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Eve Online: Revelations - Student Review

Score: 94%
ESRB: Teen
Publisher: CCP Games
Developer: CCP Games
Media: Download/1
Players: 1 - Many
Genre: MMORPG/ Action/ Adventure

Graphics & Sound:

Eve Online: Revelations is host to a slew of graphical eye candy as well as a myriad of sound that can keep your adrenaline going, or put you right to sleep. The graphics in Eve are astonishing and represent what we all can only imagine space would be perceived as. As soon as the player undocks in their starter ship and heads deep into the frontiers of Eve, they are immediately baptized in the fiery cataclysm that is space, ranging from the endless asteroid belts found in every system, to the wide array of planets and moons to be discovered. It's easy to see how a new player can find themselves lost for the first few hours just ogling the space that surrounds them.

Yes,we all realize that there is no sound in space, but when players find themselves in the vast hollow regions of space, they will be happy to hear something other than their own voices. The sounds in Eve stretch from the most delightful of background music to the squishy sound that a player's escape pod makes when it is blown to pieces and their body is ejected. For the players that would rather listen to something a little less immersive, a player can also load their own play list into the Eve player. Eve is pushing the limits on the endless series of weapons, modules, drones and other ship fittings and each are equipped with their very own sound effects to keep the men folk screaming, "BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!"


Gameplay:

Eve has been around since mid-year of 2003 and, since then, their player base has only grown. CCP takes pride in releasing a free expansion each year. They also keep their servers in tip-top shape, although this means an annoying downtime of usually an hour a day. The world of New Eden -Eve- is a very wide universe that is comprised of easily over 5,000 solar systems and, with the release of Revelations, the map adds another 500 solar systems in the form of eight new regions. The G.U.I. immerses the pilot in their surroundings and allows players to feel the ship that they are piloting as if it were an extension of their own body, which is needed, seeing as Eve lacks the ability for a player to walk around in stations or on planets. This causes the player to lose that certain connection that they feel with their character, a feeling of direct involvement and influence. That feeling is, however, quickly shattered when the player realizes how massive and dangerous Eve can be.

Each system in Eve carries a security rating. These security ratings tell a player of the dangers that may be waiting for them on the other side of a jump gate. The security ratings range from Empire (safe space) to Low security (dangerous space) and finally ending in Alliance space (outlaw territory). While the average new player will dabble here and there in mining and NPC hunting, they will quickly learn that the best route to take in Eve is teaming up with other players. Players do this by creating and joining corporations that they can then form into larger groups called alliances. This allows players to focus on a common goal and fill the emptiness that space in Eve can leave in your soul. Whether its NPC hunting, Mission running, Exploration and survey encounters, Mining, Researching, Manufacturing, Player versus Player combat, Market trading or Pirating, everyone can find something to do in Eve.

Revelations also brought Eve players many new additions and changes. The Escrow system had been abolished and replaced with a more advanced Contract system. With Escrow, you just threw up whatever you wanted to sell and hoped it brought in your asking price. With the new Contract system, a player can sell, item exchange, auction and assign courier missions for an item as well as make loans to other players. This gives much more control to players and makes it much easier for corporate leaders to delegate tasks.

Combat organization in Eve has also received a new face. The old gang system allowed for you to issue gang invites to as many people as you wished and there was no control other than you screaming. The new combat system replaces the non-existent gang system with the hierarchical fleet system. In the system, you can have a gang that can hold a max of 50 players. After you have achieved 50 players, you then get the option to turn your gang into a fleet. You may then split the gang into different squadrons and assign a squad commander for each squad. The total max gang size is 256 members: 1 Fleet Commander, 5 Wing Commanders, 25 Squad Commanders and 225 Squad Members. Along with the new combat system, CCP also introduced a new section for the G.U.I. which includes a revamped gang interface. The interface is fully equipped with quick buttons that issue various commands to your gang on the fly.

The new contract system that CCP introduced wasn't the only major thing to change the market in Eve after Revelations. The successful launch of the Invention system means that players can now manufacture Tech II ships, modules, drones and ammo without the original blueprints. Players will have to take advantage of their research and mission agents in order to gather the materials and data needed. The player will then have to obtain decryptors and data cores in order to make use of the data obtained and make a successful blueprint copy of the Tech II item. The downside to the Invention system is that it will be a lengthy process and the blueprint copies produced will be well below efficient. This is in an effort to drive down the player driven costs of Tech II items and to give newer industrialists a chance to break into the market.


Difficulty:

Eve has a very steep learning curve and the starting tutorial does not do a very good job of straightening it out, so to speak. Although, with a little bit of patience and a bit of player help, a player can make their way in Eve. The difficulty of Eve varies, much like many other MMO's. There are many things to do in Eve and figuring out how to best the game and other players can be a daunting and tedious road, but it is what free enterprise and competition are made for. Eve is a game of competition and warfare, whether you're buying up every item on the market just so that you can set the prices of your goods higher, or you're invading a neighboring region with your battle fleet. In Eve, you are pit against your friends as well as your enemies. Eve is a game environment that you create for yourself. You bring the wit and let your fellow players bring the challenge.

Game Mechanics:

The game mechanics of Eve Online have always been very strict, yet very vague. There is a very clear set of things that you cannot do in Eve, but some only apply to certain parts of Eve. While a player cannot kill another player in Empire space while not at war, in Alliance space a player can kill any desired targets. CCP created a game where the player takes power and control to the next level. While pirates will be fired on in low-security systems by gate sentry guns for shooting at other players, that does not stop them from getting a buddy to repair the damage to their ship while they continue on.

It is my opinion that CCP has simply created a masterpiece on their first try. While even a master work of art may have flaws, here the good completely negates the bad. The release of Revelations is currently still in only stage one of three, but players can already clearly see the influence it is taking on New Eden. I highly recommend that players that once tried and dropped Eve navigate their way to www.eve-online.com and give it a shot. And, for the prospective players, let me say this: the world that awaits you in Eve is nothing compared to what you can add to it. Every player adds a story to Eve, creating the largest framework that you can imagine. There is no place for nobodies in Eve - only heroes and legends.


-Johnathon Chelette

Minimum System Requirements:



NOT GIVEN
 

Test System:



NOT GIVEN

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