FW is a great way to make isk and have fun all at the same time. Between LP and loot/salvage, in addition to the missions if you even want to run missions still for some ungodly reason, you’ll make more than enough to plex your account and fund pvp activities.
“Trying out different aspects of the game” is handled just fine by level 1 missions. The gameplay difference between level 3 and level 4 missions is negligible, the only reason anyone wants access to level 4 missions is for the extra ISK. And that’s not about trying out new things to see if you want to subscribe, it’s demanding more free stuff so you don’t have to pay for the game.
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The amount of dumb, thoughtless pseudo arguments the opponents of this change are coming up with is further proof that locking out lvl4s is far from enough.
Are there any actually smart people who believe that it’s a bad idea to lock Alphas out from lvl4s?
ANYONE?
For the TL;DR crowd:
Alphas are needed, so restore access toLv4/5 missions.
Most of the arguements against seem to be semi-political judgey non-sense or class warfare crap, with little understanding of the current gaming industry.
The highest grossing gaming business model is free-to-play, that’s just the reality right now, and it’s really CCP that needs to adapt or die. Alphas are needed in EVE, for the minimum reason that MMO’s have a critical mass of population required before they start to “feel empty”. Once population dips below that, players start departing in a mass exodus. I know, cause i’ve left really good MMO’s for that very reason. EVE’s population seems to have been stagnant since I’ve returned over a year ago, and in such a competitive environment, if a game isn’t growing, it’s dying.
And taking away content isn’t going to help the game grow, if anything EVE needs more content, especially missions, no new content has been added in years. There are many posts in these forums showing that punishing alphas isn’t going to solve the botting problem, the botters are just gonna bot the next highest income stream, while CCP will lose more population. A certain percentage of alphas convert to subs, so CCP needs more alphas not less. And NO ONE should be complaining. More alphas provide more targets for gankers, more fodder for wars, more market activity since they’re still progressing, and again, making the place not feel so empty.
The alpha program worked for me. Returned after a long break to do some mission running. Remembered that I enjoyed it and other activities, and converted to sub for 7 months, then went back to alpha to wait for new content. Switched to Abyss for now, but it’s really just kinda meh.
Pretty much every relationship is based on “what have you done for me lately?” Businesses need to earn and re-earn their customers every day, and not take them for granted, or they will find someplace else. CCP should restore level 4/5 missions and add new ones. Most players have to grind something to fuel their other EVE activities, and Lv4 mission running is just right balance of risk/reward/relaxation grinding for many of us. Taking away missions isn’t going to motivate me to re-sub. I miss my Kronos, which already requires omega. Personally, that plus more new content, just might get me to pay up again.
Counter-argument: mission runners add absolutely nothing to the game outside of a few market transactions. All of them could ragequit and hardly anyone would notice their absence.
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Counter-counter-argument: more class warfare non-sense. As I’ve said, EVE’s population is stagnant, can it really afford to lose more people? And it will keep losing more if it continues down the wrong path. If you’re invested enough in this game to sub, you have more to lose than I do, if the game tanks. CCP’s contract with PA supposedly has performance goals, and they don’t seem to going in the right direction. The clock is ticking…
Again, mission runners add nothing to the game. If they’re alpha accounts they aren’t paying any subscription fees, and they certainly aren’t adding any meaningful player interaction. If anything cleaning up all the alpha trash means less server load for CCP and better finances.
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And once again, more class warfare nonsense.
As i’ve said, a percentage of alphas convert to subs, so each alpha is “potential “ revenue, and the group taken as a whole is ACTUAL revenue. What business throws away revenue? That’s just dumb.
CCP has to maintain server capacity of 60,000+ players anyways, with average of 20,000-30,000. More than enough capacity. So exactly how much money would they save by losing some alphas? None… absolutely none… Either bad logic or bad trolling. 
Sorry, but “worthless carebear parasites” are not a class.
As i’ve said, a percentage of alphas convert to subs, so each alpha is “potential “ revenue, and the group taken as a whole is ACTUAL revenue. What business throws away revenue? That’s just dumb.
Then they can convert to being paying customers and get access to level 4 missions. The people lobbying for level 4 missions to be available to alphas aren’t potential customers who want to try PvE before committing, they’re parasites who want to farm at maximum ISK/hour without ever having to pay for a subscription. Making high-end content available to alphas just removes the incentive to become customers instead of parasites.
