The suggestion by Geo Eclipse Oksaras about Eve University is well made. I was never a member, but if I knew what I know now, I definitely would have joined the minute I started playing because it really is a brilliant place to learn how to survive and thrive in the game.
Even if you don’t join, you should bookmark the Eve University UniWiki which has such a truly encyclopaedic depth of knowledge about the game that you’ll find yourself referring to it daily.
I’d also bookmark this post: Full list of EVE Guides in one place. It pretty much does what it says on the tin. Brilliant and indispensable.
The post above this one by Shipwreck Jones is worth a careful read because it does capture succinctly the essence of Eve. You will lose ships. It will sting. You will survive and hopefully you’ll learn and get better.
Eve is a slow burner, so don’t try to fly something big and flashy (and expensive) before you are comfortable enough in your skill level that the risk of loss is minimised. You might still lose it, but at least you’ll give 'em a fight.
Mike Azariah’s suggestion about Rookie Chat is also well made. Even after playing for a decade I’m still learning all the time (the game really is that vast) and this is one of the chat channels that I have perpetually open. Even if I I’m not actively chatting, I frequently see stuff where I think, “Wow! I never knew that.”
Rookie Chat and English Help Chat are both cool places where you’ll find lots of veteran players who are more than happy to help out newbies with advice and tips. You will occasionally encounter the odd butt head, but the vast majority of people there are pretty cool and friendly.
Lastly, please don’t listen to the people who’ll tell you with absolute authority that you’re playing it the wrong way. This is a fib - Eve Online is as varied and diverse as the people who play it and there’s no one’right’ way to play it.
This truism can, at the beginning, make the game seem bewilderingly complex and difficult to access for newbies and some people might feel like the proverbial deer caught in the headlights at this, but don’t panic!
Try everything that interests you, ask for advice in the right places and sooner or later you’ll find a niche that feels right to you, or even several different niches. You might end up as a miner, you might end up as an explorer, as a ganker, as an industrialist, or as a trader. Or something else entirely.
Fundamentally, if you’re enjoying the game that’s good and to hell with what others think.
Feel free to contact me in-game if you need help or want to chat.
