Free-to-Play EVE Online

Incarna and the NeX store have been sidelined and presumably with them CCP's plans to experiment with EVE Online's subscription model. The brave folly of Incarna development was an attempt to make EVE Online attractive to a new demographic whilst introducing a new revenue stream. Sadly, neither is looking likely to happen in the immediate future.

But what if CCP could offer the EVE Online experience to players for free beyond the current 14- and 21-day trials. What if a free-to-play model (with microtransactions) could co-exist alongside the current subscription model in complete harmony? I think it's possible and here's how.

The lore of EVE often references ships commanded by non-capsuleers, however the only time they are encountered in-game is as hostile NPCs, the Law Enforcement presence seen at high-sec gates (and gank-sites) or the occasional trade caravan near stations. Why not let free-to-play customers add to this population of proletariat spacefarers.

I give you the free-to-play 'Captain' account.

Something similar to the existing trial account restrictions should remain in place (cruiser-sized vessels and smaller only, no Tech II ships) but perhaps with some tweaking, such as allowing Tech I industrials and Planetary Interaction.

The significant distinction between Free-to-Play (Captain) and Subscription (Capsuleer) accounts would be the means of controlling the vessel. Without the hyper-augmented abilities of a capsuleer, operating anything but the smallest of craft is a much more challenging task requiring multiple conventionally-trained individuals. However, whilst total crew numbers vary from vessel to vessel, the Captain and his command crew would be a constant and ever-present team.

Initially, the new player would start off with enough Aurum (1000?) to hire a skeleton Command Crew from the NeX Academy to suit his chosen style of play.

A more talented Captain and/or additional officers would be recruited from the NeX Academy as funds allow. It is through the recruitment of command staff with the appropriate skill-sets that the player would tailor his Command Crew's ability and therefore ship performance. Whilst a player's officer roster can hold as many officers as the player is willing to purchase, only the selected 'active' officers will be counted toward the Command Crew skillset. The Command Crew must comprise one Captain and up to four other officers.

In the event of ship destruction, the basic escape pod will only save one randomly determined officer. More advanced escape pods with additional capacity will be available in the NeX Store to allow players to protect their investment.

Rank	Name	Race/BL	Skills	Morale Bonus	Traits	Hire Cost (AUR)
Captain	M.Starter	Min/Brutor	Spaceship Cmd. I Minmatar Frig. II	Evasive Maneuvering	Hero	0
Captain	L.Esskrap	Min/Seb	Spaceship Cmd II Minmatar Frig. III Gallente Frig. II	Evasive Maneuvering	Motivator	150
Captain	B.Astard	Ama/Ama	Spaceship Cmd IV Amarr Frigate IV Destroyer III Amarr Cruiser II	Navigation	Racist (Minmatar)	800
Gunnery Officer	H.Trigger	Min/Seb	Gunnery II Small Proj. Turret II	Targeting Speed	Coward	50
Gunnery Officer	Deadeye Jim	Cal/Det	Gunnery IV Sm. Hybrid Turret IV Sm. Proj. Turret III Med. Hybrid Turret I Sharpshooter III Trajectory Analysis III	Rapid Firing	Weak	500
Helmsman	P. Star	Gal/Jin	Navigation III Afterburner II Evasive M'vering III	Navigation	Motivator	200
Chief Engineer	E.Mon	Cal/Civ	Engineering III Shield Operation III Shield Upgrades II	Engineering	Focused	200
Lead Mechanic	M.Rench	Min/Vhe	Mechanic III Exp. Armor Comp. III Jury Rigging III Armor Rigging III	Repair Systems	Patriot	500
Electronics Specialist	S.Parks	Cal/Ach	Electronics IV Signature Analysis III Propulsion Jamming II	Long Range Targeting	Miserable	300
Diplomat	S.Nothings	Ama/Kha	Diplomacy III Fast Talk III Financial Conn. III	Leadership	Judgemental	200
Trader	G.Gecko	Gal/Gal	Trade III Retail II Procurement II	Negotiation	Addict	150

This is just an example table, the values are all approximate and haven't been properly balanced and calculated, but you get the idea. The system actively simplifies skill acquisition for the Captain account holder, very much in line with the existing Skill Certification system. For further simplification, purchasable starter crew bundles could be available in the NeX Academy.

