MMORPG.com: Are there any thoughts or plans at any point down the road to add actual player avatars to the game, even if in a strictly trivial sense such as leaving your ship and hanging out at a bar with other pilots as a sort of social gathering spot?
Nathan Richardsson:
No, not at this point in time. We think that being able to walk around, whether on a planetary surface or inside a station, would really require us to go all the way. In our opinion, if you can walk around somewhere, you have to be able to shoot them! And that in itself is whole new game. So for now, were going to stick with space because we have so many things to improve and far more things to add before we get to the point of doing avatars. But we definitely have the storyline, background material and universe to base it on, Thats probably why were asked so frequently about it
Originally posted by templarx Just for those that havent read the interview:
MMORPG.com: Are there any thoughts or plans at any point down the road to add actual player avatars to the game, even if in a strictly trivial sense such as leaving your ship and hanging out at a bar with other pilots as a sort of social gathering spot?Nathan Richardsson:No, not at this point in time. We think that being able to walk around, whether on a planetary surface or inside a station, would really require us to go all the way. In our opinion, if you can walk around somewhere, you have to be able to shoot them! And that in itself is whole new game. So for now, were going to stick with space because we have so many things to improve and far more things to add before we get to the point of doing avatars. But we definitely have the storyline, background material and universe to base it on, Thats probably why were asked so frequently about it
I hadn't read that, thanks for sharing.
- Scaris
"What happened to you, Star Wars Galaxies? You used to look like Leia. Not quite gold bikini Leia (more like bad-British-accent-and-cinnamon-bun-hair Leia), but still Leia nonetheless. Now you look like Chewbacca." - Computer Gaming World
Originally posted by templarx Just for those that havent read the interview:
MMORPG.com: Are there any thoughts or plans at any point down the road to add actual player avatars to the game, even if in a strictly trivial sense such as leaving your ship and hanging out at a bar with other pilots as a sort of social gathering spot?Nathan Richardsson:No, not at this point in time. We think that being able to walk around, whether on a planetary surface or inside a station, would really require us to go all the way. In our opinion, if you can walk around somewhere, you have to be able to shoot them! And that in itself is whole new game. So for now, were going to stick with space because we have so many things to improve and far more things to add before we get to the point of doing avatars. But we definitely have the storyline, background material and universe to base it on, Thats probably why were asked so frequently about it
The thing I have always said about EvE, and what I admire most about it's developers. Is that it's EXCELLENT at avoiding scope creep. They've done a fantastic job with the game and, while it's not for me, 67,000 other people in the world REALLY enjoy it and it continues to grow.
*I* don't enjoy Eve because I prefer twitch space combat. My character's skills and abilities do affect how well I can pilot my ship but now that I'm a master pilot with max skills *I* am in control in space and I really like that. It's no less an RPG but SWG's spaceflight isn't really an MMORPG it's an MMORFPSS (Massively Multiplayer Online Rolplaying First Person Space Sim). The ground game is an MMORPG and they did a great job of melding the two.
My point about EvE's spaceflight wasn't intended as a bash on the game. Some folks enjoy it's interface, I don't. In space I want tactile control of my ship or I want to be able to hop in a turret on my friend's multiplayer ship or effect repairs directly on the ship itself (if you haven't tried combat in a multiplayer ship you're missing out.. it's Cool as all git-out). But the point is the playstyles in the two games are COMPLETELY Different.
SWG is a ground based RPG and a Space Based FPS EVE is a space based RPG
The play in the two reflects that and it's very different. Both games are excellent Sci Fi titles (which would explain why they're the #1 and #2 Sci Fi titles out in the MMO market.
At any rate. I'm glad EVE continues setting milestones. I played it from the early early beta days all the way to release and even played a month of that (and 3 separate free trials). It just doesn't fit my playstyle, that's all.
Currently Playing: Dungeons and Dragons Online. Sig image Pending Still in: A couple Betas
If Eve had "twitch" combat (but with your characters skills still having some effect) that would make it no less of an RPG. Eve is a virtual world which relies on the interaction of human players- twitch combat would not detract from this world or roleplaying in this world. Role playing and RPGs should not mean "point n click" combat (in any genre). The sooner mmorpg players realise this the sooner we get games with more exciting combat. Twitch combat would improve an already excellent game.
This I completely disagree with.
It's not an RPG any more when it is your own out of game skills that are the critical element. This follows from PnP RPGs ... your *character* is the critical element, not your real world out of game abilities. That doesn't mean that flight sims are not fun, they are fun, but they are not an RPG. If you are playing a tabeltop RPG, you give your character actions and so forth but for example my tabletop thief's dexterity and ability to pick a lock in no way depends on my own ability to do so in the real world, my warrior's ability to wield a sword doesn't depend on mine, etc., so in a space RPG my character's ability to fly the spacecraft should not depend on my own either. It can be fun that way, but it's not an RPG, its a flight simulation. Twitch-based combat makes the game about the players rather than about the characters, which is really completely inconsistent with what it means to be an RPG. RPG 101: your character is everything.
