Haven't you always wanted to travel the galaxy as a bad-ass rogue pirate? You know, summon your inner Han Solo? Of course you do! And luckily there's a new game that lets you do this and much, much more!

Spanning 30 years, the "Elite" series has pushed players to the stars to explore, mine, fight, and steal their way to success. The original "Elite" was one of the very first open-world titles that allowed gamers to play in a massive universe and "Elite: Dangerous" continues this trend.

Space Is Big... Like Really Big

Put this number in your noggin -- 400 Billion. That's how many star systems are purported to exist in "Elite: Dangerous." Nearly the entire Milky Way is up for grabs. "Elite" boasts over 38,000 cubic lightyears worth of space for you and thousands of other gamers to dive into. Now realistically, there's no way you could visit every single one of these systems but the fact that the game has this much is simply mind melting. Of course, it's all procedurally generated -- which just means that the computer does most of the heavy lifting in creating the content.

As you can imagine, "Elite: Dangerous" is very open-ended. If you wish, you can ignore the bulk of the storylines between the various factions and powers and travel the stars and explore. It's all up to you.

A Galaxy of Gaming

As we've noted, "Elite: Dangerous" is a massively varied and open-ended game. You can literally spend dozens and dozens of hours simply messing around -- mining valuable materials, upgrading your ship, exploring new systems -- but the real meat involves the dynamic scenarios between players. These can vary between a quick brush with an opportunistic encounter or a deep, interconnected situation among hundreds of players. "Elite" is, for lack of a better term, an MMO of sorts. You're always online and your actions can carry devastating consequences if you're not careful.

For instance, your ranking determines much about how the various galactic powers may interact with you. If you skirt the law, fire upon innocent players, and generally be a universal douche-bag then expect to get the hammer as policing forces take you down. On the flip-side, you can join up with the "good guys" and collect bounties by capturing and destroying tyrannical players.

Essentially, there's been cold war between the Federation and Empire -- two of the oldest and most powerful political and military entities when human pushed out into the stars. Furthermore, there's a new faction -- the Alliance -- who are set in carving out a piece of the galaxy for their own needs and challenge the older factions. There's no real good or bad with your choice allies -- that's for your conscience to figure out.

You probably noticed those quotes around "good guys" -- you see the three major factions competing for rule each have competing agendas. One person's savior is another person's devil as you become embroiled in the struggle among the big players.

Build Your Battle Station

There are many ways to control your ship but if you have a deep enough wallet then you might want to upgrade with a few gadgets for your PC. First of all, pick up a flight stick and throttle if you can. As "Elite" is a simulation game, feel is everything. Yeah, you can control your ships with keyboard and mouse or even a control pad but nothing quite compares to having your hand wrapped around a stick. We suggest the Saitek X52 -- this is the one we used at the preview event and it's not super expensive.

Secondly, the Oculus Rift is a must if you want the full immersion package. Along with a solid flight stick, the Rift magically transports you into game and it looks and feels absolutely amazing. Similarly to our impressions for "ADR1FT" we cannot stop singing the praises that the Oculus Rift brings to gaming.

These aren't necessary of course, but if you find yourself invested into sim games then these aren't too unreasonable for the price. For those who might not have the cash, conventional controls are more than adequate if you've played other simulation games from the past. New galaxy hoppers will have a bit of a learning curve with figuring out and remembering all the controls -- like how to divert energy to shields while still having enough power to fire upon an enemy. There's a lot to learn with piloting your craft even down to the very specs of how the ship built. With a bit of a dedication, however, you'll become an excellent pilot.

A Sim.... IN SPPAAAAAAACCCEEE!!

We never want to segregate gamers based on their preferences but sometimes you know certain types of games only appeal to specific players. "Elite: Dangerous" is a space simulator. Those who are patient and really dive deep into the game are rewarded with a rich and fun experience. A huge bulk of this game involves jumping to new areas in search for precious minerals -- like gold. You'll mine them -- or if you've got an entrepreneurial itch -- can sell starmaps to players and let them do the dirty work. Likewise, there's plenty of political intrigue that will test your faith in your chosen government.

The real fun comes from joining up with other players and raiding competing factions with all the comradery that comes along with being a space pirate, or a space officer, or a space miner. You see, you can't experience the full breadth of the galaxy after just a few hours. You need to give this game room to breath and really draw you in. At first, "Elite" may seem too big but this vastness is what's so appealing. Space is a big place and those willing to invest lots of time in this game will have hundreds of hours of engaging and thrilling content.

"Elite: Dangerous" is available now for PC.