Elite Dangerous (2014), the open universe MMO space simulator from Frontier Games, is getting its next chapter soon which will include a new ship, a few new mechanics, and improvements to existent systems. Frontier today announced Beyond – Chapter Two will be launching for free to all Elite Dangerous players on all platforms on June 28th.

Update (06/01/18): Along with the new ship,(‘Alliance Challenger’), Frontier is also bringing a selection of new wing missions, installation interactions, new settlements to explore and, more ways to combat the Thargoids.

“This is the first of the two smaller installments coming as part of the Elite Dangerous Beyond series of updates, with a larger one coming in Q4 of this year, bringing Squadrons and improvements to Mining and Exploration, and much more,” the company says in a press release.

Check out the new updated trailer below:

Original article (02/20/18): Chapter One is the first update to Elite Dangerous’ third season, Beyond, following the Thargoids assault on humanity’s starports which took place in Horizons, the game’s second season.

According to a Frontier forum post, the studio will be bringing four Beyond updates to Elite Dangerous which they say will focus on “adding new content, uncovering and progressing the mysteries of the galaxy and enhancing existing core gameplay experiences.”

Elite Dangerous supports HTC Vive and Oculus Rift on Steam, and for Rift on Oculus Home. As for traditional monitors, ED supports PS4, XBOX, and PC.

Frontier says they’ll have a more detailed rundown on all of the changes coming in the 3.0 Update on their forum in the near future. Here’s the current list of features coming in Beyond – Chapter One:

  • New Ship: Chieftain – Elite Dangerous Horizons Commanders will also be able to take to the stars in the new Alliance Chieftain, designed not only to dish out punishment, but to avoid it. Manufactured by Lakon Spaceways, the Chieftain is more maneuverable than ships of similar size and weight, and its combat profile means it can more than hold its own in a fight.
  • Improved Core Mechanics – Chapter 1 of Beyond will bring improvements to some of Elite Dangerous’ core mechanics, including accessibility enhancements to the engineering mechanics, an overhaul of mission rewards and big changes to Crime and Punishment. We’ll be sharing more information on the changes to Crime and Punishment, and the Engineers in a future post here on the forums and in the livestreams mentioned above.
  • Wing Missions – Chapter 1 of Beyond will give you the chance to take on wing missions with your fellow Commanders, sharing both the efforts and rewards. 
  • Revised Trade Data – Commanders will now be able to access trade data from systems they have previously visited, in order to make more informed decisions when shipping goods across the Milky Way. 
  • Planetary Visual Improvements – Chapter 1 also includes the first of the planetary visual improvements coming as part of the Beyond series of updates (with more surface level improvements coming later in the year) bringing a new vibrancy to the Elite Dangerous galaxy. 
  • GalNet Audio – With the introduction of GalNet Audio, you will be able to catch up on the latest news from across the galaxy without ever leaving the action. 
Newsletter graphic

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Scott Hayden
Well before the first modern XR products hit the market, Scott recognized the potential of the technology and set out to understand and document its growth. He has been professionally reporting on the space for nearly a decade as Editor at Road to VR, authoring more than 4,000 articles on the topic. Scott brings that seasoned insight to his reporting from major industry events across the globe.
  • theonlyrealconan

    I always had high hopes for this game. But just more grind and shallowness. Shame.

    • Raphael

      You can improve on the shallowness with therapy. It’s not something you’re born with.

      • V Zaporozhets

        Sounds like therapy didn’t work out for you after all. There goes your theory.

        • Raphael

          Did Elite make you feel dizzy and vomit you pathetic whiney attention-seeker? Go and lie down and your vomit should stop within 2 hours.

          • V Zaporozhets

            I see that you have unhealthy obsession with vomit. You seem to mention it a lot. Have you mentioned it to your therapist or did your mama run out of money to pay for one? Don’t worry, next night she will earn some more ;) I’ll pay her better this time.

          • Raphael

            “Or is it the flying that makes many people sick? Tried it for 1 hour. Felt sick for the next 2.”

            “Or is it the flying that makes many people sick? Tried it for 1 hour. Felt sick for the next 2.”

            “Or is it the flying that makes many people sick? Tried it for 1 hour. Felt sick for the next 2.”

            Like I said flappy… you should be fucking embarrassed telling everyone a game without a bad nausea inducing repuation made you vomit and how it took two hours to recover. A fucking wishy-washy generation who can’t handle anything and actually brag about it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

          • V Zaporozhets

            Look, I don’t know what reputation this game has with dick sucking fanboys, but you can probably tell me all about it. It does have a nausea inducing reputation with normal people. Yes, you right, I do feel embarrassed talking to imbeciles like you.

          • Raphael

            What a total cockhead you are. A game made you vomit for two hours and you think you’re “normal” . Idiot.

          • V Zaporozhets

            I tried to educate you on multiple attempts, but you keep excelling at being dumb. Why don’t you go back to what you are good at, such as dick sucking and fantasizing about vomit? And I’ll go back to what I’m good at, pimping your mama.

          • Raphael

            What in god’s cock are you talking about?

          • V Zaporozhets

            Look, I get it, American teens hurt you. How long are you planning to cry about it here?

          • Raphael

            What in god’s cock are you talking about? Go and vomit somewhere else you normal idiot.

          • V Zaporozhets

            You are my vomit and I did vomit you somewhere else, but you keep coming back because you like being vomited over and over again.

          • Raphael

            What in god’s cock is it talking about?

            It was a troll all along and I now suspect it doesn’t even have vr.

            It just came here to troll.

          • gothicvillas

            Zaporozhets is a russian troll. Dont feed the troll.

          • Raphael

            I fed it so much I made it obese. No more food. Today it begins the diet.

          • V Zaporozhets

            LOL, sure. I remember one day comrade Putin called me and said “dear agent V, please go troll that barely known VR forum to bring the mighty American economy to its knees.”
            Or could it be simpler, such as I didn’t like the game and voiced my opinion and a bunch of cock sucking fanboys came to the defense of their beloved game/developer.
            I don’t know. Hard pick between those options.

          • Engineer_92

            Dude, what’s your issue? If you don’t like VR, get off of the forum and stop spamming childish comments

          • neil rosson

            lol what is with people trying to throw insults of immaturity then going on to post some of the most embarrassingly immature shit ever posted.

          • neil rosson

            Oh wait what’s this? ‘block user’ sorted.

          • V Zaporozhets

            Thanks. I just blocked your immature shit.

          • Engineer_92

            I can’t wrap my head around it lol

          • V Zaporozhets

            What’s your issue dude? Where did I say that I don’t like VR? Wait until you learn some basic reading comprehension at your school for mentally handicapped and then come back and spam your nonsense.

          • Engineer_92

            Bruh, now you’re just reaching. Log off and go home

          • V Zaporozhets

            I am home. I know it’s hard to imagine for an outstanding resident of Kakistan such as yourself that some countries have internet access at home. No wonder your reading comprehension sucks.

          • Engineer_92

            Lmao, the fact that all you can do is argue pointless garbage makes my case. Log off

          • V Zaporozhets

            Show me one comment of yours that is not pointless garbage. I dare you. Just one.

          • Sandy Wich

            He’s autistic with violent tendancies and probably on a major down cycle right now, just report his comment as harassment imo

          • Sandy Wich

            Jesus you’re even more ill than I first realized, any way to get people like you banned?.. You need to get away from this before you kill yourself.

          • V Z

            I see you like playing doctor. Ask your mommy to buy you a plastic doctor pretend kit from local dollar store. Report back on this forum if that increased the fun for you ;)

    • david vincent

      you know the saying : “galaxy wide and an inch deep”
      this sandbox needs much more sand…

  • Miganarchine Migandi

    As a game I have no interest but to play in VR for an hour is often a thrill and Awe inspiring, Will be interested in the Gal Net audio, may make it seem more immersive than just a empty space.