SWG is a ground based RPG and a Space Based FPS EVE is a space based RPG
I'd actually go as far as saying EVE is a MMO-RTS more than a RPG. From the bits i played i felt more like im playing X2 / Elite / Master of Orion than *tries to think of a space RPG* ...well uh..i guess EVE would then be the definition of a space based RPG too :P . We must distinguish between SCI-FI and SPACE though. SWG/AO is SCI-FI-RPG as far as i'm concerned. EVE is more a "empire building" type of effect. Just watch the player videos , it sure reminds me of whats that game...Homeworld? [but the thought that each of those -hundreds- of ships are player controlled is truly amazing].
At the Guiding Hand, we hold the contract sacred - if the client wishes us to skin a target's loved ones alive and wear their face for a mask while killing them, we will do so ~ Istvaan Shogaatsu
Originally posted by Naos EVE-Online set a new server population record of 12895 at 21:17 07/10/2005 all together in one persistant unsharded game universe Congrats CCP!
Three things I want to say about this:
1) 12,895 is barely a couple hundred higher than their last record, and it's maybe 500-800 more than their daily load. This is not a huge leap forward.
2) While it's true that the EVE universe is all on one "shard", the game has more "zones" than any game I've played. Every single solar system is its own "zone", and that makes for travel across a few constellations a time-consuming and unimmersive thing.
3) I certainly hope they continue an upward, steady trend. Growing by thousands of players would not be a good thing, nor would a slow decline.
[quote]Originally posted by templarx [b]Just for those that havent read the interview:
MMORPG.com: Are there any thoughts or plans at any point down the road to add actual player avatars to the game, even if in a strictly trivial sense such as leaving your ship and hanging out at a bar with other pilots as a sort of social gathering spot?
Nathan Richardsson:
No, not at this point in time. We think that being able to walk around, whether on a planetary surface or inside a station, would really require us to go all the way.
Is this guy LAZY or wat?
hope he's not the leader dev!
i mean too much work for him or wat? Of course it wouldnt be EASY to make their game sick
trying to help them get to big Big time here 6 figure subs I just dont like their lazy attitude
EvE doesnt need "6 figure" subs to be a great game. We are doing just damn well fine where we are.
At the Guiding Hand, we hold the contract sacred - if the client wishes us to skin a target's loved ones alive and wear their face for a mask while killing them, we will do so ~ Istvaan Shogaatsu
Originally posted by templarx Just for those that havent read the interview:
MMORPG.com: Are there any thoughts or plans at any point down the road to add actual player avatars to the game, even if in a strictly trivial sense such as leaving your ship and hanging out at a bar with other pilots as a sort of social gathering spot?Nathan Richardsson:No, not at this point in time. We think that being able to walk around, whether on a planetary surface or inside a station, would really require us to go all the way.
Is this guy LAZY or wat?
hope he's not the leader dev!
i mean too much work for him or wat? Of course it wouldnt be EASY to make their game sick
trying to help them get to big Big time here 6 figure subs I just dont like their lazy attitude
I dont think you get how much work it would require to make every planet land-able and have things to do on it...like I already stated before. If you think its easy, please go and do all of the coding, art, animation, world design, story design, and everything else for CCP in order to make this happen.
Also if you havent noticed....EVE IS ABOUT FLYING A SPACE CRAFT. Not landing on a planet and doing stuff...if you want that go play every single other MMORPG out there.
Its not my job to develop and program code and all that i just play them
Im just saying it's a poor attitude to have thats all
I know eve is about flying ships but when i play most of the ppl are afk doing something totally different online and they are just jumping around on autopilot until they reach their destination
I would just like devs who are willing to take some risks for once who have their goals set to an unreachable level
Originally posted by Naos EVE-Online set a new server population record of 12895 at 21:17 07/10/2005 all together in one persistant unsharded game universe Congrats CCP!
If this is true, then EvE Online has the record of a MMORPG with the 2nd highest number of players online at the same time in 1 server/universe/gameworld. SWG is 3rd place with 12,000 players online at the same time in the same gameworld. (Each SWG server can hold a max of 12k players online at the same time, and store 24k players. During the first 4 months SWG was out, every single server was at maximum load.)
And the mmorpg with the record for most number of players online at the same time in the same gameworld? The revolutionary Anarchy Online. During the first year it was out, there was noserverpopulation cap. The game had 2 servers for the entire game. It peaked with roughly 50k to 60k total players. IMHO it had upwards of 25k players online at the same time. Soo many players that the game was either unplayable, or almost unplayable. I still remember getting 1-5 FPS ..... lol! I had to log off. Fighting players was out of the question. Fighting NPCs was almost impossible LOL!
