Frontier Developments recently released a new look at the upcoming expansion to their space flight epic, Elite Dangerous: Odyssey. The brief, seven-minute clip shows a player walking around a starport—a waystation where weary travelers can restock on equipment, sell valuables, and socialize. Though the majority of Elite Dangerous: Odyssey will see players navigating the deep reaches of space, a starport is a location for them to come and take a break.
Before this latest expansion, players of Elite Dangerous could not exit their ship upon docking. They would access missions and upgrades from the pilot seat without ever leaving. Now, visiting a starport will offer a greater sense of immersion. The NPCs available to interact with range from quest givers to weapon vendors to bartenders that trade chemicals. Alongside these vendors are potential ship upgrades as well. As the player moves past a weapon rack, fans can see two rifles that appear similar to ones previewed during last year's gameplay trailer, as well as potential items such as medkits and ammo boxes.
The upcoming expansion will focus on bringing players out of the pilot's seat and onto the ground as they explore different planets and battle potentially dangerous foes. With the striking similarities to Star Citizen, fans couldn't help but poke fun at the notoriously buggy nature of that game's starport equivalent, Port Olisar. Suffice to say, Elite Dangerous: Odyssey's pre-alpha footage looks brilliantly polished by comparison.
Beyond the obvious excitement of new vendors and interactive potential, fans also appreciated the aural experience. The sound team was lauded by commenters for creating an engaging atmosphere at the starport. However, fans should remain cautiously optimistic as the footage shown is from pre-alpha, whether the expansion will play out as smoothly as it appears remains to be seen.
Elite Dangerous: Odyssey is set to release for PC in the Spring and on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X in Fall 2021.