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| EVE Online: The Second Genesis (PC) | |
| Publisher: Simon & Schuster Interactive | Developer: CCP / CCP |
| Genre: Persistent Online RPG | Release Date: 05/06/2003 |
One of the biggest problems in reviewing an MMO is that fact that by the time a gamer reads the review, the game itself has already changed. If anybody had told me two years ago that a game like Anarchy Online would go from being a bug infested mess to the home of thousands of dedicated players, I'd have assumed they were smoking crack. The good news about EVE Online: The Second Genesis is that it's not nearly as big a mess as AO was when it was released - it is possible to have fun in this game. The bad news is that there are some underlying structural problems that make the game horribly unfriendly to new players and will probably keep the game from being as popular as it might be.
I'll get the really bad news out of the way first. Like many MMOs, EVE Online seems to have shipped a few months too early. The game is loaded with bugs, server issues and some customer service nightmares. I know that the dev team is currently working to resolve them. In fact, a number of serious issues that existed when I started playing have since been fixed. As of this writing, though, players should be aware that they will probably face quite a few technical issues.
One of the most serious is a nasty crash bug that causes player's characters to get "stuck" during transitions. This might cause the character to disappear into the electronic ether, along with all the hard work that went into it (although this hasn't happened yet). Currently there is no guarantee that CCP will actually be able to rescue them, so caveat emptor. There are also features that were promised that are not yet implemented. These include "Boosters" (basically drugs) that were to make up a large portion of the game's illicit economy and the in-game web browser that should let you look at player corporation Web sites.
The good news, though, is that (to an extent) EVE Online is the game that Freelancer should have been. Basically you begin the game with a starter spaceship, a cheap railgun to defend yourself, a mining laser to extract valuable minerals from rocks and an absolutely huge universe to explore. Where you go from there is entirely up to you. The basic premise behind EVE is that you don't actually play the game -- you live it. While there is an overarching storyline and certain things will happen to various sectors as the game continues, in effect that has little effect on day to day happenings within the game. Players have absolute freedom to develop skills and choose careers ranging from miner to pirate to mercenary to researcher to corporate CEO.
In my own case, I started out as a solo miner, trying to dig up enough money to upgrade my ship. I wasn't entirely sure what I wanted to do with my EVE career until I took a chance and went sightseeing at the Serpent Coil. While I was there, I ran across some asteroids containing some very rare minerals and a few abandoned cargo containers containing some high end weapons I couldn't use. I sent out a call using the game's chat engine and was quickly inundated with offers of money and perks for the location of the minerals.
I ended up joining a corporation that put me under contract as an explorer and prospector. They helped me with money, upgraded my ship with all kinds of defensive equipment and sensors, and even hooked me up with another player with a combat vessel who acts as my bodyguard. Together we've made some quite valuable finds and have become an excellent news purveyor for our employers. As players move up in their own corporations and gain more and more power, the game continues getting richer, those long stretches of travel that were so boring are now filled with conversations on what's going on in the world and frequent stops at space stations to check on market conditions as I manage my businesses.
I'll get the really bad news out of the way first. Like many MMOs, EVE Online seems to have shipped a few months too early. The game is loaded with bugs, server issues and some customer service nightmares. I know that the dev team is currently working to resolve them. In fact, a number of serious issues that existed when I started playing have since been fixed. As of this writing, though, players should be aware that they will probably face quite a few technical issues.
One of the most serious is a nasty crash bug that causes player's characters to get "stuck" during transitions. This might cause the character to disappear into the electronic ether, along with all the hard work that went into it (although this hasn't happened yet). Currently there is no guarantee that CCP will actually be able to rescue them, so caveat emptor. There are also features that were promised that are not yet implemented. These include "Boosters" (basically drugs) that were to make up a large portion of the game's illicit economy and the in-game web browser that should let you look at player corporation Web sites.
The good news, though, is that (to an extent) EVE Online is the game that Freelancer should have been. Basically you begin the game with a starter spaceship, a cheap railgun to defend yourself, a mining laser to extract valuable minerals from rocks and an absolutely huge universe to explore. Where you go from there is entirely up to you. The basic premise behind EVE is that you don't actually play the game -- you live it. While there is an overarching storyline and certain things will happen to various sectors as the game continues, in effect that has little effect on day to day happenings within the game. Players have absolute freedom to develop skills and choose careers ranging from miner to pirate to mercenary to researcher to corporate CEO.
In my own case, I started out as a solo miner, trying to dig up enough money to upgrade my ship. I wasn't entirely sure what I wanted to do with my EVE career until I took a chance and went sightseeing at the Serpent Coil. While I was there, I ran across some asteroids containing some very rare minerals and a few abandoned cargo containers containing some high end weapons I couldn't use. I sent out a call using the game's chat engine and was quickly inundated with offers of money and perks for the location of the minerals.
