Space. A vast expanse of endless prospects. Whether it is the immeasurable size of it all, the unknown potential of what it might hold or the promise of what it could offer us, the universe has drawn peoples' curiosity and imaginations for generations. Many science fiction novels have harvested its imaginative produce while countless television series and movies have exploited its unknown treasures.
From the robotic warnings in "Lost in Space" to the betrayal of the super A.I. David; our imaginations have been captivated by science fiction. Classic novels like Frank Herbert's "Dune" franchise, hit television series like Battlestar Galactica or Babylon 5 as well as a nation of Star Trek fans can all attest to the vibrant allure of the unknown edges of our universe. It is astride this wild under exploited utopia of fantasy that New Eden blossoms.
EvE online has added itself to the line of science fiction outlets growing its roots in the fertile possibilities of outer space since May of 2003. What is even more impressive is that after more than 15 years it still has a large fan base with tens of thousands of die hard players. With the right graphics cards you will find yourself in an amazing environment in both scope and beauty.
Gameplay
This enormous open world provides channels for nearly everyone's pallet. While it is an MMO, it still provides venues for the industrialist and such a large scale universe that exploration is kept fresh. CCP is the company that produced this game called EvE and the universe is known as New Eden. But no one wants to read me wagging my tongue right? You want the meat and taters. You want to know details. So here it is...EvE Online is a Sci-fi MMORPG. There are approximately 25,000 players on at any given time dispersed throughout the over 5,200 solar systems. There are four factions to choose from during character creation; Minmatar, Caldari, Gallente and Amar. Each has 3 separate sub factions known as bloodlines. While the choice of faction impacts your initial ship choices you can eventually train your avatar to pilot any ship. Bloodlines have no affect outside of avatar appearance.
Piloting your ship is relatively simple. There is an object in the lower center of your display that allows you to interact with many aspects of your ship. It displays the three defensive aspects of your vessel: shield, armor and hull (or structure) when the structure is empty the ship is destroyed and you are ejected into space in your pod (or as my GF likes to refer to it: "silver bullet"). If your pod is killed then you respawn at a location that you either have set up in advance or the home system that you started in.
The real learning curve comes from the brutal lessons at the hands of unforgiving and more experienced players. While it isn't all that likely, a 15 year vet can come destroy your ship 15 minutes into the game. The only thing stopping them is that the in-game authorities will destroy them immediately afterward and their ship is worth a lot more than yours. But only afterward. And there it is, the true complication of the game: is their ship worth more?
A lot of players spend their entire existence trying to catch you with a lot of stuff in your hull, or with a really expensive ship built for destroying NPCs and thereby weak against PvP. They sit at choke-points in the star systems and scan ships as they fly to a star gate to see what they have in their cargo hold as well as what they are flying. They will create blockades (known in-game as "gatecamps") in the less policed solar systems where a gang of other players will do everything in their power to destroy your ship and your capsule. Some players are pretty cool about it while others are douche-canoes.
There are players that will say whatever, do whatever and pull anything they can to steal from you. Not only does CCP allow these shenanigans but they promote it. I have personally lost months of possessions due to these mechanics. Many will attest to the realism it offers and with all of the scam calls I get on a weekly basis maybe that isn't too far from the truth. However, in RL if someone steals from me I either handle it personally and physically or go to the authorities for legal justice. Unfortunately tracking someone's IP and going to their home seems both over zealous and a little childish and there are no legal ramifications for someone ruining your day in a game.
On the other hand, it adds so much intensity to some situations that you will literally get the shakes from playing, now that is pure adrenaline baby! I don't know about you, but that is the stuff that keeps me coming back. Sure I might want to rage quit at times, but you want to go salvage what you can from your wreck first, if they haven't already. In all honesty I have had to take more than a few breaks from the game to save my sanity (the jury is still out on whether I was successful in this venture).
Graphics
CCP has provided many facets to make Eve available to even the most basic graphics cards. Honestly you will want to keep the graphics low to improve performance, because those split second clicks could very well mean the difference between success and failure. In large fleet operations you will minimize all hardware requirements just to interact with the client. And honestly those large fleet battles are a mess. One click can take up to 10 minutes to actually take affect. However, large alliances do it anyway out of necessity (more on alliances later).But let us talk about the graphics on a high-end PC with amazing connectivity. Immaculate. Gorgeous. The beauty with which many of the systems have been designed is nothing short of the highest level of graphic artistry. You simply won't find anything to compare it to in an MMO. The star systems are even so accurately portrayed that if you approach a system in the direction of a blue cloud of stardust it will enlarge when you land in a system close to that area. Continue to head to that region and you will eventually find yourself in a blue system.
