SI Radio Member Report: Agatir Solenth – 2101.07.03

Greetings my fellow corp men, women, & blog readers!!!

As a fellow blog reader I cannot help but read about the negative opinions concerning CCP’s current efforts to launch Incarna and DUST 514.  These opinions range from indifference to I don’t want it.  A good example of this can be found in Manasi’s A Mule in Eve Blog.  (BTW it is one of my favorite blogs to read!)  Manasi has proven to be very knowledgeable in PVP, based on experience and data collected through experimentation.  You can only get excited about PVP combat just by reading his blog.  However he, like many pod pilots, plays EVE for that singular experience, to fly in a ship (and blow things up).  If he invests in any other part of the game it is to supply his PVP exploits.

Now I would like to clarify, that any reference to “he” or “him” is not singularly directed at Manasi.  It is more to reference those PVP pilots that disagree or dislike the coming of Incarna & DUST 514 to the EVE universe and the loss of CCP resources it has had from fixing current game issues.  I just used Manasi, as he effectively expresses the concerns of a particular player base in EVE.  Well done sir! (And thanks for your work/post on the T1 Meta 4 vs T2 it was a good read)  In a sense, I am using him to show the fervor for PvP that drives a portion of the player base expectations for EVE expansions.

I, on the other hand, have an excitement for the introduction of Incarna and DUST 514.  Why?  It adds another layer of immersion into the realm of EVE.  For me EVE is not just a space combat simulator.  It is a chance to escape into the idea of exploring space.  To boldly go, where no one has gone before!  That may be why my favorite ship in the game is the Anathema?  The Anathema allows me the greatest possibility to go anywhere.  It has the greatest chance of getting past a gate camp.  It has the best bonuses in the game for probing, allowing me to explore wormholes or other hidden sites.  Not to mention I love to be the scout and give the fleet a warp in point!  I digress…

I like the idea of having another aspect of the Sci-Fi genre to explore.  Any fan of Sci-Fi has had dreams of walking around a station in space, to see what life will be like in the future.  I am not a hardcore RPer, but at times I do enjoy it.  Why?  It is another way to immerse myself in this game we call the sandbox.  A sandbox that is about to get bigger!  What we should understand is, that bigger is better!  Why?  It is better because it will bring in more players!  More players to shoot, more players to scam, more players to recruit to our corps, more players to provide us with the ships and resources to support our in game habits!

For those critics that think that more players will only increase the already inherent problems in EVE such as lag, overcrowding, or the game developing into what we don’t want.  That more players taking part in a different part of the game will take away CCP resources from addressing your concerns as a player…  I will have to agree with you.  An increase in population will most likely increase those problems, and those new folks in their stations will have demands of their own.   They’ll have demands for CCP resources to address their issues too.  That is where we as players have to do what we can to support such endeavors such as the CSM and those people that take part in them.  We have to continue to express our concerns in forums that CCP has access to.  So CCP knows what their paying customers want.  Again I digress…

Additionally my final desire for Incarna and DUST 514 is of a personal nature.  As an older MMORPG player I began my online gaming experience way back in the day.  I have played such games as Ultima Online, Everquest, City of Heroes, Star Wars Galaxies, and a few others.  Along the way I have met a lot of good folks that I enjoy playing with.  However, I can’t get them to come play EVE.  Why?  They attempt the trial version, and quickly realize that they are limited to the view of a single ship.  That the only customization and individualization they will have will be the modules that they fit on the ship.  For them EVE does not offer the level of immersion that they desire in a game.  For some folks they want not only to immerse themselves, but they want to escape as well.  For a few hours a day they want to feel that they are someone else exploring a world outside of their own.  If that what it takes to get more players, and my friends, into EVE then so be it!!!

***Disclaimer*** Even though I like the fact that CCP is adding layers to the immersion to bring in new players, I do NOT… WILL NOT… support any idea that will reduce the harsh unforgiving experience the sandbox can be!!!  I so would EMO RANGE QUIT1!! if EVE concedes to be anything like WoW!!!  I digress…  :D

One last word about stations and Incarna before I go…  I don’t know about you, but I have always dreamed about being able to put a cap in someone’s ass in a cantina like Han Solo did in Star Wars!  CSM & CCP make that happen!

Fly Safe… Stay Profitable…

Next Report: Agatir’s Guide to Wormhole Hunting… err I mean Scouting