EVE Online at Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMOG Gamers to the Next Level!

Select Award... Best Community Best RPG Members' Choice Best Expansion Best Free-to-Play Game Best Subscription Game

is a tough thing to measure. What makes a good community and how do we deem a community excellent? This award gives us a chance to recognize the players of the games that we all enjoy. Let's face it; without the players there wouldn't be much fun in any game.

A good community, to us, is one that is friendly. It's one where players can log into a chat channel and be met with welcoming messages from online friends. It's a place where reputation means a lot and names are remembered. It's a community that has its friendly competition and maybe even some outright rivalry, but remains fun. It is constructive, offering potential solutions to game and community issues instead of shouting "foul!" and "I'm going to sue!" In short, it's a place anyone would feel at home and have fun for most of the time they're logged on.

That said, there's always going to be exceptions. There will always be players who can't see beyond their own noses. There will always be players who believe their $15 per month (or their ability to click a download link for free-to-play games) entitles them to an engraved marble plaque hand delivered by nine virgins in gold-trimmed chiffon to inform them the server will be down for ten minutes next July. No game we've ever encountered is free of these sorts of players. The only question is which type of player is the majority and which is the exception.

So, with all that in mind, the award for Best Community of 2009 goes to...