Frontier Developments has announced that Elite Dangerous‘ third season will kick off with Elite Dangerous: Beyond – Chapter One, which will be free for players across all platforms in Q1 this year. Although an open beta for Beyond – Chapter One will only be available on PC, a recent press release announcing the test phase reveals details of the upcoming update.
The developer wrote:
Beyond advances the ongoing player-driven narrative and introduces a variety of gameplay enhancements, upgrading the gameplay experience whether players prefer to trade, fight or explore in Elite Dangerous’ massively multiplayer galaxy.
Wing Missions bring challenging team-based objectives for players to complete with friends and community members around the world. Commanders will share their adventures – and rewards – with allies while working together to overcome dangerous obstacles.
Advanced in-game Trading Data will empower traders to make better deals and smoother transactions. Information on the galactic economy is now more freely available, allowing every commander to become a master merchant as they journey among the stars.
The Elite Dangerous galaxy becomes more realistic and beautiful than ever before with reworked planet rendering technology in Frontier’s COBRA game engine. In Beyond – Chapter One vibrant surface colors better reflect planetary geological properties, enriching the full-scale Milky Way.
Chapter One also features a range of game-improving updates, including changes to the engineering mechanics, an overhaul of mission rewards, and an altered crime and punishment system.
A new Alliance warship, the Chieftain, will also be introduced and GalNet Audio will now allow players to catch up on the galaxy’s latest news without leaving the action.
We’ll update our readers when a release date is announced.
