Is Elite Dangerous worth the price? Also what's the DRM on it?

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

So Elite dangerous has me considering opening my wallet. But I'm not sure as it isn't on steam and from what I've heard it has some third party DRM which I'm hesitant to install yet more of on my computer... Yet I'm not sure if that's true anymore since I couldn't find any mention of it except some year old stories about it being always online on google.

So guys, what's the DRM situation from any owners? Also is it good?

 

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

It's always online. There have been quite a few connection and server problems in the past, but as far as I know those have mostly been fixed.

I would recommend against buying it right now. It's extremely shallow and lifeless.

 

[InsanityRequiem]

I'm finding Elite: Dangerous a lot of fun, but it's very much a game where you are constantly in space. DRM? You gotta download the game's own launcher and it is always online. It's not attached to any online distribution other than Frontier's own website.

There's a lot you can do already, but as stated by the developers themselves, the game was released early. There's a bunch of stuff being worked on now that will come out in the future.

It depends on what you think on planning to do. A jack of all traders, ship fighter, explorer, or trader?

 

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

I tend to favor fighting and trading myself...

 

[mad825]

It's basically a poor man's Star Citizen....That's already out as opposed to being delayed to oblivion.

 

[Remus]

As mentioned, it's a good game to hold you over until Star Citizen or No Man's Sky is released. The game encompasses the entire Milky Way galaxy with all known stars and systems (roughly 150,000), as well as many in-between generated by the game, numbering nearly half a trillion. This makes the game physically impossible to see in its entirety within the span of one's lifetime. Currently, exploration is restricted to space only, with docking at space stations of different shapes and sizes, mining for minerals from asteroids, piracy, bounty hunting, and missions from bulletin boards - tied to a faction system, being the majority of what you will be doing. Planet exploration, as well as leaving your ship on space stations, is planned for later. The space combat is fun and you'll be leaning in your chair dodging enemy fire. If you've been looking for a decent space sim and have been stuck playing games well past their prime, this game will definitely scratch that itch. This is the kind of game that hours will pass in seconds, so fair warning, don't forget to eat.

 

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

So tempted, but money....I can use my money to buy food, hrrrrg!!!

Also does it work with an xbox controller by any chance? My setup for playing with a keyboard and mouse is a little awkward as I havent put a table in front of my computer yet and cruise the net from an armchair.

 

[small]

as far as i know you can use a controller for it.

currently you have 3 basic choices. trader, bounty hunter/pirate, explorer

there are different stations but the inside of station type x looks the same as every other station type x.

i like it but yeah it doesnt grab me as much as i expected and ill be waiting for walking around the ship/stations, planetary landings and exploration before i probably head back

 

[Randoman01]

It seems like a lot of fun. I got mine for free on reddit because a guy gift it to me.

 

[Mr Icarus]

I love how it looks but it still seems a little light on the actual content, I love space trucking as much as the next guy but... need more meat on the bone.

 

[Randoman01]

Yup, I would also like to know how to dock and use super cruise while flying in Solar Systems

 

[Rattja]

First of all I'll just direct you here: http://youtu.be/___lRaq-xZ4
It's a prime example that this game is not just space trucking, so.. yeah.

I've been playing around with it for a while and this is what I think of it. It's one of those games that "is what you make of it".
At this moment it may be a bit short on content in the traditional way (as in no story), but there is still a lot of fun to be had with what's there. Also, more stuff is on its way, like the recently added space station construction or named credit for being the first to find a system.
The best thing the game has going for it though is the ship simulation, as it has by far the best controls I have ever experienced in a space sim. It works alright with a mouse or a 360 controller, and is absolutely fantastic with a joystick.
I've not had the pleasure of trying it with a VR set yet, but from what I can understand that is an incredible experience.
The way your ship handles is very satisfying. It is easy to learn and control, as you can easily do everything with a mouse and keyboard and ship assist on. Or you can grab a joystick and turn that assist off so you can pull off some insane maneuvers (again, see Isinonas videos, he is very good at it).

That being said, I'd like to compare it to minecraft when that first shipped. It's a solid base for loads of additional stuff that will come over time, so you may want to wait if whats there is not enough for you just yet.
You can't do things like trade directly with other players (yet), and for getting money trading is by far the best choice.

The newest patch adds the ability to team up as wings with up to 4 ships, and they seem to be working mostly on the multiplayer aspect these days.

As for the online part, it's there because the world is supposed to take into account what everyone does and react to it. You can start wars or make empires expand, but you can't really do it alone. It is meant as an online experience. You can play solo, but the game sill tracks your trades and so on so it can use it, so that is why it is there.

So is it worth your money? Eh.. hard to say, it was worth mine? Oh yes.

 

[Randoman01]

So when will Elite Dangerous allow you to walk on planets or on ships? Isn't that coming?

 

[Shraggler]

Is it anything like Starpoint Gemini 2, to those potential few who've played both?

Based of gameplay videos, I'm probably going to buy it at some point. I'm just curious as to others' experiences.

 

[small]

So when will Elite Dangerous allow you to walk on planets or on ships? Isn't that coming?

planetary landings as far as i know will are coming but as to when you guess is as good as mine, plus it will probably be an expansion to purchase rather than a free update. although those who got in early and paid for the permanent additions part of the crowdfunding

 

[Randoman01]

^Ok thanks, I will try to watch out for that soon.

 

[Robert Marrs]

I loved the hell out of it for the first 2 months but after me and my friend got to a point where it just wasn't profitable to try and work together we gave up. With wings coming in march though we are excited to get back into it. Its adding pretty much everything we felt the game was lacking from a player interaction perspective. As far as recommending I'm not sure. I for sure got more time out of it than I would most AAA titles and I plan on playing more. Updates seem to be coming along nicely and Frontier hasn't given me a reason to worry about future development.

All said its a fun game. You kind of have to make your own experience and it can get a bit slow at times. I found myself listening to the best of patrice o'neal from opie and anthony (its 2 parts on youtube on 12 hours long total so great) and other radio stuff on youtube to keep me focused while doing more menial tasks. Switching over from private group to open play for sure adds to the experience because you never know when someone is going to decide they don't like the way you look or they want your cargo.

It really needs more content and more focus but in its current state I got 2 solid months of fun out of it and plan on going back full force in march with the update. I would say thats worth 60$ even if you don't plan on going back but its all subjective. I look at it as one of those games I can always have and just play sporadically for weeks at a time as new updates come out.

Edit: one thing I should add is that it probably took me a good 2 hours or so of watching videos and doing tutorials to figure things out. this is necessary. even after that there were things those tutorials and videos didn't cover and I still find myself going to google to figure things out from time to time. its a bit intimidating at first but once you figure things out its pretty much smooth sailing. oh and don't forget to refuel.

 

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

Oh my god this game throws you in the deep end doesnt it lol? I got it yesterday and spent like three or four hours derping my way around the solar system as the worst pilot ever. Overshooting in solar systems because I dont know how to automate the slow down with the blue thing, crashing into everything, trying to land on the wrong pad and copping fines for it and spending five minutes trying to land on a pad because I was too stupid to look at the direction the little arrows point.