Frontier: Elite 2 (1993): David Braben's Long-Awaited Sequel to Elite
Legacy titleYear: 1993 · Designer: David Braben · Developer/Publisher: GameTek · Platform: DOS · Theme: Shareware, Freelance, Flight
Frontier: Elite 2 casts you as the grandchild of Commander Jameson, the original Elite’s protagonist, chasing the same core ambition: reach Elite status by defeating as many ships as possible. What’s new is a layer of structure the original never had, imperial and federal military ranks that advance as you complete missions, giving the open-ended combat goal a bit more shape along the way.
The most obvious leap forward is visual. Landing on a planet or docking at a station shows off an amount of detail the original Elite simply couldn’t manage, and that alone was enough to make the sequel feel like a genuine technical step up rather than a reskin. What holds it back is less flattering: a confusing interface, computer AI that doesn’t hold up its end of the challenge, and worlds that start blurring together the more of them you visit. Long-awaited as it was, the sequel landed somewhere short of matching the original’s tighter design, even while clearly building on it in scope.
There’s a specific, verifiable footnote worth keeping attached to this game rather than treating it as a footnote: David Braben’s own site, The Elite Club, released Frontier: Elite 2 and its sequel, First Encounters, as shareware, giving players a legitimate route to the games rather than leaving them to track down aging retail copies. That’s not a small gesture from a franchise’s own designer, and it’s part of why the Elite lineage carried forward as far as it did.
None of this happens in a vacuum, either. The original Elite, co-created by Braben and Ian Bell, is widely regarded as one of the games that helped define the idea of an open-ended, go-anywhere space game in the first place, which is exactly why a follow-up carried the weight of expectation it did. Frontier: Elite 2 doesn’t quite match that original’s tight design, but it’s still the game that carried the concept forward into a fully 3D, considerably larger galaxy to explore.
How to run it today
Frontier: Elite 2 runs through DOSBox on modern systems; period documentation around its shareware release recommended running a fully patched build, and that advice still holds for getting the most stable experience today.
Compatibility: DOS (via DOSBox) · Controls: Keyboard, mouse, or joystick · Setup difficulty: Medium
Legal status
The Elite franchise had substantial later official life, both through David Braben’s own shareware release of this game and its sequel, and through Frontier Developments’ continued work in the same universe in the years since. This specific 1993 build isn’t sold through any current storefront, but the surrounding lineage’s real, ongoing activity is enough to place it as a legacy title rather than a fully orphaned one.
If you liked this, try
Wing Commander: Privateer (Origin Systems’ own take on freelance space trading and combat), Hard Nova (Electronic Arts’ science-fiction space adventure), and MegaTraveller 2: Quest for The Ancients (Paragon Software’s licensed sci-fi RPG from the same broad era).
Frequently asked questions
Who is the protagonist in Frontier: Elite 2?
The grandchild of Commander Jameson, the original protagonist of Elite, picking up the same core goal: earning Elite status by defeating as many other ships as possible, now alongside imperial and federal military rank progression.
What are the game's biggest weaknesses?
A confusing interface, weak computer AI, and worlds that start to feel repetitive after enough exploration, according to period assessments of the game.
What did Frontier: Elite 2 improve over the original Elite?
A far greater level of visual detail when landing on planets or docking at stations, along with imperial and federal military ranks that advance through completed missions.
Was Frontier: Elite 2 ever made freely available?
Yes. David Braben's own site, The Elite Club, released it along with its sequel, First Encounters, as shareware, giving fans a legitimate way to experience the game without hunting down old retail copies.
Who designed Frontier: Elite 2?
David Braben, who had also worked on the original Elite and went on to found Frontier Developments.
How does Frontier: Elite 2 compare to the original Elite?
It's a far bigger game in scope, with more detailed planetary landings and docking sequences, but period assessments generally agree it doesn't match the tighter, more focused design the original Elite was known for.
Was the original Elite a big deal at the time?
Yes. Elite, co-created by David Braben and Ian Bell, is widely credited as one of the earliest open-world space games, which is exactly why a sequel carried this much expectation going in.