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EVE Evolved: EVE's Odyssey expansion could be incredible

Brendan Drain — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, Patches, PvP, Endgame, News Items, PvE, Opinion, Events (Massively's Coverage), EVE Evolved, Sandbox, Subscription

When EVE Online's upcoming Odyssey expansion was officially announced last week at PAX East, the anticipation from players was almost palpable. Odyssey aims to follow in the footsteps of 2009's blockbuster Apocrypha expansion by revamping the exploration system and filling the void of space with thousands of new hidden treasures. We've been promised new ships, a new scanner mechanic with sleek new UI and additional functionality, and a rebalancing of industrial resources across the game.

Though CCP is saving most of the expansion reveals for next month's EVE Fanfest and beyond, we can make some fairly educated guesses on what the expansion will contain from the press release and teaser site. It's pretty much a given that we'll get some kind of new exploration ship, and there's pretty strong evidence that moon minerals will be changing somehow. We're also almost guaranteed to get new faction battlecruisers, and the evidence is mounting that Jove space may finally be about to open for exploration.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at the evidence for Jove space finally opening, explain why we desperately need a new scanning system, and make some educated guesses on what else the Odyssey expansion might contain.

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EVE Evolved: EVE's Odyssey expansion could be incredible originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 31 Mar 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: History of the Interstellar Starbase Syndicate

Brendan Drain — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Events (In-Game), Game Mechanics, Guilds, Lore, PvP, EVE Evolved, Sandbox

Today's EVE Online is packed to the brim with warring alliances smashing each other's property to pieces, but it wasn't always like that. In EVE's early days, there were so few players that much of nullsec was wasteland and you could often go 40 jumps across the lawless regions without seeing a single soul. Conquerable stations were added for players to fight over in 2003's Castor expansion, but they were few and far between. It wasn't until player-owned structures were first introduced with Exodus that nullsec really started out on its path to full-scale colonisation and all-out war.

The first player-owned structures introduced were Starbases, which offered not only a place to stash your loot and ships but also a whole new industry based on reacting moon minerals together. Moon minerals have been a major point of contention in nullsec balance discussions over the years, but most alliances weren't all that interested in moons when the industry first appeared. Starbases took all day to set up, refueling and emptying them required constant hauling, and just scanning all the moons in a region for minerals was a massive undertaking. In the summer of 2005, player Count TaSessine saw this problem as an opportunity and grabbed it with both hands as he formed the Interstellar Starbase Syndicate.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look back at the history of one of EVE's early alliances, its creator's dream for a civilian nullsec, and the changes that eventually led to the alliance's destruction.

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EVE Evolved: History of the Interstellar Starbase Syndicate originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 11 Nov 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Online $6,000 ship kill may be a hoax

Brendan Drain — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Events (In-Game), Game Mechanics, Lore, PvP, Endgame, News Items, Sandbox

EVE Online player "stewie Zanjoahir" made history yesterday when he reportedly lost a tiny ship with cargo worth over $6,000 US. Now it appears that the value of the kill may not have been accurate or that the kill could even be a hoax. Evidence that the kill may not be authentic surfaced last night as players found that three Hulk blueprints listed on the kill were marked as originals. That would make them priceless items that change hands for over 500 billion ISK each, which would raise the kill's value to a ludicrous 1.71 trillion ISK ($51,685 US).

It's believed that many of the original blueprints in the kill were actually cheaper blueprint copies. One possible explanation for the aberration is that there was an error in the EVE API that supplied the original kill data to third-party killboard websites. It's also possible that the kill was marked as API Verified without actually being checked, in which case the kill may have never even happened. An alternative version of the kill valued at only 34 billion ISK ($1,024 US) has also surfaced, but this was manually uploaded and so isn't verified at all.

CCP Games posted the kill on its Facebook page and Twitter feed, but didn't officially confirm the kill or its value. We reached CCP for comment, but privacy concerns prevented the company from confirming or denying the kill's authenticity. If this monumental kill turns out to be an error or a hoax, the next-highest value confirmed EVE kill would be Bjoern's Avatar class titan destroyed in March 2011. The titan was kitted out with expensive officer modules and came to a total value of over 128 billion ISK. As the price of PLEX was much lower in 2011, this would have bought 355 PLEX worth a total of $6,212.50 US.

EVE Online $6,000 ship kill may be a hoax originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Online player loses tiny ship worth over $6,000 [UPDATED]

Brendan Drain — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Events (In-Game), Game Mechanics, Lore, PvP, News Items, Sandbox

EVE Online is well known for its sandbox gameplay and ruthless citizens, with monumental kills and record-breaking scams popping up year after year. In 2010, one player lost over $1,000 US worth of 30-day game time codes (PLEX) when he transported them in the cargo hold of a tiny, fragile frigate. Thinking his ship too fast to be caught, that player lost his entire alliance's budget in a single mishap.

That record was thoroughly eradicated today by player "stewie Zanjoahir," who reportedly lost over 213,000,000,000 ISK when he tried to transport a huge cache of valuable blueprints through nullsec in a tiny, unfitted frigate. That much ISK could currently buy around 367 30-day game time codes (PLEX) at around 580 million ISK each, for a combined total of over 30 years of game time. To put that into perspective, 367 PLEX bought with real cash would cost about $6,422.50 US.

Some players doubt the authenticity of the kill report, but the killboard it was posted on claims to have verified it with EVE's automated API service, and CCP Games itself posted about the kill on Facebook. Kills of this scale may have happened before, but it was previously impossible to tell whether a destroyed blueprint was a cheap copy or an expensive original. The value of this kill may even be higher than the reported figure, as several of the blueprint copies that weren't counted are actually worth billions of ISK. Today's kill may be the largest confirmed kill of any ship in EVE's history and could even be the most expensive character death in any MMO to date.

[UPDATE: Evidence has emerged that the kill might not be authentic. EVE-Kill has since updated its report with a revised value of 5.3 billion ISK]

EVE Online player loses tiny ship worth over $6,000 [UPDATED] originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 22 Oct 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Player justice in Retribution

Brendan Drain — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Expansions, Game Mechanics, Patches, PvP, PvE, EVE Evolved, Dev Diaries, Sandbox

This week CCP released a new devblog on upcoming piracy and PvP changes heading to EVE Online with this winter's Retribution expansion. In addition to new ships and an as-yet unrevealed bounty hunter revamp, Retribution completely redesigns the Crimewatch system that decides whom you can legally shoot and stops players from docking or jumping out of the system in the middle of combat. EVE's aggression mechanics are notoriously complicated and buggy, but Retribution aims to simplify the system and put players in the driving seat of criminal justice.

