Help required for potential newbie!!

[Nightwulf]

Warm greetings to all !!

I have been reading all your threads and posts with interest regarding Eve Online and if the game is worth buying or not, but as of yet I am still undecided!! :help:

I am currently a 56k modem user (grumbles!) and would very much like to buy a copy of Eve, but have been put off on several occasions by people telling me it won't run properly on a 56k modem! I realise that whatever online game I play, I am likely to experience lagg on a modem connection.... but how bad would the lagg be and would it render a graphically beautiful game such as Eve, unplayable?

My computer is reasonably fast (2Ghz AMD processor, 512MB DDR ram, Asus A7N8X Deluxe M/b and Geforce 5600 graphics card) but the online connection lets it down!
I am no stranger to MMORPG's and have played many, including Asheron's Call, Anarchy Online, Dark Age of Camelot and Ultima Online (which I still play regularly!! )

I used to sit for many a happy hour drink: no... not in a pub!!) at my computer desk playing Elite II 'Frontier' and hope that this game would be something like a nostalgia trip.... only much better!

Any help or info for Eve would help a great deal, and would surely influence my decision in buying the game.

Many thanx :wink2:

 

[Slug]

Well if you can play games like DOAC etc.... then EVE certainly should be playable.

Its not extremely demanding on your modem to be honest, I know a few people who play it happily on their 56k connection.

 

[Nightwulf]

Thanx

Many thanx Slug for the info!

Dark Age of Camelot played pretty well on my system, and to be honest, the system I use now has been recently upgraded with a new Motherboard and DDR ram, from an old type m/b using only SD ram (if that makes sense to u?). So if anything, games as graphically demanding as DAoC and Eve, should run okay.... perhaps even better than before (hopes)!!

The thing that bothers me though are the tales I hear about PK'ers or Pirates who lurk, waiting to terrorise and rob unsuspecting newbies at every turn! Surely many of these players will be running on Broadband connections and thus have the edge over a modem user in a weak and ill equipped craft?
I don't like the thoughts of being ganked upon every few minutes by players who get kicks from ruining people's gameplay, much like they did (and still do) in Ultima Online! Or am I worrying about nothing here? :uhoh:

Anyway.... unless other players tell me otherwise, I'm looking forward to getting my copy of the game, creating a character and heading off into the unknown! :great:

I'll no doubt need all the help I can get playing Eve though, as it sounds very confusing!

One last thing... a majority of MMORPG's are now subject to VAT, (yep the European Union is at it again) which means that players are likely to have to pay extra per month on top of their subscription fees! Is this recent change in tax laws likely to affect Eve subscriptions... and if so, how much is the new monthly subscription likely to be? This new European Tax law is affecting companies like EA and forcing them to charge their customers more in subscription costs, but whether it will mean a price hike across the board for subscriptions to all MMORPG's remains to be seen! Perhaps some knowlegable peeps could clarify this?

Anyway.... cheers for the help

 

[larossa]

Pirates ...

On the subject of PC Pirates, they tend to fall into 2 categories and often overlap.

1. roleplaying pirates - most famous is Space Invaders, will try to hold you up for cash. They check out your ship and goodies and demand a sum that they think you should be able to afford. Decide quickly whether you will pay up or fight. They are usually friendly but they don't like you giving them verbal aggro, that results in your ship being blown up.
2. PK'ers or griefers - these rarely chat to you before blowing up your ship and escaping with any goodies left floating around. Best avoided . Some corp names ... M3G4, Sinister, M0o, Zombie, Paladins of the Red Skull.

I keep an eye on local and relog occasionally to refresh it. I gang only with my corp mates, never with strangers as a favourite tactic is to form a gang, warp towards member and nuke him!

Some areas such as my home base have formed a militia and any PC pirates in our region get the message pretty quickly when a score of cruisers and the odd few battleships descend upon them.

 

[Nightwulf]

Thanx for help

Thanx Larossa for your info on what to expect from these pirates!

I bought a copy of EVE today, and the Prima Strategy guide from GAME, so all I need to do now is install it and create an account/character before getting my first taste of this great looking game!

I think I'll do that tomorrow though, as I'm very tired and lacking sleep due to spending the night on the sofa downstairs!:sleeping:
Plus the neighbours are having a huge party in their house and are making so much noise, I'll have to (try to) sleep in the back bedroom as it's the only room I can escape the noise!! :wall:

I'd appreciate any help I can get from veteran players when my account is up and running, as the game manual and strategy guide seem daunting to say the least! :uhoh:

If this game is anything like Elite II 'Frontier', then I'm sure I'll love it!