AO finally announced that they were initiatinng server population caps. Took them long enough to realize it was necessary. AO now has 3 servers for the entire game. But it sank down to roughly 25k-30k total players. It would peak with 5k players on line at the same time. But now with AO having free accounts for 1 year, TONS of new players are flooding the game. AO though, no longer allows more than 12k players online at the same time heheh. IMHO 10k players online at the same time on each server.
Originally posted by Naos EVE-Online set a new server population record of 12895 at 21:17 07/10/2005 all together in one persistant unsharded game universe
Congrats CCP!
Three things I want to say about this:
1) 12,895 is barely a couple hundred higher than their last record, and it's maybe 500-800 more than their daily load. This is not a huge leap forward.
Ahh... but it is. No other MMORPG currently allows that many players to be online at the same time in the same gameworld. EvE is not only setting new records for most number of players online at the same time in the same gameworld - EvE is also pushing MMORPG technology to its limits.
2) While it's true that the EVE universe is all on one "shard", the game has more "zones" than any game I've played. Every single solar system is its own "zone", and that makes for travel across a few constellations a time-consuming and unimmersive thing.
This does not matter. Every single player is still in the same gameworld. Every single player can meet up with every single other player. Every single player directly, and indirectly, influences every player in the entire game.
3) I certainly hope they continue an upward, steady trend. Growing by thousands of players would not be a good thing, nor would a slow decline.
I agree with you. But it doesn not matter how quick or slow EvE grows. The NICE thing is that it is growing. And it seems to be building on longterm players. Not short term players. Players who stay with EvE are unique players. They harken back to the early days of gaming when players were players. When players actually played to experience the game... experience coming up with stratagies, experience exploring, experience playing without both hands being held, or even 1 hand being held.
Originally posted by xplororor Originally posted by Naos EVE-Online set a new server population record of 12895 at 21:17 07/10/2005 all together in one persistant unsharded game universe Congrats CCP!If this is true, then EvE Online has the record of a MMORPG with the 2nd highest number of players online at the same time in 1 server/universe/gameworld. SWG is 3rd place with 12,000 players online at the same time in the same gameworld. (Each SWG server can hold a max of 12k players online at the same time, and store 24k players. During the first 4 months SWG was out, every single server was at maximum load.) And the mmorpg with the record for most number of players online at the same time in the same gameworld? The revolutionary Anarchy Online. During the first year it was out, there was noserverpopulation cap. The game had 2 servers for the entire game. It peaked with roughly 50k to 60k total players. IMHO it had upwards of 25k players online at the same time. Soo many players that the game was either unplayable, or almost unplayable. I still remember getting 1-5 FPS ..... lol! I had to log off. Fighting players was out of the question. Fighting NPCs was almost impossible LOL! AO finally announced that they were initiatinng server population caps. Took them long enough to realize it was necessary. AO now has 3 servers for the entire game. But it sank down to roughly 25k-30k total players. It would peak with 5k players on line at the same time. But now with AO having free accounts for 1 year, TONS of new players are flooding the game. AO though, no longer allows more than 12k players online at the same time heheh. IMHO 10k players online at the same time on each server.
Which is why ccp put in that 'unsharded' line. I think the coolest thing about eve is not how many people it has in one gameworld, its how they affect the gameworld with an incredible economy and dynamic resources. I just hope that they continue to build on a very stable base instead of just adding more ships and equipment, like finally introducing corp tax, a stock market, corp variant items etc.
---sig---
PvE in general is pretty lame, if you think long and hard about it. You are spending your time beating a severely gimped AI that would lose to a well trained monkey. Best not to think too long and hard why you are wasting time playing games in general actually...
Originally posted by xplororor Originally posted by Naos EVE-Online set a new server population record of 12895 at 21:17 07/10/2005 all together in one persistant unsharded game universe Congrats CCP!If this is true, then EvE Online has the record of a MMORPG with the 2nd highest number of players online at the same time in 1 server/universe/gameworld. SWG is 3rd place with 12,000 players online at the same time in the same gameworld. (Each SWG server can hold a max of 12k players online at the same time, and store 24k players. During the first 4 months SWG was out, every single server was at maximum load.) And the mmorpg with the record for most number of players online at the same time in the same gameworld? The revolutionary Anarchy Online. During the first year it was out, there was noserverpopulation cap. The game had 2 servers for the entire game. It peaked with roughly 50k to 60k total players. IMHO it had upwards of 25k players online at the same time. Soo many players that the game was either unplayable, or almost unplayable. I still remember getting 1-5 FPS ..... lol! I had to log off. Fighting players was out of the question. Fighting NPCs was almost impossible LOL! AO finally announced that they were initiatinng server population caps. Took them long enough to realize it was necessary. AO now has 3 servers for the entire game. But it sank down to roughly 25k-30k total players. It would peak with 5k players on line at the same time. But now with AO having free accounts for 1 year, TONS of new players are flooding the game. AO though, no longer allows more than 12k players online at the same time heheh. IMHO 10k players online at the same time on each server.
