Gryffyn
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Posted - 2004.05.30 14:46:00 -
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Some observations from a newcomer:
Eve lacks identification with your sense of character:
You are a ship, that looks like any other ship, which cannot be personalised with a paintjob or a corp logo emblazoned on its wing. Being able to morph your characters face (which is an excellent, powerful but somewhat clumsy tool in a novices hands) is not enough.
Roleplay Interaction / Private Conferencing:
The ability to chat and talk and roleplay via channel or physically congregate at, to suggest an idea, a conference station (I kind of imagine spokes of a wheel radiating from a central hub) just isnt readily noticeable to a fresh faced newcomer. The interface for loading out your ship, is well-designed and pleasing to the eye, but others are not. Chat options get a bland box.
Tactical Combat:
I'm guessing here, as I havent been involved in PvP at all as yet, but the dominant factor in a fight is weapon loadout, and number of allies, with maneouvres in space, coming a distant third. Yes, you can click on the screen to turn around, but it is clumsy at best. Combat becomes a matter of range, orbitting your opponent and choosing your moment -- instead of the epic grand Luke Skywalker moments new players are expecting.
For example, I tried to fly through the hole of an asteroid a while back and bounced through - because I mistimed the turn and couldnt make corrections to my course through an interface.
Now, this isnt to say Eve isnt a bad game by any means, I am enjoying some parts of it on a more cerebral level as trading / tactical game. However many of the people coming to play Eve, I suspect, are hoping for a mixture of Freespace graphics, with StarFleet Academy controls of direction, aStar Wars sense of excitement - and the classic Elite ability to trade. The graphics and sense of history are there - I would say the interface / sense of control is a disappointment - and the lack of dogfighting excitement, not quite there yet.
I would also like to say there is a lot of drivel spoken in certain channels, more worthy of opinionated quake / counterstrike clans than a mature community. I consider this a big turn off.
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