The Rubik's Cube

Bold Pilot Log, Entry #16

The EVE universe is divided into several areas that have very different attributes. Understanding these 'natural' circumstances will be crucial to not only the survival, but how the capsuleer fares generally. In most cases the average beginner player is not exposed to these environmental effects. If you think about it, this might be a real problem regarding the new player experience. Essentially, the people coming to EVE live in a different world than tried capsuleers - and CCP-ers do.

The first thing a new player will encounter is the much cursed UI. There are a lot of thoughts about how to fix this unintuitive and sometimes barely usable part of the game. Albeit some could be successful, there is another question we definitely must raise. Do we really want it fixed? What do you mean by 'fixing' it? Simplification? In a sense, it is logical and simple. You cannot see the logic at the first few tries, but it's there. The bewilderment that it's complexity causes to most people is a troubling thing. You know, sometimes I wonder, and this is a seriously tough question - how in the hell do you simplify something that has so many functionality in it, with almost every aspect being relied on? The game will never be the same, when the UI is changed. The ten million dollar question is, however, will it be more useful? Will I still be able to get the amount of information I do right now?

There is a certain beauty in EVE which comes from, what I can convey as the sincerity of the graphic elements. They might not be big and might not be flashy, but everything is there somewhere. The current representation has a very important attribute that I wouldn't want to see taken away - the way it relies in exact numbers. For example, for distance, you don't see bars - you see numbers. For transversal velocity, you can make it show the exact values instead of say, curves getting longer or shorter. Simplification and cleanup can go a long way with graphical indicators, but in EVE, it would take away from the game if you lost the ability to see the exact values of things. Colored bars moving around is just so not like the sci-fi universe we're in.

So, when the new player finally learns to tackle the environment that is presented to him / her as the NeoCom, the exposure stops. You're sort of dumped into a 'Rookie System', where you are less than aware of the universe and its dangers. Ideally you learn to run the tutorial missions, and then move systems, maybe join a player corp. Your career and the associated can shoot up if you are lucky and join the right corp. Many are not. Yet they still live in high sec, slowly learning about the games' perks, and avoiding everything else they don't know or haven't experienced.

The thing is, EVE isn't about the known! It's about learning something new every day. It's about accomplishment. The original plans of running missions in a battleship or mining in a hulk will soon ring a little hollow. Been there, done that. You know where the real fun starts? Where the boundaries of the computer game end! Human interaction is imperative. You're in a multiplayer and multilayer game...

I'm not going to jump on the bandwagon and say try PVP. Without guidance, without people to work together with, it can be a bitch to learn, and could do more harm than good. I don't expect every capsuleer to dare to be bold. But if that's not the case, just learn to deal with your losses, interact with other people, and be mature. Generally speaking, EVE has an old community, most players know better than to be childish about it. I see sometimes people cursing and whining on local - don't do that, you'll just be laughed at. You'll be nothing more than a chunk of loot.

So yeah, keep on trying new stuff out. What's the worst that could happ

Sessym out.