I agree on Cyno changes. They got me too. But this thread is about noobs. It took me 4 yrs of play to undock a Dread.
Returning players is different. Multi-alt etc is way above most Noob’s set-ups ( they might have 2 accounts ).
I agree on Cyno changes. They got me too. But this thread is about noobs. It took me 4 yrs of play to undock a Dread.
Returning players is different. Multi-alt etc is way above most Noob’s set-ups ( they might have 2 accounts ).
Ooh wow! Nail on head.
But then some rich old players won’t be happy with that.
Sorry missed one of your posts
To clarify, I’m not advocating destroying high sec or the new player experience. I’m advocating retaining null sec players I see leaving. I think we need a design direction that satisfies new and old players alike. There is this misconception that new players are somehow getting dumped by null seccers, it’s utter nonsense, you can’t cyno in dreads/carriers/supers into high sec and if you want to fly in null then you’re best off joining a null alliance for protection from all ship types (deleting caps won’t help you fly in null without being in a null alliance).
For balance, high sec alliances need to be compelling to, one area for QOL changes would be war deccing which is still rampant.
I’m advocating a design direction that both brings in new players as well as retains the old. Make high sec, null sec, WHs and the NPE all compelling to the various types of player they are aimed at. Don’t nerf the NPE or null or WHs and expect those pilots to stay.
Any other design is just folly, you’ll lose more players than you bring in imo which is what we’re seeing in the stats if you pay attention to the Eve Offline website. CCP are beginning to realise that the majority of pilots fly outside of high sec, which only became apparent to them after the last CSM summit. It took some firm words for them to understand.
All my ships are purchased via isk earned through playing the game, I consider ships to be tools that will eventually break; and I never fly anything I can’t afford to replace at least 5 times over.
Well, in June only 4% of newbs lasted past 3 months.
It’s actually 2.5% at the 90 day mark, the 4% figure is for 30 days; both of which are still a better retention rate than many of Eve’s competitors, especially in the F2P/freemium segment of the market which is the one that Eve occupies. I did a long-assed post on exactly that a few days ago in another thread.
Expectations are everything!
I like many of yourselves have been around long enough and given more than enough input to CCP on this subject for them to at least get half a clue on why players don’t stick around.
I do believe there is one single thing CCP could do at the very beginning of the NPE which would help every single new player.
A short video that explains no matter where you are in space, be it high, low, null sec or wormhole space that there is a chance you can be killed by so called friendly ships/players.
Explain that concord will not protect them in high sec, Ever!
Clearly explain the following. local chat and it’s uses, how to set standings on a player, Corp or Alliance and how to spot them in local.
How to make a book mark while in space and its uses, instant undock/warp to undock at zero/safe spots that are not at celestial objects.
Warn them about the dangers of going AFK while in space and why it’s a really bad thing to do.
How to use D-scan and it’s uses.
Strongly advise players to join with other players as soon as possible in group activities (join a Corp)
I do believe if this video was present at the very beginning of playing the game, if it was presented in a jaw dropping eye candy EVE type of way and it wasn’t too long, it would go a long way in helping people understand what they are getting themselves into when they begin their journey in EVE.
Too many expect to be protected by NPCs /concord because of how concord is presented to them, it leads to them into believing high security space is safe when it is not!
PVP exists everywhere in EVE and that really needs to be explained to every single new player very clearly and a short video would be more than enough to explain that.
Just had a thought on this.
What if CCP created a new mission for new players called Wing Man.
Mission is available from all level 1 agents.
1: New player accepts Wing Man mission.
2: Wing Man mission becomes available from all level 4 agents.
3: vet player accepts Wing Man mission from level 4 agent which hooks them up with the new player.
4: Wing Man mission has multiple parts which cover, joining a fleet, creating a fleet, how to align and warp as a fleet, understanding how to use local and overview, how to navigate to avoid or find targets, how to scram a target, how to avoid being scrammed or breaking the scram, how to use D-scan, how to probe.
I’m sure I’ve left out a few new player things there, but ya get the point I’m sure.
Give a reward to the vet for taking the mission and a reward to the new pilot for doing it.
When the mission is almost complete give the new player a flight ready exam to complete.
Doesn’t matter if the google and cheat on the answers, at least they are reading and learning regardless
It’s a win win really, new player learns something worth while and gets some in game rewards.
