Blog Banter 36: Can’t pick just one

“With the Inferno expansion upon us, new seeds have been planted in the ongoing evolution of EVE Online. With every expansion comes new trials and challenges, game-changing mechanics and fresh ideas. After nine years and seventeen expansions, EVE has grown far more than most other MMOGs can hope for. Which expansions have brought the highs and lows, which have been the best and the worst for EVE Online?”

As I recently mentioned, CCP has had a real mixed bag of expansions and patches.  I think I have two favorites.  Apocrypha and Crucible.  I’m betting I’m not the only one homing in on those two either.

Apocrypha was probably the most ambitious expansion EvE had.  4 new ships, and entire new class of space, entirely new mechanics.  DOZENS of new ship configurations to balance (or not) the skill queue, attribute respecs, and the new fitting screen.  All in all a HUGE expansion; albeit spread out over a couple patches.  This expansion changed the way I played EvE.  I tried wormholes, got my first capital ship kill, messed around with T3 ships, oh and NEVER AGAIN HAD TO WAKE UP AT THREE A.M. TO CHANGE A SKILL.  EVAR.

The new fitting window, the skill queue and wormholes themselves would have been fascinating.  The Tech 3 ships, the Attribute respecs, and the epic mission arcs drove it further up.  Apocrypha was a masterpiece for CCP an ambitious project that paid off richly.  Apocrypha took EvE from being a game one endured as much as played, and made it one it was possible to truly enjoy.

I like to call Crucible “The Expansion that Saved EvE” and it’s no exaggeration to call it that after the Summer of Rage.  CCP had driven the player base to the edge of revolt, and then drove it over.  The list of changes made on Crucible is staggering.  Just from the standpoint of graphics there’s the V3 graphics, nebulae, new captains quarters, and engine trails.  New Battlecruisers, new neocom, new rookie ship designs, assault frigate rebalancing, watch list changes, and easier overheating.  The list goes on and on and on, all of it stuff practically designed to bring back and calm the raging capsuleers.

Crucible was an example of low-hanging fruit being reaped by CCP.  Years of backlog of iteration and quality of life fixes cleared out in one expansion.  Crucible took the door to enjoyment opened up by Apocrypha and slammed it wide open.  A more responsive, beautiful game, fewer session timers, more ships and improvements made to older ones that needed it.  This expansion made EvE a joy to play.

I’m using it every time I can