CCP has to maintain server capacity of 60,000+ players anyways, with average of 20,000-30,000. More than enough capacity. So exactly how much money would they save by losing some alphas? None… absolutely none… Either bad logic or bad trolling.
If the alpha parasites are removed then maybe they only have to maintain server capacity for 50,000 players with an average of 15-25,000. And because the alpha parasites are mission runners contributing nothing to the game CCP doesn’t lose any revenue and the players don’t lose any meaningful interaction.
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Troll is now obvious troll.
The rest is just more smelly troll bait… 
So if you want Lev4s, convert to subs.
You get Lev 4s
Eve gets more revenue
You get to prove your point that alphas = revenue
Everybody wins!
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Alphas that provide content are needed. Alphas running level 4’s haven’t been providing content.
Make alphas better at providing content (and posting on the forums, wow.). Not grinding.
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/me agrees 
(I don’t care about the discussion, just this one part - alphas alts on the forum look a lot like “we deserve this so give us this”. )
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CCP needs to go even further in reducing the impact of non revenue generating Alpha pilots in EVE. Next, CCP should remove the use of all Navy versions (VNI) and all pirate factions (Gila,Rattlenake, and Mach) from Alpha use. I’m tired of seeing flocks of non paying alpha pilots flood exploration sites in VNIs and Gilas, reducing my opportunities and enjoyment as a paying customer. I’m also finding many of these “pilots” are apparent bot accounts repurposed from running level 4 missions. In addition, the number of alpha accounts mining in Apoc battleships is reaching insane levels. Just had an 8 account crew stripping ores 24/7 in the next system with their accompanying ore hauler shipping to the station.
It is stupid to allow free and easily replaced accounts have such a large impact on CCP’s paying customers. If everyone that was alpha “behaved” themselves, then perhaps it could work. However, we are getting people who generate dozens of Alpha accounts for both botting and widespread afk activities; activites that diminish the paying customers enjoyment and rewards. It’s too bad that some Alpha accounts ruined the opportunities for others, perhaps it’s a cultural thing, but whatever the initial cause or genesis, CCP had to step in and re establish sound business practices. Unfortunately, CCP still has a long way to go to close most of the loopholes.
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I for one am glad of the change…it will affect the courier bots, and even for those few mission bots in vexors or VNI’s will be affected.
This is a good change for the entire community and the in game economy.
If an alpha wants the content…then he needs to subscribe, nuff said…those arguing against the change are like those arguing against a Drinking age law, an age rule entering in a nightclub…or even the “you have to be this tall to ride” rule… this change is for your own safety and the safety of the company.
Hopefully this makes it easier to detect bots when they try to plex 300+accounts at once to access lv4 content so they can be banned immediately.
bottom line: T;LDR: If you want the content, pay up, that is no different than any other game, or go away.
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You are all just skim reading the posts, so why bother replying…?
The OP and I have already stated that we have subbed. Mission running content is maybe about a $50 console game worth of content, and it’s stale. I personally have already donated at least a couple years worth of sub, I’ve already paid for the content many times over.
And you all are assuming motivations. Mission running is like any other kind of grinding in EVE, it’s to fuel other activities, such as my PvP alt. I have never plexed, my time is too valuable to grind for that. I used to pay $100/mo for console games, so subbing is nothing.
So why ask to restore Alpha Lv4 missions? It was pretty much the only thing keeping me logging into the game, which allowed me to keep up with news and hoping, waiting for new good content. CCP give me new reasons to sub! But if I fade out from this game, it could be for good, I don’t know…
The point is, if a bakery is serving stale bread, do you keep going there, or do you find somewhere serving fresh bread?? CCP is the one that needs to adapt or die. Sure the game has been around for 15 years, and I hope it keeps going. But they seem to always be in danger of losing population, cause they certainly aren’t growing.
My motivation for these postings is to try to help CCP understand where some of us are coming from. It’s a new world out there in the gaming industry, free-to-play is dominating, BY FAR. This will be my last post in this thread, you all can have the last word, whatevs. It’s really for CCP’s ears anyways.
But you know it’s never “free”? Somebody has to pay the cheque for the developers. “Modern” free-to-play games make the life of freeloaders as miserable as possible.
Actually CCP just did that, by removing L4s from Alphas. 
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Who said we were talking about you?
You said the game needs alphas.
I say it needs content producing alphas. And they don’t need level 4’s for that.
let’s call them “social alphas”.