Classic trading game Elite celebrates 25th birthday

Mostly harmless

21 September 2009 10:33 GMT / By Ben Crompton

Originally created by David Braben and Ian Bell, Elite has now turned 25-years-old and with its anniversary comes a wave of nostalgia.

The game, originally published by Acornsoft for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron, is cited as having a huge influence and spawning a host of sequels, due in no small part to its non-linear game model.

With players allowed to roam and make money as they pleased and given a wide variety of, albeit wire-framed, space craft (with the classic Cobra Mark III, Python or tasteful Fer-de-Lance), the game soon made it into classic status.

The celebrations come in the form of a special dedicated site which has information on "a series of events, competitions and media" and includes "brand-new wallpapers, Elite midi music and screenshots in the Anniversary Media section".

If you have a favourite element of the game, be it Thargoids, a particular mission, ship or trading route, be sure to let us know in the comments below.

Via: atomicmpc.com.au

Full tags

Gaming, PC games, Elite, BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, Retro-gaming