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Crowdfunded space trading sim and interstellar combat game Elite Dangerous is headed to the PlayStation 4 in an expanded bundle that collects all previously released add-ons and DLC, creator Frontier Developments announced today.
The post Interstellar trading sim ‘Elite Dangerous’ sets course for PS4 in 2017 appeared first on Digital Trends.
Frontier Games’ Elite: Dangerous [Review: 8/10] remains one of the biggest and deepest games to support VR, and we could well see it on another headset in the near future.
After a lot of speculation and a release on Xbox One, Frontier has finally confirmed that its sci-fi epic will be coming to PlayStation 4 in early 2017. Company founder and CEO, David Braben, confirmed as much on the PlayStation Blog, along with revealing a new trailer that you can see below. Everything released for the game so far, including the recent Horizons expansion, will be making its way to the console, and it will also support PS4 Pro and special DualShock 4 features.
But, let’s face it, you’re here to read about PlayStation VR support.
Elite already supports the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive on PC, but today’s announcement makes no mention of integration with Sony’s headset. We reached out to Frontier to find out more. PR and Communications Manager Michael Gapper simply told us: “We’re looking into it but we have nothing to announce for launch.”
While it’s not the confirmation we were hoping for, it’s nice to know PS VR support hasn’t been ruled out right now. You might wonder why integration wouldn’t be included, but the simple truth is that the PS4 isn’t as powerful as the PCs that can run the Rift or Vive, and adding the strains of VR support on top of an already demanding game like Elite might prove too much for the console. We certainly hope we’re wrong, of course.
We reviewed Elite back at the launch of the Oculus Rift in March. “It’s the kind of game that makes you feel like the champion of the galaxy for landing your ship correctly and a few hours later has you blasting across the stars to track down your latest bounty,” David Jagneux wrote. “With the right cockpit and HOTAS setup, it can quickly become one of the most immersive and accurate implementations of VR to date.”
Tagged with: elite dangerous, frontier developments, sci-fi
Today Frontier Developments has announced that its massively multiplayer space epic, Elite Dangerous will be coming to the PlayStation 4 in Q2 2017. The title already supports Xbox One and PC, with the latter also compatible with head-mounted displays (HMDs) Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. The confirmation of PlayStation 4 support for next year was noticeably absent of news regarding Sony Interactive Entertainment’s (SIE) PlayStation VR, but its seems the headset hasn’t been forgotten.Elite Dangerous has its own dedicated Reddit sub, on which Frontier Developments posted details of the announcement and answered questions. Naturally a Redditor asked about PlayStation VR support, to which the studio replied: “We’ve got a heck of a title for VR, as already seen with Vive and Oculus. We’re definitely interested in doing this, but right now we have no news on it. We’ve got a lot of work to do back-end to make sure that any new technology we support maintains our high quality benchmark.”
So while its no confirmation that SIE’s HMD will see support for the launch of Elite Dangerous on PlayStation 4, Frontier definitely hasn’t quashed the idea.
If you’ve not encountered Elite Dangerous before its an open-world adventure set within the 400 billion star systems of the Milky Way. Players can trade, fight, explore or just try to survive, beginning with a small starship and some cash, then heading out into the vastness of space on their own adventure.
When Elite Dangerous launches on PlayStation 4 it’ll come with every game expansion to date, the full Elite Dangerous: Horizons season pass and custom features for the console, including:
And for those that have bought a PlayStation 4 Pro console, players will further benefit from enhanced performance throughout Elite Dangerous.
“We’re thrilled to bring Elite Dangerous to PlayStation 4,” said Frontier CEO and Elite co-creator David Braben. “Elite Dangerous is unlike any other space game, with a rich multiplayer or single-player space, a true-to-life galaxy including our own entire night sky, real physics, unique ship handling characteristics and a player-driven narrative that’s really heating up. The galaxy has been stable for centuries, but all that is about to change. PlayStation 4 players will be joining our galaxy at a very exciting time.”
For all the latest VR news on Elite Dangerous, keep reading VRFocus.
Today Frontier Developments has launched its third major expansion for its Elite Dangerous: Horizons title (version 2.2), called The Guardians, as well as updating the core Elite Dangerous videogame (version 1.7).
The Guardians adds a massive roster of new features and improvements, introducing ship-launched fighters and passenger gameplay, alongside changing the dynamics of combat, trading and exploration in Elite Dangerous.
Players now have the opportunity to install a fighter launch bay in their larger ships, selecting from three different fighter craft to gain an edge over their attackers. They’ll also have the ability to hire NPC crewmates to pilot their ship while flying into combat from the cockpit of their heavily-armed fighter.
While the new passenger gameplay element introduces individuals and groups of NPCs seeking passage aboard Commanders’ ships. So now players can adopt a new career path, piloting the new Beluga passenger vessel or retrofit their existing craft to transport politicians, VIPs and prisoners across the galaxy for legal and illegal ends.
The actual changelog of updates for Elite Dangerous is huge with the studio enhancing many of the videogames features. This also includes the virtual reality (VR) support, as the title is available on both HTC Vive and Oculus Rift head-mounted displays. These VR specific updates can be seen below:
– Updated to LibOVR 1.4
– Added new (and improved!) VR graphics presets as faster cards can handle the bump.
– VR Low (unchanged from current VR Low)
– VR Medium (is currently ‘VR High’)
– VR High (Mid preset with x1.25 supersampling) VR Ultra (High with medium shadows and medium Terrain Sampler)
– Added backgrounds to textual elements on menu and option screens. Greatly improves readability in VR
– Draw the Mouse Control UI as far away as we draw other gunsights in VR
– Cannot see Tail Ship kits on Vulture in Outfitting due to camera angle in VR fixed
– Cannot see Spoiler/Wing Shipkits in Outfitting on Asp due to camera angle in VR fixed
– Fix the missing text on the wall in the VAR Main Menu hangar if you look behind you
– Fix for mouse cursor size when HMD is present
– Memory optimisations for Oculus
– Only show VR tutorial in challenges list if VR is supported on this platform
Checkout the trailer for a quicker rundown of the latest features, and keep reading VRFocus for all the latest updates to Elite Dangerous.