Is there an official report or anyone else who can back that up? I think that estimate may be a bit high. First 25k players is 41% of the total 60k subscribers online at once. That's a high proportion compared to every MMORPG I've played. Even if it was the week of release, I find it still a bit unbelievable. If it was 25k, divide that over 2 servers. Sure it wasn't even but I bet it was fairly close assuming they were both normal servers and one wasn't PvP only or a special one. 14k would be the highest I could see occuring on one if 41% of those people were actually on the two servers. Your 5k online 30k subscribers number is much more believable at 16%.
I actually just started playing EVE myself and I think it's excellent. Reminds me very much of AC1. I'm quite mad though that CCP isn't distributing the game. It has AC1 written all over it again. Poor distribution and lack of store availability kills in the long run. Having a slowly increasing player base is no excuse to not distribute to stores. I can only imagine how much better they would be doing if it was in retail.
Originally posted by SupernerdI know eve is about flying ships but when i play most of the ppl are afk doing something totally different online and they are just jumping around on autopilot until they reach their destination
Well, it depends on where you are and what you are doing, but if you are in unsafe space (even low security empire space like 0.1 or 0.2), you're liable to find your ship exploded by the time you return to the keyboard, or if you are in a corp that is at war with someone else, you had better *not* go AFK! CCP has gone a long way to make it harder for people to play the game AFK, unless they solely want to stay in high security space and not belong to any corps who are involved in wars in empire space.
On Jul 9, 2005 Supernerd wrote: um boring and you CANT EVEN GET OUT OF YOUR SHIP
Anyway, ignoreing that rather peurile comment on the rating system:
The only thing I can think of to do what you're saying is to somehow link two games.
Have a game similar to Eve and a game with land based play similar to SWGs land stuff for instance (or any other land based war game - as long as it's sci-fi).
They could be sold separately... but have links so they could be used together if wanted. A little bit like the dovetailing in some of those Sub-hunter/sub commander type games. As you are landing (which in real life would be fairly slow) the games switch.
On Jul 9, 2005 Supernerd wrote: um boring and you CANT EVEN GET OUT OF YOUR SHIP
Anyway, ignoreing that rather peurile comment on the rating system:
The only thing I can think of to do what you're saying is to somehow link two games.
Have a game similar to Eve and a game with land based play similar to SWGs land stuff for instance (or any other land based war game - as long as it's sci-fi).
They could be sold separately... but have links so they could be used together if wanted. A little bit like the dovetailing in some of those Sub-hunter/sub commander type games. As you are landing (which in real life would be fairly slow) the games switch.
Just a thought.
The three major, largest, Sci-Fi MMORPGs are AO, EvE, and SWG.
AO still has the best atmospheric flight out of any mmorpg ever created. One can land anywhere. AO also has many other intresting features. Many old, and new mmorpgs have copied everything from AO. AO still has the best, most deadliest, dungeons out of any mmorpg. AC1 comes very close though!
SWG has no atmospheric flight. But it does have the most planets (that one can walk on) out of any mmorpg ever created. Which adds the the feel of planetary travel. SWG also has many other intresting features. Most taken from UO+AO and further built on.
EvE has the most realistic space simulation out of any major mmorpg. (Star Port is also intresting, but it is a small mmorpg.) EvE also has mega-huge capital ships that players can control. As well as small ships equal to the same size as the ships in AO, and SWG.
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Star Port - Gets special mention. It is a tiny sci-fi mmorpg. Or mmog? It has hundreds to thousands of planets, and players can land on them, and build buildings on them. You are your ship. When you land on a planet, your ship hovers over the ground as you fly around.
Originally posted by Naos EVE-Online set a new server population record of 12895 at 21:17 07/10/2005 all together in one persistant unsharded game universe Congrats CCP!
If this is true, then EvE Online has the record of a MMORPG with the 2nd highest number of players online at the same time in 1 server/universe/gameworld. SWG is 3rd place with 12,000 players online at the same time in the same gameworld. (Each SWG server can hold a max of 12k players online at the same time, and store 24k players. During the first 4 months SWG was out, every single server was at maximum load.) And the mmorpg with the record for most number of players online at the same time in the same gameworld? The revolutionary Anarchy Online. During the first year it was out, there was noserverpopulation cap. The game had 2 servers for the entire game. It peaked with roughly 50k to 60k total players. IMHO it had upwards of 25k players online at the same time. Soo many players that the game was either unplayable, or almost unplayable. I still remember getting 1-5 FPS ..... lol! I had to log off. Fighting players was out of the question. Fighting NPCs was almost impossible LOL! AO finally announced that they were initiatinng server population caps. Took them long enough to realize it was necessary. AO now has 3 servers for the entire game. But it sank down to roughly 25k-30k total players. It would peak with 5k players on line at the same time. But now with AO having free accounts for 1 year, TONS of new players are flooding the game. AO though, no longer allows more than 12k players online at the same time heheh. IMHO 10k players online at the same time on each server.
