Although, I never became an Astronaut, I did manage a career in aviation. I soloed an airplane on my 16th birthday. Became an aircraft commander flying the venerable Huey helicopter in Vietnam. (1972) (That is where they gave my the call sign Green Delta 11. Hey, it is pronounced “one one” not “eleven”. Picky dumb point, but after all it is my call sign.
Then I spent a lifetime flying various airplanes and helicopters in the civilian world. Mostly medical helicopters. My last job before retirement was as a helicopter check airman with Air Methods Corp. My last three years I was running an Airbus H135 simulator.
Gaming - I have been doing computer gaming since the mid 70s. I remember a text based Star Trek game. Also Lunar Lander was a favorite. I started playing Mechwarrior in the 90s, and loved it. Then Mechwarrior Online for several years. I have read a lot of Mechwarrior novels. That was part of the attraction to the game.
I have been playing Elite Dangerous for a couple of years now. I have read Reclamation, Here the Wheel, and some of Tales from the Frontier.
As a RL pilot, I love simulation. Elite Dangerous in VR (Virtual Reality) is a great space flight simulator. As a matter of fact the Airbus H135 helicopter auto flight control system has a mode called attitude retention. Flight assist is just like it. You set the attitude and and then flight assist maintains the selected attitude. Flight assist off is just like un-stabilized helicopter flight. (no autopilot) Only with a reaction control system instead of a main rotor system. Our space craft are VTOL (Vertical Take off and Landing) machines using vectored thrust. Just like a helicopter. This is why I love Elite Dangerous. In VR I am flying again, only in space.
For me VR in Elite Dangerous gives me the satisfaction and comfort that I feel in a real life aircraft. The machine fits like a glove. To increase the experience and immersion I couple VR with Voice attack and an X52 flight control system to include rudder pedals. I do not get that level of immersion with a 2D screen in front of me.
Recently I tried Star Citizen. It lacked the same level of immersion that Elite gives in VR. I know there is a 3rd party application the will enable VR in Star Citizen. I also hear the it may not be very well developed. I have not tried it as I did not feel like investing the time and computer resources to make it work. I will attempt Star Citizen again if ever they add VR to the game.
The other aspect of Elite Dangerous is the modeling of the galaxy. It lends a sense of scientific reality to the game. That does not seem like the case in Star Citizen.
I own Star Citizen and No Mans Sky. I have tried each and they do not appeal the my inner pilot. So, I for one will continue on with my Elite Dangerous journey.