EVE Online is an unmatched space MMO. At least for now. With Star Citizen, another sci-fi role-playing game enters the ring. Funded by fans and developed by Wing Commander creator Chris Roberts, Star Citizen is a serious contender to the sandbox game EVE Online. We have compared the two games for you.
First- vs. Third-Person
Into the cockpit, take the joystick in hand and with laser weapons and other pew pew, it’s off against the enemies. At least that’s how Star Citizen is supposed to work in the future. In first-person view, one can speak of an actual simulation. If you fly too fast into the curves, your avatar will pass out and the journey will end abruptly. With intuitive dogfights, just like in Wing Commander, a completely different feeling is already created in Star Citizen. If you get tired of the first-person view, you can also switch to third-person. This way, you can change your perspective according to the situation, thus altering your gaming experience.
In EVE Online, the controls look quite different. Rather than using a joystick, you navigate through New Eden with a point-and-click system. Battles may take place in the galaxy, but they could also be fought exclusively within the various menus of EVE. What offers more action is subjective. More exciting for spectators is probably the first-person view in Star Citizen. For fans of strategic battles where the distance to the opponent plays a crucial role, EVE Online is the better solution.
In EVE Online, Time is Required
In first-person view, one thing is clear: personal skills determine victory or defeat. In Star Citizen, everyone is their own lucky charm. While advantages may come from a faster ship, the individual flying skills are crucial for shooting down an opponent.
It’s different in EVE Online. While you also need experience in piloting a spaceship here, your skill points play an even more important role. In EVE, you put a skill into the queue, and after completion, you can fly a new ship or deal a few percentage more damage. The longer you play the game, or pay for the account, the more your character can achieve, as they have already learned countless skills. In combat, it’s still about your flying skills, but the invested skill points are the decisive factor in EVE Online.
Spaceships: From Small to Gigantic
In a sci-fi adventure, the type of ship you fly is also crucial. With around 50 ships, Star Citizen is still underrepresented compared to EVE Online. However, the vehicles in Chris Roberts’s game look breathtaking. The textures are sharper, and there are many more details than on an EVE Online ship. However, the spaceships aren’t that large. In EVE Online, the Star Citizen ships would only belong to the smallest ship category, the frigates. But in EVE, there are much larger aircraft. Thus, Titans are not only the largest but also the strongest ships in the EVE universe. A corporation must invest a huge effort before a Titan rolls off the production line. The value of gigantic spaceships can always be guessed from reports,that calculate the value of a destroyed fleet in real money.
In both games, you can customize your ship to your own abilities and preferences. In Star Citizen, you can add extra mods to your little ship. For example, friends can get in and control the guns. In EVE, on the other hand, you equip your ship according to the situation: PvE, PvP, wormhole, or massive battle. Here, the target determines the equipment.
Single or Multiplayer?
EVE Online is a pure multiplayer. Even if you think you are safe from others during a mission, opposing players can scan, find, and shoot you down. This is the allure of this sandbox: you are never alone, and the destruction of your expensive ship can happen at any time. Since May 2013, the developer CCP has integrated the game Dust 514 into EVE. Dust 514 is a free shooter for PlayStation that takes place on the planets of the EVE universe. The shooter is also dependent on the sovereignty status of the respective system. Thus, CCP successfully connects two games of entirely different genres for the first time. In Star Citizen, there is a distinction between single and multiplayer. The single-player campaign is called Squadron 42 and is designed to remind players of the old Wing Commander campaigns. Here, players go through single missions without coming into contact with real, human opponents. However, teammates can be invited for co-op action. In multiplayer, on the other hand, the player must build their own status relative to other players. The world is open and persistent.
The Economic System
According to Chris Roberts, there will be no item drops in Star Citizen. Players will only find recyclable wrecks of enemy ships. From these, they extract crafting materials that need to be processed. This creates a complex economy that is supposed to resemble a simulation, as every item is ultimately produced by a player. Here, Star Citizen and EVE Online have great similarities.
For even in CCP’s game, there is a completely player-driven economy. Almost everything found on the market can be produced by players. There are player communities that focus solely on the production of massive ships or individual modules. This type of economic system is, of course, very vulnerable to small changes that may be added via patches. Player behavior affects prices: In the last few months in EVE Online, there hasn’t been a significant war, which has led to prices for modules and ships plummeting. Tough times for industrialists.
Star Citizen vs. EVE Online – Which is Better?
For pilots who simply want pure action, Star Citizen is probably better suited. Exciting dogfights with agile ships in an atmospheric environment. With the single-player campaign, you can also enjoy a round of co-op with friends at a leisurely pace. Chris Roberts has done a fantastic job here, and we are already looking forward to the final release. Fans of a quieter experience should download EVE Online. Although “quiet” might be too mild a term: EVE is for those who enjoy sitting at their PC, sweating, because 20 enemy ships just jumped into their system, and they still have to fly their expensive ship to the station. Additionally, business students can apply their knowledge in the economic system. The game is worth it, even if it looks complicated at first. Besides huge ships, players can expect a helpful community and a great developer.
