Ever played poker? Playing with and without real money are two completely different games. As long as we aren't talking scummy DLC tactics like Zynga's, I think it's a great idea, but it's obviously only something skilled developers should use.
I'm not complaining these games exist, I just don't see the appeal. It's not a critique, just an observation. But to people who are into this whole "buying excitement linearly by the dollar" thing the occasional loss of a $9000 spaceship should not be that shocking.
"I'm not complaining these games exist...But to people who are into this whole 'buying excitement linearly by the dollar' thing"
I realize you said that this was "not a critique" but most of your comments, especially this little gem, come off _very condescending_. When you preface your comment with "I'm not complaining that these games exist" you have to realize that what follows is a critique? Similarly when I hear someone start off a sentence with "I'm not racist but" I know some ignorant shit is about to be said.
As far as video games go, Eve is so different than the kind I enjoy (CoD/BF) that it is hard to believe they are in the same category of leisure activities. Half the reason I watched as much of the replay as I did was that I was hoping someone was going to yell "LEROY JENKINS!" But I also watched as much as I did because it is interesting to see people (that are very different than me) playing a game they deeply enjoy.
Can I ever imagine playing Eve? Not a chance. But that does not mean I am going to try and pass my condescending passive aggressive bullshit critique off as a rational analysis of why people should not get emotionally invested in their hobbies. As far as I can tell there is nothing "linear" about playing Eve.
I have to imagine that if you put your favorite hobby on display everyone could come up with equally witty ways of demeaning your personal choices/preferences.
There are a lot of games where you're paying a fixed price or at least a comparatively minor contribution that isn't necessarily tied to the level of enjoyment or participation you get from it. In these cases, you're expending the monetary equivalent of activation energy and then the game is basically whatever you make of it.
At the other end of the spectrum are games where you have to make an ongoing investment to get something out of the game that matches this investment with a linear factor or worse. Online Poker would probably be an example, but it lacks the social pressure exerted by some MMOs, games where you actually feel you're going to a kind of workplace and where real money is at stake constantly (which in turn is a large part of the players' motivation to achieve things).
Diablo III made me feel this way, for instance, it's more a free market simulation than an action RPG. Eve would be in that category, too. Many other MMOs either discourage trading for money and/or are making time and effort the primary player currency. Contrast this with games where real money is closely coupled with any kind of high-level content.
EVE I can see myself playing enough to destroy my life, money or no money. It scares me. Poker is a different kind of money game.
Poker seems fascinating, but the problem is the money.
If poker wasn't about money, the ideal players to play with are a bit better than me. Since it is about money, the ideal players to play with are overconfident drunks/halfwits with money. Just not fun.
EVE: Very true. It's a game that's entirely possible to get involved in to a level that is a different kind of obsessed than, say, WOW.
EVE is all about people, interaction, politics, planning. WOW Raids, however complex thy get at higher levels, just can't ever compare. I've started, and stopped playing, many times, because of it.
Money isn't the problem, it's the entire reason the game is so engaging.
If poker wasn't about money it would be a different game. There has to be an element of risk otherwise decisions do not have any consequences. Without consequences there is no incentive to attempt to play in an optimal manner.
The problem is a player's aversion to risk and fear of loss, both of which are important psychological elements when playing the game.
