EVE Online
Developer(s): CCP Games
Publisher(s): SSI (expired)CCP Games
Distributor(s):
Designer(s):
Engine:
Latest version:
Release date(s): May 6, 2003 May 6, 2003 May 23,
2003
Genre(s): MMORPG Space simulation
Mode(s): Multiplayer
Rating(s): ESRB: Teen (T)
Platform(s): Windows
Media: CD, FTP download
System requirements:
Input:
EVE Online is a persistent world multiplayer online
game set in space. It is developed by CCP Games and was published
from May to December 2003 to by Simon & Schuster Interactive,
after which CCP purchased the rights back and began a digital distribution
scheme. Players are spaceship pilots in craft of varied style and
purpose.
Contents
· 1 Background· 2 Gameplay· 3 Cost·
4 Major Content Patches o 4.1 Geminio 4.2 Castoro 4.3 Exoduso 4.4
Cold War Editiono 4.5 Red Moon Risingo 4.6 Kali· 5 Growth
and Instability· 6 Ships· 7 External links o 7.1 Officialo
7.2 Third partyo 7.3 Awardso 7.4 Articles & Stories
Background
· EVE online's background page
There is a background movie included in the client which explains
how Earth became overpopulated and eventually mankind expanded out
amongst the stars, building their own stargates. However the stargate
travel had reached its limit when the forces of humanity turned
on each other, a wormhole in space was found and designated, EVE,
it led to a system of stars known as New Eden. Colonists ventured
to the system and lived in relative peace until the wormhole collapsed,
New Eden was cut off from the rest of mankind and most of its supply
chain, and entered a dark age, until society rebuilt itself and
re-emerged. Originally, there were three basic races: the Amarr,
a deeply religious race which enslaved the Minmatar, a mostly tribal
race, and the Gallente, a democratic Federation comprised of many
states. One of these was the Caldari State, which rebelled and seceded
from the Gallente Federation, forming their own independent, highly
capitalistic State, which is now the fourth major race (although
the Caldari tie closely in to the Gallente). The fifth major race,
the Jovian Empire, was not detailed in the movie.
Gameplay
EVE Online features a very large selection of ships
spread out over four different visual styles. This image shows a
Gallente-constructed "Catalyst"-class Destroyer leaving
an Amarr space station.
EVE Online is different from many other MMOG's
as the player's character does not gain experience points by actions
or by completing tasks. Instead, the player "learns" skills
by training a specific skill over time - which is determined by
your attributes and how many "skill points" a certain
skill has. This allows all players, regardless of their time commitments,
to advance their characters' skills at a roughly equal (but not
fixed) rate. The skill training systems is connected with your attributes;
Intelligence, Perception, Charisma, Willpower and Memory. Each skill
has a primary and secondary attribute, thus the higher these attributes
the faster you train the skills that use them. There are skills
and implants that can increase your attributes.
Players can choose a variety of tasks in the EVE universe, such
as mining, fighting, running agent missions, hauling (transportation)
and so forth.
EVE features a "security index system". Every solar system
in the EVE universe has a public security status which ranges from
0.0 to 1.0. Systems with a rating of 0.0 are completely lawless;
0.1 to 0.4 have absolutely no protection by CONCORD, the NPC law
enforcement, but are covered by sentry guns at stargates and stations;
0.5 to 0.8 systems have moderate protection, with 0.9 and 1.0 systems
being considered extremely secure. Any time a player commits an
act of aggression in a system with a security rating at or above
0.5, CONCORD ships and/or stationary weapons platforms will attack
and destroy the aggressor (something known affectionately by players
in EVE as "CONCORDOKEN").
At the time of its release, EVE Online was known
for its highly detailed graphics (at the very least, for an MMORPG).
EVE is played entirely on one large server cluster named Tranquility,
however a Chinese shard is expected to launch soon . All the players
(not testers) are on the same server cluster and in the same game-world.
Whenever the server is down for maintenance, server load is redistributed
according to how much traffic each system received during the previous
play period. Therefore, unpredictably large numbers of players in
one system tend to cause lag, and large-scale events (such as fleet
battles) can be made impossible. On Sunday, January 15th, 2006,
EVE Online achieved a new record for the maximum
number of simultaneous avatars online with 23,123 concurrent accounts
logged on to the same server. In recent months, EVE Online
has been setting such records almost every week.
The servers have a scheduled daily downtime between 11:00 and 12:00
GMT.
Cost
EVE currently costs €15 / $15 a month (the European cost is
higher as VAT is included). However, like other MMOGs, the cost
can be reduced by paying for larger subscription intervals.
