My review after 3 months – a response oh yeah it’s long too

clmorg01

Hello all!

I thought I would write my own review of EVE, now that I have been playing for roughly 3 months. So, in that sense, I am most certainly not a veteran of EVE. I hope this to be an indirect response to axyrn’s review.
*************************************

EVE is a unique game in its depth and scope. One of the most open ended games I have come across in a very long time. The developers have tried their best to not artificially force you along in the game. You must provide the initiative and drive to learn, grow, prosper, and conquer! As many have stated, this a simulation game not just a space version of hack and slash. Although CCP has a general storyline that progresses from time to time, the players can be major shakers in the world of EVE. Routinely, news comes out that deal with the happenings between alliances and other players.

EVE is a classless system that is based completely on hundreds of skills that are acquired and trained over time. Skill training is done on a real time basis whether you are online or not. I especially enjoyed this feature over the recent holidays, where I was only able to play a couple hours for two weeks. This meant my progressing as a player did not suffer and I finished off a couple skills to level 5. This approach is sometimes criticized because it will never allow anyone to “catch up” to people who have been playing the game longer. This is true to a point, but it is somewhat incomplete to simply view the success of a character based on the skill points you have gained. EVE is a game of smarts, where you make your own path. Will you be able to “pwn” the person whose been playing since beta, probably not, but to be disappointed about this is to miss the point of EVE.

Though EVE has no classes, it does have professions. You can be a miner, manufacture, blue print researcher, trader, pirate, bounty hunter, corporate CEO, and of course pvp (there are probably more). You can do any or all of these, or a combination of professions. You just train the skills you need. Understand it takes time to become proficient in any of these let alone more than one. One problem I had as a noob in EVE, was I was unfocused and wasted some training time in area’s I am no longer pursuing.

EVE is not a solo game! This does not mean you can not do many things by yourself. But to become truly successful and enjoy this game you will need to join a corporation (EVE version of a guild). I believe only a very experienced player could be a success on their own. Corporations run the gambit of mercenary corps for hire to industrialist corps. Some are very loosely run, where some are run with military precision. There is a corp. for everyone. You just need to get involved. Ultimately there is the alliance, where corporations join together and seek to create their own empire in unsecured space. The scope that alliances reach is hard to put into words in a simple review. I think nothing like this has ever been possible in MMORPG’s before. (Maybe I’m wrong)

Now to be a little more specific. EVE can be repetitive if you allow it to be so. This is not unique to EVE, I’ve done this in other games as well. Whether it’s missions, mining, or even pvp the only you have to blame for this is yourself. There is no need to grind in EVE.

The interface can be unwieldy at times especially if you are being cramped by roids in a belt. But overall it is intuitive once you get used to it. To those that want a “joystick” control for your ships, it just doesn’t work. For technical reasons and for RP reasons. The smallest ships you fly (excluding shuttles) are frigates, in navy terms these are large ships. To expect to be flying these ships like a fighter jet, just doesn’t fit. You didn’t see Picard flying the Enterprise with a joystick.

Travel time can be a pain, especially on the long trips. But, I don’t think this is unique to EVE. When I play EQ2, it still takes time to run across zones or consider the original EQ. L2 takes time cross the landscape west to east. This is just a part of playing in the expansive universes that make MMORPGs so much fun.

Graphics are very good, even for lower end systems. There is some dev talk floating around they are planning to overhaul the graphics to even better quality. Even with the FREE Red Moon Rising expansion, they have added affects and improve others. Oh, yeah that’s right expansions are free! To me that is a big plus, after I wasted money on Desert of Flames in EQ2.