The new Crimewatch system not only gets rid of old, undocumented code that was written when dinosaurs roamed the earth but also has far-reaching consequences for pirates, people engaging in PvE and the upcoming bounty hunting revamp. Pirates will now be able to escape into high-security space without police intervention, loot thieves will be subjected to mob justice, nullsec ratters won't be as safe as they think, and neutral remote repairing will be a thing of the past.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I delve into Crimewatch 2.0 and how the Retribution expansion will change the game for pirates, ratters, and people engaging in PvP across New Eden.

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EVE Evolved: Player justice in Retribution originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 07 Oct 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: A game of cat and mouse

Brendan Drain — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Game Mechanics, PvP, Endgame, Opinion, EVE Evolved, Guides, Sandbox

Outside of the annual Alliance Tournament, it's rare to find a fair fight in EVE Online with both sides being evenly matched in numbers or odds of success. On the actual battlefields of EVE, lone pilots and fleets alike hunt for fights they can win and tend to shy away from fights that aren't stacked in their favour. A bold few will intentionally engage when they're outmatched or outgunned in the hopes of getting a lucky and impressive-looking kill, but most of the time, that kind of fight is the result of a poor judgment call or misreading the situation.

Something new EVE players tend to have trouble accepting is that the outcome of a fight is often decided before the guns even start firing. EVE PvP is a massive game of tactics in which the goal is to catch weaker enemies at a disadvantage, so the fight could already be lost the moment you're caught by a superior foe. A lot of PvP is psychological; you trick enemies into thinking they have the upper hand, and you hide your true intentions and abilities until it's too late. Fleets of all sizes roam around EVE appraising the smaller fish while avoiding the sharks, and I wouldn't trade that cat-and-mouse gameplay for any level of pre-arranged fairness.

But what motivates people to fight or flee, and how can we win the psychological battle to gain an upper hand? In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at three tricks you can use to catch targets off-guard.

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EVE Evolved: A game of cat and mouse originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 12 Aug 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Risk vs. reward in lowsec

Brendan Drain — Sun, 13 May 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Economy, Game Mechanics, Professions, PvP, Opinion, EVE Evolved, Sandbox

In EVE Online's early years, one of its core design philosophies was adherence to a strict risk vs. reward balance scheme. There were riches out there to be found, but to get them, you had to put yourself in the firing line. Police ships patrolled high-security space to keep players safe from piracy, but the only resources available there were low-bounty frigate NPCs and inexpensive ores like Veldspar, Scordite and Omber. In the lawless far-reaches of nullsec, huge NPC bounties and rare ores containing Megacyte and Zydrine tempted hundreds of pilots to head out and make their fortunes.

Nullsec offered absolutely no protection against player attacks, and the only safety to be found was in sheer military force. The biggest and best corporations hoarded these gold mines for themselves, locking down the few entrances into the regions and patrolling the skies for unwanted visitors. Low-security space offered a middle-ground between these two extremes, a place where the everyday pilot could enjoy increased income and pirates were easier to spot. At some time in the past nine years, lowsec lost its place in the game and became simply not worth the effort. But how did that happen, and what can be done to fix it?

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at why lowsec systems are now ghost towns and suggest an alternative design philosophy that I think could revitalise these under-used areas.

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EVE Evolved: Risk vs. reward in lowsec originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 13 May 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Mining returns with Inferno

Brendan Drain — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Economy, Expansions, Game Mechanics, Professions, PvE, Opinion, EVE Evolved, Sandbox

Inferno is right around the corner, with the Escalation to Inferno patch due to hit in two days on Tuesday, April 24th. The patch prepares EVE Online for the coming PvP apocalypse with titan balance tweaks, a new interactive status effect bar, and two very important changes to the NPC drop tables: Manufacturable tech 1 modules will be removed from NPC drop tables, and Rogue Drone NPCs will have their mineral drops replaced with ISK bounties. These are changes players have been suggesting for years, and together they have the potential to bring back mining as one of the most profitable professions in EVE.

If someone asked you where all the minerals come from to build the thousands of ships destroyed in EVE on a daily basis, you might say that you assume most of it comes from mined ore. Mining was originally the biggest source of minerals in the game and one of the most profitable professions, but over the years, that's changed. When level 4 missions added an infinite source of battleship-sized NPCs to high-security space, mission-running quickly overtook mining as the most profitable profession, and bizarrely, as a very good source of minerals. When the drone regions were later released, ratting there also became a huge mineral faucet far in excess of that produced through mining.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at the problems faced by mining as a source of minerals and speculate on what will happen to mining as a profession when the Inferno expansion hits.

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EVE Evolved: Mining returns with Inferno originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 22 Apr 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Six small changes that will make a big difference to EVE players

Brendan Drain — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 18:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game Mechanics, News Items, Dev Diaries, Sandbox

Last year, EVE Online developer CCP Games tasked its illustrious Team Best Friends Forever with a project aimed at fixing all those little things that annoy EVE players on a daily basis. Font issues, windows stealing focus, implants not showing on killmails, and the problem of agent standings being overly complicated were all tackled in no time flat. For the Crucible expansion, Team BFF's leader, CCP Soundwave, was put in charge of multiple teams that hammered out hundreds of bug fixes, gameplay balance changes and quality of life improvements.

In a new devblog, CCP Punkturis reveals six small changes under development by Team BFF that will certainly make a big difference to EVE players. The skill queue will be getting a search feature, which is good news for older players with over a hundred skills to sort through. The watch list that keeps track of friendly targets in fleet operations will be able to hold 15 players, up from 10, and players will be able to re-order them any way they like.

If you've ever seen a player's face appear in the bottom right of the screen to tell you he's just logged in, chances are you've tried to click on it to talk to him at least once. When the next big patch goes live, you'll be able to do just that. The agent list in stations and module overload indicator will both receive graphical updates, and a new compact user list for the local channel with no portraits will be an absolute god-send to nullsec fleets.

