Well, I’m currently in the middle of a mission in EVE and I’ve got a five-star gate jump to make, so now would be a good time to post some of my impressions of EVE Online.
That’s right. I’m blogging my impressions of EVE as I’m experiencing them. I’m hardcore like that. EVE is hands-off like that. (For now, I hope)
To be honest, I don’t know what to think about EVE yet. The game world is HUGE. I don’t think I’ve ever played in a game with so much real estate. I’m no astronaut, but if I was, I bet this is what space feels like. The game itself seems like it is very complex. The beginner tutorial took me about two hours to finish and I feel like I barely scratched the surface. The gameplay could probably be done without any graphics (TW2002!) but that would be a shame. The game is gorgeous.
Actual game play so far has been a mixed bag. Traveling has been boring, and there’s nothing you can do to make it any better (at least that I know of). You simply select your destination, hit auto-pilot, and you can walk away. I understand that when I start traveling in low security zones that I’ll have to be aware of my surroundings, but for now I simply chart my paths to be as safe as possible. Actual playing is a funny thing — other than the mission I’m currently doing, I’ve just been mining asteroids, which means I am not really doing anything. I warp to an asteroid belt, pick out a couple asteroids and I start mining. It takes me a few minutes to fill up my holds and then I go back to base, drop it off, rinse and repeat. The tutorial showed me how to do missions, but for I’ve mainly concentrated on mining and I’ve racked up a decent amount of ISK (EVE currency). I’ve already bought a new ship and am earning toward another one. It sounds boring, but I’m occupying myself with other things (blogging) while I’m mining. There’s a certain sense of accomplishment and enjoyment, but I can’t explain it. The buttonWife think it’s lame that I say I’m playing a game that I’m not really playing, but I’m liking it so far.
Leveling up is another interesting thing. You don’t gain experience for doing anything. You just pick a skill and you train it. Then after a certain period of time, you gain the next level in that skill. So right now, I’m training for level 4 mining. I started it Saturday night and I should finish training it tonight. Training goes on, even if you’re not playing. I like that idea. It’s the grind without the grindstone.
All that being said, there’s a huge amount I haven’t experienced, but of the little I have, I like it. I’ll keep playing, giving it a couple weeks worth of trying it out. The weird thing is, if my laptop died tomorrow, I wouldn’t have a problem with walking away from EVE. It hasn’t gripped me yet. I’m going to give it some time, but we’ll see.
Bryan says
So it would appear that levels are gained simply by the amount of cash you’ve doled out in the form of consistent monthly payments. Don’t know how I feel about that. The thought of a vast universe is exciting though. I mean the fact you’ve been able to mine with no real interference indicates to me a pretty big playing area. Can you construct or terraform?
Tony says
Bryan,
Yeah, there’s always the monthly fee to be considered. But it seems that CCP does a really good job of putting out new content, so it can be justified.
I was mining in a secure area, so there wasn’t a threat of interference, but there are areas where mining can be dangerous. While you can’t “terraform” (everything happens in space) I do believe you can build space stations. That’s further along tan I am right now, so I’m not 100% about that.
Bryan says
Does “new content” mean the birth of a solar system, or a rogue band of Species 8472 pop in from fluidic space and attack sectors of the normal universe?
I’ve been interested simular games as hardcore games really seem to get into them, but have failed to be compelled.
I look forward to hearing more on the subject. Thanks.
Heartless Gamer says
EVE is a mixed bag. Boring to a point, but the potential is huge if you take the risks. I really can’t sum it up quickly either. I really can’t sum it up in a single blog post. It really is that deep in the end game. The tutorial basically teaches you how to fly and gives you a bit of purpose. The rest of the game is discoverd via chat channels and out of game websites (or in game websites… because there is a built in web browser).
But all of these different options really has no in game path that you can follow. You have to discover them from another source. This is the major thing that CCP is working on… finding what a player likes to do and showing them how to go out and do it.
There is player owned structures (POS) and I know little of how they work. I know they play a part in the ability of a player corporation to control a sector of space. They are also used as defensive stations, storage, and god knows what else. As was said… the tutorial and even your first month of play just barely scratch the surface here.
Net Junkie says
I played EVE for about a month and a half. At first it was a great break from Warcraft and it was a wonderful game. But it felt like it got the point where everything was so drawn out and long. Don’t get me wrong it’s fun but nothing’s done fast. Enjoy it though!
Rob says
I’ve been playing Eve for a year this monday and so far i’ve lost nearly a dozen ships ranging from a Velator on the first day i played to losing two Ravens this month:(
As for mining and travelling being boring i have to agree it is if you are in safe space. But this game is so much more than that.
