Elite: Dangerous Newsletter #52

Hi Commander,

Welcome to Elite: Dangerous Newsletter #52!

The Gamma phase is well underway, with frequent updates as evidence of the team’s rapid progress. As of today we are on Gamma 1.05.

This week we have a Peek Of The Week that is a little out of the ordinary.

We start to take a look at the power struggle to succeed the frail Emperor that you’ll begin to experience on 16 December in Elite: Dangerous 1.0.

And we have a free version of BBC Elite (1984) for all you Mac owners out there.

There are also only 12 days left to pre-order the game and get the Elite: Dangerous Mercenary Edition goodies such as free Eagle spaceship docked in a secondary location in-game, digital concept art book, exclusive pack of ship paint jobs and a ‘day one’ ship decal with a £4.99 discount. Available to buy now.

Pre-ordering the game also gives you immediate access to the Single Player Combat Demo to start practising your piloting skills.

Contents this week (Click subject to jump forward):

• Newsletter Peek of the Week
• The Emperor Is A Sick Man
• A Free Elite (1984) Download For Mac Owners
• Comms Chatter

Newsletter Peek of the Week

Something slightly different this week.

Our trailer for Elite: Dangerous is due to be finished very soon now, and it will hit a computer screen near you next week.

We are excited about it, so naturally we wanted to whet your appetite:

The Emperor Is A Sick Man

Arguably the most powerful person in the galaxy, Emperor Hengist Duval, is sick.

He has ruled the Empire now for 67 years since his coronation in 3233 following the death of his father, Hesketh Duval.

Emperor Hengist is only 118, born only a week before the death of his grandfather, Hender Saik Duval. Some say Hender’s spirit had already transferred to Hengist at that time.

The Duval Imperial line has been unbroken for almost a thousand years. There have been power struggles in the past, but the usurpers have been successfully dealt with behind closed doors.

This time is different.

Hengist has been not involved himself in politics for a long time, relying on his Chancellor, Senator Blaine and has taken a laissez faire attitude towards a handful of increasingly powerful and ambitious Senators whilst Harold, the current heir, quickly made a name for himself as a feckless playboy.



The warlike Senator Denton Patreus, last seen trying to destabilise the Eranin system during the conflict surrounding its 30th Anniversary of Independence from the Federation, continues his manipulative power-broking in the galaxy at large.



The preposterously rich Senator Zemina Torval is using her slaver corporation supporters and personal fleet of Majestic-class Interdictors to suppress revolts and to further her ambitions.

Commentators expect others to show their hand, too.

Much like in Imperial Rome on ancient Earth, Senators determine the tax rates of their supporters and both Patreus and Torval have become hugely popular back home as they have each used their huge wealth to lower taxation to zero.


There is a real prospect of the next Emperor not being a Duval. And the bitter fight for succession is about to spill out into the open.

Meanwhile, the Federation and Alliance of Independent Systems are watching with keen interest.

On 16 December, the first shockwaves from this battle for the Imperial succession will finally hit the galaxy at large.

How you choose to respond will have a direct bearing on the ultimate outcome.

A Free Elite (1984) Download For Mac Owners

With all the excitement of Elite: Dangerous 1.0 releasing on 16 December on the PC, we don’t want Mac owners to feel left out.

We are delighted to announce that we are now able to give a free copy of BBC Micro Elite for Mac to everyone as a download from our online store, bundled with the BeebEm BBC Micro and Master 128 Emulator for Mac.

To get your copy just go to the store, where it is listed as a product, put it in your basket and check out - it will appear free of charge. If you don’t already have an account with us, to get the free game please set one up here. Feel free to get it even if you already have the PC version.

Thanks go to Mike Wyatt and Jon Welch for allowing us to distribute Jon’s Mac version of Mike’s BeebEm from our site – Jon is happy to help anyone using BeebEm via this website.

Comms Chatter

We have a great video with comments from people who attended the Elite: Dangerous Premiere event.

CMDR Poy on Reddit didn't need to leave the station to find beautiful views.

Isinona's Flight Assist off series continues in the Gamma, with Freebooter.

That’s it for newsletter #52 - thank you for reading and supporting the development of Elite: Dangerous.

If you are new to the newsletters you can read all our previous newsletters here.

As always if there is anything in particular that you’d like to hear more about, or you'd like to ask a question, then please contact us at elite-newsletter@frontier.co.uk.

The Frontier Team

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