Thanx all :wink2:

 

[Old Nicodemus]

Tbh the Prima guide isn't all that good. Most of the information contained within it is just a reprint of stuff from the website. The only useful thing I found with it was the Constellation maps. After flicking through it in the local PC store it was apparent that it actually spoils the game by giving you too much basic information that you acyually have more fun finding out by looking at the info of things in the game.

A couple of tips for you:

1) Create a test char and then play with it for a day. Then you will see how things work and be able to know what you did wrong on your char creation.

2) Sometimes the tutorial you get when you finally login is a bit bugged. There are some threads on the eve boards about it.. hopefully you won't have this problem.

3) 3 Skills to get early on... Electronics, Engineering and Learning. You can get the first 2 when doing your Char generation and they help bump up the cpu and powergrid of your ships.

4) The most important one of all.. have fun There are a few peeps in game who will try and make your life hell.. (the player pirates) just because they can, keep your eyes peeled and a smile on your face.. as they will test your humour factor!

 

[Nightwulf]

Thanx for tip!

Thanx Old Nicodemus for the tip! :great:

I'll bear that in mind when I'm either running like hell, or searching through the space debris for parts of my ship after being blown up!! :lol:

It's a pity you can't buy (or create) cloaking devices for your ship, as it would allow players to slip by potential threats un-noticed.... that is until the pirates install a scanner or something to detect cloaked vessels!! :doh:

It's the same with most MMORPG's though. For the first 12 months at least (usually longer), the designers are too busy ironing out the bugs and adding new content (hopefully) to the game to be bothered about pirates and PK'ing. It'll probably work out eventually that there will be Pirate zones.... areas in space at the end of wormholes where players can choose to take a short cut and risk everything, or just go there to fight and hunt the pirates, both NPC and PC!
And normal trading areas will have police patrols, making it tough for all but the most battle hardened (or crazy) pirates! This way, it makes it easier for new players to ease themselves into the game, without destroying the PK or pirate element for those who wish to participate in such activities. That is unless the game is already like that, and IS full of battle hardened, crazy pirates?!! :uhoh:

Don't get me wrong... I understand why some players love the thrill of the hunt, especially when it's another player they are hunting or fighting, but some players do it purely because they get kicks out of ruining someone's day! If pirating gets out of control, it could stop many potential long term players (perhaps like myself) from enjoying the game.
I think I read somewhere that it's 'safety in numbers'... so perhaps I'll look around for a few helpful peeps in game who would be willing to show a 'green' newbie the ropes!

 

[Old Nicodemus]

Cloaking devices are on the planning table already Though it's going to be more like a Running Silent mode, you won't be able to do much and when you do decloak there will be a small period of time as your systems come online before you can do anything.

Safety in numbers is a good thing to do. The starter corps are fantastic for getting to know the game and find people to play with.

If you need any help in game either post a question here or evemail peeps.

Commlink is always open

 

[Custy]

56K is fine to play EVE with, you might not like the game tho

 

[Slug]

Dont worry about these pirates, i know, i used to be one. it is impossible for a pirate to kill a noob (aslong as the noob isnt at the ass end of the galaxy) as EVE has whats known as a security system. this enables newer players to be relatively safe from pirates unless one of them tries to do some sort of kamakazi.

 

[Nightwulf]

Not had chance yet!!

Hiya!

I've actually not had chance to install the game on my hard drive yet, let alone play it!
I've been busy until today... so hopefully I can now try it out!

Thanks for all the help everyone has been giving me regarding pirates and how well the game is likely to run on my system!
The only way I'll find out though is to get playing the game!

I like the idea of making lots of credits or 'ISK' as it's known as in EVE and exploring the galaxy!

The thing is.... can anyone tell me how much the monthly subscription is, and whether I'll get a free month to try it out or not? I can't seem to find this info anywhere on the EVE site! Imho I think the main site is a little bland and does nothing to help sales of the game! This seems only helped by word of mouth or good ratings in computer game magazines... but then again.... who buys a game because the official website looks good??!!! :doh:

I did buy a copy of 'Earth & Beyond' several months ago from a guy selling it on eBay. Of course it was from the US as the game has STILL not been properly released over here! I had every intention of playing it too, until I realised that the game interface, especially in combat, let the game down badly and the graphics were a bit cartooney!! For the rest, I could not comment. So there it sits in it's box, possibly never to be played! :chortle:

I wanted a game that offers realism more than anything, plus a huge scope for improvement and additional content. Providing EVE's creators do this, the game should flourish. But like every MMORPG I've played, whether it be space hopping or monster bashing, they all tend to let the players down somewhere along the line, until people leave en masse, then they pull their finger out and start to fix things!! :whip: