First of all, I’m not trying to say that CCP hasn’t done anything I liked, that they’re the devil, or that there aren’t any devs at CCP that aren’t passionate about their work or the game.
However, there is evidence of them, as an organization, compromising their values on certain things, and I have varying degrees of suspicion on other stuff. However, the most compelling evidence is when they explicitly state their values/beliefs, and then do things that run counter to that. So, let’s start with that.
Direct Selling of SP to players
Pepperidge Farm remembers
Remember when CCP said that player driven economies were key to Eve design, and that it was important that all SP originate with players… because peperidge farm remembers.
Instanced Content
Instanced content undermines important aspects of the game
In this GDC, the developer formerly known as greyscale talks about all sorts of things that are fundamental to Eve’s design. Now CCP has done several things that seem to contradict the principles that Woodward stated here. However, the most incontrovertible evidence of CCP throwing their principles out the window comes with the introduction of instanced content (i.e. Abyss and those new exploration sites).
Instanced content undermines:
- Relatedness- the feeling that you are connected to, can influence, and be influenced by, a larger world and the players in it
- Competition
- Emergent Game play
- Variable World State - Competition/predation from players changes the world state, and prevents players from optimizing towards boredom
The Age of Abundance and the Aftermath
Intrinsic Versus Extrinsic Rewards
I think you can also make a good case that the age of abundance was CCP moving away from intrinsic motivators (which are good, but hard), and going all in on extrinsic motivators (which are easy, but can cause issues). This not only encourages players to optimize towards boredom in order to maximize their extrinsic rewards, but there is actual scientific research that suggests that extrinsic rewards can undermine intrinsic rewards (this is known as the overjustification effect).
And on, a side note, I think we’re still feeling the consequences of this today. So, upping extrinsic rewards during the age of abundance reduced intrinsic rewards and motivations. However, that’s not the end of the story. See, researchers have also found that removal in extrinsic rewards does not result in a restoration of prior intrinsic motivation. And that is why we see tons of players complaining about the game “no longer being rewarding.”
Newbro PK/griefing isn’t a problem → I’m very concerned about newbro griefing
Why is CCP is suddenly singing a different tune
And, after years of essentially saying that ganking newbros wasn’t a problem, and that ship loss was the magic moment (provided players had understanding, hope, and support), we now have Rattati on stage saying that he is very concerned about newbro griefing, and presenting a slide that looks like it was authored by someone who wants permanent green safeties in highsec. Not only is this absolutely terrible analysis, but I want to know why CCP is suddenly singing a different tune. I mean, did something that was previously a “myth” suddenly stop being a myth? Or are they trying to lay the groundwork for throwing ganking under the bus?
Of course, this is definitely tin foil hat territory here. And there are other possible explanations, such as meaning and nuance being lost by trying compress a complex topic down into to two minutes of presentation, and good old-fashioned bad analysis. The problem with that, however, is that I don’t think CCP is a bunch of idiots, the way other players do. And I certainly don’t believe that they’re actually so stupid to actually believe the things written on that slide. I mean, there’s degrees of stupidity, and this slide looks like it was written by a card carrying member of the green safety brigade, who has no actual knowledge of ganking, and is basing his analysis entirely on misconceptions.
Anyway, this post is long enough, and I have other stuff to do. So, instead of getting into the weeds of all the problems of this slide, instead let me point you to this other wall of text.
It’s Not a Problem
It’s Not a Problem
It’s Not a Problem
It’s a Problem!!!
Alright, that’s enough. Of course, I want to argue with you about some other stuff, but I got other stuff to work on.
Edit: Fixed a few errors.