EVE General Discussion

There are quite a few reasons this shouldn't happen. The best one is that the PLEX system, which the OP dismissed, is a far better director of monetary action than F2P is. With F2P, it's a slurry. Some people put money in, some people play free, and you hope everything equals out. When it doesn't, more (and more necessary) items appear on the shop to monetize it. That's where the P2W idea comes from; it's the natural outgrowth of the system.

Presently, PLEX facilitates the same action, only it does so directly. Players "contribute" to the game, using themselves as assets (as they are capable) and generate ISK. Players then buy the ISK if they have extra funds. One person does more work, one person pays his way in. If less people are doing the work, fewer people will buy in. If less people want to spend extra money, fewer people pay their way in. It's direct and a far more efficient system.

The question isn't what we should change with the monetary system, it's what we deserve for our money. The recent atrophy of the subscription model may simply be held up to game design. Many F2P and B2P game developers are putting more work into their games, which puts a squeeze on the old maxim about getting more for your sub.

EVE has an advantage in that department; they don't charge us to purchase much developed content outside our subscriptions. EVE's major issue isn't whether it's worth the money, it's how many people the money is worth it to. There just aren't as many players getting what they want out of EVE and, F2P or not, they're being given a lot more options. CCP's biggest issue at present is getting more people to play and play for an extended period of time.

Unfortunately, F2P is the easiest way to perhaps solve that problem. It doesn't actually make the game better, it just makes the game functionally worthless. I say it's unfortunate because I don't think anything but a fairly huge development action is going to solve EVE's problems, and I'm not sure CCP values the strength of the game over the ease of design manipulation.

Here's hoping, though.

Eve costs 15 euro a month. 15 goddam euro. How's that even expensive? It costs less than a lunch for 2 in a restaurant. F2P would only bring mess into eve. F2P would kill eve. And "free to play" isn't actually "free to play", you would be "playing free" for AT LEAST 15 euro a month OR MORE.

Actually, eve is already free to play, if you play actively 1 bil for a plex is a joke.

Can't agree. Minerals I mine aren't free. Just the stolen ones. ;)

Anyone who isn't willing to spend 15bux even once definitely isn't a good customer. OP doesn't have a clue about why games go f2p. Me thinks he's a liar. No game designer is that stupid. Sounds more like the type of person who wastes money in games just to boost his ego. Reality is that it's about milking the easily milkable and that's the bottom line, no matter how ya wanna spin it. He hasn't spent a single second thinkin' 'bout the type o' scum f2p games attract.

step 1: Get either a vindicator, machariel, Nightmare or scimitar

step 2: Do incursions a few hours a month

step 3: ????

Step 4: Eve free to play.

For once, you and I are on the same page. Either hell just froze over, or the premise of the topic is about as terrible as it gets.

OP take note, when I, and several others are agreeing with people, such as Lucas and La Rynx, who we invariably and vehemently disagree with; there's something very badly wrong with your idea.

because people can afford to run 20+ alts for mining and making isk, because the game is free, running incursions and everything else for making stacks of isk, all apart from market where people will not do it because no isk to be made in trading, and because your f2p playerbase all run bots support will no longer care because it now needs that playerbase, lack of support means no more updates, so hello botting, hello market crash, hello themepark, bye bye eve online

I'm lovin' how we all unite against this crap. Even La Rouge up there and that Otto guy.

Well I can agree with that part. I've seen it here before, nasty business.

I counter propose that all new subscriptions undertake a rigorous IQ test.

Maybe true in theory, but in practice, someone has to pay their, and someone else's, fifteen dollars a month all the same. And those people will want some return for paying so much to play the game on behalf of other people. They might ask what it is that they can be sold that often that will give them that return.

The second they can't spend that money, there's no more life in the game. Either someone's paying an awful lot more, or the game has no income. So it's not free to play.

Unfortunately, this would have worked out of the system if people weren't lining up to pay more that for whatever they could buy. I never understood why we, as a consumer market, ever made that okay. Now even subscription games have markets for real-cash items. I mean, we, the playing public, practically begged games to stop focusing so much on gameplay and fleece us. It wasn't like fifteen dollars was ever more than dinner for two at Wendy's, it was never expensive. EVE especially so, because they don't charge for expansions or barely anything for the game's initial purchase anymore.

I don't understand it, but, like I said earlier, game makers don't go F2P for any reason than it's the most expedient way to make more money without improving the game. It's a lot easier to make your game free and convince a smaller percentage of poor saps that some skins and costumes are worth more than people were paying for the entire game.

Seems OP has already burnt himself out on all the other FTP piles of crape that have short lifespans (probably much like his attention span also) and an endless supply of toxic angry children flinging mommies plastic on everything. If you live on a street with 10 places to eat and 9 of them are burger joints why o why would you want the pizza place to convert to burgers too.

In my many years on this planet I have learned that children that really really want what they want can come up with the most elaborate and detailed "reasons" they should get what they want. They can be very convincing and it's a relief to see that hardly anyone in this forum is fooled by his walls of glittery text.

EvE is a unique gaming experience. I have played and paid for so many other mmo's since before and after I started this game in 07 and this game has always seemed like the home you grew up in to me. Every time I get burned or bummed out because another game gets boring or has lost any form of challenge, goes F2P >:( I know I can come home to where logic and the thrill of victory still means something.

EvE has been a constant in my gaming experience and every time I come back home I find something new. It has survived this long with a solid player base. Sure, the way stuff goes anymore is the "gotta have it now or else" thought path but I feel pretty confident that people will tire of simple theme park mmo's and the quick gratification and eventually crave a challenge once again and I hope EvE will always be there for them and for me <3

Fly safe o7