the opinion of the masses

I feel obliged to fight for the honour of games reviewers (in a limp-wristed non-fighty way*) after reading Blinky’s latest blog entry, which points to a post on the EVE forums where an old review of EVE has resurfaced. The review, from Gamespot in 2003, rated EVE with a rather low 6.6 score out of ten, which has earned it – as it probably did back in 2003 – the ire of the faithful, as well as the contempt of those who believe games reviewers to be either terminally corrupt or blatantly incompetent. Or both.

I can only really speak for myself in this defence but I’ve reviewed EVE three or four times over the years, all of them before my tenure as EON editor. A couple of reviews were for PCZone (89% at time of release, 91% after Exodus – neither of which appear to be online to view, although an old preview of mine is). I also wrote a review for PC Gamer in the US (again after Exodus). I stand behind all of them. I stand behind every review I have ever written. Even my Star Wars Galaxies one

A review is no different to any other opinion. An opinion can be arrived at at different times by different people. The only difference with a review is that it’s by nature a more crafted opinion, and one that has hopefully earned some remuneration by way of manufacture.

It’s true that online games should require a far larger time investment that any other game in order to form an opinion. Sadly reviewers are paid only on their pre-approved output and not on their input. That was the case in 2003 and remains the case in 2008. Either the system should be changed, or the reviewer, fearing they may not be able to give the game the required attention, should decline the commission.

In the case of EVE, I know of no-one that was ever given special treatment or high-end gear in order to help them complete their review. When a game is launched there shouldn’t be any need to. Expansions are more difficult because they tip the balance toward high-end gameplay; where in-game advancement is a prerequisite to being able to amass opinion. Hopefully by that point a publication will have someone embedded – an in-house fan – who will know what is going on. Sadly PCZone lost theirs when he was asked to edit an EVE magazine.

As Blinky correctly says, things are a little different these days, but not by much. Being first with a review is no longer the big deal it once was, but being first with information is. MMO Reviews don’t actually count for much in this day and age, but interviews and first impressions do. Taken as a first impression – which is all a review of a newly-launched MMO can be, the Gamespot “review” is a good one. I suspect a typical reviewer thrown into EVE today would have similar opinions of it. As has been said since 2003, EVE isn’t for everyone.

As much as the review might suggest how much EVE has changed for those of us who’ve been a part of the evolution, it probably hasn’t changed enough for those who haven’t. Greg Kasavin, the author of the Gamespot review, is now working at EA. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s not touched EVE since and he probably has no desire to. I’ve not played Galaxies since I reviewed it. Go figure.

*Also obliged to write a blog entry, since it has been a little while ;)

young woman star

Clones are not real. Not yet. None of us live forever. We can only hope to continue beyond this life via the memory of others, whose lives, in turn, we have touched in some small way. To that end it shined a bright light into the dark corners of my soul when I read this post on the E-O forums, asking that CCP graciously honour the memory of the recently-departed “Taera”, by creating, in EVE, a monument to her earthly accomplishments.

Laura “Taera” Genender worked at CCP, albeit briefly, yet it was the very beginning of a promising career for a 23-year old who started as a journalist at MMORPG.com and who seemed to make friends wherever she went. Her ambition whilst at MMORPG was to move into games development, and, as someone who has harboured similar ambitions, I can jealously proclaim that it was an incredible accomplishment to have started that career at CCP.

I’m pretty sure I never met her in my travels (I can barely remember the faces of my old mates at PCZone), but reading what others have said, it saddens me that when I get to Fanfest in November, she won’t be there to politely say she loved reading EON.

I do hope that CCP create something inside New Eden as a testament to her memory. I also hope they change their policy and allow monuments to lesser others who are no longer able to fly across New Eden due to extended downtime in the afterlife.

We should remember that EVE is a real universe where real friendships are forged. These are friendships that persist solely in - and because – of EVE, and when players have their clone contract terminated prematurely, the loss is felt across EVE. It is therefore only fitting that players be allowed to honour the memory of departed friends through the medium of the game that brought them together in the first place.

For myself, I’d much rather have my name on a planet in Amarr than a park bench in Woking. Not that I’d care if I’m dead, but maybe …just maybe, others might.

Thanks Taera. Fly safe, wherever you are. Hopefully I’ll see you in EVE one day.

let the muck-raking begin!

The MMM team (at least, those with passports and without criminal record) went out to Iceland last week for discussions with CCP about various things that are actually rather mundane and not very exciting (making EON better, making the EVE Store friendlier for those that have to endure its bizarre ways in order to buy the mag, etc etc), but of course being at CCP means you bump into a few old faces, some of whom remembered your’s truly from previous visits, and with whom I managed to exchange a few pleasant words before collapsing in a heap due to exhaustion, illness and excessive beer ingestion the previous night (a bothersome threesome of afflictions it must be admitted).

One of the people I exchanged words with was GM Xhagen, who of course is co-responsible for the redevelopment of the new Council of Stellar Management, and who was on the day of our encounter going through all the applicants to make sure they weren’t evil-doers – lapsed or otherwise – or lacking in the necessary documentation to make the trip to Iceland in June (should they be voted in). I should add that I received no insight about this process, nor did I offer much of my own beyond my slow transition from skeptic hopeful to hopeful skeptic. What we did briefly chat about was whether it would be a fun idea to put the weight of EON behind any of the hopeful candidates: It’s fairly obvious that many print journals have political affiliations, so why not EON? Of course it was quickly agreed that to openly back any of the candidates would be a bad idea, not just because EON is kind-of an “official” EVE publication, but because not many people would care anyway… since the next edition of the magazine comes out after the candidates will have already been sworn in. It was a mindless suggestion in any case.

Since our return from northern lands, the full list of candidates has been revealed and I’m very happy to see all the names on the list, some of whom I know little about, some of whom I’ve stood toe-to-toe with over a beer or two. Most revealing of all is that the usual fears and preconceptions are already being manifested and dirt has already begun circulating. As a political entity, the CSM may end up as toothless as some detractors have already argued, but for entertainment value the political process in EVE is already proving to be very diverting. For most of us in the Western world, politics is entertainment, of course, but the good news is that this particular pretense at democracy will have at least been decided upon fairly soon… which will coincide with my next visit to Iceland to cover the first CSM meeting, and so enjoy more chats with new and old faces alike.