EVE General Discussion

Some forum-worthy thoughts came to me as I was going through a thread earlier today comparing EVE Online to the likes of X-Rebirth, a game by Egosoft. The latter has had HUGE problems since release, and in doing so has no doubt widely affected their player base. While thousands of people (rightfully) rant and rave(and this isn't exclusive at all to Egosoft's failure), I think it's all too easily forgotten to take the time to look at it from a different perspective.

Can anyone here step away from the issues long enough to see the "dream" that the developers had? That's where the beauty of the X universe lies in my opinion. EVE is no different in that regard. In the prior mentioned thread, was a user who asked for EVE Online to become like X-Rebirth, but an online version of it. And that got me thinking, eventually realizing that what he is speaking about is a vision of what he hopes to see EVE become, and it's no less than my own vision as well.

Game design, or any design for that matter doesn't start without vision. Imagine EVE Online, it's game engine updated to support modern standards in hardware support, video(graphic)/audio techniques, and controls. Imagine if Incarna had worked out the way they envisioned it (WITHOUT micro-transactions) and we were able to walk around on stations and hang out with our fellow corp/alliance mates in a truly immersive way. It goes without saying these days that some would complain about how some of these additions would take away from the space game that truly matters. But I'm pretty much certain that over time, as those same users saw what such an evolution could culminate into, they'd have a change of heart.

incarna, welcomed by some, scorned by others. It was the most game changing expansion for me. The one that would take EVE Online to new levels or immersion, and finally allow us players to truly live a second life in space. The key word there is immersion. And this is what I feel other space games of the ilk of X-Rebirth are attempting to achieve. There's always going to be hiccups and technical limitations, but none of that truly makes the vision any less potent does it? When Incarna came, I imagined myself being able to walk throughout a station, browse the wares of other player's shops, play mini-games with other players, or just having a seat listening to chill out music while staring out a large viewport showing space and the traffic of other starships in all it's glory. It's being able to take these characters that we spend YEARS working on and growing attached to, and finally being able to put real faces on them and interact with them in ways previously never thought of or realized.

I look at a game like X-Rebirth, and compare it to EVE Online, and I can see what that player was saying. EVE Online has become stale for thousands of players out there, and I'm no different. I don't feel like CCP has done enough to advance this game to keep it up with the times. And I don't think that's what makes a truly great game in the first place. It's taking thoughts, ideas, VISIONS, and turning them into reality. Going that extra step further to truly make the game one of a kind. I don't believe EVE Online will remain the space MMO giant we think it to be, because sufficient advances have not been made. In contrast, we get content patches (labeled as expansions) that rarely truly changes the game. I'm not talking about how a new module or ship type can change the way only very specific aspects of the game is played, no. I'm talking about. I'm talking about changes that change the entire face of the game for the better.

Perhaps I'm making a poor case here. And these feelings are the culmination of only a single man in his own mind and opinion throughout his years of playing EVE Online (and I've by no means "experienced all it has to offer"). But the whole reason I still play EVE to this day is not because of what is currently there (that grew old ages ago), but what I HOPE it will become. Like many others out there, I've invested so much into this universe, and have put great trust in CCP in managing those interests for me. And I hope every day that CCP will continue to advance EVE Online in new directions, but to the degree they did when they launched updates like Trinity and Incarna (again, without microtransactions).

One day, I want to leave a station in higher security space and see space come alive with bustling traffic and dynamic events like what sometimes happens in X-Rebirth (the opposite for low sec, but with the occasional "low sec" variety of dynamic events). I want to be able to fly through sections of space stations (not necessarily their interiors) and even be able to use things like line of sight against enemy NPCs or players (because shooting someone through something like an asteroid makes perfect sense right?) All in all, I desperately want to see more focus put on immersion in EVE Online. The kind of immersion that draws you into the universe, makes it feel alive, and keeps me glued to the game for many, MANY years to come. I want to see focus on other areas of the game that doesn't just encompass or benefit a certain variety of player. I want... so much more out of this game. These are just my feelings, my vision. And I know many others out there feel as I do, or have visions of their own of what EVE could be like in the future.

In one of the videos (I think a fanfest one), Aura says "Dare to be bold pilot". CCP, dare to be bold, dare to take this game in new directions, and don't be discouraged by a handful of failures (of which many of us out there don't view them as failures at all!) I hope that one of these days, the technical limitations can be further overcome, and then we can realize more and more the vision that EVE online can become.

Yes, CCP, by all means. Please mate a terrible FPS game with ugly FPS graphics to a buggy space combat game with XBOX controls and a story that has the depth of a wading pool and the quality of kindergarten plotting. That's exactly what EVE needs.

tl;dr: NO.

X-Afterbirth again? Come on, even without the incessant gamebreaking bugs, that game is just bad. There is no immersion to spending hours and hours waiting for things to finish, wandering around stations looking for the ridiculous things you need, police cars with sirens that actually wail in space (seriously, don't tell me that isn't just completely moronic, even when you allow for sound in space for entertainment factor like weapon noises and the like).

There is nothing about X that I want to see in EVE.

Call me old school (paper & pen RPG background), but imho avatars are completely irrelevant to RP, they only serve to limit the things you can do, and create a visual representation that is dictated by the choices of the game developers. Playing a role is not about looking at a pixel avatar. An avatar doesnt' define your motives, your background or actions.

The actual RP interaction would still happen via text chat, avatars or not.

Yet for all of that CCP rushed the release of the winter expansion and brought it forward to compete with the launch of X rebirth, an off line game with avatar content has got them running scared. I think that they are starting to regret the whole 'greed is good' debacle.

Good point (though not true for all people - not everyone has a lively imagination) but going by that logic we should turn EVE into a text-based MUD mmorpg :p

Not quite following you there mate... you are saying mouse + keyboard is worse than a Xbox controller? Buggy??
Are you referring to the TiDi? In that case I can sort of relate I guess...
But if you're talking about EVE controls in general, I think you need to upgrade your PC man

Implying EVE isn't text based?

What great and well written post! I agree completely with the OP.

Citation needed that they rushed it to compete with X. I think you're speculating. EVE doesn't need to compete with X. It doesn't need to compete with Star Citizen, it doesn't need to compete with WOW, it doesn't need to compete with another game just because it is a space game or an MMO. EVE is EVE, and it has one thing that no other game does - a single-shard persistent multiplayer environment.