Odyssey, which finally gives players the much-requested ability to step outside their ships and stroll around the galaxy in first-person, was lambasted by players when it launched last month, quickly accruing a ‘Mostly Negative’ rating on Steam as purchasers highlighted performance issues, server outages, and a heap of bugs - despite Frontier having held a month-long paid alpha prior to launch, ostensibly to fix any glaring problems ahead of release. As the negative reviews continued, Frontier Developments boss David Braben stepped in, releasing a statement apologising “to those who have been suffering from these problems” and insisting that addressing Odyssey’s myriad reported issues was the studio’s “priority and focus.” Frontier’s first major post-launch patch arrived at the end of May, touching upon everything from balance issues and bug fixes to audio and visual improvements. Elite Dangerous Odyssey’s second major update is now available and proves to be even more extensive. Once again, the bulk of the update is bug fixes, as its patch notes attest, but it does seek to make inroads in two of Odyssey’s most heavily criticised areas: performance and UI. It’s not entirely clear how effective these early efforts are in real terms - a cursory roam around stations and settlements on my own PC post-update doesn’t reveal a notable boost to Odyssey’s plummeting frame rates, despite Frontier promising improved performance in both these areas - but it’s at least gratifying to see the studio moving quickly to make good on its pledge to remedy Odyssey’s shoddy launch. “Thank you once again for your continued support and constructive feedback,” Frontier concludes in its patch notes, “as the teams continue working hard to improve the Elite Dangerous player experience.”