Six small changes that will make a big difference to EVE players originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 11 Jan 2012 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Touring a galaxy reborn

Brendan Drain — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Galleries, Screenshots, EVE Online, Culture, Expansions, Game Mechanics, Wallpapers, Hands-On, EVE Evolved, Sandbox

EVE Online recently celebrated the release of its incredible Crucible expansion, noted as one of the most feature-heavy expansions in the game's history despite the majority of its features being produced in a period of just a few weeks. Two years' worth of graphical upgrades, features, balance upgrades and quality-of-life fixes hit Tranquility all at once, and the response from players has been incredibly positive.

Last week I rounded up all the information there is to know about the Crucible expansion, but reading articles and news posts is no substitute for hands-on experience. This week I took a tour around parts of New Eden to explore the incredible new graphics Crucible delivered. As I have a background in graphics programming, the graphical upgrades are obviously the most exciting change for me. The astounding background nebulae are even more impressive when you know just how difficult it would be to build a nebula system that looks this incredible from any location.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I explore a reborn galaxy and catalogue my adventures in a massive HD gallery.

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EVE Evolved: Touring a galaxy reborn originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 11 Dec 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Online introducing new nebulae

Matt Daniel — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, News Items, Dev Diaries, Sandbox

The final frontier is about to get a whole lot prettier, as CCP has announced in a dev diary today that it's working on introducing a smattering of new nebulae to EVE Online. The team hopes that doing so will make the game more immersive and realistic to players.

On top of that, the new nebulae will also help to give players a sense of location. Lowsec and nullsec space will be darker, with cooler color palettes. Meanwhile, hisec space will be more colorful and saturated with warmer color palettes. And "by stellar coincidence," as the team puts it, "the dominant stellar phenomenon of each race happens to be in the same color palette as the ships of that race."

For more information on the new nebulae and the reasons for their introduction, head on over to the official EVE Online dev blog.

EVE Online introducing new nebulae originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 03 Nov 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Looking forward to the winter expansion

Brendan Drain — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Expansions, MMO Industry, PvP, PvE, Opinion, EVE Evolved

Since EVE Online's release in 2003, CCP Games has been the center of one of the most interesting success stories in the games industry. Produced by a tiny indie development studio on a frozen volcanic rock, EVE was the perfect example of how to do things right. The game's publishing deal with Simon & Schuster allowed CCP to buy back the rights to the game several months after its initial release. With no publisher taking a cut of the profits, CCP ploughed subscriptions back into the game's development and grew the development team organically. As a one-game company, CCP worked closely with players to make EVE the best game possible for its loyal playerbase.

In a recent letter to the players, CCP CEO Hilmar laments that somewhere along the line, things changed for the worse. The CCP of today bears little resemblance to the "little indie studio that could" of 2003, not just housing over 600 employees in offices around the world but also developing upcoming MMOs DUST 514 and World of Darkness. Resources are spread thin, and EVE Online has suffered for it. Last month I looked back at the blockbuster Apocrypha expansion and asked why every expansion since then has cut down on the in-space development players want. Hilmar's letter and its accompanying devblog answered that question this week with a solid plan for iteration on flying in space features during the winter development period.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look forward to the winter expansion and explain why each of the issues being tackled in the coming expansion is a big deal to players.

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EVE Evolved: Looking forward to the winter expansion originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 09 Oct 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: A new nullsec for everyone

Brendan Drain — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game Mechanics, PvP, Endgame, PvE, Opinion, EVE Evolved

Several weeks ago, EVE Online developer CCP Greyscale published possibly the single most important devblog of the past two years. Titled Nullsec development: Design goals, the blog laid the ground rules for high-level discussion on EVE's upcoming nullsec revamp. For those who live in nullsec, territorial warfare and nullsec life represent the true endgame of EVE. It's in these massive lawless regions of space that players forge alliances, build their own empires, and lead massive fleets of ships into enemy territory to kick over some space sandcastles.

Over the past two weeks, I've been delving into the discussion surrounding the upcoming nullsec revamp and speculating on what changes we might see. I started with a look back at the early days of nullsec industry and went on to give some ideas aimed at reclaiming those glory days. I followed that up with last week's summary of EVE Online's empire-building history, the problems faced by today's territorial warfare mechanics, and further speculation on how the system could be radically changed for the better.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I conclude this series of articles on the upcoming nullsec revamp with an examination of the discussion surrounding PvE, the local channel, and the potentially revolutionary smallholding system that could give even casual and solo players a taste of nullsec.

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EVE Evolved: A new nullsec for everyone originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 04 Sep 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Building a better empire

Brendan Drain — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Expansions, Game Mechanics, PvP, Endgame, Opinion, EVE Evolved

It's often said that EVE Online is 99% endgame, with only the tutorials and epic mission arcs really providing directed gameplay. Once you get out into the open world, the game is dominated by sandbox laws and social interaction. This is most clear in the lawless nullsec regions where alliances war over territory and build their own empires in the void.

Last week I looked back at the early days of nullsec industry and examined the problems industry has developed over the years. With a massive nullsec revamp scheduled to begin this winter, I went on to speculate on how the game could be changed to bring back the glory days of nullsec industry. Although adequately incentivised local mining and production could transform player-created empires, those aren't the only areas of gameplay being revisited. Sovereignty mechanics, fleet warfare, small gang warfare, exploration and small-scale territorial control will all eventually be redesigned as part of the massive iterative overhaul.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at the history of EVE's empire-building and territorial warfare mechanics, some of the problems faced by the sovereignty system, and how those aspects of EVE could possibly be changed for the better.

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EVE Evolved: Building a better empire originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 28 Aug 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Online dev blog outlines major long-term changes

Jef Reahard — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 09:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items, Dev Diaries, Miscellaneous, Sandbox

A couple of weeks ago, we told you about an EVE Online initiative to bring about substantial changes to the game's nullsec regions. Yesterday, CCP expanded on the initial concept via a lengthy new post that should banish any doubts as to whether or not the devs expect the game to be around in the far future.

CCP Greyscale outlines 12 bullet points discussed at length amongst both the dev team and the Council of Stellar Management, all with the aim of making nullsec the place to be in terms of EVE Online's primary gameplay. The post talks everything from mining to territory and conquest to intel and exploration. CCP Greyscale uses this last one as an example of how far-reaching the changes to EVE are shaping up to be.

