Frontier: Elite II
| Company type | Video game |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video games |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Founder | David Braben |
| Products | Space trading and combat simulator |
Frontier: Elite II is a space trading and combat simulator released in 1993, developed by David Braben and published by GameTek and Konami for platforms including the Amiga, Atari ST, and DOS. Serving as the direct sequel to the groundbreaking 1984 title Elite, it expanded upon its predecessor's foundations.
Maintaining the open-ended gameplay that defined Elite, this installment introduced authentic physics and a meticulously simulated galaxy. It was pioneering in its use of procedurally generated star systems, crafting distinct planets and moons through a combination of physical principles and randomized material allocation.
The series continued with Frontier: First Encounters in 1995 and later with Elite Dangerous in 2014.
Gameplay
In Frontier, there is no predetermined storyline or fixed missions; players have complete freedom to roam the cosmos, engaging in activities such as legitimate or illicit trading, military assignments, passenger transport, piracy, or any mix thereof. The game lacks a definitive win condition, leaving players to define their own objectives.
Set in the year 3200, players assume the role of one of Commander Jameson's descendants, beginning with a modest sum of 100 credits and an Eagle Long Range Fighter—a setup encouraging entrepreneurial ventures across various pursuits.
The galaxy is dominated by two principal powers: the "Federation" headquartered in Sol and the "Empire" based in Achernar. These factions are locked in a tense Cold War-like ceasefire. Players may choose to ally with either side, both, or remain unaffiliated. Completing freelance military contracts can elevate rank within each faction independently, although serving both simultaneously complicates advancement.
Trading forms the core gameplay loop, involving commodities ranging from foodstuffs and computer components to weaponry and slaves. Success depends on mastering interstellar market fluctuations while managing expenses such as fuel consumption and ship repairs. Smuggling contraband promises high profits but carries significant risks including fines or confrontations with law enforcement.
Departing from Elite's arcade-style controls, Frontier implements Newtonian physics: spacecraft retain momentum until counter-thrust is applied, influencing navigation and combat dynamics. Routine operations like docking can be delegated to autopilot systems. Due to realistic spatial scales, travel within star systems may require hours; an "accelerate time" function allows players to speed up time by factors reaching 10,000.
Interstellar movement is facilitated by a hyperdrive enabling jumps between visible star systems represented as "hyperspace clouds," which introduce tactical challenges as pirates may track vessels through these regions. The jump range depends on ship mass; maximum-distance jumps consume exactly one week of in-game time.
Combat involves physics-based dogfights where ships exchange laser fire until one is destroyed. Eliminating foes improves the player’s combat rating, progressing from "Harmless" up to "Elite." Safety levels vary according to government type—Core worlds offer secure environments while anarchic systems like "Riedquat" and "Phekda" pose significant dangers.
Copy protection mechanics are integrated into gameplay via police spot-checks requiring manual code verification. Failure results in arrest and seizure of the player's ship, effectively ending the session.
Comparisons with Elite
Compared to its predecessor Elite, Frontier boasts significantly enhanced graphics enabled by more advanced hardware such as the Amiga, Atari ST, and IBM PC, contrasting with earlier platforms like the BBC Micro and Commodore 64. Its graphics engine was state-of-the-art at release, featuring curved Bézier surfaces and texture mapping on PC versions.
The scale of Frontier vastly exceeds that of earlier titles, supporting realistic gravitational maneuvers near massive stars and planets along with detailed planetary flybys where surface features like clock faces are discernible.
Building upon Elite, this sequel introduced continuous planetary landings rather than restricting players to space station docking. Most star systems contain multiple planets; real-world stars such as Alpha Centauri, Sirius, Altair, among others near Sol, are included. The entire Sol system’s planets and principal moons are accessible for exploration. Although other galaxies appear when zooming out, these are duplicates of the primary galaxy and cannot be accessed.
As with Elite, players can pilot a variety of ships ranging from agile fighters like the Eagle to multipurpose traders such as the Cobra and large cruisers including the Anaconda. Ownership is limited to one ship at a time; selling an existing vessel applies its value toward purchasing another.
Development and release
David Braben initially programmed the title using 68000 assembly language, producing approximately 250,000 lines of code. This was subsequently adapted for PC’s 80286 assembler by Chris Sawyer. Noteworthy technical innovations include per-frame palette optimization for color fidelity and accurate 1:1 scale modeling of planets and star systems.
Although planned for an Atari ST launch in November 1992, Frontier: Elite II was ultimately released on a single floppy disk—880 KB for Amiga versions and 720 KB double density for PC/DOS editions. The executable file size was roughly 400 KB uncompressed, demonstrating efficient assembly coding paired with procedural universe generation techniques.
Following a nine-year hiatus after the original Elite's 1984 debut, Frontier was hailed by CU Amiga in 1993 as "the longest-awaited sequel of the decade."
A notable glitch dubbed the "wormhole" bug allowed players to perform hyperjumps far exceeding normal limits by exploiting certain distance calculations, enabling rapid traversal across vast distances.
The soundtrack incorporates MIDI renditions of classical compositions by composers such as Wagner, Mussorgsky, Grieg, alongside Strauss’ The Blue Danube during docking sequences—a homage to 2001: A Space Odyssey. David Lowe contributed two original pieces styled after classical music including introductory themes.
Currently available as shareware for free download, running Frontier on modern hardware requires emulation due to its dependence on Expanded Memory Specification (EMS) instead of XMS memory. Emulators like DosBox facilitate gameplay on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux platforms. Around 2005, Tom Morton reverse-engineered a platform-independent C version named GLFrontier, enhancing compatibility and performance on contemporary operating systems through OpenGL support.
Reception
Critical response
Critics widely praised Frontier for its immense scope and realistic physics simulation, earning high marks across major gaming outlets. Computer Gaming World emphasized its "ENORMOUS universe" offering extensive exploratory opportunities, describing it as "less of a game, more a way of life." Despite limitations such as the Amiga version’s restricted 16-color palette, reviewers commended its detailed visuals promising prolonged engagement in galaxy exploration. Amiga Computing awarded it a 94% score, labeling it "another all-time classic" distinguished by impressive graphics and immersive gameplay.
Conversely, Amiga Power criticized it for insufficient action elements, rating it at 65% (75% on Amiga 1200), though it later included Frontier at number 100 in its top 100 games list.
In 2004, readers of Retro Gamer voted it as the 20th greatest retro game ever made, highlighting its expansive universe containing millions of planets alongside open-ended gameplay capable of consuming considerable player time. It ranked #77 on PC Zone's "101 Best PC Games Ever" list published in 2007. Additionally, in 1994 PC Gamer UK ranked it as the 16th best computer game ever released, calling it "a worthy successor to Elite, and another classic in its own right."
Sales
According to official sources from the Frontier website, approximately half a million copies were sold worldwide; royalties were paid on about 350,000 units.
Legacy
Following its release in April 1995, the sequel First Encounters arrived exclusively for DOS platforms; planned versions for Amiga 1200 and Amiga CD32 were canceled due to diminishing commercial viability on those systems.
A later continuation of the franchise materialized with Elite: Dangerous, which was successfully crowdfunded via Kickstarter before launching on December 16th, 2014.