The Whole Frontier Canon Mess

[drew]

Well, when Mr. Braben and Mr. Bell invite me to take on a highly paid consultancy role for the upcoming Elite 4 - I'll let you all know!

Cheers,

Drew.

[Star Gazer]

Damn right you will! ...if we're not all too old to care by then...

[drew]

Personally I don't think Elite 4 is ever going to happen. Mr. Braben has left it too long. Yes, there is a cult following for Elite, but it's probably numbered in thousands nowadays. I'm not convinced there's a big enough audience for it, mainstream, to make it a viable business proposition.

If it does appear I suspect it will be either an MMORPG or dumbed down to arcade levels of play. Consoles rule for the masses.

We're getting old, and we're not a particularly lucrative game-playing demographic anymore. Too set in our ways.

David Braben is 47 this year. In general, people tend to achieve their greatest contributions by 50 years old. The 25th anniversary was the perfect opportunity to announce intentions, demos or 'something'. Zip, nadda, nothing. It's not going to happen.

Thus Oolite is the best we're ever going to get, IMHO.

Cheers,

Drew.

[Cody]

Thus Oolite is the best we're ever going to get, IMHO.

You know what... that suits me, just fine!

[Ganelon]

You know what... that suits me, just fine!

I agree. Who is to say that if an Elite IV did come out, that it'd be a better game than Oolite, or even a *good* game? No way to know for sure.

As it is, I'd have to rank Oolite as one of the best space games ever. And I've played a few space games over the past 30 yrs or so.

[drew]

I wasn't saying that was a bad thing, as you say, it's a very good thing.

Just need some eye candy and the ability to have more choice on the laser front and it would be perfect... hint hint!

Cheers,

Drew.

[Ganelon]

I'll always second any motion that involves eye candy and/or more possible choices with weapons. LOL

[Killer Wolf]

Given that the last i heard was that Elite IV was going to expand stuff by letting you leave the ship and walk around spacestations etc, i think it would be a huge shame if it never comes to pass. saying that tho, my dream version of the game would have to be Elite controls, Frontier universe expansions such as the planets/moons/bulletin boards/planetary landings etc, and the Oolite ability to put our own ships/missions in there.
so, i think i'm gonna be disappointed

[drew]

I'd love to play that game Killer Wolf, but I don't think there are enough of us left to justify anything even close enough to that commercially and it could never be as good as we'd expect after two decades of waiting.

How many copies of Elite 4 could frontier dev realistically sell @£40 RRP? 1,000? 10,000, 100,000?

Then there's the style. You could never sell 'Elite' today, because it's too damn difficult. Notice the frequent questions/reactions of new folk to Oolite (Giles bless it). Too many controls for the modern gamer. Granted some of this could be tweaked with the interface design, but just imagine trying to put Oolite onto an Xbox or PS3 from a design perspective, before you even thought about the coding.

Then there's the platform. It can't just be a PC game, it's got to work on the the consoles to be a financial success. That constricts the type of game you can make, both in type and and appeal (has to fit with Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo branding etc).

We're in almost the same situation today as Braben and Bell were in during 1980. There is 'a way' to publish computer games, and anything that doesn't fit the norm won't get made. Unfortunately, unlike 1980, two blokes and an 8 bit computer aren't enough to make a viable alternative in the 21st century. You need a project team of coders, designers, artists and testers for a game of that scope. We're not talking 'Angry Birds' here.

Oolite, and games written this way, by a dedicated group of fans unburdened by profit and loss worries, are the only way forward for a concept of this type - a game of (dare I say it) limited appeal.

Or put it another way... how many copies of Oolite would be out there if we'd charged £25 for it? (usual legal disclaimer, warning, don't take this serious etc etc )

I don't even think the background appeal is there anymore. 'Our' generation grew up with Star Wars, Star Trek, Space Shuttles. Space was new, cool and happening. Those franchises are tired and dull now. (Ok the reimagined Star Trek wasn't bad, but it's hardly inspired a rash of copycats).

Enjoy Oolite - it's the best you're going to get. Braben's left it too long.

Cheers,

Drew.

[Phantom Hoover]

The fact that space sims effectively died out before I got into gaming annoys me immensely, particularly since I have no interest in Generic FPS 7: Part 5 Section 3 or the whole "Excel IN SPACE" genre.

[DaddyHoggy]

The fact that space sims effectively died out before I got into gaming annoys me immensely, particularly since I have no interest in Generic FPS 7: Part 5 Section 3 or the whole "Excel IN SPACE" genre.

Excel in Space - I love it - beautifully encapsulates the whole genre in one simple three word statement. Genius!

[Phantom Hoover]

I feel obliged to point out that that joke is not mine; I lifted it from someone else who probably didn't think of it himself either.

[DaddyHoggy]

I feel obliged to point out that that joke is not mine; I lifted it from someone else who probably didn't think of it himself either.

But you brought it to us - and for that I am thankful...

[Killer Wolf]

i don't think space sims have died out, there's still stuff turning up, albeit a little infrequently. i think a game like elite would probably appeal to any Wing Commander/Elite/X fan, and maybe others just because it would be so different to the current crop of 1st person shooter etc. of course, if there is a bit of first person shooting, that'd be a bonus - imagine getting into gunfights in shady bars on a planet, or in a pirate's nest (after they destroy your ship and scoop your capsule! you're only hope is to shoot your way out, jump in a ship and high tail it!), or getting bigger guns and clearing out a Thargoid-infested Coriolis.
i'd like to think it hasn't been written off, even if i've about written it off myself! i'd still love to see some screenshots from something he's been quietly working on for months etc. if anything happens though, i just pray it's not the equivalent of turning Wing Commander into Wing Commander Arena >X-(

[ramon]

On topic (ish). Perhaps Elite IV could be a re-boot

@Drew, stop calling us console owners dumb

With regards to Elite 4, a quick quote from http://gdc.gamespot.com/story/6301740/h ... ook-flight
says
After the main portion of the talk, Braben was asked by an audience member if Elite 4 was still on the drawing board.
"Yes," he replied. "It would be a tragedy if it [weren't]."
And that's a recent as 3rd March this year

But I agree with Drew, Elite IV does seem to be slipping away (assuming it was ever in a position to slip awy from !)