CCP purchased distribution rights back from Simon & Schuster
in 2003, and now distributes the game client via free digital download.
Free 14-day trials for EVE Online are available
at:
· EVEnews.com
· MMORPG-Gamer.com
· SciFi UK
· MMORPG.com
Those who are playing EVE Online can send 14-day
trials to their friends via the 'Buddy Program', available from
the EVE Online website. If the buddy upgrades their
trial account to a paying account, the person who sent the invitation
will be entered into a monthly raffle for various prizes.
Major Content Patches
Gemini
Gemini was not actually a content patch, but is included here for
the sake of completeness. When EVE Online was released,
the base was codenamed Gemini, version 1.00.0000.
Castor
Castor was the first major addition focused on refining current
functions along with adding Tech Level 2. It also included conquerable
space stations located in deep space.
Exodus
Exodus was released on 24 November 2004 and added new content such
as player owned stations, multi-level-scenarios, new environments
(ice fields and gas clouds), a new alliance system, new ships, better
handling of conflicts, new market functionality, user interface
improvements, and an updated in-game web browser. Prior to its official
release, this expansion was codenamed "Shiva".
Cold War Edition
The Caldari freight hauler ships seen in this image were introduced
with the Cold War Edition content patch.
Cold War Edition added larger structures and ships, new environments,
more user interface changes and new agent functionality. Newly added
"COSMOS" constellations contain new in-space agents with
story-driven missions and unique rewards. The content patch also
contained an extensive new tutorial sequence and a storyline background
introduction.
Red Moon Rising
Red Moon Rising is the latest addition to EVE Online,
and contained much of the content slated to be in 'Kali'. Red Moon
Rising was split off in order to maintain a more regular patch schedule.
It included many code optimizations and updates to combat, research,
and manufacturing. Red Moon Rising added new Tech 2 ships and rebalanced
the existing Tech Level 1 ships. Added to the ship classes were
Recon Cruisers (cruiser class ships designed to cloak and/or operate
in support roles), Command Cruisers (battlecruiser class ships that
grant bonuses to leadership), and Interdictors (destroyer class
ships that can stop warp activation). Mining and manufacturing players
have new items, implants, and ships to use. Carrier, Mothership
and Titan ship classes were added. Some of these ships utilize extra-large
drones (or 'Fighters') as their primary weapons systems, and have
many abilities focused at supporting fleets of lesser ships. Titans
additionally have special abilities such as wormhole generators
and super weapons. Finally, NPC ships have received a significant
overhaul, with new abilities and new ships. Red Moon Rising or 'RMR'
was released on December 14 2005.
Kali
Kali is the codename for the the fifth content patch. With it coming
new Factional Warfare and Combat Organization like introducing Medals
and Certifications which are to be awarded by Eve to Corps and Alliances.
Contracts system and combat boosters will be implemented including
the new arrival of Tier-3 Battleships and Tier-2 Battlecruisers.
As Red Moon Rising has taken over Kali's place, Kali has been pushed
back to Q2 2006.
Growth and Instability
EVE Online is currently growing at a rapid rate,
reaching a new record for the maximum number of simultaneous accounts
logged on with 23,037 online on January 15th, and has an average
of about 14,000 players online at any one time. This rapid growth
has out-run CCP's gradual hardware introduction and software optimisation
plan, and the server cluster is currently straining from it. In
the days after the release of the Red Moon Rising content patch,
which included many underlying changes, the single server cluster
EVE runs from, 'Tranquility', saw extreme lag and frequent system-wide
crashes because of this low margin of error. During these events
CCP's CEO, Hilmar Pétursson, wrote a developer blog explaining
to the userbase the problems facing EVE, and what CCP were doing
to resolve them [1]. Underlying this change is the switch from 32-bit
architecture to 64-bit architecture, necessitating a cluster overhaul
in the near future. When this is completed, it is hoped EVE will
offer increased performance to a wider audience.
Ships
Main articles: EVE Online/ships, and [[]], and
[[]], and [[]], and [[]]
Ships in the EVE universe are organised into a variety of weight
classes, with each weight covering a broad variety of ship class.
The enormous scale of some of the newer vessels in the Eve universe
can been seen in this image: [2]. Using the Caldari fleet as an
example, the small vessels in the top right of the chart are frigates,
along with the shuttle and destroyer. Moving counter-clockwise around
the Caldari fleet, the next four vessels are cruisers, while the
following is a battlecruiser. Following the battlecruiser are the
two battleships, then the carrier, mothership, titan, freighter,
three industrials, and finally the Dreadnought.
External links
Official
· The Official EVE Online site
· CCP Games - Developer of EVE Online
Resources
Wikipedia
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