In the end, all ships in each class will have the same stats.

The ships will just have different shapes and colours to enable folk to feel that they are not playing Eve Vanilla Online.

You are talking about the imperfect application of rebalancing. Yes, CCP does make mistakes like all humans might, and more often than not they've done well. There are engineering decisions, business decisions, personal decisions. The sort of jaded complain-fest about CCP and EVE, which some players engage in, is not something I find interesting or constructive.

As far as the "vocal" minority goes, we are talking about them because they are vocal. The silent majority can get shut out of many decisions mainly because they can't be bothered to speak up. Then there's the whole question of whether the silent majority should be catered to at all..

EVE is a living system where human players optimize and exploit the rules to their advantage.

Rebalancing will only end when EVE players stop thinking.

I want to state upfront that although I have been in this game a couple years, I hesitate to post this criticism because I simply am not qualified to know that it is fairly on target for sure. I do feel it presents a fair perspective from the newer and less fully experienced player.

I do read the patch and related notes from CCP, and my observation is based on them, and not the forums.

It really seems questionable whether the rebalancing/changes done by CCP has been, and is presently, based on enough objective data. By this I mean I question whether CCP is doing enough to make sure all the changes it seems to constantly be making are truly based on sufficient and correct data, rather than emphasizing haste to make changes over and above making sure it will get it right, rather than have to waste yet more resources on correcting what it corrected, rather than targeting those resources to things that really need attention.

In one patch they will balance or rebalance something like medium rails only to then have to correct that action in a future rebalance. I mention this particular one because it is the most recent. If you read the most recent developer post about this - see http://community.eveonline.com/news/dev-blogs/balance-changes-coming-in-scylla you will see a chart posted to show how over-powered CCP made medium rails and to support the change to now nerf them back in line.

In that same chart you can see how overpowered heavy missiles once were, and how now they seem to be the weakest. Medium rails are not an isolated example. If you need an example about things other than weapons consider all the resources that went into industry teams....

I believe CCP is trying to get things right, and eventually will, but is going about it in too rushed a manner. I wonder if it has fallen victim to the philosophy that more change is inherently better than less change. I wonder if it feels unless there is constant change, players will lose interest in its game.

I respectfully suggest that CCP should consider being more restrained in making changes to the game, which is already one of the more complicated and challenging to learn games, without having to deal with change for the sake of change.

It also means that achieving true balance is a myth

It is impossible for one or two devs to calculate every possible combination for each ship. As a result they will simply have to tweak the most popular combinations and boost the least used one's. The game has never been as well balanced over all as it is now.

Yeah, they raise the goal. Then, they lower it. Then, they move the foul line closer. Then, they move it back further. Then, they get rid of it altogether. Then, they bring it back witth an extra. Actually, it's entertaining all by itself. I don't think it can be said they're all over the map yet. But, they're getting there.

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It is impossible for one or two devs to calculate every possible combination for each ship. As a result they will simply have to tweak the most popular combinations and boost the least used one's. The game has never been as well balanced over all as it is now.

Well, no. I'm talking about who you listen to. I'm an artist. If somebody tells me to put some red in a painting, that just ain't gonna happen. In fact, I'd pretty much dissolve any connection with anyone who would say such a thing...to an artist. I paint my painting. In the same vein CCP should build their game. If someone likes my painting, they can buy it. If they don't. Don't. Same for CCP. If we like their creation, we buy it. If we don't, we don't.

I am not interested in buying something the customers pressured the creator to "build". Everybody I've ever stood in line with at the DMV was a total idiot...same with the grocery store check out. I don't want to infer anything about the average intelligence of the gaming community...but I DO know they think they're a lot smarter than they really are.

No. I trust CCP. They managed to get a whole lot up and running. They don't need US to tell them how it's done. In fact, the only time I've seen them get in trouble is when they DO listen to us.

What do you get when you make a horse by committee?

A camel.

It would help is Rise didn't balance ships for small gang PvP only. Either he does this deliberately or doesn't know how to balance for fleets. Want evidence of this, look at the announced balance pass, it's targeting the wrong things on the right ships.

... CCP should never go overboard and "design by committee", ...

...EVE is not a piece of art we are all standing around and admiring.. it is a shared experience that we as players have a profound effect on and change....

CCP should never go overboard and "design by committee", but CCP also shouldn't operate in a vacuum with zero player input. We have at least one very good example of CCP completely ignoring the playerbase and producing game changes that end up putting their core business at risk. It's a fine balance.

Lord knows, good games are hard to find these days.

Because the same people are null lords who were null lords since forever.
It doesn't change..

If.... IF... someone was serious about changing Eve and making it one game for everybody, the clear aim would be to call time on the old lords and allow new players to overcome the systematic bias that favours the friends of CCP staff. To do that, you'd want to watch the staff pretty closely, and get rid of the ones who go drinking with players.

I believe CCP is trying to get things right, and eventually will, but is going about it in too rushed a manner. I wonder if it has fallen victim to the philosophy that more change is inherently better than less change. I wonder if it feels unless there is constant change, players will lose interest in its game.

Balance changes here are slow as molasses compared other competitive games like LoL.

Worry when CCP stops rebalancing.

The next iteration of sov null warfare will be afk spam - you spam afk campers to get system indices down, so you can take systems. Soon, instead of structure grinds, you'll be called on cloaking camping duty. And there will be no "rl emergency" excuse, since you don't actually have to be there.

If people lose indicies because of afk cloakers, they didn't deserve the space in the first place.

...
... because we are all bilingual in Japanese or have managed to carve off an organised group of Australians from a very small pool of players?

Indicies do not fall in moments. They are lost by inactivity over time. So, yes, if you huddle in your station too afraid of the scary AFK camper to go out and mine/rat for days at a time, you will lose your indicies, and under the new system, this will make your space easier to take.
Which is how it should be - as my grandfather would have said, **** or get off the pot.