In addition to a cheaper version of the full game, Mercenary Edition also includes a bonus Eagle fighter ship, a pack of ship paint schemes, a ‘Day One’ ship decal, a digital players guide, a digital concept art book, and additional in-game bonuses “to be announced over the coming weeks.”
Elite: Dangerous is a revival of the classic 1980s PC game Elite, a space trading game that was among the first video games to offer more of an open-ended, exploratory experience. The game was created by David Braben and Ian Bell (no relation to Digital Trends’ co-founder and CEO). Elite saw a number of sequels in the years that followed its release, though Dangerous is the first in almost 20 years.
The game is the product of a successful Kickstarter campaign, with almost $2.5 million dollars pledged. Frontier, which was founded by Braben, has released regular updates on the game, complete with alpha and beta buy-ins, since the Kickstarter ended in January 2013. The final release is rapidly approaching now; there may not be a hard date yet, but Q4 2014 is when it’s slated to arrive.