EVE is a game that can appeal to the hard core or the casual. I am a casual player. I have a wife and a many things going on in real life. Still, EVE is a very fun and doable game for me. Most of the people in my corporation are married, and some have children. Hence the occasional “AFK, my daughter is crying” line in chat.  The moronic accusation that the only way to play this game is to have no life or even be high on a drug is pure nonsense. Such statements serve only to display one’s own immaturity. In the time that I have been playing EVE they have gone from 70k subscribers to 80k (last we heard). In reference the prediction made in another post that EVE would NEVER break 20k players online concurrently --- 1/2/2006 EVE made a new record of 22k+ players on at the same time. That is less than 30 days from the previously mentioned prediction. Do I mean to imply that everyone should like the game? NO! Of course not. A lot of people do not like PVP, period. EVE is not the only PvP game out there. Some people need the instant gratification after a long day of work to unwind. But these differences most certainly do not make EVE a bad game. I became hooked on EVE when I made my first trip into 0.0 space with a couple corp mates. Blowing through some gates that pirates had camped really got my blood pumping. EQ2 never did that! I think EVE has a bright future ahead of it, and I am glad I will around to be a part of it.

"Glaren"
Corp - Infinity Enterpises
Alliance - Interstellar Alcohol Conglomerate

Edit:

Forgive me for a poorly done review, but I would like to add more to it.

The economics in EVE are second to none. This is a pure capitalistic model that allows for the players to truely drive the economy. In some systems the competition is cut-throat, where as in others you may be able to corner the market. It is all about looking to recognize the supply-demand trends. One saying in EVE is "Industry is PvP too!" I couldn't have put better my self. I know many people believe macro'ers have broken the economy. I don't believe so, I was playing linage 2 when I felt macro'ers broke that economy. When prices quadrupled in the span of a week, i quit. I don't see the same extreme affect in EVE. There is a macro'er problem in EVE (nothing new), but it isn't game breaking. Some players have even made it a hobby to hunt macro'ers. Now that must be fun.

I may add more as I think of it.

Glenndo

Greetings, it's my first time on this site, and the first thing I saw was the negative review f EVE-Online, so I felt like I had to register and respond. 

clmorg01, your review seems to be a bit more on the line of what I think of the game.

I've been playing for a year now and I thought I could give a little info on how I managed to stay interested in the game ofr that long.  Like most people who play the game, I was originally attracted to it by the stellar graphcs, and overall beauty.  When you first start the game you begin in a "noob corp" an NPC corporation filled with new players.  I immediatley connected with a few new members and began group missions, and forays into low security space (after realizing how dangerous that is, I realize we were all incredibly lucky not to be blasted into space dust).  It was only a few weeks before our little group became pretty close-knit and struck out on our own.  We created our own corporation, mainly with the goal of attracting other enjoyable pilots and having fun. 

The corporation was a moderate success, giving us all a taste of management and the broader competition of EVE.  After a few months we split the corp half going directly into the deepest regions of space, the other half entering a RP corp that took place in large RP events and RP related wars (the minmatar corporation fighting corpoations made by the race that has enslaved them).  In due time, myself and the corporation I was in worked with other groups to form a new Alliance consisting of a modest 250 members. 

While the kinks were getting hammered out by the big wgs on how to manage the alliance, myself and my corpmates from the previous corporation decided to reconnect with our deep space brethren to get a good taste of pvp (after 10 months we felt ready to pursue it full time).  Our former members had joined a corp in an Alliance called The forsaken Empire, currently the second largest alliance with 2000 members, in the game.  Now we are back together forming raiding parties and fighting constantly in a war with another, very well trained I must admit, alliance.

You see, the trick is, whenever something got boring, repetitive, or frustrating, I moved on.  The world is HUGE!!  there are so many corporations and alliances and star systems you can only get bored if you make it so.  I have tried everything from trading mining, manufacturing, and pvp.  Does that put me at a disadvantage to the hardcore pvpers out there?  YES!  Is it incredibly fun to experiment with everything?  DEFINATELY! 

Hopefully this little tale has shown that there is much to do besides courier missions (btw those become much easier if you take the time to create bookmarks, which greatly shorten travel times.  Those are usually given free for entire regions of space if you join a well established corporation.)  Be creative and adventurous and the game will reward you. 

One other thing I must mention.  I am a college student, and recently got married.  There was about a 1 month span of time where I didn't play at all, but when I returned there was little to no difference between me and my friends who remained active.  Besides, the bonds you can form with corpmates, usually mean money isn't a problem, someone is always willing to donate to get you back on your feet. 

Sorry so long and thanks for your time!

Glenndo (look me up in eve if you want)