| Eve Online | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | CCP Games |
| Publisher(s) | SSI (expired) CCP Games |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux (Official Linux support discontinued at Apocrypha expansion) |
| Release date(s) |
|
| Genre(s) | MMORPG Space simulation |
| Mode(s) | Multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: T (Teen) |
Eve Online is a player-driven persistent-world massively multiplayer online role-playing game set in a science fiction space setting. Since its release on May 6, 2003 the developer CCP Games has added a total of sixteen expansions to the game. CCP provides expansions free of charge to its subscribers.[1] This article highlights the expansions and changes introduced to the game.
Contents |
Release date: December 18, 2003
Castor was the first major content addition. It focused on refining current functions along with adding "Tech 2" elite components and ships. With its release, Eve players saw conquerable stations in 0.0 security (deep space) systems, the introduction of the agent mission running system, the introduction of research agents, and many other features released between the launch of Castor and its follower, Exodus.[2]
Release date: November 17, 2004
Exodus is considered by the developers to be the first major game expansion. The expansion added multi-level "deadspace" scenarios, new environments and ships, better handling of conflicts, additional market functionality, user interface improvements, and an updated in-game web browser. A formalized method for alliances between corporations and the ability to claim sovereignty of a solar system via new "player owned starbases" was also added.[3] Prior to its official release, this expansion was codenamed "Shiva."
Release date: June 29, 2005
Cold War Edition contained an extensive new tutorial sequence and a storyline background introduction. "Level 4" agent missions were added to create a way to grind for money at little risk in amounts that rival high-risk ventures, as well as "COSMOS" constellations where in-space agents began giving out story-driven missions and unique rewards. The freighter and dreadnought capital ships, full-fledged player-owned "outposts," and improved NPC pirate factions brought deep space play to a new level.[4] This expansion also added Unicode chat support, allowing communication in Asian, Cyrillic, and Greek languages.
Release date: December 16, 2005
Red Moon Rising was split off from the "Kali" expansion in order to maintain a more regular patch schedule. It included many performance optimizations and updates to combat, research, and manufacturing gameplay.[5] The expansion continued the focus on attracting new international players as four new "bloodlines" were introduced with Asian features and a boost in starting skills. Unicode support was also expanded from the chat system to game-wide. A major focus of the expansion was revamping existing ships and adding many additional ship classes. Twenty-three new Tech 2 ships were added including Exhumers, Force Recon cruisers, Command ships, Interdictors, and most notably the capital ships Carrier, Mothership, and Titan. (See Spaceships of Eve Online for descriptions)
Release date: March 2, 2006
Bloodlines is the codename for the content patch that enabled players to create the new character "bloodline" with an Asian appearance.[6]
Release date: November 29, 2006
Revelations is the second major game expansion of Eve Online. Previously known by the codename "Kali," Revelations was scheduled to be released in three parts. Major features of this expansion include an exploration / scan probe system, a formalized contract system, the invention replacement for the Tech 2 research lottery, ship customization with "rigs," and temporary "combat boosters." Existing features expanded include a "new player experience" that grants new players a large head start in capabilities, an upgraded fleet system, eight new deepspace regions, a new map that zooms from ship to galaxy seamlessly, popular new battlecruisers and battleships, and many more.[7][8][9][10]
Eve Voice was integrated as part of Revelations content patch 1.4, initially planned for release with Revelations II. Eve Voice is a Voice over IP tool integrated into the Eve Online client, with software licensed by CCP from Vivox.[11]
Release date: June 19, 2007
Revelations II is the second of three expansions, designed to show the increased tensions between the empires within the game universe.[12] Several new features were introduced; including a mechanism for overloading modules[13] and area of effect bombs.[14] A number of existing features have been extended including Level 5 agents,[15] changes to sovereignty,[16] starbases[17] outposts,[18] and balancing changes to the Amarr race.[19] Revelations II also changed the way new players start the game, in addition to new optional tutorials the existing tutorial has been shortened and refined, and players now start in a private dungeon to allow new players to get used to the controls in a protective environment.[20]
Release date: December 5, 2007[21]
Features include an updated graphics engine and 5 new ship classes totalling 20 new ships. The 5 classes are interdictor cruisers (Heavy Interdictors) and electronic warfare frigates (Electronic Attack Ships) as well as battleships (Black Ops, designed for covert operations and Marauders, designed for long-range deployment) and freighters (Jump Freighters).[22] Although "Factional Warfare," a major addition to game mechanics, had been planned for this patch it was later announced that it would be included in a future patch,[23] along with Ambulation (walking in stations and Full Human Representation, announced on the Eve Online Fanfest 2007). Starting with the release of Trinity CCP offers two editions of the Eve Online client. One with regular graphics content, called Trinity 1.0 Classic, and one with updated graphics, called Trinity 1.0, also referred to as Premium.[24] Players who run a Shader Model 3-capable graphics card can choose whether they want the Classic or Premium content. Without such a graphics card the client uses the Classic content.
