Because we want to play by ourselves?

No, im serious, Im surprised that no one else has really expanded on that.

I've been in the NPC corp for 5 years now, and I've never left since I started playing EVE. I have no desire to be small part of a big system. Like f--k, if i I wanted to be a tiny cog in a giant machine of thousands of people, I'd go and work for a financial firm in a cubicle from 9-5.

I, and i suspect, many players, want to make a mark on the game, but i'll be damned if i have to rely on hundreds of other people to get **** done. I will never be able to claim any accomplishments then. I will never kill a titan. I will never hold sovereignty. I realize these unfortunate truths. "So join a corp!" you all say... but then, it wont be ME accomplishing any of those things. I will be the guy who contributes 0.000234% of the damage to that one titan, that one time.

As counter-intuitive as it may initially seem, being in a corporation (read: being in a group in life) robs you of all personal accomplishment. You can't claim anything as being your own doing because you're now relying on others. I want to play video games to escape the social constructs of real life. So f--k, I ain't gonna APPLY and JOIN those very same constructs in the game!

Thats the main reason for me. The other is the elitist, bullshit attitude that plagues EVE. Granted, i realize that its better than a lot of the attitudes that plague most MMO's, but damn can it be annoying. I dont want to serve an FC, who is really just another player, most likely with no real-world tactical knowledge, but who act like gods with self-imposed authority because they're the best at blowing up pixels. I don't want to be forced to use specific, doctrined ship fits, or do specific things that are mandatory.. like holy hell its stupid... MANDATORY ship fits and tasks... in a VIDEO GAME. Nothing in a game should be mandatory, that's what makes it a game.

"But the ship fits are doctrined not because they're trying to force you to do something you dont want, but rather, because they're EFFECTIVE" you all say. Granted, but i should have the right (correction, i DO have the right) to play the game however i want to, fitting my ships however i so choose.

"But then you're jeporadising the mission, and the battle! If you have a ****** fit, you could lead to everyone else losing!"... Guys, its a videogame. Calm down. You should have the agency to do what you want. Real life is where you go if you want to do things that are forced. That isn't what i play for. I am not playing a game only to find out that its really just like real life. That aint fun for me.

"So quit those ****** corps, then!" you say.... but we're talking about WHY players dont join them, so that point is moot in this case.

Lastly, I see no advantages to joining a corp. What am i going to do in goonswarm? All of the ****** things i described above, and the rest will be things i do on my own time. So what, i have access to corporate hangers and corporate wallets and new bases across the universe? Those things dont REALLY matter, and you can get 99% of them from other players in noob corps, if you're nice.

"But dont you want to participate in big fleet battles"
No

"But dont you want to hold sovereignty and make a change in the world"
Yes, but not at the cost of what's required.

"But dont you want all the help and comradery that comes with being in a corp?"
Newsflash, there's no difference in personality between people in corps, and people in the noob corp. You can have the same help and comradery in the noob corp, so long as you're not an ass.


Tl;Dr: I personally dont want to join a corp because i hate the idea of being a small part of a massive entity. That's what real life is for.

I suspect that for other players, it's partly that, and partly because the 'advantages' of being in a corp dont align with the goals and interests of the player, and are thus rendered null and void.