"Hopefully the amount of stuff in here will also make it clearer why we're saying 'more than five years.' For example, those few bullet points under 'exploration' mean replacing all of the exploration content that's been developed in the past five years," he explains.

EVE Online dev blog outlines major long-term changes originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 16 Aug 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE devs brainstorming nullsec changes

Jef Reahard — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items, Dev Diaries, Sandbox

EVE Online players have been quite vocal in their disdain for CCP's recent focus on cash shop items, Aurum, and promotions like EVE is Real. The conventional wisdom in some quarters is that the devs are neglecting to work on things that made the sandbox game great and are instead branching off into the netherworld of RMT and social networking.

Enter CCP's latest dev blog, which seeks to convey the message that work continues on New Eden proper -- with particular energy being directed toward EVE's nullsec experience.

CCP Greyscale says that Team BFF has basically set aside discussions of nullsec sovereignty in favor of resource- and industry-based brainstorming. Though much of the blog post is highly theoretical, it's nonetheless interesting to get a brief glimpse behind the curtain, and it's also somewhat reassuring to see that the designers remain focused on the sandbox rather than on how people are paying for it.

EVE devs brainstorming nullsec changes originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 03 Aug 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Force projection and jump bridges

Brendan Drain — Sun, 22 May 2011 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Game Mechanics, PvP, Endgame, Opinion, EVE Evolved

When EVE Online's Dominion expansion launched, we expected to see large empires contract into smaller areas of space and smaller entities move in to fill in the gaps. High sovereignty maintenance fees were meant to keep alliances from claiming systems they didn't intend to fully use, and smaller territories were meant to localise wars to only an alliance's immediate neighbours. Unfortunately, almost the exact opposite happened. Large alliances continued to group together into massive mega-coalitions, collectively owning huge regions of space and preventing smaller organisations from staking a claim on their own.

Dominion failed to achieve its stated goals, and in the years since its release CCP has been reluctant or unable to revisit the sovereignty mechanics Dominion overhauled. In that time, the face of EVE's nullsec warfare has changed drastically, with most large alliances now flaunting dozens of once-rare supercarriers and titans. Starbase jump bridge networks, titan jump portals and jump-drive enabled ships allow alliances to project force over immense distances, letting them support a war on the other side of the map.

With the recent announcement of changes coming to jump bridges, the force projection debate has once again taken center stage in forums and blogs. In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at the problems associated with force projection, examine the jump bridge changes and weigh in on the debate.

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EVE Evolved: Force projection and jump bridges originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 22 May 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CCP tweaking EVE jump bridges, eyeing nullsec changes

Jef Reahard — Tue, 10 May 2011 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items, Dev Diaries

Changes are coming to the lawless regions of EVE Online, and a new CCP dev blog has the details. In a nutshell, CCP devs feel that jump bridges have removed some of the danger inherent in traveling around nullsec, and the company will be tweaking the gameplay accordingly in both the short and long term.

CCP Soundwave blogs about three upcoming adjustments, the first of which is the removal of jumpdrive-equipped ships from the jump bridge eligibility list. Soundwave says this will go live on May 17th and also notes that Black Ops ships are exempt from the new rule (i.e., they can still use the bridges). The other two changes, which involve limiting the number of jumpbridges in a system and upping the respective fuel bays, will go live with EVE's June patch.

Finally, the dev blog hints at more dramatic nullsec changes on the horizon. Soundwave doesn't go into specifics but does say that the region "is in need of a bit of an overhaul."

CCP tweaking EVE jump bridges, eyeing nullsec changes originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 10 May 2011 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Proposed changes to EVE's nullsec regions cause a stir

Brendan Drain — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, Patches, News Items, Dev Diaries

At the end of 2009, EVE Online's vast and lawless nullsec regions were given a complete overhaul with the Dominion expansion. System sovereignty mechanics were changed, and a new infrastructure system was put in place. Through an infrastructure hub interface, alliances were given the ability to upgrade the systems within their borders. Areas of space near EVE's empire systems that were rarely fought over suddenly became prime real-estate, ripe for conquest and development. The difference in quality between the best systems deep in nullsec and poor systems nearer empire was significantly lowered.

The hope was that by increasing the carrying capacity of each individual system, CCP would cause large alliances to contract into smaller areas of space. The result hasn't been exactly as CCP had planned, since huge areas of nullsec are now being dominated by massive coalitions of alliances. In a new devblog, CCP Greyscale has explained steps that CCP plans to take in order to rectify the situation. The quality of cosmic anomalies provided by system upgrades will soon depend largely on the system's true security rating. Systems that were highly sought before Dominion will now be significantly better for making ISK.

CCP hopes that this will cause high-end alliances to concentrate in higher-end space, leaving power vacuums near empire space for smaller alliances to fill. Player reaction to the devblog has been fierce, with the comments thread reaching over 65 pages, the vast majority of it negative. Whether the changes are a good idea is debatable, but the one thing players have widely agreed on is that the changes will not achieve the goals CCP has set out in the devblog. As the changes are part of the official Incursion features list, however, it's highly likely that they'll go to the live server in a future patch deployment.

Proposed changes to EVE's nullsec regions cause a stir originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: Feeling the love

Krystalle Voecks — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Galleries, Screenshots, EVE Online, One Shots, Humor

Anyone who has played EVE Online for any real period of time can appreciate why so many people feel internet spaceships are "serious business." However, much like CCP's own developers and their recent "chessboxing" video, many capsuleers also have a fun-loving side -- despite the dangers in EVE Online. Today's fun screenshot comes to us from Ryan V., who captured this while wandering through New Eden recently and writes in: "This was taken outside of a Space Monkeys Alliance station in the northern nullsec regions. The Space Monkeys are known for their love for bubbles, and this just exemplifies that."

Found a fun interstellar anomaly while adventuring through your favorite space-based MMO? If so, send in a screenshot of it and share with the rest of us! It's easy to do. Email your image to us here at oneshots@massively.com and include your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing in the picture. You never know -- your image could be the next one we feature here on Massively!