This attention to detail and visual imagery extends to nearly every facet of the game. Special effects, space stations, stargate travel, explosions, lighting; this game provides it all. The only limit to the visual realism in New Eden is provided by your hardware and possibly your ISP. I currently have a slow connection and I find it impacts any game where split second decisions decide your fate.
Sound/Music
There is an artist I enjoy listening to when I am trying to focus on any given task, he goes by the online persona of Goldpile. His ambient new-age techno is the closest group of tunes to EvEs soundtrack that I have come across to date. The synthetic somewhat industrial music is a good match for the game environment. However, I am certain that it is designed to be a background music alone. It doesn't capture your emotions or promote inspiration.I feel like different genres should exist for each of the four major factions and that those playlists should play when you are in their sectors of space. Doing so would go a long way in creating greater distinction between the four sovereign sectors. In the end a well trained capsuleer is going to transcend any mere faction and perhaps make such an idea moot to the robust community.
Sound effects are well done. Each special effect has it's own unique sound which all seem fitting and realistic. There is even an ambient sound produced by your ships. Does the realism take a hit by the idea of ambient space noises? That is an argument that goes well-above my paygrade, and if it bothers you, CCP has literally incorporated so many sliders for minimizing and even muting different aspects of the sound affects that you can personalize it in a manner that suites you best.
Free vs. P2P
I have played hundreds of games and dozens of free online games. It is in this department that EvE truly shines. Perhaps it is the confidence gained from being an industry leader for more than 15 years, the fealty of their current customers or simply the confidence gained from years of solid commitment by both the online community and the CCP faculty. No matter the reason EvE Online provides you with an amazing opportunity to experience all that New Eden offers without ever needing to pay.
There are two types of accounts on EvE. There are the players who have shelled out the money to be a part of the New Eden universe and they are referred to as Omega accounts. Then there are the players who haven't paid because they are uncertain this is the game for them, or it is an alternate account for an existing player; those accounts are called Alpha accounts. There are very few differences between the two types, but those differences have enough impact to promote subscription without detering even the most sceptic noobs.
As an alpha you will have access to every tech one ship within the selected faction allowing for a robust experience ranging from mining to exploration, from 1v1 dogfights to large fleet operations. Of course each ship you fly requires a skill, for example to fly any frigate sized ship you will need to train at least Lv 1 [faction] Frigate to operate that ship. And while an alpha may earn skill points [SP] half as fast as an omega the real skill comes from your ability to make the right decision in the heat of the moment. There have been notorious scenarios where a new player has destroyed massively expensive ships piloted by new eden vets who just didn't think things through.
If space conquest is your forte and yet you are still unsure as to whether or not this game is for you there is nothing to risk but your time. Play this game, heck, I wouldn't even pay to play until you have mastered (Lv5) of at least three ship classes.
Depth
With the introduction of CD-roms back storys quickly became an integral part of many games. They offer a level of immersion that is not otherwise available. For the players who seek to escape real life this can be a fundamental aspect to loosening their wallets. There is some such depth offered by CCP in the realm of descriptions about each of the four major factions. There are even small informational descriptions about the major criminal factions. However, there are no real figureheads and even the agents from which you can glean missions tend to blur into the masses of other agents all with names that are hard to recollect.
Fear naught, for where CCP doesn't step up in this venue their community does. Like other games that have clans or guilds, New Eden is populated by megacorporations. Player owned corporations vye for the unpoliced sectors of space, harvesting its riches while battling with NPC factions and other corporations. These corporations group together in alliances and sometimes, when required, alliances will band together into coalitions as they war for the richest sectors of the universe.
These player controlled alliances have created a plethora of history in New Eden. From powerful corporations manipulating the markets to diabolical CEOs exploiting the inexperience of their very own Corporate employees New Eden has seen it all. You can't fake the kind of drama that real people bring to the table, and this game has seen and continues to see it all.
Overall
Bottomline this game is immense and offers something for everybody. With nearly 30,000 avatars playing at any given moment you are sure to find a group of compatriots just as quickly as you are to find a group of slimeballs begging to be podded. The mechanics allow for so much freedom that it can be both exhilarating and down right maddening. The length of time to train every single skill available would take more than a decade allowing for ample opportunity to specialize as well as continued room to grow.
If you have a short fuse and anger issues than stay away. It takes thick skin to play this game. If you have an endless supply of wealth and wish to pay your way to the top then vets welcome you to their killboards. But if you are inspired by challenge and diversity than come, be one of the next capsuleers to be drawn into one of the most immersive games I have ever come across.