Is there an official report or anyone else who can back that up?
There is no official report. AO never intended for that many players to be online at the same time in the same gameworld. The game was not even made to hold that many players in the same gameworld. This is why players were getting 1-5 FPS which made the game pretty much unplayable. EvE on the other hand was intended to handle 12k+ players online at the same time in the same gameworld. SWG was also intended to be able to handle 12k players online at the same time in the same gameworld.
If AO ever admitted they had 15k, 25k players online at the same time, in the same gameworld, then they would be admitting it was their fault they had no server caps. Their fault the game was pretty much unplayable because it was not ment to hold that many players online at the same time in the same gameworld. No chance of AO stepping up and admitting it. BTW the old head game DEV of AO (Funcom is the company that makes AO) got fired during the first 1-2years AO was out. So no way does Funcom feel line re-opening that can of worms again.
I think that estimate may be a bit high. First 25k players is 41% of the total 60k subscribers online at once. That's a high proportion compared to every MMORPG I've played.
Have you ever played SWG? During the first 4 months SWG was out, 50% of its total player base was online at the same time.Every single server was filled to the limit. If one loged off, either one would be unable to login again, or have to wait 1-12 hours after trying over and over. Time to get rid of that old, ancient "forumula" that supposivly says no mmorpg has, or will ever have, more than 10%, 12%, 15%, of its total player base online at the same time LOL. (check out the site anyuzer.com and the big debate I had with other hardcore mmorpg players on that old formula.)
Even if it was the week of release, I find it still a bit unbelievable. If it was 25k, divide that over 2 servers. Sure it wasn't even but I bet it was fairly close assuming they were both normal servers and one wasn't PvP only or a special one. 14k would be the highest I could see occuring on one if 41% of those people were actually on the two servers.
AO was one of the most anticipated MMORPGs ever made. It was the first ever major Sci-Fi mmorpg ever made. Game DEVs from other MMORPGs were posting about their time playing AO!!! When AO released, it had no server caps. This means any number of players could log on. AO had 2 servers. Both exactly the same. Nothing special about one. Both had PvP, PvE, etc... etc... The servers did not have lop-sided populations because after Rubi-Ka 1 got supercrowed to the point of FPS went superlow, the players would hit Ribi-Ka 2. It is like being online at the checkout in a supermarket with 2 registers open. Neither line will be lopsided. They even theirselves out as new customers decide which line to go on.
Your 5k online 30k subscribers number is much more believable at 16%.
This is how AO looks right now, at present time. AO now has server population caps.
I actually just started playing EVE myself and I think it's excellent. Reminds me very much of AC1. I'm quite mad though that CCP isn't distributing the game. It has AC1 written all over it again. Poor distribution and lack of store availability kills in the long run. Having a slowly increasing player base is no excuse to not distribute to stores. I can only imagine how much better they would be doing if it was in retail.
I fully agree with you here. I also enjoyed AC1. AC was the first major mmorpg I ever played. Back when they made their first, and only, free trial. (I still do not understand why the unoffcial failure AC2 gets tons of free trials, but super successful AC has never done another free trial? )
It is true the EvE Online game DEVs need to aggressivly market EvE!!!! Especially since SWG has released its SE, which goes deeper into EvE's territory. SWG and EvE are now even more directly in competition.
When you say that CCP needs to agressively market EVE you fail to realize that they dont want to market themselves out of their performance capability. Technology wouldnt allow EVE to function very well if there were 100k people on the shard. As it is, EVE has issues with lag when 2 fleets of 50+ engage each other. EVE is a major success. You cant base success by your definition. You have to base it on the companies goals. CCP created a game for a niche market. They have reached their goals in every aspect. They are totally happy with what they've accomplished. The community is small and dedicated. For a company of 20 they have put out an amazing product which will only continue to get better.
EVE is a space game. Pilots killing pilots. It will never be a land your ship and explore a world game.
