First. Lets get the negative out of the way. The game or rather the vast universe is a bit dry. Any and all goings on will be shown in the common news updates in the station's UI. The news itself isn't very dramatic either. Just general write ups.
Now for the rest. ALL of the rest. Is all good. Very few games (nowadays at least) have launched well. Elite, as far as I remember, launched without any problems. Whats more, the game is buttery smooth. All space flight transitions happen without a single loading screen. Which is an amazing feat considering the level of high graphical quality that the game presents. Frontier software devs know their code and know how to use it well.
- Graphics, as mentioned. Very, very good. Just look at some pics or better yet some high quality youtube vids.
- each ship feels, sounds and flies differently. Chances are, you'll find a favorite (mine is the Viper).
-Overall each game mechanic is very solid. Combat, mining, trading, smuggling...etc ..its all very well thought out and implemented.
-Although on the dry side. The universe can be changed. With your help, factions can gain power, civil wars can break out, governments can be overthrown. Changes in commodities occur as well.
Go watch some youtube. And know that the game is better than the video. The ships will grow on you. I never thought I'd like this game just by watching some vids. But I'm glad I picked it up (early) because I did end up enjoying this game.
As a sidenote: What you have here is just the beginning. Frontier are planning further expansion with adding other things like walking about your ship and such. Check the website for more details.