The initial version of the Trinity patch could under certain circumstances delete the player's operating system's boot.ini file, thus rendering the operating system unbootable.[25] Six hours after the release of this faulty patch CCP fixed the issue. While the number of affected players is unknown, 215 had specifically asked CCP for assistance.[26]
Release date: June 10, 2008
Empyrean Age, previously named Kali 4, is the name of the ninth expansion of Eve Online and the last one in the Kali tetralogy.[27][28][29] CCP has included Factional Warfare in this release.[27][29] In this expansion the in-game story plays a key role and the situation in the game reflects events depicted in the novel of the same title by Tony Gonzales.[27] The expansion allows both individual players and whole corporations to fight for certain NPC factions and battle for control of certain regions of space.[27][30] Agents provide missions and objectives which alter player and corporation standings with the factions accordingly.[30] This expansion was against the wishes of CCP Lead Game Designer Noah Ward and as such has not seen any bug fixes, patches or further development since its release.
Release date: November 11, 2008.
The Quantum Rise expansion includes features such as a new certificate system that allows verification of a player's proficiency in certain defined groups of skills by other players[31] and a medal system for awards by corporations. Industrial ships were rebalanced and optimized, with addition of the Orca-class ship, "a sub-capital logistical ship with a mining command focus."[32] The staged delivery of the expansion began with the recent implementation of new technology such as StacklessIO[33] and EVE64[34] which upgraded the server hardware and streamlined communication between server and client to reduce lag. These improvements provide performance allowing for player vs. player battles with thousands of participants. Further hardware and software improvements are planned.[35] Other features of the expansion include further graphics updates as started in the Trinity expansion; the ability for players to group their vessels' weapons for easier interaction;[36] changes to autopilot routes and avoidance of player-defined solar systems. This patch also brought a controversial overhaul of the speed system.
Release date: March 10, 2009.
At Fanfest 2008 it was announced that instead of a six-month gap between expansions the subsequent expansion to Quantum Rise, Apocrypha, would be released on March 10, 2009. This expansion included a training queue, Tech 3 vessels, and exploration of uncharted space through unstable wormholes.[37][38] Apocrypha has improved NPCs' artificial intelligence and has added a new NPC faction to the game, the Sleepers.[39]
Apocrypha 1.5 was released on August 20, 2009 and considered by CCP to be a mini-expansion. CCP felt that Apocrypha was released very early for a Summer expansion, and that they had enough content ready to go for it to be classified as more than a patch.[40] The new mini-expansion brought to EVE four more epic mission arcs, new rig sizes, specialized cargo bays for specific ships, and performance enhancements for their Factional Warfare.
More detailed information about Apocrypha can be found on the EVE Online website EVE Online: Apocrypha
Release date: December 1, 2009.[41]
The main focus of Dominion, the 12th expansion, is an overhaul in the alliance warfare sovereignty mechanics. It also includes the introduction of pirate epic arcs, an artistic redesign of planets and a social networking platform called COSMOS[41] (previously called New Eden). Dominion updates the In Game Browser (IGB) with Awesomium (a browser toolkit based on Chromium), allowing the IGB to behave more like a true browser and properly render HTML, javascript and stylesheets.[42]
More detailed information about this expansion can be found on the EVE Online website EVE Online: Dominion
Release date: May 26, 2010.