  • Holger Fischer

    This is one of the games that is perfect for VR. The grind is less grindy when it is so much fun doing a simple cargo run. Sneaking into a conflict zone with attacking Targoids – spine crawling. Looking forward to the update and will make sure that my next Hotas has more buttons ;o)

    • Alice

      Gℴogle is paying you 99 US dollars every hour to do job on the internet .. Work only for only few peroid of time in a day and spend more time with your loved ones … Anyone can also catch online jobs community!!last Thursday I got a gorgeous Saab 99 Turbo after I been earnin $13265 past five weeks .no doubt it is the coolest job however you wont forgive yourself if you don’t view this.!eg231b:➮➮➮ http://GoogleParkJobsAtHome/earncash/$99/hourly… ♥♥p♥♥♥f♥♥b♥♥♥a♥♥♥w♥♥j♥♥♥f♥♥♥o♥♥t♥♥s♥♥♥q♥g♥d♥♥h♥♥♥t♥♥♥q♥g♥♥♥u♥♥z♥i♥♥v♥♥b♥♥q♥♥t♥l:::::::!dh342k:durj

    • V Zaporozhets

      Not sure what makes this game perfect for VR. Is it the grind, even if there is less of it? Or is it the flying that makes many people sick? Tried it for 1 hour. Felt sick for the next 2. Uninstall. It was boring when it first came out on ZX Spectrum, it’s still boring now.

      • Raphael

        Nice try flappy. The people who get sick in VR are a minority as always and that’s reflected in the feedback. I spent between 2 and 4 hours at a time in Elite in VR and never get sick. Come to think of it no VR game ever made me sick and I’ve been using VR since 2006.

        The grind cliche: any game involves grind. Life is grind. Same routine every day. A great quote applicable to you is: A shallow mind can’t see depth.

        If you vomit easily then don’t blame the rollercoaster operator. Stay the fuck away from VR.

        Clearly from a call of duty generation who want to rank up quickly or you get bored. Idiot.

        Never ceases to amaze me you vomit gamers never feel any shame or embarassment telling the fucking world you can’t handle a space game in VR. If it was me I wouldn’t be bleating about it. I’d be doing something about it or avoid games likely to make me sick.

        • V Zaporozhets

          You gotta have a brain to feel sick. Ask an adult to explain you what this sentence means. Always comical how underage fanboys get triggered so easily :)

          I’m sorry to hear that your life is a grind. Mama feeds you same sandwich every day and daddy comes drunk to beat you up? I can only imagine how grindy that might feel.

          • Raphael

            So you actually think not having any spacial awareness and getting sick makes you smarter… one giant fucking lol. So let’s see… all those fighter pilots are just fucking dumb eh? Idiot.

          • V Zaporozhets

            Ok kiddy, I’ll be patient and explain you this one time and use words that are easy to understand even for you. The sickness comes from mismatch between what the eyes see and what the body feels. That’s what happens in VR. Now, attempt to think about it for a minute… or an hour… is there mismatch when fighter pilot flies a jet? No. Just like there is no mismatch when your mama is bouncing on my dick. She never complained about being sick. Ohhh, and by the way, you should thank me for bringing at least one giant lol into your grindy life.

          • Raphael

            Oh… it’s an american teenage troll… still doing the mama jokes are they?

            “No. Just like there is no mismatch when your mama is bouncing on my dick. She never complained about being sick.” <<< what a dumb cunt you are. Cliche american teen rhetoric. Is that bollocks still popular with US teens? I mean it's so cuntishly formulaic.

            Like I said… if you can't handle VR then stay away from it. The way you were showing off about not being able to handle Elite and how it made u vomit for two hours??? Really? You're so dim of wit that you have to brag about that?

            Spare me the pseudo-technical mismatch bollocks. You're a pleb who can't handle VR and like so many other plebs who can't handle VR you want to blame whatever game made you sick on a particular day. Fecking numpty.

          • V Zaporozhets

            First of all kiddy, I’m not an American, so I don’t really know what you are whining about. Did some big bad American hurt you? And you right about one thing, that explanation was too technical for your underdeveloped brain. Look, I’ll do one last try explaining you how VR makes smart people sick with your mamas example. When she bounces on me in real life, she see everything bouncing around her and her body feels it too. Now, if she would forego my dick for some reason and do same in VR, she would see the world bouncing around her, but her body (unfortunately) wouldn’t feel it and thus she would feel sick. That’s where mismatch comes into play. But don’t worry, judging by your lack of logic and comprehension, it appears that nature spared you from ever feeling VR sick. If you still don’t understand the explanation above, I’m afraid any further effort would be like explaining nuclear physics to a slug.

          • Raphael

            You’re not an American? So why are you trying to sound like an american teen with the cliche “I fucked your momma” bollocks? It really becomes clear the more you type why you couldn’t handle elite. It made u vomit for 2 hours and you wanted instant gratification…

            Really work on trying to stop sounding like a cliche teen with that “i fucked your momma” shite. It just looks so fucking dumb flappy.

            And stop trying to explain why you vomit in VR. I heard all the pseudo-scientific bullshit and I know that only a very small percentage suffer extreme nausea that never leaves them in VR. Most get used to various games and the nausea reduces or goes away completely. If you’re in the extreme category then you’re a very small minority. Like I said… I’ve been using VR since 2006 so I dont need to read your cunty-bollocks-gibberish about why you have to vomit every time you enter VR. You’re boring me.

            I mean what a bleddy muppet!

          • V Zaporozhets

            I don’t know why you keep telling me that American teens fucked your momma. I never asked you who fucked her. Is that your fetish or something?
            I also never said that I vomited. Is repeating it getting your little dicky hard or something, ‘cos you keep saying it so much. Alright, I’ll help you out:
            vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit vomit

            2006 you say? Thanks for confirming that you are 12 :)

          • Andrew McEvoy

            Sorry mate. You are most definitely in the small minority feeling sick in this game. Most people who are a prone for vr sickness find this game one of the few that works well for them. But I can imagine if I felt sick playing this game in vr I would feel left out too. Understandable.

          • V Zaporozhets

            Oh, don’t worry, no loss for me. It’s hard to feel sorry for not wasting time on this shovel-ware after trying Skyrim VR.

          • gothicvillas

            I bought ED on Steam just a week ago. In my first go at it I spent 3hrs messing around and didnt make me sick at all. You know why? You need to play VR a lot to get rid of vr legs. Try real F18 fighter jet, make a few loops etc. It will make you sick. Practice is everything.

          • V Zaporozhets

            Hold on. Going to try real F18. brb

            Naaaah, real F18 didn’t make me sick.

            Why would I waste time practicing while feeling uncomfortable when there are so many good VR games that don’t make me sick? How would that even make any sense?

            That’s like saying “You will like dog food after eating it for a while and getting used to it” – “No, thanks, I’ll just eat the human food”

          • Sandy Wich

            Just take a break bud, you’ll feel better after a few hours when you stop arguing with strangers for no reason.

          • V Z

            Consider taking a break from giving advice to strangers for no reason. Could be good for your health too ;)

          • Sandy Wich

            I’m sure you could find some medication for your illness, it might help your mood a bit at least. Zantex, maybe?

          • V Z

            Zantex didn’t help you unfortunately. I’m really sorry for your suffering.

      • MarquisDeSang

        You get sick because you never try slowly to increase your exposition to crazy motion. Everyone get used to crazy motion eventually, just be patient like an Incel.

      • zoëtropik

        Who are these “many” people that you claim Elite Dangerous makes feel ill in VR? The vast majority of the folks I’ve chatted with on ED forums who play with a Vive or a Rift love the extra immersion it offers. (In fact, many now refuse to play the game without the HMD!)

