Most of you reading this have at least SOME skin in the game. Whether you're a former or returning player, or if you just discovered it, you are here on a post in a game-specific forum. I'm going to assume anyone reading this has at the very least, an interest in the game.
I have a background in astrophysics. It's what attracted me to the game in the first place. I have been playing since launch but didn't get too serious about it until about a year later when I was talking to a friend about the 1:1 depiction of the galaxy thing, and how cool the planetary breakdowns were in the system map. Abbreviating actual science for hard sci-fi games has always been the norm. I've heard it called Hand-Wavium. The show The Expanse, for example. It sticks to hard science when it can, but invents things when it has to account for tech we don't have yet. I appreciate that in the sci-fi media I consume.
A quick example is that the star types, planet distances, orbits, and even objects captured by gravity are SUPER realistic. The planet and system generation all jive with actual science as we know it. I can make 50 jumps to some random backwater system and the physics are as consistent there as they are 2 jumps away. The way celestial objects interact and function is spot-on usually, and in those handwavium moments, the canon explanations don't sound shoehorned in. I get SOOOO much joy just reading system maps.
That being said, its pretty apparent (or should be) that not everyone will appreciate, much less notice, the little details like that. They see a 'Spaceship" game and think; "Oh neat! A Star Wars game!"
Then they download it and fire it up and are lost. Elite doesn't hold your hand. I appreciate that in a game, personally. I can see that driving a lot of folks away though. It's a very niche interest, especially with all the realism. Outside a Newtonian flight model, pretty much all of it is accurate. You could teach a class about thermal dynamics using ED's system map alone. I know because I've done it. (Back when Moses wore short pants).
Here's the rub, though, and please bear with me. Imagine today's television programming. Think of all the stupid reality shows or other junk that you look at and ask; "who watches this stuff?" Its something called "lowest common denominator media programming" and I am nowhere near educated on it myself to give a good breakdown of it, but it means that material (games, TV, etc) targeted to idiots makes a lot of $$. That is a very elementary description, anyway.
Elite Dangerous just doesn't attract gamers who play Fortnite or have a Kardashians iPhone case. When someone from that group DOES try it out, they are quickly scared away by how intricate it is. I know there is a tutorial and a training suite where you can practice stuff, along with a Pilot's Handbook where you can read stuff, but its not very apparent its even there to a newbie. How many folks here have actually READ the PH? I didn't until about three years ago when I already had a fleet of 10 engineered ships. I just didn't know it was there, even.
I think something that would help Elite moving forward would be a better tutorial. At least one that would familiarize new players with career options. Instead, it just gives you a very basic flight tutorial, then spits you out into the deep end of the pool to sink or swim. This game has a fantastic and very helpful community, which mitigates SOME of that. I made another account recently to start from scratch (kept my old one and play on it mainly) and remind myself that I wasn't just misremembering my start and how little info the game feeds you. I can see why some folks rage-quit now.
FDEV is not a perfect company (actually a pretty shitty company to their employees, apparently) but they caught lightning in a bottle, then hobble themselves with the way they present it. I DO like that they made the game free to XBOX (for a while) and now PlayStation users, but how many folks booted it up and peaced out because of the poor tutorial and ass-fucking they gave console users in the first place?
The complexity of this game is what drives lots of potential players away after they first try it. I know its not that simple, but I do think a better tutorial or even an optional starter mission would make more folks stay.
TLDR; Elite is not for stupid people, and that factors into their trouble keeping players.
