EvE Online is attractive to me in many ways, but as far as I'm concerned, its glaring flaw is that it doesn't use physical laws to define parameters and create diverse situations or use any part of cosmology to inspire its content. Every single palpable or use-able thing in EvE Online is man-made.
Infinity is as close a successor as I've seen to the most impressive technical game I've ever played: Frontier; Elite II, which simulated the laws of gravity, solar system orbits, it even had stars as big as 100 suns.
Released in 1982, Tron is still one of the most impressive technical films ever made and I doubt very much that the current Legacy film was any more of a challenge to produce in this age of digital image manipulation. For this reason I have huge respect for the team that produced the original film way back before this digital age.
Tron has not aged well to our expectations of special effects, but I firmly believe that its depiction of a videogame world is much more successful than Legacy. Having seen the new Tron film today, in 3D (the latest gimmick to warrant a 50% increase in ticket cost) I was blown away by the crisp clean and flawless visuals but, and this is a personal choice, I prefer the Tron that flickers, bulges and clips throughout, it's those flaws that made the film completely dreamlike and otherworldly, just the way it should.
Don't forget the original Tron, it was a milestone in movie making and has never since been matched in ambition or significance to its medium.
There once was a legendary game called Halo. Originally conceived to be a Real Time Strategy, during preliminary testing; Bungie quickly realised that its product moved better as a First Person Shooter, and thus a mammoth franchise was born. A bold move, therefore it must've been a very hard call as the FPS genre was bloated with capable and experienced developers.
Unlike Bungie whom, at the time were new to the market with nothing to lose and everything to prove; CCP has to protect an established and sensitive game-world. They could be brave and admit all available options. For my money at least, their latest ambition; Dust514 may be more suitable as an RTS. Currently the team is developing this multi-format game for the console FPS player, but their target consumer is much more rigid about purchases, tending not to stray from the lure of the familiar's sequels or from the pretty persuasions of publishers and their hyperbole fan-boy articles in the media. I remember a game called: Too Human(check out that price! lol), being granted the media spotlight and hyped all the way to the shelves, despite being utterly shite. And the bargain bins burgeoned with mis-informed sales.
The RTS genre is also full of capable developers but the market share is smaller than that of the FPS, and less fought. Only a handful of really notable RTS's have made it onto the consoles and for this reason, Dust514 could become hard to ignore, existing as the most unique and refreshing virtual creation available, creating its own sub-genre and an audience with player's interest in the rich and detailed culture of New Eden. Many of the skills developed while playing an RTS can be equally useful in EvE Online and there are more elements of EvE Online that mimic an RTS, rather than an FPS. I fear that as an FPS; Dust514 could become a victim of ignorance, lost in the sound and fury the over-weight publishers create as they vie for every crumb of the genre's huge pie.
EvE Online is no stranger to the RTS genre. There are many passionate bedroom coders that have attempted to develop an EvE Online mod for Homeworld2 and Nexus; The Jupiter Incident. Perhaps due to a rapidly evolving game-world, a lack of consistent resources and possible copyright arguments; all of these mods are yet to deliver. This is a pity as an RTS version of fleet battles could train the brain for the real thing and become a tool for understanding the fundamentals of mass warfare tactics, so long as the RTS translates the mechanics of EvE Online faithfully...
Dust514 may be amazing! better than anything giants such as Bungie, EA, or Ubisoft can muster, or maybe it will sink whilst humiliating CCP and EvE Online against a backdrop of Blizzards insulting success and the media's ability to sensationalise and promote failure. I dearly hope that whatever happens, those for whom the EvE universe never appealed may enjoy our worlds as much as we enjoy our empire over them.
This is exactly the reaction I imagine my victims have when I 'judge' them and is the reason I hunt. PvP has the most amazing rush for both the winner and loser...
It's narcissistic to put oneself in this position of possible peril, especially if we adore the feeling and repeat the same actions that lead to the unpleasant eventuality. When your tank is failing and there's no way out, cherish the way it makes you feel and learn from the experience. If you do the same again without winning; then, you neeed help!
Thick and fast come the latest kills. This is surprising as I have been pre-occupied by the creation and administration of my own Corporation. G-H has been set-up to finally deploy my wormhole POS, an idea born from excursions into w-space, but which requires a vast investment of both time and resources. These kills seem to be finding me and that I cannot complain of.
I had a local pilot smack talk me without provocation. She angrily claimed that she knew of me and placed a bounty on my head as we conversed. Unfortunately for her I scanned down this insubordinate fool and warped into a supposed safe-spot on the outskirts of the system.
Surprised to see my ship on grid she attempted to flee, which was strange considering the aforementioned bounty. Her subsequent demise filled me with smug satisfaction. I had never personally insulted the bitch and her personal attack was not warranted, even if she felt akin to a victim of my past deeds, any grievance must be aired from the plaintiff in the court of combat and not from the victims mother! Indeed my bounty has increased, twice in two minutes and will be collected by my servant in due course. Only the pain of death to endure, but Miss NEXUS has become a pro at popping POD's without injuring my naked frail body inside – too much.
I must remind myself that pain is a part of this existence, but every now and then something sweet comes along and makes me grin, broadly.
A day to remember was the successful entrapment and destruction of a carefully chosen target responsible for my own demise a few weeks prior. As mentioned in an earlier report, a pirate outfit managed to destroy my favourite vessel; a command ship by the name of PageraMANTOn. Although this 'accident' was entirely of my own making I still wanted to feel hot blood spatter my face despite running low on slaves. This ship was lovingly assembled from the appropriated wares of several victims and WOOT! loots. Painfully her demise was experienced, but upon cloning I vowed to exact my revenge upon those responsible, or vent my fury in some fashion.
Logon traps are not my repertoire as they require the assistance of many pilots and I usually work solo or in tandem with B13. Using my newest ally; Blake, as bait, the target; a Cerburus was aggressed, trapped and subsequently eliminated from the void with earnest violence, as well as the poor pirates POD. The corpse; a dainty female with no skin, is now a hat stand in my office.
I now feel satisfied that my revenge was exacted, particularly as the kill itself was flawless and the ship in question dropped a plethora of tech II loot as well as CN missiles. I was completely satisfied yet baffled by this drop – who in creation puts such a fantastic modules on such a crap ship? I had thought it must be a counter trap, but nothing came of it, even after waiting the standard 15 minutes for the aggression timer to expire.
I don’t consider the matter closed as the pilots in question were not brought to justice in this twisted court, but the plan worked like a dream. The loss sustained by my enemies corporation at least totals the loss on my part, so with this in mind I would recommend a logon trap for even the smaller kills, if they are important enough to warrant the collaboration of several pilots to execute.
For the protection of your POD and the continuation of your space faring careers I wanted to point y’all toward a free virus protection suite that I can personally recommend, particularly as it is effective, easy to use and free.
Avast! is state-of-the-art virus protection for your POD. Avast! can perform a thorough virus check before your OS runs which helps to eliminate and prevent stubborn programs that may have embedded themselves.
Free to download, free to use and free from unwanted spam mails (if chosen) so that you may get on with your life without the constant interruptions from the program. There is a purchasable version with more features, but for my own personal uses I have no reservations about recommending the effectiveness of this free virus software.
A suitable audio score is a useful yet understated tool that livens up tired senses for the task at hand. I have a soundtrack; music to murder by..., to to get me in the mood, but lately this song by the Minmatar Separatist group; Sigue Sigue Sputnik(Persistent, perpetual traveller), is monopolising my minds audio craving. The accompanying video shows the rebellion against the Empire and how, although outmatched in almost every way, the Minmatar were able to inflict heavy casualties upon the innocent Amarr populace using crude but no less effective weaponry.
Red Dwarf was a clear favourite past-time from my youth. Originally released in 1988, it was an instant cult show with an 11 year lifespan, solidifying the casts careers and instigating a split following of those idiots that 'didn't get it' to the other idiots who completely adored the show and it's brand of crazy comedy and proposterous plots.
Created by Doug Naylor and Rob Grant; Red Dwarf had some of the best characters ever to grace a CRT. My favourite has to be the 'Cat,' an evolved feline humanoid intent on womanising and subject to impractical bouts of vanity. Genius. I can never tire of catching up with this iconic sci-fi-com and, in-part the best past-time was working out which popular sci-fi was being parodied by the show.
Originally Red Dwarf was very nearly not made, but thanks to the persistence of the creators, the BBC finally allowed the lunacy to become reality. But I am sad that such a classic show came to an end but all good things must come to an end so we may cherish them.
...to the blog of Mr NOXx, an Amarr pirate from Sarum Prime, and a specialist in covert operations within EvE Online, a MMORPG.
A brief spell of guilt entwined his mind, forcing him to revise his place in New Eden until the darkness finally took him once more into the lawlessness out of Empire space.
He now exists as a ghost, spawning only to deliver judgement on the foolish and the feeble.
