Elite Dangerous developer Frontier has announced a significant change to the near decade-old space sim: the sale of ships for real money.
In a post on the Elite Dangerous website, Frontier said it will sell three months of early access to the Python Mk II ship from May 7 for 16,250 ARX, the game’s premium virtual currency. 16,800 ARX costs $12.99 from the store. Owners of the Odyssey expansion can buy the ship from August 7 for credits, Elite’s non-premium virtual currency. Those who do not own Odyssey can only access ship variants from the store for ARX.
Frontier is also selling Pre-Built Ship packages, which include ships that have been upgraded from their base models. “We envision these Pre-built Ships to be a quicker way for newer players to get involved in the areas they have the most interest in, or for our existing players who are considering a new career path in game, but do not have time to devote to a new build from scratch,” Frontier said. A Pre-Built Ship package includes instant-access to a pre-fitted ship, a ship kit, and a paintjob — essentially skipping the grind associated with upgrading ships.
It’s safe to say this announcement has infuriated veteran players of Elite Dangerous, some of whom have accused Frontier of going down the Star Citizen route in its bid to generate revenue from the long-running space game. While players will continue to be able to earn ARX in-game by playing Elite Dangerous daily, or by contributing to events in-game, the fact you can buy the currency with real-world money and spend it on early access to new ships has sparked pay-to-win accusations.
“And with a single article about literal p2w ships you have now officially lost all trust,” said redditor Xay_DE. “It’s ridiculous enough that you have to pay IRL money to do any sort of ship customization in a game you have to pay money for, but adding paid-for ships, once again in a game you have to pay for, is unacceptable,” said Endulos.
Some players are now pointing to a 2019 statement in which Frontier said “ARX can only be used to buy cosmetic Game Extras and will not be used to introduce and acquire pay-to-win purchases.” It seems likely that Frontier would dispute the pay-to-win accusations, pointing to the fact ARX can be obtained through gameplay, as so many developers of games with similar systems often do. Countering this, some players are insisting any advantage, including time saved, should be considered pay-to-win.
Frontier has struggled in recent years after a string of games failed to hit sales projections. In November, Frontier issued a trading update following poor launch sales of its real-time strategy game Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin. The studio has also suffered a round of layoffs. Earlier in April, Frontier sold the publishing rights to RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 to Atari for $7 million, bringing in much-needed cash.
Countering the doom and gloom, Frontier said sales of its games since January have been “in-line with expectations”, with Jurassic World Evolution 2 and Planet Zoo leading the charge. The recent console release of Planet Zoo saw “strong player engagement”, with total sales up to and including the day of release greater than the sales achieved by Planet Coaster when that game came out on consoles in November 2020.
In a previous update, Frontier said it was refocusing on creative management simulation games (CMS). With this in mind, Frontier has confirmed three future CMS games, with one releasing in each of the next three financial years. Alongside this it will continue to develop and support its existing portfolio of games, including Elite Dangerous, F1 Manager, and Realms of Ruin.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.