        The first time I ever tried ED was with my Vive, and I did feel *slightly* disoriented as I worked my way through the various tutorials… but it didn’t take many sessions to acclimatise to it. Since then, I’ve routinely played 6+ hours of ED at a go in VR and it’s a great experience. (Well, okay, the SRV is absolutely dreadful, but apart from that…)

        Sure, I wish the text in the cockpit displays was a bit sharper, but that’s a limitation of the resolution of current gen HMDs and can be improved slightly by customising the HUD colour in the game. I know precisely zero ED players who report nausea when flying about in VR.

        Anyway, sorry to hear you found it boring. All games of this type involve some degree of grind as there are a limited number of supported mission types. Perhaps space sims simply aren’t your thing?

  • dextrovix

    Such a great title for showcasing VR interface and design from a cockpit viewpoint, as well as just the awe-inspiring views of each system in the galaxy!

    Looking forward to some prettier planets to have a look at in this update, and can’t wait to get my SRV on the surface of some of them!

    I never play outside of VR and spend a lot of time on missions and particularly passengers recently. However, I’ve now tried the Chieftain from the 3.0 beta so I’ll be getting one on release, and heading out for some more combat-orientated opportunities… ;)

    • Raphael

      A friend a mine was so impressed with ED when he tried it on my VR PC he bought a Hotas the next day. It’s a game I keep going back to even though it involves a lot of jumping between systems. Part of what makes me return is the knowledge that the game has a full development program and won’t be abandoned at any moment (Eve Valkyrie).

  • Peter Hansen

    I don’t understand those games anymore. I have bought it and it wasn’t exactly cheap. I even bought a hotas setup for it. And now with this season stuff I have to pay continuously to remain able to play it? You gotta be kidding me.

    • Grey Lock

      I think you might be confusing Elite Dangerous with another game.

      The base game is on sale for less the $8 very often (again just last week,) with the full game (with Horizons DLC) on sale for less than $30, so it is cheap compared to other AAA games.

      And if you purchased the full game (with Horizons) like I did in 2016, you have received all the new content for free, including this year’s Beyond season.

      • Peter Hansen

        That’s good then. I think I don’t understand this whole “season” bs. I have bought a game and can play it endlessly. That is what I want. Wtf is a season? Is that the new name for the time period between two updates? Well then PUBG is in its… 10th season? LMAO

        • Raphael

          Seasonal updates were originally gonna be paid… that didn’t go down well. No more fees after buy now. Star Citizen is the same. Buy once.

  • Grey Lock

    I truly enjoy playing this game which is awesome in VR, but after playing for 18 months I’m very glad this new update is coming out next week to add new things to do and see! Also looking forward to the big update coming in the fall (also free with Horizon’s DLC.)

    PS – If you enjoy playing Elite and live near Boston, check out Frontier’s Meet-up (more on their forums) scheduled for April 5th – hope to see you there CMDRs!

  • FT

    I’m a big fan of this game in VR. Cant wait to delve into this update. However, would REALLY like full fledged colonized planets to land on and interact with. Entire cities, some like The Fifth Element or Star Wars, others not so much. To the point you could land, teleport out of your ship and explore, do missions. Patiently waiting…

    • gothicvillas

      You just described Star Citizen

      • Lucidfeuer

        This game is real, Star Citizen is not.

        • Sandy Wich

          How is SC not real?.. It’s just not finished yet. Like was wow not real for it’s first 6 years of development?

          In your world was Fallout 4 a 6 month development title because until it’s revealed and has a release date, it doesn’t exist?

          Sucks to see the extremely rare and few passionate people out there trying to make something truly unbelievable and get shit on for it.

          • Lucidfeuer

            Okay, allow me to step back: I think the SC project is very interesting, but I think a final version will never see the day because of how it’s conceived and managed.

            Elite Dangerous not only is a finished but also an evolving game.

  • Grey Lock

    Looking forward to the 3.1 update! Just hope they also fix the fun squishing bugs from 3.0…

  • Sandy Wich

    After playing Aircar I have to admit I’m really interested in this now, it seems stupidly over-complicated though… But who knows, once I get a wider FOV headset I may hop right into this bad boy and see some of the universe.

    ..I love the stars. :3