Gallery: One Shots: 2011

One Shots: Feeling the love originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Spotlight: Mercenary Coalition's Seleene

Brendan Drain — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Video, EVE Online, Contests, Guilds, Interviews, Lore, PvP, Opinion

EVE Spotlight is a new bi-weekly feature in which we interview prominent members of EVE Online's player community or development team. Every two weeks, we'll be shining the spotlight on a player or developer who has a significant impact on EVE to highlight the efforts of EVE's most influential people.

It's said that PvP is the force that drives EVE Online, forging demand in the markets through destruction of assets and adding much of the unique political conflict that lies at the heart of EVE's gameplay. If war is EVE's driving force, then mercenaries are its swiftest vehicles. Contract killers by profession, mercenary corporations will take up arms against anyone for the right price. No mercenary group in EVE has ever been as feared and admired as Mercenary Coalition. Famed for being perhaps the single most destructive influence in EVE, MC has turned the tides of wars and shattered entire regions and alliances through brute force. At the alliance's highest point, the mere mention of its name was often enough to postpone war.

The group officially disbanded in 2008 following a drawn-out war with Band of Brothers alliance in Delve. Late last year, Mercenary Coalition made a comeback with the announcement by founder Seleene that the group was looking for new members and contracts. Although the future now seems less than certain for the infamous alliance, MC's founder Seleene has certainly had a long and colourful history in the game -- first as a player and then later as a developer for CCP Games. Under the name CCP Abathur, Seleene worked on EVE for over three years before eventually leaving the company on good terms. Having been both an EVE developer and an avid EVE player, he now has a rare perspective on the game and its development.

In this EVE Spotlight, I talk to Seleene about his career as the head of EVE's biggest mercenary outfit and his career as an EVE game designer.

Continue reading EVE Spotlight: Mercenary Coalition's Seleene

EVE Spotlight: Mercenary Coalition's Seleene originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 10 Feb 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Massively's EVE CSM interview: Incarna and nullsec PvP

Brendan Drain — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Expansions, Game Mechanics, Interviews, MMO Industry, Opinion

In part one of our interview with EVE Online's player-elected Council of Stellar Management, we asked council member Deirdra Vaal about EVE Gate, the upcoming forum revamp, CCP's microtransaction policy and other topics discussed at the December CSM summit. In three meeting sessions, CCP and the CSM tackled some hard-hitting issues, the biggest of which were Incarna and nullsec PvP. Most of the details on Incarna are currently locked under NDA, but that didn't stop us from asking the CSM about it. Nullsec PvP has also been a hot topic recently with the revelation that levels of PvP have actually been declining since the Dominion expansion. Dominion was intended to open up nullsec for smaller entities, but we still see EVE's political landscape dominated by massive coalitions of alliances spanning several regions.

Massively: The CSM expressed significant concerns about the Incarna development plans it had access to. Does the CSM think that CCP is heading in the wrong direction with Incarna?

Deirdra Vaal: We feel that the approach taken to Incarna is the wrong one, and we emphasised this to CCP. However, CCPs general idea to set Incarna as an "off the grid" environment where we go for shady deals is something the CSM is reasonably happy with. It's just that so far we haven't really been shown any compelling gameplay. So we think they might be heading in the wrong direction, if they are lazy about it. They might also be heading in the right direction, but so far we haven't seen compelling gameplay that would support this assumption.

Skip past the cut for the rest of our interview with EVE's CSM on Incarna, nullsec PvP and the future of EVE.

Continue reading Massively's EVE CSM interview: Incarna and nullsec PvP

Massively's EVE CSM interview: Incarna and nullsec PvP originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 23 Jan 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Preparing for Incursion

Brendan Drain — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Economy, Expansions, Game Mechanics, PvP, PvE, EVE Evolved

Several months ago, pirate faction Sansha's Nation began invading the populated systems of New Eden in force and abducting colonists from the defenseless planets. Using a frightening new technology, Sansha's forces have been able to open controlled wormholes directly in orbit of their target planets. CONCORD and the local faction navies have been unable to defend against the incursions, leaving the fate of EVE Online's planets solely in the hands of capsuleers. EVE players immediately began to organise intelligence networks and corporations dedicated to detecting and fighting the Sansha threat.

In the upcoming Incursion expansion, Sansha's Nation will be stepping up its attacks to full-scale invasions of entire constellations. Having converted the millions of colonists they've abducted to mindless drones of the Nation and even having moved a conquered Jovian space station into their hidden wormhole home, Sansha's forces have never been stronger. When the Incursion expansion's main feature goes live in January of next year, players will find themselves on the front-lines of a war. We'll group up in fleets of 5-10, 10-20 or 20-40 players to tackle the various incursion sites and ultimately destroy each invasion wave's mothership. With the first Incursion release scheduled for this month and less than two months to go until the constellation-wide Sansha attacks begin, now is the perfect time to prepare for the expansion.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I look at some of the ways you can benefit from the upcoming expansion and what players can do to prepare for the war against Sansha's Nation.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Preparing for Incursion

EVE Evolved: Preparing for Incursion originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 21 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Online devblog discusses recent 3000-player battle and server stability

Brendan Drain — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, PvP, Dev Diaries

Recently, we reported on the largest battle ever held in EVE Online. Over 3200 pilots clashed in the lawless nullsec system LXQ2-T. What was meant to be a titanic battle between the Northern Coalition political conglomeration and its rival Russian power block from the drone regions was quickly overcome with lag. Although it's impressive that the server didn't crash, pilots reported delays of several minutes between issuing a command and the server's carrying it out. In a new devblog, CCP Veritas looks at exactly what went on behind the scenes at that colossal battle.

While we play EVE Online in realtime, the server essentially queues up our commands and processes them in order. If the load becomes so high that more commands enter the queue every second than can be processed, our commands begin to be delayed and we experience that as lag. If you've ever been interested in what goes on under the hood of EVE's massively complex server, this devblog is definitely worth a read. If nothing else, it reinforces the fact that lag is a much more complex issue than we sometimes expect and progress in combating it involves painstaking work. In a future devblog, Veritas will present a historical look at the EVE server's performance and how it's been improved in the last few months as part of CCP's ongoing war on lag.