Originally posted by xplororor Originally posted by Naos EVE-Online set a new server population record of 12895 at 21:17 07/10/2005 all together in one persistant unsharded game universe Congrats CCP!If this is true, then EvE Online has the record of a MMORPG with the 2nd highest number of players online at the same time in 1 server/universe/gameworld. SWG is 3rd place with 12,000 players online at the same time in the same gameworld. (Each SWG server can hold a max of 12k players online at the same time, and store 24k players. During the first 4 months SWG was out, every single server was at maximum load.) And the mmorpg with the record for most number of players online at the same time in the same gameworld? The revolutionary Anarchy Online. During the first year it was out, there was noserverpopulation cap. The game had 2 servers for the entire game. It peaked with roughly 50k to 60k total players. IMHO it had upwards of 25k players online at the same time. Soo many players that the game was either unplayable, or almost unplayable. I still remember getting 1-5 FPS ..... lol! I had to log off. Fighting players was out of the question. Fighting NPCs was almost impossible LOL! AO finally announced that they were initiatinng server population caps. Took them long enough to realize it was necessary. AO now has 3 servers for the entire game. But it sank down to roughly 25k-30k total players. It would peak with 5k players on line at the same time. But now with AO having free accounts for 1 year, TONS of new players are flooding the game. AO though, no longer allows more than 12k players online at the same time heheh. IMHO 10k players online at the same time on each server.
Not sure where you get your numbers but I will have to question the one about each server supporting 24k characters total in the database. That makes no sense. I have never seen or heard about someone being refused from making a character on even the heaviest servers. Even when a server is at its heaviest burden anyone can make a toon there if they want too. Also that would mean a server could turn into a graveyard because it has too many inactive toons on it that people have made and never play there. Your statement makes no sense from a technical standpoint and I have to doubt it.
- Scaris
"What happened to you, Star Wars Galaxies? You used to look like Leia. Not quite gold bikini Leia (more like bad-British-accent-and-cinnamon-bun-hair Leia), but still Leia nonetheless. Now you look like Chewbacca." - Computer Gaming World
ccp had a publisher that put eve out in retail boxes (simon and schuster interactive), but simon and schuster pulled the plug on their whole game software department, and ccp obtained (i assume bought) the rights to distribute the game themselves (it was not available for download when simon and schuster were the publishers).
Comments
Just for those that havent read the interview:
EDIT: Link to fill interview : http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/setView/news/gameID/14/showArticle/3158
I hadn't read that, thanks for sharing.
- Scaris
"What happened to you, Star Wars Galaxies? You used to look like Leia. Not quite gold bikini Leia (more like bad-British-accent-and-cinnamon-bun-hair Leia), but still Leia nonetheless. Now you look like Chewbacca." - Computer Gaming World
The thing I have always said about EvE, and what I admire most about it's developers. Is that it's EXCELLENT at avoiding scope creep. They've done a fantastic job with the game and, while it's not for me, 67,000 other people in the world REALLY enjoy it and it continues to grow.
*I* don't enjoy Eve because I prefer twitch space combat. My character's skills and abilities do affect how well I can pilot my ship but now that I'm a master pilot with max skills *I* am in control in space and I really like that. It's no less an RPG but SWG's spaceflight isn't really an MMORPG it's an MMORFPSS (Massively Multiplayer Online Rolplaying First Person Space Sim). The ground game is an MMORPG and they did a great job of melding the two.
My point about EvE's spaceflight wasn't intended as a bash on the game. Some folks enjoy it's interface, I don't. In space I want tactile control of my ship or I want to be able to hop in a turret on my friend's multiplayer ship or effect repairs directly on the ship itself (if you haven't tried combat in a multiplayer ship you're missing out.. it's Cool as all git-out). But the point is the playstyles in the two games are COMPLETELY Different.
SWG is a ground based RPG and a Space Based FPS
EVE is a space based RPG
The play in the two reflects that and it's very different. Both games are excellent Sci Fi titles (which would explain why they're the #1 and #2 Sci Fi titles out in the MMO market.
At any rate. I'm glad EVE continues setting milestones. I played it from the early early beta days all the way to release and even played a month of that (and 3 separate free trials). It just doesn't fit my playstyle, that's all.
Currently Playing: Dungeons and Dragons Online.
Sig image Pending
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This I completely agree with. And I also agree that both are great games, I wasn't intending to bash SWG at all.
This I completely disagree with.
It's not an RPG any more when it is your own out of game skills that are the critical element. This follows from PnP RPGs ... your *character* is the critical element, not your real world out of game abilities. That doesn't mean that flight sims are not fun, they are fun, but they are not an RPG. If you are playing a tabeltop RPG, you give your character actions and so forth but for example my tabletop thief's dexterity and ability to pick a lock in no way depends on my own ability to do so in the real world, my warrior's ability to wield a sword doesn't depend on mine, etc., so in a space RPG my character's ability to fly the spacecraft should not depend on my own either. It can be fun that way, but it's not an RPG, its a flight simulation. Twitch-based combat makes the game about the players rather than about the characters, which is really completely inconsistent with what it means to be an RPG. RPG 101: your character is everything.
