Emergent Future

Good Game, Even Better Community Ideas

Sunday, 01 July 2007

Alright, so it's been a bit longer than I intended before putting up an update - regretfully things got a touch busy over the last week. You know, some work, some MMO-ing... *cough*.

The latter is actually something I'd like to bring up though. While I'm still on a hiatus with Vanguard, I've been talked into trying out EVE Online once again - I'm previously played it for about two months before now. While I respected the game before, I didn't quite get into it originally. Yet, ever since the Game Developers Conference when I had a chance to talk to some of the developers I've been considering giving it another go. A friend of mine who's been playing eventually pushed me over and I decided to play.

I've been enjoying it quite a bit more this time through. I've also noticed a few things about the game and the community around it that I've found quite interesting.

So, as I have this particular interest in community management, I've been checking out the EVE site for the various things that I like about it. I have to say, I like a lot of it too. They've done some stuff that has actually impressed me quite a bit.

For one, they have a bunch of short stories on their site that explain about the game world - this isn't something that other companies haven't done before, but I do like that they share their fiction in that way. It helps build up a greater idea of what the EVE Universe is like, and just who exactly you are flying around on your ship, and just who the people who're working for are.

More interesting than that, though, is their news updates. EVE News isn't just game developments - although their is a section of news for that. Rather, they include in-game events. These events could be fictional events that are able to advance the various over-aching story-lines that are happening in the EVE Universe, as well as news on major player-related happenings. For example, a major alliance just lost a Titan-class ship - an obscenely powerful ship of which very few exist in the game and are excessively expensive to create. This made the in-game news as well.

I like that quite a bit. It draws me in, it makes me feel like I'm part of something larger, and that I can actually have an effect upon the galaxy around me if I work hard enough. It actually makes me want to play more and it draws me into the game much tighter than if it hadn't existed.

They also have a handy database on their site which shows the equipment in the game. This has been great for looking up equipment that I can arm my ship with. It's a pretty handy little tool - as is their character pages which let you view your current skills and how far you've currently advanced in the particular skill you're training (EVE uses time-based advancement, not experience-based). These two features have been particularly nice as it makes me feel like I can play EVE without being logged in - which means I can be 'playing' even anywhere I have a computer with Internet access.

They even have a few novel little things that go beyond the website: E-on, the EVE quarterly Magazine, which seems to contain news and other EVE-related information. They also just recently released EVE-TV, an internet-television show all about EVE. I actually received an issue of E-on at GDC (although I can't find it anywhere!) but I've yet to check out EVE-TV. Perhaps I will later tonight. I've been particularly interested in these two things though, as they also bring the concept of playing the game out of just being logged in. They involve the players in a whole different way - although they do cost money to partake in.

Also, judging by the in-game experience, EVE has done some interesting things as well. The inclusion of a browser is fairly interesting and fits with the setting of the game just fine. But, it lets you view news and game updates easily. They're also planning on integrating wiki software with the game client to create "EVElopedia", a concept that intrigues me quite a bit.

Now, I don't want to just sound like I'm gushing over this game. There's very real reasons why I find this all so interesting. I think CCP, the company that runs EVE, has done a lot with their community that could be learned from. For example, their website is genuinely useful. There's stuff there that actually helps me. Not only that, but I feel compelled to visit their website, and by doing so, it draws me into the game more. That's a huge plus. It isn't quite like the Armory or EQ2/Vanguard Players from Blizzard and SOE respectively, that shows my character information that I can share with people I want - which is a same, yet an understandable necessity in an open PvP environment. Yet, at the same time, I never felt compelled to really visit Vanguard Players or EQ2 players. They showed character information... but not in a real useful way that benefited me. The only case that wasn't true was the java chat system in EQ2 Players that let me talk to people in-game when I couldn't log in.

I'm very intrigued by EVE's production of a magazine and online TV show. They both cost money, but they both seem to be very interesting. It brings me in as a player, and it increases their IP further than just the game as well. It involves me, it makes me feel like I'm really part of a community that extends beyond the in-game world. It reminds me of the City of Heroes comic book that came with a subscription of the game - which I also thought had a similar effect.

Also, the inclusion of a wiki is great to see. The fact that its incorporated into the client itself is just very cool, in my opinion. Yet, one of the things I kept hearing at GDC was how game development companies need to start embracing new web technologies for their sites. They need to embrace web 2.0 and let it further them as a company. Well, this is one good example of how that can be done.

So, to CCP, I give you props for that.
Tags: eve ccp community management community virtual world mmo

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