Play well and the possibilities are nearly limitless.
Tony says
Net Junkie and Rob – That is deifnitely the feeling I’m getting as I play. The possibilities are limitless but the pace can be slow at times.
That’s not neccessarily a bad thing.
Dark says
I’ve been playing for a while started a corporation within 2 weeks of being online and in another 2 weeks had a little over 10 members. There’s so much in this game that can be done we were making around 160 million ISK a month just mining Ice (to fuel player owned stations) and since then we’ve made it into ship construction… recently due to corporate espionage I’ve killed off my corp. See the thing is theres is no way to trust anyone in eve while maintaining a degree of suspision. Everyone has an alt (alternate charater usually no affiliated in anyway to their main), and that make espionage all too easy.
New Eve Player says
Well, I’ve tried Eve for a month with a full subscription. The author of this blog is correct…Eve is a vast universe full of beautiful scenery, stretching solar systems, and good in-game music. The music is necessary to keep you from being bored out of your mind, when traveling from system to system. There is literally nothing to do during this time, other than do laundry, research skills, or other mundane tasks. If your looking for the social aspects of games like Dark Age of Camelot, World of Warcraft, or other MMO’s of a similar nature, I am finding this aspect of the game to be lacking. Since you never leave your ship, other players appear simply as pictures with names beside them or ships with their names above them, which futher deepens my sense of isolationism. Although its possible to join a Corporation, I’ve found that most people tend to trail off by themselves doing things related to character building (of course!) or they go AFK while jumping through sectors (like everyone else) so your reponsing time to a question or simple “hey guys!” might be 10-15 minutes. A beautifully executed, visually stuning game, but I’m afraid a one month tour of duty in Eve will more than satisfy my curiousity about the game. The subscription is already pending cancellation.
Skafid says
I played many MMO’s, and Eve is the best MMO I have ever seen. At the beginning I was going to cancel my subscription because it seemed repetitious. Which is true if you stay in Empire space which is .5 to 1.0. The real beauty of Eve is 0.0 space which you are basically paranoid your first trip down. Mining in 0.0 is very profitable. You have to keep an eye of your surroundings or pirates will come out of nowhere and put you in the dead book. This is the only game I know of that has any kind of real sacrifice when you die or lose your ship. Games like SWG, EQ2, WOW are boring to me. There is no true war going on. Eve has politics that is in play. One day you will have a corp that is friendly and the next they will invade. Sort of like the real world. In Eve you trust noone…. If you are bored join a corp and defend your turf.
I am a proud member of Quantum Industries.
Joe says
Been playing for more than 2 years now….. Have two accounts..both in the same corporation… about to buy another account…
EVE is what you make of it… If you want PvP or to Mine all the time you can… If you want to both you can…
Your skills drive everything you do in EVE… Money (ISK) drives everything also, unless your in a corporation where they pay for most everything….
Truly, you can’t make a statement if you haven’t dropped about 3 months into the game and really expierenced it…After 2 weeks I was like “Ok… whats next ? ” Because, I think I had seen may 3 percent of the game… that is how huge it is…. and 20k plus players on one server makes EVE most enjoyable…
Shaj says
agreed with the last post. I’m only a month in but my brother played at launch for almost a year. I played shoulder co-pilot during that time.
There are tricks to the game, whether mining, fighting, or even playing the market. This game is capitalism at its best. You can buy/sell/escrow/rent…etc. And you can make money doing all of those things. Anyone looking for a game that gives you finacial flexibility (i.e. money smarts over loads of game time) should be happy.
I haven’t delved into 0.0 space yet. I went to 0.4 (0.0 to 1.0 scale with 1.0 being safest), mined for a while and got chased away by NPC pirates, surviving by the skin of my teeth. I thought 0.7 would be better. I mined AFK for 2 hours doing some cleaning in the room, looked up to see my shields gone and half my armor gone, and again barely escaped.
Visually great. Nuff said.
I’m constantly after the next big thing until I build the ship I want for the PVP/anti-pirate tactics I want to play.
Also, the little guys get to play with the big guys to a degree as well. Big ships have a very hard time tracking the small fighters. They need some little guys around as well. Fleets generally equal a mix of ships, but that doesn’t stop you from going out as a group of frigates (small) and having a good hunt either.
As said, you have to break the surface to appreciate the game. Labelling it as mining, travel, and skill chasing does the game no justice.
