Likely to Revisit EVE Online in 2009

I didn’t do much gaming over the long holiday weekend.  With my vacation time coming to an end, I spent most of the time offline with my family and friends.  I logged into Warhammer Online (WAR) a few times for very short playing stints.  As has been said thousands of times already on the internet, WAR’s ability to let you play short sessions while accomplishing a lot, is one of its saving graces.  Even when it means doing it alone, it’s still do-able and often times fun.

I listened to all of my favorite podcasts which have whittled down to fewer than previous years.  Several of my former favorites have gone the way of the, “podcast fade” with no information or messages to their listeners about when or if they are ever going to return.  *Sigh*  This basically gets me down to less than a half dozen podcasts I listen to each week, two of which are Harry Potter related.  Boo-hiss to the faders – I miss your podcasts because they were very entertaining.  I’m sorry that real life or whatever came up has stopped your shows.  *sniff*

I’ve been giving some serious thought into re-subscribing to EVE Online.  You know the one – the game that some of us love but rarely leave the ship’s hanger when playing.  Yeah, that game.  I’ve heard from a few players that ambulation (in-game avatars) isn’t coming until late 2009.  Drat and double-drat, that’s a long time away.  When I subscribed in the past, I played mostly the PVE side of the game.  My last go ‘round reeled me into the “How horribly wrong PVP can go with amateurs,” side.  It was nothing if not exciting.

Sometimes I convince myself that I want to do the industry in EVE since I love crafting.  However, I’m no Ancient Gaming Noob.  Having followed his journey closely, I know that I don’t possess the patience or persistence necessary for EVE’s brand of crafting.  What I do have in mind is going straight Pirate.  I’d like the opportunity to jump in and out of the game for small sessions to mix it up and have fun.  Can EVE supply the 60-minutes or less accomplishment opportunities of WAR?

EVE’s Empyrean Age expansion released Faction Warfare in an attempt promote more PVP outside of the low security sector areas, as well as reduce the barrier to entry for less experienced players. I was very interested in the expansion when I heard about it because it addressed some of the things I noted in a review as being difficult for a new player.  I haven’t been subscribed to EVE since it was released and am still interested in checking it out.

For 2009, I’d like to be subscribed to two games.  WAR is a given on my play list.  Unfortunately, in the same way the WOW spoiled me on soloing content, WAR has spoiled me on the flexibility of playing time.  Empty zones or not, when I log in there is content immediately accessible to me at every single rank/level.  And doing any one of them provides character progression with rewards.  ALL of the content has a direct rewards system.  Let me say that again because this is the beauty and genius of WAR, all of the content has a direct and independent rewards system.  There are no chains looping them together, which mean I can freely pick and choose between them, to customize my character’s progression as it suits my own playing style and in-game objectives.  I can’t tell you how huge this is for someone who plays freestyle.  What it amounts to is ZERO wasted or pointless activity.  Excluding crafting from this statement is a given.  Crafting needs a lot of work but it is also optional.

That’s not so say that it’s all about the loot – these rewards.  That is what they are but they’re not epic level by any means.  However, they are a tangible way of upgrading your character to meet your objectives.  And since all of the content awards XP, you’ll also go ding along the way.  It’s definitely a great setup for someone like me.  I’ve enjoyed being in a great guild but when I want to be alone, I can be alone.  There is very little in the game that bars me from progressing when I choose to be alone and more importantly, I can achieve all of it at my own pace.

Now that I’ve tasted from an MMO that is freestyle in nature, this freestyle player will have a more difficult time in assimilating back to the normal hamster wheel.  The only game that comes to mind that is as open in choices as Warhammer Online, is EVE Online.  This is exactly why I’m thinking of re-subscribing to CCP’s baby.

Comments

[Letrange]

Well, it depends on what you consider "crafting", if you want to get into T2 then yep lots o'skills to get for that. If it's just T1 - then not so much of a problem, just a question of getting 1 skill to level 5 the rest is just polish. That and make some isk to buy the bpos to make some stuff to sell to make some isk.

If you do want to turn pirate - I should probably steer you towards Mynxee's blog: http://lifeinlowsec.blogspot.com/

[JoBildo]

I've all but given up on crafting. I scavenge to sell the junk and send to people, but that's about it. I buy my potions from the AH now instead of making them.

But again, I'm rarely (if ever) one to enjoy crafting. To me, it's just not as fun as cracking heads of NPCs or players. :)

Regarding EVE. I think I'm starting to become a believe in the 2-game mantra. Meaning, one game can't satisfy all the time. It's nice to have a secondary one to go to when you need a break from the main.

[JoBildo]

Maybe City of... would fit this as well?

EVE is definitely that kind of game too, especially with offline progression.