
.
NMS, well we don't know yet. But I feel it could be a really fun game that I could well get lost in for some time (hobby perhaps), pure sci-fi and a 'SP' wonderland.. sorry wonder-universe (highly unlikely to meet anyone in MP, which doesn't matter for me much). I am looking forward to it greatly.
.
Infinity Battlescape, another I bought into very early. When I get to play this, I didn't get the higher pledge that some are playing, I'm hoping I'll enjoy it. MP in this could flatten all that went before, other than Eve perhaps. We'll see. I'm excited for it, but not as much as NMS to be honest. But luckily it won't be out for a while, so that may change.
.
Empyrion, a little bit of a let down. I got into when it had its (failed) KS. Then right after that when they said they were still pushing ahead. I play it from time to time, but I'm not as enthusiastic about it as some that play. Still good though, for those that play it.
.
Evochron Merc, great game, does ED better than ED for SP (imo). I do like the game a lot, but don't play it much now.
.
Interstellar Rift, nice game. Play it rarely though.
.
Rouge System.. Wow, a true space sim. But I don't play that much yet. But its a game that will slow burn for me, until it suddenly becomes a hobby too, just have that feeling.
.
.
That's' a few of the ones around. I like or love each and wouldn't go back and undo my backing. I'm happy I backed/bought each. Space games have returned and that's all that matters really.
...
Quick edit.......... Starforge.......... I would give that back if I could..[hehe]

Please do check out Hellion, it looks pretty good -- it has the Danny Boyle Sunshine feeling.

 

[Monk]

I think Star Citizen could be a force to be reckoned with. However, I don't think it is even worth mentioning in the same breath at the moment.

Brushing aside all the doomsaying vitriol against SC (some of it quite valid, btw) Star Citizen has at least another year before a basic playable release version. It will probably another 2-3 years before it is studded with the features that would make it a competitive MMO. Pure speculation, though...

NMS, I feel, is going to have a short honeymoon with gamers. The game is attractive, its premise alluring and Sony's marketing has been effective. A lot of people are going to buy that game and it is going to make ED look a bit small for a little while. I don't think the play style is going to resonate with most players in the long term...but, we'll see. I believe that the people who would end up liking NMS for the long-term would probably rather just play ED for its realism....just a guess.

My prediction? A major IP (star wars, star trek, BSG etc) will take up the space mmo challenge...spend a crap ton of money and will appeal to masses. Meanwhile, ED will chug along, catering to its niche fan base.

 

[lysan]

A recent report said Elite Dangerous sold 1.7 million copies across all platforms (PC, Xbox One and Mac). Star Citizen and NMS have more hype and perhaps bigger fan base, but I think neither of them will dominate, because Star Citizen is PC-exclusive and NMS is a cartoony depiction of space exploration.

Elite Dangerous will have to take the best bits of Star Citizen (first person gameplay and large-scale multiplayer, cinematic storytelling) and No Man's Sky (sandbox crafting, randomly generated alien lifeforms) to compete with those games and get those players to join Elite.

Not to forget that ED will be on PS soon(TM)

 

[Aewarin Jameson]

This post is bound to divide opinion and create some arguments but I firmly believe Elite Dangerous is going to be the dominant multiplayer space sim. I just feel Frontier have already started and gotten ahead in the space sim/space mmo modern genre and they are going to start to pull away from the competition.

Spoiler

Why you ask!

Firstly it's fully released and works (yes it has bugs needs more contact) but Star Citizen is no where near being released and No Man's Sky has no multiplayer on release and that's having issues too. Evochron Legacy is nice but I found after a couple of hours if offered nothing different over this game. For all it's problems we know why Elite works and we know pretty much where development is going.

Star Citizen just feels like several mini games and modes not quite connected or ready yet. Elite has launched with the bare basics and they are adding things over time. Star Citizen don't get me wrong this is an epic idea for a game but how much has this cost and do they really have much more to show? Elite shows us exactly how hard creating a game on that scale is going to be. It's blindingly obvious Star Citizen is going to launch to a world of issues because a closed test environment can never ever create or prepare for the sheer amount of people, data and connection issues incoming.

I just feel by the time Star Citizen actually gets to a stable working release Elite Dangerous will include most of the features that we are being promised by Chris Roberts like first person mode and walking around things. In 2 years of Elite we've had so much added and in another 2 just think where we are going to be.

As for No Man's Sky this looks very good but I feel this is more of an exploration and sandbox game than Elite Dangerous.

Let's not forget Frontier are experienced at space games and though Elite isn't perfect it's pretty incredible for a small company. Anyway preparing myself for the incoming hate but have a nice weekend everyone!

I like your optimism, even if it's not shared, but it's unfair to compare games that haven't been released yet against ED.

(a) Star Citizens scope is already light years ahead of ED, but ED is slowly catching up. However SC hasn't been released yet (still in Alpha) so with held breath we shall see. Sadly for this game the hype train may have overtaken reality.

(b) Revisit the NMS comparison in a couple of weeks once it's released. Not long now

 

[lysan]

Activate hyper drive....


[video]https://giant.gfycat.com/WarmheartedDentalGrayfox.mp4[/video]

 

[Pomerlaw]

Once FD release walking around... Watch out... This will bring a lot of players in the game.

I don't care if the game becomes mainstream or not anyway, only the fun I get out of it.

Sadly the state of SC flight model is a deal breaker for me.

 

[Electric Kite]

I like your optimism, even if it's not shared, but it's unfair to compare games that haven't been released yet against ED.

(a) Star Citizens scope is already light years ahead of ED, but ED is slowly catching up. However SC hasn't been released yet (still in Alpha) so with held breath we shall see. Sadly for this game the hype train may have overtaken reality.

(b) Revisit the NMS comparison in a couple of weeks once it's released. Not long now

Sorry...did i miss something in Chris Roberts Leaflet? How is the scope of Star citizen "allready light years ahead"? Last time i checked..ED had a fully traveresable 1:1 scale galaxy with 1:1 scale fully traveresable planets.Thats...pretty big scope right there.

SC has..a hangar..erm.. a race track i think? Some dog fighting levels...annnnd..what was the other thing? You know that thing? Oh yeah ships that cost 15 thousand dollars.

Sorry i dont mean to sound snarky or condescending. Your comment just facinates me.

 

[Aewarin Jameson]

Sorry...did i miss something in Chris Roberts Leaflet? How is the scope of Star citizen "allready light years ahead"? Last time i checked..ED had a fully traveresable 1:1 scale galaxy with 1:1 scale fully traveresable planets.Thats...pretty big scope right there.

A 1:1 galaxy sounds great until you realise that 99% of it is empty.

In what way am I thinking that SC is light years ahead:

• Player driven economy
• Working Industries
• Real tangible player outcomes to actions

The list is large but these 3 stand out for me. Putting your actions at the centre of the game gives players a sense of importance - you​ matter.

Basically what I meant was that on paper SC sounds the better game. Realistically we will have to wait and see.