The SF MMORPG Elite Dangerous (PC, Mac, Xbox One, PS4) was released in December 2014. Five years later, in June 2019, a real money currency, ARX, was introduced: The developers promised that it could only be used to purchase cosmetic items. But that is now changing, and players are not happy about it.
What was the main promise?
- On July 6, 2019, Elite Dangerous introduced the new virtual currency ARX.
- The currency can be purchased for real money and painstakingly earned in-game.
- At that time, Elite Dangerous explicitly promised: ARX can only be used to buy cosmetic items and will not be used to introduce Pay2Win purchases or incentivize them (via frontiers).
New ship available in early access for €12 or 40 weeks of grinding
What is changing now? In May, players will be able to purchase early access to variants of the ship Python MK II for approximately €12.
As the site arstechnica explains, players can theoretically also earn the currency in-game, but the possibility of earning ARX is strictly limited: A player would have to grind for 40 weeks and save all ARX to acquire the one ship for which they can also spend about €12.
Elite Dangerous apparently wants to make more money with fewer players
Why are they doing this now? For many years, Elite Dangerous was considered a pioneer in the genre of SF MMORPGs or space simulators, especially because it made its way to consoles and heavily invested in virtual reality: For some, Elite Dangerous was a taste of the grand sci-fi epic Star Citizen, which was technically much more ambitious but also much further away.
It is clear that Elite Dangerous has reached a point in its lifecycle in 2024 where it wants to charge the dwindling number of players more heavily.
This is a normal but unpopular part of the lifecycle of an MMO: The fantasy MMORPG Rift was considered extremely fair to players for years. However, as player numbers dwindled, monetization became increasingly harsh:
- The player numbers in Elite Dangerous have fallen from about 8,000 to 10,000, which were present at the beginning of 2021, to around 2,500 to 3,000 now.
- The last major update was some time ago. Odyssey was released in June 2020.
- In March 2022, CEO David Braben announced that the development of console content would be discontinued.
Moreover, the developer Frontier is apparently not having a good run currently and recently had to admit to a flop with Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realm of Ruin.
Fans criticize the action primarily regarding the state of Elite Dangerous
What are the reactions? The reactions on reddit are mostly negative. It is criticized, among other things, that the developers have hardly developed the game in recent years.
Now, after years, ships are finally coming again, and then they break the no-Pay2Win promise.
- One user on reddit says: This is just not a stunt you pull when you haven’t released a ship in 5 years.
- Another says: After years in which you’ve done practically nothing, you announce new ships […] With a single article about literal Pay2Win ships, you’ve lost all trust. Are you happy?
More on the topic:
Popular space sim is too broken, ends support for PS4 and Xbox – “This is a joke, right?”
