Player Features and Ideas Discussion

I'll admit I'm new to EVE, relatively speaking. I'll also admit to generally enjoying the experience - though it comes and goes in waves. Possibly my least favorite aspects of the game include the anti-social feats of some gamers, such as ganking and scamming. I have been victim to many ganks, but have avoided all scams.

I get that EVE is supposed to be a space simulation of sorts, and therefore "close" to what might happen in real life in most regards. But after a bit of thought, it strikes me that the consequences for bad and/or illegal behavior are not severe enough (e.g. losing an occasional ship and or a "wanted" flag and a bounty).

So, I'm going to propose some mechanics I'd LOVE to see introduced the game to make it not only "more realistic" but also "more fun." These ideas may or may not be novel, and they're certainly not "complete" - so will freely admit they could/should be evolved.

Idea 1: Criminals shot down/caught in hi-sec, and possibly low-sec, space should go to jail. Jail = a temp ban from playing that character. It COULD also result in that character being put into a physical jail somewhere in EVE.

Idea 2: Characters in jail can be freed by either sitting out their term (could be hours/days) OR be broken out by friends. The severity of their crimes/criminal status will drive the difficulty of the prison break. Perhaps prisons for minor offences are located in null sec, and prisons for major offences/criminal ratings be located in hi-sec - and thus much harder to break.

Idea 3: Introduce a player-run judicial system - i.e. courts. Officials could be rotated regularly, but basically voted into office from the broader player community. That may result in crooked judges etc. - but that's no different from real life. Would also need to institute a system to allow elected officials to (1) agree on guilty/not guilty verdict, and (2) punishment - which could be prison time and/or a fine.

I would personally love to see SOMETHING like this. It would keep scammers/crooks on their toes, and make the game a heckuva lot more fun for the 1000s of victims/bystanders out there.

Thoughts?

EDIT: MORE THOUGHTS:

Idea 2.1: Characters can also avoid jail by "bribing an official" which would result in the loss of a certain percentage of the player's/account's asset value commensurate with the magnitude of the crime

Idea 2.2: When someone is put in jail, the entire "world" will know/be able to determine where the prisoner is located, AND anyone can organize and pull of a jail break and hold the prisoner hostage for ransom (not just invited friends of the prisoner).

Idea 2.3: The prisoner can pay off his captors (or continue to sit out the jail term in their ships/facilities; after which time he simply respawns and his captors get nothing). The ransom rate is negotiable between players. Could be 0 ISK between friends, could be 100M+ between criminals/enemies/anyone else.

Idea 2.4: Anyone involved in a prison break, and or transporting a prisoner/hostage, will become a "suspect" and subject to all related limitations. So there will be safety in numbers for those organizing a break.

Idea 2.5: For the prisoner to be released, the captors need to fly the ship back to a specific location: could be a station in the area where the ship was first shot down by CONCORD/police, for instance.

Bottom line: all of this should effectively reduce the amount of time someone is temp banned (while also giving them a pricey way out), and provide a lot of extra PvP gameplay in hi-sec (and out security sectors) for those brave enough to stage a jail break, or hungry enough for the ISK.

As a new player, its worth having a look at some of the additionsl forum options too.

This thread for example is better suited to the Features and Ideas Discussion forum.

My thoughts: i dont think being jailed just for playing the game is a good mechanic. It might work in monopoly, but thats not subscription based. There are already crime watch mechanics for dealing with issues thst make suspects, criminals and pirates attackable anywhere by anyone. That seems adequate to me.

The idea has content potential.

But that would bring the lawyer profession into the game. I think even lawyers play this game to escape the fact that they are lawyers.

You don't say...?

Well, if you think about it, you go to jail in MONOPOLY too temporarily. So it is a game feature.

We have people lost in WH space asking for help. The other option is self destruct. This too can be an option for jailed capsuleers.

Though I don't support this idea because I don't think it would work in EvE there is a very interesting game my kid plays where players can be placed in jail and it does have a deterrent effect on the actions of players RDM'ing others. Its an interesting experiment on player policing.

Don't remember the name of the game but you can be a drug dealer, hobo, police officer, gun dealer etc.

I've always thought logging into an MMO and finding yourself in a jail cell would be an interesting experience!

I vote that the first use of walking in stations is space prison!!! It could be a mini game where you figure out how to riot or break out! Gamble for space cigs, smuggle drugs in and trade for prison hootch!! Craft a prison shank and PvP in the exersise yard!

It would be huge!

Issler

Excellent point: the basic game infrastructure already exists for the most part in NPC-land, would simply need to expand to non-NPC-land.

There is no sense of excitement for a game ban. Only a sense of frustration and 'I am not going to resub.'

Running a mission is likewise not exciting in any way.

And carebears smacktalking while blundering around highsec without even taking a single basic precaution is a good thing because...?



There's not even any reward for the bears, since they literally do not have to do ANYTHING. This just makes highsec safer, requires the use of alts for ganking, encourages character recycling and further dumbs down the game.

I disagree - hi-sec would be a bit safer, but you bears could still be ganked. To eliminate the threat completely CCP would need to add a mechanic that makes it impossible for PvP in hi-sec, and that's not what I'm suggesting. I am suggesting that the consequences of criminal activity in hi-sec become meaningful.

So here's another suggestion: Caught criminals have 2 options:

1. Got to jail.
2. Bribe an official to avoid jail. Amount of the fine is based on a combination of (a) the severity of the offense/sec status, and (b) the player's/account's net worth -> not the character's.

There you go - I just offered you a "get out of jail free card".

Look, the point here is not that we need to solve for EXACTLY how this might work. It's about the spirit of the recommendation/suggestion: more and meaningful consequences for criminal actions that harm other players.