Frontier has made the call to delay the Elite Dangerous: Odyssey release date and alpha due to the pandemic’s influence on development. You can now expect the alpha to arrive on PC in early spring 2021, and a full launch later in the season.
“The ongoing impact of the pandemic, however, including the renewed lockdowns in 2021, continues to put added pressure on our teams and ultimately our development timeline,” Frontier says. “We have, therefore, had to make the difficult decision to make some adjustments and changes to our existing development roadmap. Our PC plans have only been affected by a small amount, however, our plans for the console release will, unfortunately, see a larger development shift. Please do know that these difficult decisions have been made with a focus on making Odyssey as incredible as it can possibly be for all our Commanders regardless of their platform, while also respecting realistic project deadlines for our teams during this difficult global situation.”
Frontier reaffirms that Elite Dangerous: Odyssey Deluxe Alpha and Lifetime Expansion Pass holders will get access to the alpha, and that more details will be made available closer to release.
As for the console launch, that’s now pencilled in for autumn 2021. If you’d like to read the full statement yourself, you can find it on the developer’s website.
Elite Dangerous: Odyssey was initially revealed last year. It’s set to introduce on-foot gameplay to the space sim, alongside a slew of new content, NPCs, and gameplay systems to support playing on-foot.
If you’re looking for more space games to help you pass the time while you wait, you know where to click.