Mik N says
I have been playing Eve for about 7 months now and I have to say, it is the biggest game out there and also the hardest to learn. Once thing you must realize that in Eve, the more you know the more there is to know. If you find yourself getting bored jumping through 15 systems then that really is a clue. A clue that there is something you are missing. Something you don’t know.
In this instance it is the fact that you can do 15 jumps in about 5 minutes if you know how (usng gate-to-gate instant bookmarks) and have the money to buy 🙂
AFK mining in Eve is always dangerous to a degree. Also, mining is an art. You start by mining with a small ship and popping back to station to empty your hold but there is so much more to it than that. If you research through the myriad of postings on the http://www.eve-online.com forums you will find out secrets like how to make 2 million ISK an hour mining in safe space etc etc. Or even 30+ mill an hour in low-security/0.0 space.
The point I am making is that playing Eve is a multi layered experience. Everytie you think you have mastered a part of the game you peel of a leaf and discover a whole new layer waiting there for you. A new layer and new skills and equipment that you need to do it.
It is carefully designed to keep players interested and progressing, while still holding a necessary role in the game. In some roles a 3 month old player can be as skilled and competant as a 3 year old character.
Lastly, this game is about people. Playing solo is like cutting your leg off and then running a marathon. My advice is to join a corp as sson as you can find one. Learn from the other players, join in group missions, mining, pirate raids, COSMOS complex running etc etc. A whole world of options and opportunities opens up once you start interacting with other players and being involved in a corporation. Least of all is that there s always someone to chat to. At the high end, being part of a 100 player fleet fighting for the control of several systems in a massive war spanning weeks of patrols, battles, escorting vital mining mission and supply runs etc is huge.
Mik
Webmaster of the Australian and New Zealand Eve Fansite for those interested.
Gunfighter says
Been playing since last beta, and have one character who has been alive since the day after launch…she can fly a lot of things, do a ton of things well and is maxxed in some areas…
1.To touch on some comments from above: The learning curve is incredibly steep. Stick with it. The game is not meant for the instant gratification seeking 14 year old. It is meant to be explored and enjoyed… that said there is a TON to explore, and it is visually stunning (and about to get better with the release of the next major FREE expansion in November) but it does start to look the same after a while. There are a hundred different ways to make ISK and a million ways to lose it.
2. There is no level grind…the skill system is time based, but it is setup in a way where level 1-4 is relatively easy, but becoming an expert, going to level 5, take a good bit of time. So a newb, can be 90% as effective as a vet within a few months, and 100% so with the right tactics. It makes it so folks who can’t spend 8 hours a day camping a high experience spot are not hosed by those who can.
3. There is some griefing, but no more so than any other MMO…the difference here is that death HURTS. It isn’t a matter of travelling to get your corpse or repair your gear…you lose hard earned ISK, modules, clones, ships, etc…and it hurts…lost a ship I loved so much with such great modules in such a crappy fashion I nearly cried and was in a funk the rest of the day…the wife module, who had a hand in its loss, didn’t understand, but sympathized. I love that module.
4. The devs pay attention, or at least pretend to, to the community. They are players themselves, just living their ultimate game, so it helps.
5. On the downside, inflation within the game is a MAJOR problem, as are monopolies. Monopolies that a smart player creates I have no problem with, but when CCP (the developer) creates them deliberately, that is a problem. Example: tech 2 blueprint originals are by “lottery” (ha-ha, that is all I will say-don’t want to open that can of worms) But they are putting the same amount of BPOs in the game for 70k registered users as they did for 30k…couple this with the fact that more of those original 30k are now able to use them (tech 2 has higher skill requirements than tech 1) and that has increased demand as well..and you get a huge monopoly situation. Not good.
Gunfighter says
6. Getting into a good group is critical…I strongly recommend it…make sure you get a group that will have players on in your timezone, not just a large number of players. EVE is designed to be multiplayer, teamwork based. It is supposed to be a PvP game, although it has a decent amount of PvE content as well
7. It has been noted many times, in many different venues that EVE is 95% boredom and 5% terror. True. Or it can be. Just run the other way when a corp says “we do a lot of gate camping” I would rather not play that just sit there and hope some poor sap comes through the gate.
8. The greatest thing is the openended style…you can choose what lifestyle you want, CHANGE that lifestyle if you want to. Be a good guy, bad guy, muscle, businessman, manufacturer, scientist, admininstrator, miner, combat pilot, transport pilot, any combination thereof. And it isn’t like other games where you have to replay the game if you want to try something new…your skills stick with you, and you just push them in a different direction if you want to try something new.