EVE Online devblog discusses recent 3000-player battle and server stability originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 09 Nov 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE extended downtime has some unfortunate consequences

Brendan Drain — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 20:40:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, Guilds, Lore, Patches, PvP, News Items

Early this morning, the EVE Online server underwent an extended scheduled downtime for the deployment of the Tyrannis 1.2 patch. The patch deployment proceeded as planned and almost exactly to schedule, with the entire downtime lasting around 12 hours. When the servers came up, however, members of some nullsec alliances noticed that something was amiss. All of a sudden, a number of systems in Delve that had been vacant before the downtime were now owned by Reddit-based alliance Test Alliance Please Ignore.

It soon became apparent that Test Alliance had placed territorial control units in the systems just before the extended downtime began. Under normal circumstances, territorial claim units must be protected by a fleet for the six hours they need to start up. During that time, enemy fleets have a chance to engage the hostile force and destroy their claim unit. If the six hours pass without event, ownership of the system is then awarded to the alliance that placed the structure. By placing the structures immediately prior to the extended downtime, enemies of Test Alliance were unable to contest the claim, which meant it automatically succeeded. What happened next has been the cause of a great deal of controversy on the EVE forums and Reddit.

Skip past the cut for a run-down of what happened next.

Continue reading EVE extended downtime has some unfortunate consequences

EVE extended downtime has some unfortunate consequences originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 02 Nov 2010 20:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: Obfuscated

Krystalle Voecks — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Screenshots, EVE Online, One Shots

While World of Darkness is grabbing headlines, life in EVE Online continues quietly for the moment, awaiting the next player-created news explosion. (Or, you know, that little Incarna thing.) However, while things may seem quiet for the moment, today's note from Manic Velocity reminds us that one can never be too sure in New Eden -- sometimes the most placid-seeming locales hold monsters. Manic writes in:

"I decided to take a road trip around EVE Online to practice my scanning skills. I picked a system at random on the map, assigned the waypoint, and set off to scan every system in the course of 36 jumps. I came home with a cargohold full of datachips and salvage from lucrative Radar and Mag sites, and plenty of screenshots. This shot depicts a lone plasma planet in an 'R051' wormhole system. The contrast of the cold blue against the fiery nebula was too perfect to resist capturing. After cloaking and scanning the system, I found no signs of player structures or other ships. Though I was completely alone, the bright red nullsec security status at the top of my screen was a constant reminder that I was not completely safe. Soon after, I abandoned the wormhole system and continued on my trip."

Been somewhere exciting and new? We'd love to see what you're up to. Email your images to us here at oneshots@massively.com along with your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing. We'll post them out here and give you credit for sending them in.

Gallery: One Shots: Gallery II

One Shots: Obfuscated originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 04 Oct 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: The Industrial-Sized Knowledgebase

Brendan Drain — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Professions, PvE, Opinion, Hands-On, EVE Evolved, Guides

The EVE Evolved column has been home to dozens of in-depth guides on various aspects of EVE Online. Over the past two years, I've written multi-part guides to many industrial and PvP-oriented topics. On the topic of research and development, we've covered tech 1 research, invention, reverse engineering and five top tips for researchers. Perhaps more useful was the three part series on trading, which first covered the basics before delving into advanced trading strategies and a few useful tips. Other guides which have proven popular among newer players included our three-part guide to mission-running, and the recent three-page guide to exploration.

Members of the EVE community regularly produce new guides and tools to help players make the most of their time in New Eden. This week, EVE player Laci surprised the EVE community with the release of an impressive new guide aimed at new players and industralists. The comprehensive 416-page Industrial-Sized Knowledgebase (or ISK for short) covers practically everything a new player could want to know about the game. Until now, the guide had been available only in Hungarian. After intensive translation and design work, the full guide has been released in English.

In this week's EVE Evolved, I take a look at this impressive guide and ask its creator Laci a few questions about it.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: The Industrial-Sized Knowledgebase

EVE Evolved: The Industrial-Sized Knowledgebase originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 29 Aug 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: The non-ISK rewards of nullsec

Krystalle Voecks — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Screenshots, EVE Online, One Shots

In nullsec, nobody can hear you scream. Well, okay, somebody might hear you scream, but depending on what side of the battle that somebody is on, the scream could either evoke a sympathetic response, or gales of laughter. That's just the way life is in EVE Online. However, for those willing to make the trip into nullsec, there's generally great ISK to be made, and occasionally, some other non-monetary rewards to be found -- like today's One Shots! This comes to us from Barlat, who writes in: "Here's an image of my pirate, Barlat, in search of prey in nullsec space. I hadn't found any booty yet, but that view was a treasure in itself."

Have you found a gorgeous view while out piloting around New Eden? Perhaps you'd rather show us a huge fleet battle, or some shots of a recent mining op? We're always on the hunt for great screenshots -- from EVE Online and myriad other MMOs. Just email your best to us here at oneshots@massively.com along with your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing. We'll post it out here and give you the credit for sending it in. Easy, and fun!

Gallery: One Shots: Gallery II

One Shots: The non-ISK rewards of nullsec originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: Life is good

Krystalle Voecks — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Screenshots, EVE Online, One Shots

While nobody can deny the moments of danger that come with living in areas not controlled by CONCORD, there is beauty to be found in these wild corners of the EVE Online universe. Take today's One Shots as an example! This was sent in to us by Evan G. who writes in to explain what we're seeing: After months of preparation, my alliance Amici Noctis has headed into null sec to colonize a system and start our own little empire. Patrol duty never looked so good since Dominion. With the new planets and graphical tweaks, we agree. Just don't get too distracted by the view, capsuleers!

If you've caught a really awesome image from your favorite game, we want to see it! Just email it to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a description. We'll post it out here for everyone to enjoy.

Gallery: One Shots: Gallery II

Gallery: One Shots

One Shots: Life is good originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 25 Feb 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GoonSwarm alliance disbanded in EVE Online political drama

Brendan Drain — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Culture, Interviews, Lore, PvP, Endgame, Hands-On, Politics

In the sandbox of New Eden, rival alliances vie for control of vast swathes of star systems. The lawless nullsec regions of the EVE Online universe are home to violent alliances of all sizes and fleets with hundreds of ships clash on a daily basis. The political machinations of nullsec have produced many stories of wars fought over territory, stations conquered and fleets dismantled by force. Over the years, each story has become part of the game's living history. Recently, a new chapter in that history began as the nullsec sovereignty system governing territorial warfare received a complete overhaul in the Dominion expansion. The transition period has been rough on some alliances as a new sovereignty system requires new ways of thinking. Some alliances are falling, new ones are being forged to fill the power vacuum and the race is on for people to adapt to the new sovereignty system.

