Darin Vanar
Federal Navy Academy
Gallente Federation
73
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Posted - 2015.06.03 10:28:57 -
[1] - Quote
Hi,
This isn't a balance post about how much ISK per hour someone makes in any different part of space, but about how it can begin to feel by playing in a space that never visually changes.
So I have logged about 1000 hours into EVE according to Steam, and today with all the new ships (they feel new), it's like they all got a new paintjob and they feel really fresh and fun to have a look through all of them and take them out for a spin. That's great! So great job on that, devs! I think you guys did a lot better with this graphics pass than the first version of the new rendering process.
However, I got to space, flew around a bit, and I noticed... You know what doesn't change? The space wallpaper. It's always the same.
I remember when I first started EVE, they were pretty darn impressive and they really felt like space, but after a while, and countless mining runs... Well, you kind of really start to know what Gallente space looks like. All the nebulas, and where they break, and what colors it uses and the same for other highsec systems.
So it got me thinking. How many people haven't seen some of the really awesome lowsec and 0.0 system wallpapers? I bet some artists out there at CCP spent countless hours on that and how many people actually get to see them? You guys at CCP should gather some data about how used your art assets. I think a lot of them are underused.
A lot of players play in highsec, and if you do have a playstyle that revolves around that, chances are you have never seen some of the cool looking systems out there that play a big part in keeping the game feel fresh and new.
And it's not a problem solely related to highsec.
A lot of us live in highsec space. Maybe you live in nullsec space. We have our assets based there, and our logistic routes there, and they all revolve around those particular systems that we have setup in. Even if we venture out to see some new systems, we won't necessarily be able to benefit from that experience because we won't live in those systems. Players that do, will simply transition through, and yay, I've seen some new stuff. Now, back to the old stuff. Back to "my stuff".
So, I think a better idea, to keep the game feeling new, is to rotate system wallpapers so that eventually Gallente space looks like I don't know, a wallpaper used in a lowsec system. The universe isn't a static entity, and especially on a such grand scale.
Planets and moons of course, shouldn't change, and the location of those objects in space, but why not the wallpapers which is the majority of what we look at everyday?
Though solely highsec players have seen the least of the game, I'm sure there are a lot of 0.0 players, or even lowsec players, who have logged in countless hours and haven't see a ton of the game because of the same reasons and don't have the luxury to just go out for a cruise ride in a neighboring system just so they can see some new stuff, because of the way players react to such an incursion.
Highsec space, for example, probably doesn't feel as familiar to some as their nullsec home.
I think a lot of players can begin to feel "trapped" and see a whole lot of the same stuff when they undock everyday. A large part of EVE is visual, in presentation. Whether you play in highsec space, lowsec space, or are part of a large alliance that owns a part of nullsec space, I think you might appreciate if the game wallpapers in your system changed from time to time. Packing up your assets and trying to carve out a living somewhere else, because hey, I'm bored of looking at this system, doesn't really apply a lot of the time.
Wouldn't that be cool? That's why I like when Incursions happen in a system. I thought about it a lot too, (hey travelling takes a while, the neurons have to do something), and I've realized it's not because it presents a gameplay aspect for me or even an opportunity that arises for me to take part in, but because the system wallpaper changes to reflect that and it feels refreshing when you're traveling through the same route for the 100th time, to see something new. Something different.
I think that part is very important in keeping EVE relevant.
Our game is very unique and different than other mmos out there, but it doesn't mean it doesn't suffer from some major problems a lot of them do. For example, in this case, it can be compared to the fact that for a long time, in, WoW, for example, people didn't do a lot of the raids because they were locked out of them by way of progression, and that meant a lot of the subscribers simply didn't see the content that the developers put out.
So they made content that only 0.5% of the population went through. So, in our case, when graphic assets are locked behind mechanics like security or a corporation's base of operations, I think that is similar because a lot of us simply live out of these systems. It's not as simple as going somewhere else for a sight seeing trip.
And then after a while, you're back to your old space, and the same wallpaper it uses. I think that can get old after a while, no matter where you are playing. I don't think space should ever feel boring. It's a grand theme and it should not feel like a stagnant element.
And it's not good, to have a majority of your playerbase, not see it. Or see it in different chunks than other players. I see EVE in the same light, in that a lot of the assets in the game, like the wallpapers, is content that is heavily underused. Whether you're in highsec or in lowsec, or even in nullsec, I think you should never lose that feeling of awe, of being in space, just because when you undock you see the same wallpaper everytime.
What do you think? Is keeping the space fresh important, or is keeping the "identity" of a system more important? Maybe it can be an option you can toggle, like inspace skinning. Maybe it can only have a range of wallpapers to cycle through. These are just some of my thoughts. |