I ended up joining a corporation that put me under contract as an explorer and prospector. They helped me with money, upgraded my ship with all kinds of defensive equipment and sensors, and even hooked me up with another player with a combat vessel who acts as my bodyguard. Together we've made some quite valuable finds and have become an excellent news purveyor for our employers. As players move up in their own corporations and gain more and more power, the game continues getting richer, those long stretches of travel that were so boring are now filled with conversations on what's going on in the world and frequent stops at space stations to check on market conditions as I manage my businesses.
A ship in dock
Unfortunately, many new players will never reach that point. While there are some tutorial missions to get you started and some NPC's around to provide some challenges, players will tend to get bored rather quickly unless they get some help. Much like the real world, entry-level positions in the EVE universe are long on tedium and short on glory. Most of the first few days of the new player's game will be taken up by long, boring stretches of traveling back and forth between asteroids and processing stations, mining enough resources to get that first ship upgrade.
In fact, the slow and non-interactive gameplay is probably the biggest hurdle for the newbie to overcome. A big chunk of the game consists of merely clicking on a control, then sitting back and waiting. Mining means finding an asteroid, targeting the mining laser and waiting 10-12 minutes for your cargo hold to fill up.
Traveling is even worse. When the marketing materials for EVE talk about how big the universe is, they're not kidding around. It can take 10 (real-world) minutes to get from a space station to an asteroid field across a solar system and far, far longer to do multiple jumps between star systems. In just one example, when I decided to visit the Serpent's Coil (an attraction I noticed on EVE's official Web site), I set my route on the map and found that it would take 19 stargate jumps to reach it. I clicked on my autopilot and 45 minutes later I finally arrived. The best part was that while I was waiting, I went out, picked up lunch, and got my car detailed.
Combat is similarly non-interactive. Just like mining, fighting consists of merely acquiring a target and turning on your weapons. Who wins is entirely dependent on who's got better equipment and which character's avatar has better skills. While I understand the difficulties lag can bring when it comes to simulating fast-paced combat in an MMO, there's got to be a better way to run combat than this. As it stands now, sitting back and watching my ship fight all by itself just isn't any fun.
EVE's universe is huge
This newbie unfriendliness stretches to the game's interface as well. EVE Online throws an incredible amount of information at you using an unbelievable amount of buttons and displays and menus. Looking over the menu of options offered when docked at a starbase, my first thought was "Windows XP and Internet Explorer combined don't have this many controls!" High-end system owners who play in higher resolutions may also develop eyestrain as the text will be displayed a small, hard to read font.
This learning curve is doubly unfortunate because once you get past it, there's a lot of fun to be had in this game - especially if you like dealing with people. One of the benefits of EVE's slow gameplay is that it forces you to chat with other players simply for lack of something else to do. Once you hook up with some other players, though, that's when the game truly begins to open up. I have never seen an MMO that was so totally dependent on player participation as EVE Online. For those willing to put the time and energy into the game, join with player corporations and get involved with the constant, ongoing bickering and political intrigue that runs through the game, the experience quickly becomes addictive. EVE Online is not an MMO to join if you enjoy playing solo.
This learning curve is doubly unfortunate because once you get past it, there's a lot of fun to be had in this game - especially if you like dealing with people. One of the benefits of EVE's slow gameplay is that it forces you to chat with other players simply for lack of something else to do. Once you hook up with some other players, though, that's when the game truly begins to open up. I have never seen an MMO that was so totally dependent on player participation as EVE Online. For those willing to put the time and energy into the game, join with player corporations and get involved with the constant, ongoing bickering and political intrigue that runs through the game, the experience quickly becomes addictive. EVE Online is not an MMO to join if you enjoy playing solo.
Off we go! Into the wild ... er ... red yonder!
Graphically, the game is simply gorgeous. Space stations and jump stations are huge and aesthetically beautiful - each one architecturally different based on the nation that built it. Planets are surrounded by rings of debris and space is filled with different colored nebulae. The interiors of space stations are huge industrial structures that disappear into the distance. The game's sounds deserve mention as well. The robotic voice that announces the implementation of certain commands (like autopilot and docking), is terrific as is the booming sound spaceship engines make when going into warp. The game also contains a controllable jukebox filled with New-Age style music that (unlike most New Age music) didn't make me want to stick knitting needles in my ears and fit in quite well with the slow, methodical gameplay.
What's the bottom line on EVE Online then? Like many MMOs, you'll basically get out of it what you put in to it. EVE Online has no real goals beyond "Get stuff, get rich" - everything else is the product of player interactions. If you're not willing to put in the effort, watch the marketplace, play some office politics and generally give up big chunks of your free time to the game, you're just not going to enjoy it.On the other hand, if no-holds-barred hyper-capitalism and Machiavellian competition with real people appeals to you, your game has arrived.
What's the bottom line on EVE Online then? Like many MMOs, you'll basically get out of it what you put in to it. EVE Online has no real goals beyond "Get stuff, get rich" - everything else is the product of player interactions. If you're not willing to put in the effort, watch the marketplace, play some office politics and generally give up big chunks of your free time to the game, you're just not going to enjoy it.On the other hand, if no-holds-barred hyper-capitalism and Machiavellian competition with real people appeals to you, your game has arrived.