I'd actually go as far as saying EVE is a MMO-RTS more than a RPG. From the bits i played i felt more like im playing X2 / Elite / Master of Orion than *tries to think of a space RPG* ...well uh..i guess EVE would then be
the definition of a space based RPG too :P . We must distinguish between SCI-FI and SPACE though. SWG/AO is SCI-FI-RPG as far as i'm concerned. EVE is more a "empire building" type of effect. Just watch the player videos , it sure reminds me of whats that game...Homeworld? [but the thought that each of those -hundreds- of ships are player controlled is truly amazing].
Did someone say Corp theft?? http://myeve.eve-online.com/ingameboard.asp?a=topic&threadID=172529&page=1
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Three things I want to say about this:
1) 12,895 is barely a couple hundred higher than their last record, and it's maybe 500-800 more than their daily load. This is not a huge leap forward.
2) While it's true that the EVE universe is all on one "shard", the game has more "zones" than any game I've played. Every single solar system is its own "zone", and that makes for travel across a few constellations a time-consuming and unimmersive thing.
3) I certainly hope they continue an upward, steady trend. Growing by thousands of players would not be a good thing, nor would a slow decline.
[quote]Originally posted by templarx
[b]Just for those that havent read the interview:
Is this guy LAZY or wat?
hope he's not the leader dev!
i mean too much work for him or wat?
Of course it wouldnt be EASY to make their game sick
trying to help them get to big Big time here 6 figure subs
I just dont like their lazy attitude
At the Guiding Hand, we hold the contract sacred - if the client wishes us to skin a target's loved ones alive and wear their face for a mask while killing them, we will do so ~ Istvaan Shogaatsu
[quote]Originally posted by Supernerd
[b]
Is this guy LAZY or wat?
hope he's not the leader dev!
i mean too much work for him or wat?
Of course it wouldnt be EASY to make their game sick
trying to help them get to big Big time here 6 figure subs
I just dont like their lazy attitude
I dont think you get how much work it would require to make every planet land-able and have things to do on it...like I already stated before. If you think its easy, please go and do all of the coding, art, animation, world design, story design, and everything else for CCP in order to make this happen.
Also if you havent noticed....EVE IS ABOUT FLYING A SPACE CRAFT. Not landing on a planet and doing stuff...if you want that go play every single other MMORPG out there.
Its not my job to develop and program code and all that i just play them
Im just saying it's a poor attitude to have thats all
I know eve is about flying ships but when i play most of the ppl are afk doing something totally different online and they are just jumping around on autopilot until they reach their destination
I would just like devs who are willing to take some risks for once
who have their goals set to an unreachable level
i would back any game like that
If this is true, then EvE Online has the record of a MMORPG with the 2nd highest number of players online at the same time in 1 server/universe/gameworld. SWG is 3rd place with 12,000 players online at the same time in the same gameworld. (Each SWG server can hold a max of 12k players online at the same time, and store 24k players. During the first 4 months SWG was out, every single server was at maximum load.)
And the mmorpg with the record for most number of players online at the same time in the same gameworld? The revolutionary Anarchy Online. During the first year it was out, there was no server population cap. The game had 2 servers for the entire game. It peaked with roughly 50k to 60k total players. IMHO it had upwards of 25k players online at the same time. Soo many players that the game was either unplayable, or almost unplayable. I still remember getting 1-5 FPS ..... lol! I had to log off. Fighting players was out of the question. Fighting NPCs was almost impossible LOL!
AO finally announced that they were initiatinng server population caps. Took them long enough to realize it was necessary. AO now has 3 servers for the entire game. But it sank down to roughly 25k-30k total players. It would peak with 5k players on line at the same time. But now with AO having free accounts for 1 year, TONS of new players are flooding the game. AO though, no longer allows more than 12k players online at the same time heheh. IMHO 10k players online at the same time on each server.
I agree with you. But it doesn not matter how quick or slow EvE grows. The NICE thing is that it is growing. And it seems to be building on longterm players. Not short term players. Players who stay with EvE are unique players. They harken back to the early days of gaming when players were players. When players actually played to experience the game... experience coming up with stratagies, experience exploring, experience playing without both hands being held, or even 1 hand being held.
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Which is why ccp put in that 'unsharded' line. I think the coolest thing about eve is not how many people it has in one gameworld, its how they affect the gameworld with an incredible economy and dynamic resources. I just hope that they continue to build on a very stable base instead of just adding more ships and equipment, like finally introducing corp tax, a stock market, corp variant items etc.
---sig---
PvE in general is pretty lame, if you think long and hard about it. You are spending your time beating a severely gimped AI that would lose to a well trained monkey. Best not to think too long and hard why you are wasting time playing games in general actually...
