Blog Banter 29: EVEmersion

Bold Pilot Log, Entry 25#

A week ago, Seismic Stan on Freebooted put up the question for the 29th Blog Banter. Somewhat late, but ladies, gentlemen and capsuleers, feel free to enjoy my part of the Banter:

"EVE Online is renowned for its depth. Its backstory, gameplay and social aspects are all qualities that draw players in. What does immersion in EVE Online mean to you?"

Immersion is a word that's thrown around a lot these days in the EVEosphere. Now, I could look up the definition for the word but the question here revolves around exactly what it is for the players. So, this topic ties in closely with the 'seven souls of EVE' I have mentioned before. I shall take a look and examine what immersion in and with a game can mean.

For many games, it is  rather simple, even shallow. You think about the game, you think about how you will try things, and that is all. But EVE is somewhat different. When someone is immersed in EVE, he or she does one of the following things:

• The things that you love to do for some reason. This usually triggers a flow experience at some point.
• The things that allow you to do the things you love to do. This creates an atmosphere of anticipation, which is a very real and tangible feeling.
• The things that other people (sometimes not even present or real) make you do. Caution is a big driver of acts.

So what exeactly is immersion? It is a state of mind, a flow of thinking that lets you interpret the depth of the world you are in. Immersion is not about entertainment. It is about learning. By embracing this artificial yet very natural world, EVE immersion is about learning things about yourself. What would I do if... That is the question immersion answers over and over not by words, but by experience. EVE online is in a unique position in this.

When Hilmar, CCP's CEO looked at the ISK Guide, his reaction was: 'God, what have we created?'

They, CCP, are a company that created a new place of immersion. Once you start to 'get EVE', you'll feel that you are a part of it. Your actions will affect things in many different ways. You may not be aware of their significance, but back in your mind there's always the looming feeling that you may have just ruined or made someone's day.

Once you understand these things, once you feel that you get real value out of a game, you are immersed. The value thing may or may not be true, but you must always remember: in EVE, the things are what you make of them.

I know I make a lot of EVE. I think about all the things I see in game, and try to imagine how would this look like if it was 'real'. Human imagination has its ways with creation. According to some beliefs, anything can exist that you imagine. I am immersed in EVE when I imagine myself in the place of the character that represents me. Stories are to be told here, millions of reasons, wills and deeds.

I love that CCP tries to look at a universe as a whole, not just take one perspective and stick with it. In that aspect, I can fully appreciate their intent to expand the game beyond spaceships. I'll be honest. I'm not here because of the spaceships. I'm here because everything else that goes with them. They let me talk with people I never would have known. These conversations arc through cultures and generations. Immersed in EVE means that you're no longer playing a spaceship game. You're part of a virtual world that is very similar to your own, because the people you play with are real. Thus, immersion in EVE begins with understanding the sentence: "EVE is Real."

Sessym out.