Play Elite Online

Summary

Elite’s groundbreaking use of wire‑frame 3D with hidden‑line removal still feels fresh, especially when you slice through the eight procedurally generated galaxies—256 planets per galaxy, all waiting to be explored. The open‑ended model lets you carve a path as a trader, pirate, bounty hunter, miner or mission specialist, upgrading your ship with stronger weapons, bigger cargo bays, docking computers and fuel scoops.

Jumping through hyperspace costs fuel, while sublight travel is free, and you must beware the hostile Thargoid alien race that can cut a jump short. Optional Galactic Navy contracts add a layer of intrigue, from hunting a stolen experimental vessel to ferrying classified data on the Thargoids’ home world. The game even bundles Robert Holdstock’s novella “The Dark Wheel,” giving the universe an extra narrative depth, and it earned an 80 % review score on the NES.

Storyline

Elite on the NES follows Alex Ryder, a young star‑pilot whose merchant ship, the Avalonia, is destroyed when a Cobra‑class pirate cruiser ambushes it. His father Jason dies in the attack, whispering the word “Raxxla” before Alex escapes in a pod. Rescued by a hospital vessel, Alex learns from his father's old associate Rafe Zetter that his dad was part of the secretive Dark Wheel, a group hunting a hidden alien gateway called Raxxla.

Determined to avenge Jason, Alex teams up with the fugitive alien co‑pilot Elyssia Fields. Together they steal a battered Cobra ship, retrofit it through risky trades, and haul a cargo of rare Mymurths that turn out to be infected with Tharglet larvae, the juvenile form of the hostile Thargoids. The infection forces Alex into a desperate battle that teaches him combat, hyperdrive navigation and the use of solar‑interference missiles.

After destroying the pirate Cobra that killed his father, Alex earns the Galactic Police’s Deadly status and is offered a place in the Dark Wheel. Rafe warns that control of Raxxla attracts deadly rivals, leaving Alex to decide whether to chase the legendary gateway or stay on his newly won path of elite combat.