As we've been watching the EVE galaxy performing its Darwinian reshuffle, it came to our surprise that GoonSwarm, the game's biggest territorial alliance, had been disbanded. In the early hours of Wednesday 3rd February 2010, GoonSwarm CEO "karttoon" kicked almost every corp from the alliance, effectively disbanding it. There's more to this story than meets the eye and in this investigative piece, I delve into the thick of it to discover just what's going on with this troubled alliance.

Continue reading GoonSwarm alliance disbanded in EVE Online political drama

GoonSwarm alliance disbanded in EVE Online political drama originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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One Shots: Making the jump

Krystalle Voecks — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, Screenshots, EVE Online, One Shots

While some are headed to space in Star Trek Online this weekend, the war for sov rages on in various parts of EVE Online. What it doesn't have in avatar combat (yet) it more than makes up for in sandbox play, putting players in total control over their own character's destiny. This gorgeous EVE Online screenshot comes to us today from Andrew, who writes in to explain what's going on for those who may not be familiar: The release of Dominion has seen a lot of freighter convoys hauling infrastructure to nullsec (player controlled space). In this shot we have a gaggle of freighters approaching a Titan, which will use it's Jump Portal Generator to send them to the far reaches of the galaxy.

From large to small, we love to see MMOs of all styles and sizes. If you'd like to show off your favorite game and give others a glimpse into one of the things you think makes it cool, why not send in a One Shots image? All you have to do is email it to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing. We'll post it out here and give you the credit for sending it in. Couldn't be easier!

Gallery: One Shots

One Shots: Making the jump originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 23 Jan 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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An overview of the EVE Online capital ship changes arriving today

James Egan — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics

The cries of "Free CCP Abathur" have been heard. He's one of the growing number of EVE Online developers recruited from among the ranks of the playerbase, and in Abathur's case -- he's someone very well-versed in the dynamics of nullsec warfare. His dev blog "The All Caps Ship Blog" deals with changes CCP Games is making to EVE that have long been a hot button with the playerbase.

It's not surprising that capital ship balancing is a controversial topic among players of the sci-fi MMO. Capital ship pilots in New Eden have invested significant amounts of training time and in-game wealth into piloting these massive ships, be it carriers and supercarriers, dreadnaughts, or titans. Some of CCP Abathur's ideas on balancing capital ships seemed to be fairly well-received by the playerbase, but later proposed changes from more senior devs at CCP appeared to be taking the game mechanics in a different direction. (Hence the "Free CCP Abathur" meme.) Ultimately, some of the major capital ship changes didn't deploy with the Dominion expansion launch, but are arriving in EVE today.

Continue reading An overview of the EVE Online capital ship changes arriving today

An overview of the EVE Online capital ship changes arriving today originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 21 Jan 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE's Dominion 1.1 patch to bring supercarrier changes, fighter bombers

James Egan — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, Patches

A substantial number of changes will be made to EVE Online tomorrow with the Dominion 1.1 patch. The supercarrier changes and introduction of fighter bombs coming in 1.1 were originally slated for the Dominion expansion's launch last month but had to be postponed. Beyond the changes impacting EVE's capital ship pilots, nullsec warfare will be affected by how CCP is altering the stats of Sovereignty structures. (Territorial Control Units will receive increased hitpoints with reduced onlining time, likewise Sovereignty Blockade Units are getting a defensive buff.)

New features are being introduced as well, like voice fonts for the Vivox-powered EVE Voice. According to the latest patch notes: "This new feature will allow you to alter your voice during chat to increase or lower pitch or to change from male to female voices. This is certainly not going to be abused in any way."

Stick with us past the jump for some highlights of how EVE Online will change tomorrow.

Continue reading EVE's Dominion 1.1 patch to bring supercarrier changes, fighter bombers

EVE's Dominion 1.1 patch to bring supercarrier changes, fighter bombers originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New training corp in EVE Online teaches players PvP and nullsec survival

James Egan — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Guilds, PvP

One of the things we really like about EVE Online is how the game experience is player-driven, and that goes far beyond the more notorious aspects which have garnered a lot of attention of late. EVE's open setting of New Eden allows players to establish all types of ventures or organizations -- anything ranging from lotteries and banks to corporations focused on wormhole colonization is possible. Some players opt to create training corps that teach new players about the many aspects of this rather complex game.

When it comes to training corps there are several well-known options. EVE University is perhaps the most famous training corp in New Eden, but others like 1st Steps Academy and Trader's Academy exist to help out new players. For those hell bent on jumping into PvP, Agony Unleashed offers classes that can help you on your way. Now there's a newcomer to the roster of training corporations in the game -- the Open University of Celestial Hardship [OUCH].

Continue reading New training corp in EVE Online teaches players PvP and nullsec survival

New training corp in EVE Online teaches players PvP and nullsec survival originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 09 Jan 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Online sets new peak concurrent user record

James Egan — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, News Items

The sci-fi MMO EVE Online set a new record this past weekend for users logged in at a given time: 54,181 pilots, up from the previous record of 53,850 set in March of this year. This new peak concurrent user (PCU) count is a significant milestone for the single shard setting of New Eden, where all of those players can (potentially) interact with one another. New Eden is a big place though, a galaxy with thousands of charted solar systems and thousands more uncharted, accessible through wormholes. Given the size of New Eden, those 54,181 pilots may not interact directly but their actions can impact everyone else in the game, regardless of whether it's through trading, establishing or toppling industrial empires, or alliance warfare on a massive scale.

The new PCU record comes in the wake of EVE Online's Dominion expansion launch on December 1 which focuses on revamping the game mechanics of territorial control, or sovereignty, in New Eden's lawless tracts of 0.0 security (nullsec) space. CCP Games Senior Producer Torfi Frans Ólafsson told Massively: "With Dominion, we've made zero security gameplay so much more engaging. We're seeing a lot of people are taking the leap, updating their clones and jumping into the deep end of the pool. They are realizing that taking risks can bring big rewards, and lots of adrenaline pumped moments as well. Co-operation and having good allies is the key to success in the dark and brutal world of zero point zero space. We're seeing players communicate more, team up more and generally have more fun. Each day since release has been exciting for the developers as they watch this expansion unfold and take on a life of its own, in the hands of our ever-creative playerbase."