9. Bottom line….EVE rocks. Best MMO on the market, and I have played DAOC, Everweak, WoWand Auto Assault..
Tony says
Thanks for everyone’s replies. I haven’t played EVE lately, but I read all the comments that show up here. I’ve actually be considering reactivating my account for a month, just to check things out.
Gunfighter says
Wait a bit…the new Kali expansion is supposed to come out this month, so there will be a boatload of new content—boatload of new bugs too, but hey-what game doesn’t have them, and at least you aren’t shelling out extra cash for this expansion!
Mike says
I love EVE because it has to be the most player controlled MMO there is. The NPC’s play somewhat of a role, but when you get out in 0.0, it’s a whole nother story. It’s only repetitive if you make it repetitive.
Dymiclos says
make enuf isk and u can pay for ur account in game anyway
MINNING FTW
Heloise Chateaubriande says
I’ve been playing Eve for more than 2 years. In my opinion, Eve is massively boring if you are just doing your own thing, by yourself, trying to make a few bucks. If this is all that you want to do (i.e. if you approach this like most other MMORPG) then you are going to be bored. The basic ways of making ISK (mining, missions, trading, industry) are boring and repetitive tasks and although CCP adds new content from time to time this is no way reduces the repetitive and boring nature of these basic tasks. I read a response in this thread where someone started about building up a corporation and starting to accomplish things by working as a group… that is what Eve is about! The really “cool” things can’t easily be done by one person because often many skillsets are needed and one person can’t know every skill. What makes Eve freaking amazing… is that you (and your friends/allies) can actually build and accomplish something “real” and “persistent” in this world. For example, a player with leadership skills and a vision can gather and inspire others to work with them to accomplish something… and with hard work they all just might sieze some 0.0 territory for themselves and fight off the rest of Eve. A neat thing to accomplish.
When I think back upon 2 years in Eve it is my accomplishments that I remember… the things I worked hard to achieve… they mattered. The first battlecruiser I built for myself. My first level 3 missions. My first battleship. Designing and launching a POS for the first ime. Engaging in fleet action PVP for the first time.
Anyhow… my $0.02. Some parts of Eve are boring… I keep returning for the ppl and the group accomplishments.
– Heloise Chateaubriande (in game name)
Tony says
@Heloise – Thanks for the comment. I’ve said it more than once that people definitely make the biggest difference. The game can be fantastic, but if the people that play it are a-holes, then the game is going to suck. Good to hear you’ve enjoyed EVE, that’s what it’s all about.
Heloise Chateaubriande says
yw. Actually after posting I felt as though my contribution to the thread was a bit redundant as others had said many of the same things. I agree unreservedly with you about the ppl though. Unfortunately Eve DOES have its fair share (or more?) of a-holes.
– Helo
Tony says
@Helo – Finding a great group of people is the real trick. Once you have that, even the jerks become a little less of a pain. You can just blow them up!
Matt says
old blog im sure, however i managed to stumble upon it so I’m sure many more will. I’ve been playing even for about a year now. Sure it’s slow paced and as the skills take longer and longer to train it gets a little tedious. But there is no other game that presents risk for reward so well. You have to work for what you play in. When you lose it it could break you and send you back to square one as far as money making. It’s not like an mmo where you put on your no-drop gear and wear it for life. Each time you fight, NPC or PVP you risk your ship..more so in PVP as npc’ing becomes like second nature after a bit. Even as an experienced pilot who can make quite a bit of isk in a matter of days it still hurts to lose that battleship especially now with rigs increasing the overall amount of isk spent in them. When it comes down to stations and such..outposts put up by players…those that invested their time and effort into them will feel more compelled to defend such if ever the time arises. And chances are, the time will arise. Eve is unlike any other mmo to date. A true commment 4 years after the making of the game. Now they’re giving us directx 9 shaders finally. w00t.
Tony says
@Matt – Thanks for the comment. This is an older post, but it gets quite a bit of traffic. Enough to prompt me to think about re-subbing for more EVE Online goodness. We’ll see if I get back on, but it’s good to know they’re still fighting the good fight there.
Kushy says
The skill training system is the best thing about Eve Online. It may sound stupid, but you really get a (false) feeling of accomplishment when you’ve been waiting for weeks to finish training a set of skills and then you get them. It’s like a built in seniority system and it greatly improves the game, imo. I wish that other games would emulate it. Level systems are just cheesy and lame.
The weakest aspect of Eve Online is combat. Your ships don’t even have shield facings, just a layered donut of hit points, armor and structure, so there’s practically no tactics involved. In this sense Eve Online is more simplistic than almost any other space sim, and it’s really sad.