David Braben, the top man at Elite: Dangerous studio Frontier Developments, will be holding a livestreamed Q&A session on YouTube Gaming at 6 pm UK time (that's 1 pm EST and 10 am PST) today—and yes, that means it's underway now. Frontier also said it will be making a "wee announcement" during the stream, although it offered no clue as to what it could be.
My guess is that it will relate to planetary exploration, which the studio said in a lengthy video released in October will be "starting soon." Blasting through the wide open blackness of space is obviously the heart and soul of Elite: Dangerous, but bombing around on planetary surfaces looks like it will be a lot of fun too. It's expected to come out sometime this winter as part of the Horizons expansion, which will set you back $45/£30. That's not cheap for an expansion, although Frontier noted at PAX Prime in September that it covers "an entire season of expansions," and not just planetary landings.
If you miss the livestream, an archived version will be available immediately after it wraps up.
Update: The big news is out: The Horizons Planetary Landings beta will begin on November 24. Find out more at elitedangerous.com.
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Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.