Is there an official report or anyone else who can back that up? I think that estimate may be a bit high. First 25k players is 41% of the total 60k subscribers online at once. That's a high proportion compared to every MMORPG I've played. Even if it was the week of release, I find it still a bit unbelievable. If it was 25k, divide that over 2 servers. Sure it wasn't even but I bet it was fairly close assuming they were both normal servers and one wasn't PvP only or a special one. 14k would be the highest I could see occuring on one if 41% of those people were actually on the two servers. Your 5k online 30k subscribers number is much more believable at 16%.
I actually just started playing EVE myself and I think it's excellent. Reminds me very much of AC1. I'm quite mad though that CCP isn't distributing the game. It has AC1 written all over it again. Poor distribution and lack of store availability kills in the long run. Having a slowly increasing player base is no excuse to not distribute to stores. I can only imagine how much better they would be doing if it was in retail.
Well, it depends on where you are and what you are doing, but if you are in unsafe space (even low security empire space like 0.1 or 0.2), you're liable to find your ship exploded by the time you return to the keyboard, or if you are in a corp that is at war with someone else, you had better *not* go AFK! CCP has gone a long way to make it harder for people to play the game AFK, unless they solely want to stay in high security space and not belong to any corps who are involved in wars in empire space.
Anyway, ignoreing that rather peurile comment on the rating system:
The only thing I can think of to do what you're saying is to somehow link two games.
Have a game similar to Eve and a game with land based play similar to SWGs land stuff for instance (or any other land based war game - as long as it's sci-fi).
They could be sold separately... but have links so they could be used together if wanted. A little bit like the dovetailing in some of those Sub-hunter/sub commander type games. As you are landing (which in real life would be fairly slow) the games switch.
Just a thought.
Anyway, ignoreing that rather peurile comment on the rating system:
The only thing I can think of to do what you're saying is to somehow link two games.
Have a game similar to Eve and a game with land based play similar to SWGs land stuff for instance (or any other land based war game - as long as it's sci-fi).
They could be sold separately... but have links so they could be used together if wanted. A little bit like the dovetailing in some of those Sub-hunter/sub commander type games. As you are landing (which in real life would be fairly slow) the games switch.
Just a thought.
The three major, largest, Sci-Fi MMORPGs are AO, EvE, and SWG.
AO still has the best atmospheric flight out of any mmorpg ever created. One can land anywhere. AO also has many other intresting features. Many old, and new mmorpgs have copied everything from AO.
AO still has the best, most deadliest, dungeons out of any mmorpg. AC1 comes very close though!
SWG has no atmospheric flight. But it does have the most planets (that one can walk on) out of any mmorpg ever created. Which adds the the feel of planetary travel. SWG also has many other intresting features. Most taken from UO+AO and further built on.
EvE has the most realistic space simulation out of any major mmorpg. (Star Port is also intresting, but it is a small mmorpg.) EvE also has mega-huge capital ships that players can control. As well as small ships equal to the same size as the ships in AO, and SWG.
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Star Port - Gets special mention. It is a tiny sci-fi mmorpg. Or mmog? It has hundreds to thousands of planets, and players can land on them, and build buildings on them. You are your ship. When you land on a planet, your ship hovers over the ground as you fly around.
I fully agree with you here. I also enjoyed AC1. AC was the first major mmorpg I ever played. Back when they made their first, and only, free trial. (I still do not understand why the unoffcial failure AC2 gets tons of free trials, but super successful AC has never done another free trial?
)
It is true the EvE Online game DEVs need to aggressivly market EvE!!!! Especially since SWG has released its SE, which goes deeper into EvE's territory. SWG and EvE are now even more directly in competition.
When you say that CCP needs to agressively market EVE you fail to realize that they dont want to market themselves out of their performance capability. Technology wouldnt allow EVE to function very well if there were 100k people on the shard. As it is, EVE has issues with lag when 2 fleets of 50+ engage each other. EVE is a major success. You cant base success by your definition. You have to base it on the companies goals. CCP created a game for a niche market. They have reached their goals in every aspect. They are totally happy with what they've accomplished. The community is small and dedicated. For a company of 20 they have put out an amazing product which will only continue to get better.
EVE is a space game. Pilots killing pilots. It will never be a land your ship and explore a world game.
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Accutaly eve was once in store but they stoped producing it. And I would have to agree that theres still bad lag problems when in massive fleet ops
WARNING: My spelling is atrocious
Not sure where you get your numbers but I will have to question the one about each server supporting 24k characters total in the database. That makes no sense. I have never seen or heard about someone being refused from making a character on even the heaviest servers. Even when a server is at its heaviest burden anyone can make a toon there if they want too. Also that would mean a server could turn into a graveyard because it has too many inactive toons on it that people have made and never play there. Your statement makes no sense from a technical standpoint and I have to doubt it.
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ccp had a publisher that put eve out in retail boxes (simon and schuster interactive), but simon and schuster pulled the plug on their whole game software department, and ccp obtained (i assume bought) the rights to distribute the game themselves (it was not available for download when simon and schuster were the publishers).