At the EVE Fanfest 2018, developer CCP presents the future content of EVE Online. With “Into The Abyss,” players will enter unknown space starting May 2018, which presents them with numerous new dangers. Particularly, the opportunity for new players to tackle a kind of “single player content” could open up new player groups.
Recently, there have been mostly negative news about EVE Online. The large wave of layoffs in 2017 and the uncertain future of EVE cast a rather dark shadow on the future of the MMORPG.
The reason for CCP to announce something big at the EVE Fanfest 2018.
“Into The Abyss” brings new approaches
With the free expansion “Into The Abyss,” players have the opportunity to delve into the Abyssal Deadspace. There, they meet a new NPC faction, the Triglavian Collective.
Players can enter the Abyssal Deadspace via abyssal filaments. These items can only be used by cruisers. When you use an abyssal filament, it generates a personal deadspace for the player.
Other players can track your opened portal and ambush you at the exit.
In addition to the NPCs, players will also be affected by the constantly changing environmental conditions.
Mutaplasmides – the currency of the Abyss
But why should players dare to enter the Abyssal Deadspace?
Only there will they find the new resource Mutaplasmide, which can be combined with existing modules to transform and enhance them into Abyssal modules.
However, even the module enhancement comes with a risk: If players try to manufacture an Abyssal module, the combination can also fail, resulting in the module being weakened instead of improved.
The strongest survive in the Abyssal Deadspace
The deeper players venture into the unknown areas, the stronger the opponents become, but the loot obtained also becomes more valuable.
Similar to the “Dark Zone” in The Division, you will receive more loot the longer you stay there. However, should you die, you will lose everything you collected there.
EVE Online already has a similar system with wormholes. There, players also enter a dangerous area where the Drifters (Sleepers), an NPC faction, and other players make their lives difficult.
One might think that CCP is simply rehashing the old concept and serving it to players again.
But “Into The Abyss” sends you alone into the unknown area. This means that new players cannot be “ganked” by more experienced players.
New players can thus learn the mechanics of the game in a “safe” PvE environment, find new loot, and improve themselves.
Whether this will please the long-time EVE players, who enjoy traveling together through the game, remains to be seen.
Motivating for new and old players
Regardless of player level and their unlocked ships, players can venture into the Abyssal Deadspace. This means that EVE Online, with the new expansion, aims to appeal not only to fans of EVE Online but also to new players.
This step at EVE Online also corresponds to what Executive Producer Andie Nordgren announced back in 2014 in an interview with PC Gamer: They want to make the game more action-oriented, moving away from the image of being the prettiest Excel spreadsheet and providing players with direct feedback on their actions.
Additionally, CCP is introducing an activity tracker that shows new players what activities their character has done so far and what else there is to discover in New Eden.
A good starting point for new players?
In EVE, players must actively engage with the game to reach the point where it doesn’t let go of them. That is why developer CCP has fundamentally revised and improved the tutorial.
EVE Online is free to play, and “Into The Abyss” will also be implemented as a free update in the game.
The new expansion could be a good reason for many players to engage with EVE Online for the first time or to return.
We from Mein MMO are for you for the first time live at the EVE Online Fanfest 2018 in Reykjavik, Iceland this year.
The last expansion of EVE Online called Lifeblood was released at the end of 2017 and expands the game with resource wars.