Tyrannis is the 13th expansion to EVE Online, and focuses heavily on planetary interaction. Players are able to take advantage of deposits of minerals and other raw materials found on the planets of EVE. To that end they are given the ability to build infrastructure for harvesting, storage and processing of these materials.
The previously revealed out of game community site allowing players to interact, organize and communicate with each other through a regular web browser has been renamed EVE Gate. EVE Gate features EVE Mail, in and out of game calendars and contacts and updates for players, corporations and alliances.[43]
CCP added hundreds of new landmarks throughout New Eden. These are points in space connected to past storyline or player events. The landmarks show up in the overview, making them more apparent and accessible than before.
The Scorpion-class battleships received a graphical overhaul featuring improved quality textures, unique detailing for each model setting them apart from the other variations. The expansion also focuses on other optimizations and improvements throughout the game, such as reducing fleet lag and load handling.
More detailed information about this expansion can be found on the EVE Online website EVE Online: Tyrannis.
Release Date: November 30, 2010.
Incursion was announced on September 21.[44] The expansion featured the "escalating attacks of the deadly Sansha's Nation". Players are able to join public fleets and co-operate to repel the Sansha incursions, receiving bounties and earning loyalty rewards. Incursion also includes many improvements as suggested by the CSM, as well as hardware upgrades, software improvements and new cluster components aimed at increasing game performance.
Additionally, the character creator was updated with CCP's Carbon character technology for new pilot portraits. Finally, CCP added a Sansha Mothership, the Revenant, Fighter-bombers, the Noctis salvaging vessel, improvements to NPCs and their AI, new loot and rewards, storyline events and a more dynamic and simplified system for Planetary Interaction. The web-based social networking platform, EVE Gate, and the official forums received updates in the Incursion expansion as well.
CCP released the Incursion expansion in three phases: a first-step patch with a collection of player-requested improvements on November 30, a second-step patch with hidden features before December 25, and a third-step patch that included key features of the expansion (Incarna Character Creator, Sansha Incursions) on January 18, 2011. CCP has stated that this method of implementation prevents a large number of bugs from infiltrating the code, and the key features "will benefit greatly from an additional level of polish."[45]
During the second-step patch the learning skills were removed. Players were reimbursed in two ways, they got their invested skill points back which they then could redistribute to their liking or, when they hadn't already inserted the skillbook, they got the NPC price back.
More detailed information about this expansion can be found on the EVE Online website EVE Online: Incursion.
Release Date: June 21, 2011.
Previously known as 'Ambulation' and 'Walking In Stations', the overall Incarna feature revolves around allowing players to leave their pods and walk around in their station HQ. Currently 'face to face' interactions with other pilots is not possible. This feature has been in development for the majority of the life of Eve. The first phase of Incarna was released on June 21st. 2011.[46]
In the initial Incarna release all Captains Quarters were of Minmatar design. The captain's quarters are a private single player environment to introduce players to Incarna. As with the previous expansion (Incursion) this expansion will follow a segmented roll out. This allows for testing of each major feature under the stress of the live server separately.
Incarna also included a major visual revamp of all turrets, mining lasers, tractor beams and salvagers design and animation (including the firing animation).[47]
One of Incarnas more controversial changes was the introduction of the "The Noble Exchange"(NeX) a in-game market which allowed players to buy vanity items using either in-game or real life money.[48]
Other changes include:
More detailed information about this expansion can be found on the EVE Online website EVE Online: Incarna.
Release date: November 29, 2011.
The Crucible expansion was introduced to refine the existing game aspects. New nebulae graphics, an improved UI, time dilation and gameplay balancing were included in the expansion. CCP also added a line of third tier battlecruisers, which can fit battleship weapons, and the remaining Captain's Quarters for the Amarr, Gallente, and Caldari races. In addition to this, the engine trail effect was reintroduced.
A list of all changes, in order from most recently announced to least recent: