Review by Gork, Leader of B U L L D O G guild: Where new players are welcome and will receive our full support.
This is a true to form remake of a game which is about 20 years old. I played the original and it is what got me hooked on online PC gaming. At its most basic, you hunt and kill AI, gain XP and earn money (DC). You can also trade to make better DC. with more XP and DC, you can buy better ships and modules. with additional research, you can unlock more areas in space to earn better Xp and DC. There are those who may seek to hunt and kill you, but then there are those who will come to your aide and fight to protect you. People band together and form Guilds, and guilds band together to form alliances. Guilds may control planets and earn extra income. What makes this game good for me is the community of players and there is always somebody around to speak with, in my 4 weeks of playing, I have not encountered an unkind player in the community! I enjoy a quiet solo grind for XP, and equally engaging with the latest gossip on politics. the game is still very new following its steam release and so the active community are enjoying largely peacefull progress - but that wont last for long. Alliances are already forming and wars are breaking out. People are wrestling for early power before the masses from steam join and unsettle the powers of old.
After playing the original of this game, and later EVE Online for many years, I can say with experience that this game is a far far more simple version of Eve online, requiring less time commitment and allowing more instant gratification. It is far more simple, and lacking some of the complexity, but that is both a strength and weakness for Eve online. My advice is to play a while and form your own oppinion.
The Devs are releasing patches every week or two and intermittantly as required, which is great to see on an already accomplished game. That said, there are still lots of little improvements that can and I am sure will be made.
The graphics are basic, but that adds to the charm. Enjoy the gameplay, political and strategic elements instead.
The UI could be better, but I trust this will develop over time.
Real money purchase - I spend real money on this game to support the Devs, but I guarantee this doesnt really provide a material boost (its about 3% more XP and DC). You can half the speed of your research for about $1 a pop, which saves you many hours of researching however the research allows you access to things you will naturally unlock over time anyway, unless you are playing say more than 4 hours a day you are unlikely to notice any difference and EVEN THEN in a couple of weeks you will be back on a level playing field with all those who paid just for an early game boost. Its like getting to top level quicker, at which point everybody is equal again.
Right now I would say the game is somewhere between an open beta and live release stage, because it functions well enough with the odd laggy bit of functionality and server down time when the devs patch and improve it. stats and AI are being tweaked for a happy balance.
As a rough guess I would say there are about 60 active players right now, and I feel this will explode over time as steam provides a steady flow of new users. My advice to anybody reading this right now is give the game a go, it is completely free and IS NOT pay to win. If you enjoy it, you may enjoy a little boost and choose to pay a small amount of real life money to support the devs, who have put thousands of dollars and hours of their time into developing this game.
The benefit of joining at this early stage is that you will have an easier time establishing yourself as a strong player and will be part of the community from the outset.
As with any online game, its the game that hooks you but the community that keeps you. My advice would be to find a guild of likeminded players through talking in general and whisper and join ASAP. they will help you. The community and content outside of the game is still in its infancy, and so its super important to speak with others and get help and advice early on if you want to thrive. Alternativly, just larp around the place and have fun. early game losses are not costly. The in game quests are very basic and of little value right now but its another thing to work towards.
Should anybody reading this review wish to contact me in game then it would be a honour to help you and fly besides you. Message or game mail GORK or apply to guild B U L L D O G in game and we will be happy to help you.