Vet gets a reward for helping the new guy, hell I’ve even make a medal and award it to players who help the new guys and complete these.
But people will take advantage of these and gank new guys!
Nope!
Ban hammer says no!
Ban anyone who takes advantage of the mission to kill a new player.
What about people farming them?
New players can do them a limited amount of times.
No it’s not, the topic is how to get more people to play Eve Online. My idea is to bring back some of the players lost (7k drop since late May - just as the HAW cap nerf happened):
https://eve-offline.net/?server=tranquility
The game has hemorrhaged a ton of null sec players and, with less sand in the null sec sandpit, it doesn’t feel as active which will only compound the problem. Remember it can take years for a new player to graduate from high to null, there is a long tail to keep null populated. CCP shouldn’t be risking losing all those null subs through constant null nerfs (HAW, cyno changes, blackout, sleeper invasion).
The point I’ve made in numerous posts is to incentivise both newbs and vets alike, keep both playing / staying. If you purely focus on the NPE you’re going to lose more subs than you bring in from new players, we’re seeing that in the Eve Offline stats.
There is a lot of posting on these forums (a LOT) saying that null sec is broken, without much explanation of what the problem is. I think the only problem is that a lot of nullsec isk gets dumped into the hisec economy, rather than getting consumed in nullsec.
Other than that, the nullsec players should be free to shape nullsec however they want. If they want null sec to comprise endless fleets of rorqual krabs? Meh.
People forget that we have wormholes. Most of the content people seem to want in nullsec is exactly what wormholes provide. They even have the blackout!
You cannot just tell CCP to “break up” the Imperium, for example. A lot of players like nullsec the way it is. How is the Imperium hurting anything? Just don’t go to Delve.
should be.
YOU ARE GOING TO DIE! MANY TIMES!
That works too
Not that it would work anyway, the Imperium’s power being based on their out of game social tools and infrastructure, CCP can’t touch that.
Amen to that, completely and wholeheartedly agree!
Precisely, Imperium, TEST (my alliance), NC, Frat, AoM etc all have massive player bases and social structures outside of the game. It’s the strength in numbers that provides the power, not the titans/supers/rorqs etc they are flying. Goons would continue to dominate if caps were deleted from the game.
It feels like high sec players carry a lot of resentment, maybe they don’t feel included, but they could all freely join a null alliance if they want null sec content, they all openly recruit newbies now including NC and PL.
Some do, some don’t; although the resentment brigade seem to be the most vocal.
I’m a hisec mission runner and industrialist, I consider figuring out how not to get caught out by the stuff Eve is renowned for to be just as much part of Eve as the stuff people constantly whine about because they can’t figure out how to minimise their risk of exploding.
I see the challenges presented by other players, in all aspects of the game, as obstacles to be overcome; others see them as insurmountable barriers that can only be “fixed” by changing the game.
We all have access to the same game mechanics and using them to leverage the odds in your favour is very much a part of the game, whether you are a noncombatant like myself or someone who shoots people in the face because they can.
Game’s principal mechanincs are just shite, and always have been.
Better games out there now, and I take better gameplay over a virtual mmo universe anyday now.
The true large scale mmo sandbox trend came and left boys and gals, let’s face it.
Go play Candy Crush, then.
While you’re entitled to your opinion, others will have differing opinions which they’re just as entitled to. Opinions are neither right nor wrong, an opinion being a viewpoint that isn’t necessarily based on facts or knowledge.
Better games out there now, and I take better gameplay over a virtual mmo universe anyday now.
Kindly stop shitting up our game forums with your poisonous bile then, instead post on the forums of the games that you do play.
The true large scale mmo sandbox trend came and left boys and gals, let’s face it.
The whole MMO genre is commonly accepted as having been in decline for some years now, not just sandboxes.
You are just trolling. Why are you on the Eve forums telling us that Eve is a lost cause and that we should just give up and stop playing?
Ermm, I never said you should stop playing, really I’m sure there’s still a lot to be done ingame until its inevitable end.
Just stating the context behind its decline, and that it would be near impossible to get what we had back when mmo’s were popular culture.
I could be wrong though, it’s a trend thing, and trends tend to fire back with long term nostalgia… just like the 80s did …
Spreadsheets ?
The Stonemasons still have members, so Eve has a chance.