by Dalmarus on Oct 23, 2013
EVE
Online released ten years ago in 2003. For ten years
now, it has been known as one of the most difficult games to learn and
play. It
has also been the only game to see consecutive population growth every
single
year since its release. No matter who you are that’s no small
feat to
accomplish. It also wasn’t done by waving a magic wand.
CCP’s
community team works closely with their fans and
has made a habit of listening to them carefully. That doesn’t
mean there
haven’t been some bumps in the road. I can tell you from
experience that even
the best of teams will have the occasional mishap occur, whether caused
by a
change in the game or a miscommunication between the company and the
fans. Each
time, the team has worked hard to not only mitigate any damage, but to
repair
relationships. They take their fans extremely seriously and I think the
game’s
continual growth is a testament to this.
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Though
the game has seen steady growth, it can always use
more players. One of the big blocking points with people sticking with
EVE past
the trial period is the vertical cliff it has for a learning curve.
Needless to
say, the development team is always looking for ways to make the curve
less
imposing. Not all players feel this needs to be done. As a case in
point during
one presentation, a question was asked about possibly making the game
easier
for new players, at least so far in terms of not losing their stuff
when they
first venture out and get attacked. There was an immediate and heated
reaction
from nearly everyone attending EVE Vegas. Admittedly those coming to
the
convention represent the hardcore fans, but I was surprised at the
universal
vitriol that came forth at the suggestion.
Despite
the reaction of the
players in attendance, I think the game
style="">is
going to be easier for new players with the release of EVE
Online’s next
expansion, Rubicon (just not in the ways other players are worried
about). Set
to go live on November 19th
of this year, Rubicon will be the 20th
free expansion for EVE Online. As far as I’m concerned, it
will also mark a
turning point in the game’s future growth.
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One
of the most common reasons
for players to quit EVE Online after they’ve made it through
the tutorial is a
nearly overwhelming sensation of “now what?” One of
the changes coming to the
game with Rubicon is a complete overhaul to the way skills are viewed
and this
is what’s going to give new players a goal when
they’re first starting out. The
ability to tell what's going on with your skills and how they relate to
your
abilities with various ships and as a whole will be much more visual
than it
has been previously. Rather than dealing with a massive set of nested
skills
that are buried further and further, players will now be able to look
at a
branching tree. This also makes it far easier for new players to see
what they
need to learn and progress in in order to fly the ship of their choice.
Rubicon
has a lot more than just
a revamped skills system to offer though. Here’s a quick
rundown of what else
new and existing players can expect to see added to the EVE
universe.