Science fiction often delves into the vastness of space to explore the question of whether or not humans are alone. If we aren’t, then how is it we would even begin to communicate with such beings? An Elite Dangerous player decided to answer that question by breaking the communication barrier between humans and one of the games Alien races.

An Elite Dangerous player named Benjamin Bahr (Heisenberg6626) began a year-long adventure into cracking the alien language. Working with an in-game group called “Canonn Interstellar Research”, a faction dedicated to investigating the Thargoid Alien race, Bahr analyzed the structures within the sounds of the Thargoids’ messages. What resulted was a conversion of sounds into images. Check out Bhar’s attempt to contact the Thargoids and the gameplay below:

For those who aren’t familiar, Elite Dangerous is a single and multiplayer first-person shooter that also incorporates space trading and combat similar to EVE Online. Players start with their own ship and a little money, having to make their way in the universe. Whether legally or illegally is up to the player, but a myriad of different options are available. The game takes place in the Milky Way, with around 400 billion star systems to explore all in real time.

The important thing to keep in mind is this is all role-playing. The messages cannot actually be sent to the aliens in the game. It does beg the wider question of whether or not open-world games should include this kind of interaction. Where players CAN crack a language and send other races messages. If nothing else, it proves the passion and dedication that this Elite Dangerous player and the community at large has for the game.

How has this Elite Dangerous player changed the way we approach these kinds of games? Is this just a role-playing exercise with little in-game value? Join in on the conversation in the comment section below! Don’t forget to follow DFTG on Twitter for live gaming and entertainment news 24/7!