Detailed on Elite: Dangerous’ official website, the fourth and final Alpha phase of the upcoming game has now been distributed to the its Alpha testers, and with it comes a bunch of additional features that focus on exploring an incredibly massive volume of space and some new ships to fly around in, too.
The fourth Alpha phase was introduced on Thursday, May 15, but the game’s biggest release could well be its forthcoming Premium Beta, which will be going live at the near-end of the month on Friday, May 30.
In the Premium Beta, you’ll receive immediate access to Elite: Dangerous’ singleplayer combat build, and you’ll also receive automatic access to all the game’s future Beta development phases, automatic access to all future major downloadable expansions as they release, and even a download key for the game upon release.
To gain access to the Premium Beta, you’ll first have to fork out £100 (or your regional equivalent). To gain access to the game’s Alpha, you’ll have to throw in £200 (or your regional equivalent).
By purchasing Alpha access, you’ll receive automatic early access all of the game’s development phases, and lifetime 50 percent discount in-game insurance, automatic access to all major downloadable expansions (like what you’ll receive when buying the Premium Beta), and of course a copy of the game once it launches.
For those who want to know, some of the things to expect with Elite: Dangerous’ fourth Alpha will include five new star systems for you to explore, which will be centered around the Boötes constellation (part of the Ursa Major constellation family) in an accurately simulated representation of 400 million star systems in the Milky Way galaxy.
There will also be two additional ways to travel around space in: super-cruise, for accelerated travel in-system; and hyperspace jumps, for traveling between systems.
Lastly, trading between star systems has been introduced for the first time, is which touted to be a sophisticated market that dynamically changes according to supply and demand.