[Thanks StMistaken!]

EVE Online sets new peak concurrent user record originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE Evolved: Dominion be damned

Brendan Drain — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: At a glance, Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Forums, Game Mechanics, Patches, PvP, Endgame, Opinion, EVE Evolved

At the last EVE Online fanfest, it was announced that the Dominion expansion is slated for December 1st to coincide with Iceland's Sovereignty day. With less than a month to go until launch, there has been growing concern at the extreme lack of information on the new sovereignty mechanics at the expansion's core. There have been a few scheduled tests and several devblogs but few factual details on the mechanics we'll be using once the expansion goes live. I've even been on the test server and tried the new mechanics out but they're far from finished.

The worry was that if the specific details weren't revealed as soon as possible, it might end up being too late to make necessary changes based on player feedback. On Friday 6th, a devblog was finally released explaining the cost breakdowns in the new sovereignty system and what bonuses will be given for the various system upgrades. Rather than allaying people's fears, the devblog set the forums on fire. An intense debate has sprung up, with massive outcry from those that live in 0.0. Their concerns may well be warranted as the proposed mechanics don't quite match up with the original vision of the Dominion expansion that the EVE community has shown support for thus far.

Has Dominion veered off course and is time running out to get it back on track? In this opinion piece, I run down the new devblog and give an inside view into parts of the heated debate it sparked off.

Continue reading EVE Evolved: Dominion be damned

EVE Evolved: Dominion be damned originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE players to tap new resources with Dominion expansion

James Egan — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Expansions, Game Mechanics, Guilds

Big changes are on the horizon for EVE Online in the Dominion expansion and beyond. Alliance sprawl in 0.0 security (lawless) space is going to be curbed, in favor of a new paradigm where alliances claim less territory but can derive much greater value from what they hold sovereignty over. This is the focus of a dev blog from EVE Game Designer CCP Chronotis -- "The Streams Must Flow".

Streams in this case refers to EVE's various revenue streams which are going to be altered in the coming months, and how this will affect players in 0.0 alliances. In the past, supporting a large number of players required an alliance to draw upon the resources of many different solar systems, specifically high-bounty pirate NPCs and valuable ores in addition to a very high passive income from rare moon minerals. CCP is adjusting how those rare minerals are used in Tech II production, meaning more common materials will be used, so Dominion will allow alliances to upgrade their controlled space as a means of generating more income.

Continue reading EVE players to tap new resources with Dominion expansion

EVE players to tap new resources with Dominion expansion originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Making fleet battle reservations in EVE Online?

James Egan — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, Guilds, PvP

This is probably a first in the MMO industry... EVE Online announced higher performance server reservations for large scale PvP battles. Unlike most other MMO titles where you choose a server to play on with your friends, EVE Online doesn't make you choose. Although the server cluster is made up of hundreds of IBM blade servers, from a player's perspective, it's all one galaxy with over 5000 solar systems. This is good for a 'sandbox' game, where players are allowed to do whatever they feel like within the rules of that place. It creates a huge galaxy where everyone can potentially interact... or kill each other. But it comes with a rather substantial drawback at times: lag.

This 'single server' approach makes EVE Online a game where players hope to have large-scale fleet battles not unlike all those sci-fi shows and films we grew up with. But the harsh reality is that there are limitations of server technology that hinder large scale conflicts. Bring a few hundred of your friends to a fleet battle in EVE and you might not be fighting so much as watching a slide show. Definitely not the most fun to be had in the game.

Continue reading Making fleet battle reservations in EVE Online?

Making fleet battle reservations in EVE Online? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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EVE University explains benefits of cooperative mining

James Egan — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, Guides, Guilds, Professions, Tips and tricks, PvE

Dee Carson is a Director at EVE University, a corporation in EVE Online devoted to showing newer players the ropes of the game. Budding industry-types in EVE (as well as players interested in other professions) will want to refer to Carson's recent post at the Miner with Fangs blog -- he's made his 'EVE University Co-Operative Mining Guide' available as a pdf, and is definitely worth a read.

The guide walks a newer player through all aspects of mining in groups, from the skills required to the different ship choices and their relative merits. Most importantly, he lays out why players should mine cooperatively rather than it simply being a solo pursuit, namely that it's more profitable and adds a social dynamic to the activity. Of course there's safety in numbers, particularly when you've got a good mix of the different professions in EVE represented in the operation -- an ideal operation being comprised of miners, haulers, salvagers and 'top cover' damage dealers. Given that the guide was originally intended for EVE University students, the terminology and information imparted in the guide are accessible to most any pilot in the game, regardless of their familiarity with the industry side of EVE Online. It serves as an excellent introduction to the mining profession, and a stepping stone to more advanced guides like Halada's 'The Complete Mining Guide'. You can find the link to EVE University's guide in Carson's post over at Miner with Fangs.

EVE University explains benefits of cooperative mining originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 24 Oct 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Surviving gatecamps in EVE Online

James Egan — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-Fi, EVE Online, Game Mechanics, PvP, Tips and tricks

A large percentage of EVE Online's playerbase prefers to remain safely ensconced in highsec space, where they can move about running missions, mining, or engaging in their chosen playstyle with minimal risks. However, the real action in EVE occurs in lowsec or more lawless tracts of space -- where players themselves determine what the game is, not CCP's mission designers. But if you've played EVE for any length of time and ventured out into lowsec or 0.0 space, you've no doubt encountered -- or been a part of -- a gatecamp.

That ambush waiting on the other side of a star gate is ubiquitous in EVE, and is pretty much a core tactic used in the game. If you're on the pain-giving end of the scenario, you've probably got little to fear if the numbers (and warp disruption capabilities) are on your side, save for those sentry guns... and the occasional billboard packing heat. However, for those attempting to survive gatecamps that block access to a given destination, or bypass them altogether, there are a few things you'll need to know. Xiphos, of Agony Unleashed PvP school, has lived in 0.0 for roughly two years and recently imparted some tips on surviving gatecamps.

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