The distribution of recruits with particular skills could be an immersive way to reinforce racial diversification across New Eden. If a player is looking to recruit a Projectile Gunnery specialist, he would need to travel to Minmatar space. If a Drone specialist with Missile skills is required, the player might need to locate a Creodron station in Caldari space. If he wants a Captain that can fly a Succubus, he'll have to head out into hostile Sansha territory.

The Traits system is designed to add a little personality to the characters, affecting how the crew interacts with one another and the world around them. It is also one part of the Command Crew system that could also benefit Capsuleer account holders. Well you didn't think I was going to let the freeloaders have all the crew management fun did you?

The command crew, whether they constitute the entirety of a frigate crew compliment or are the senior officers aboard a cruiser with 500 hands, will be influential characters in dictating how the ship is run. Their ability to work as a team would reflect on the effectiveness of ship operation. The scuttlebutt in the engine rooms might be that the chief engineer is a miserable sod, whilst the gunnery teams idolise their senior officer. The galley might be awash with rumours that the Minmatar Science Officer has got it in for the Amarrian Captain. Or perhaps the command crew are a dream-team that operate like a finely tuned machine.

It is their traits that decide how the officers interact, the end result being a Crew Morale score ranging from +5 to -5. In the case of a positive bonus, this can be conferred to the Morale Bonus of any one of the active Command Crew. In the case of a negative Crew Morale, this always affects the Captain's Morale Bonus.

Essentially, the sum result would be a bonus of up to 5% on any one given skill, which is effectively the same as a single high-end implant. [This could be restricted to 3% if this concept makes the anti-“pay-to-win” zealots foam at the mouth, or indeed removed entirely. Doing so would make Command Crews simply a cosmetic feature on Capsuleer accounts.]

For example, let's assume I am new to EVE and have just activated my free-to-play Captain account. After choosing the starting location of Bourynes in Gallente space, instead of the character creation screen I find myself viewing the NeX Academy Recruitment Centre interface. Whilst looking through the list of available personnel I can admire the stunning realism of each potential recruit as they are rendered in the Carbon engine.

I have 1000 Aurum to spend on my first crew and I've read that combat missions are a good way to get into the game, so I go for this crew set-up.

My First Active Command Crew

	Rank	Name	Race/BL	Skills	Morale Bonus	Trait	Cost(AU)
1	Captain	L. Esskrap	Min/Seb	Spaceship Cmd II Minmatar Frig. III Gallente Frigate II	Evasive Maneuvering	Motivator	100
2	Gunnery Officer	Deadeye Jim	Cal/Det	Gunnery IV Sm. Hyb. Turret IV Sm. Proj. Turret III Med. Hyb. Turret I Sharpshooter III Traj. Analysis III	Rapid Firing	Weak	500
3	Helmsman	P. Star	Gal/Jin	Navigation III Afterburner II Evasive M'vering III	Navigation	Motivator	200
4	Chief Engineer	E.Mon	Cal/Civ	Engineering III Shield Operation III Shield Upgrades II	Engineering	Focused	200
5	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

I don't quite have the Aurum to fill the last spot on my command crew, but I want to see if I like the game before I consider paying any real money. I've got enough of a skills base to get me into any Tech I Minmatar frigate I can afford, although I am going to have to shield tank it until I can hire a decent mechanic. The Command Crew seem to get on pretty well and have got a Morale rating of +3. My Gunnery Officer is potentially a bad apple, but his skills more than make up for that.

Looking at the Morale Bonus settings on my crew roster, I see that I have a choice of Evasive Maneuvering, Navigation, Rapid Firing or Engineering to which I can confer the +3% bonus my highly-motivated Command Crew give me. I'll go with the default Captain's bonus of Evasive Maneuvering for now as it'll make my ship a bit more agile, but the interface looks simple enough to change on the fly.

Happy with my recruitment, I admire my newly hired motley crew as they lounge around in my Captain's Quarters. They look cool; my Captain is looking thoughtful as he sits on the couch, the Gunnery Officer and the Chief Engineer are on the balcony admiring my newly purchased Burst frigate, and the Helmsman is reclining on the bed. I feel like I'm in an episode of Firefly. They're a scruffy bunch though, maybe I should invest in some uniforms...

Although this is a speculative bit of game design, I really think something along these lines could use existing EVE Online resources to achieve a lot of what Incarna was meant to do. It would make best use of the Carbon engine, the Captain's Quarters and the NeX Store to provide an engaging and immersive gaming experience that would encourage emotional attachment (and possibly financial investment) in new, casual, experienced and veteran players alike.

Additionally, the actual gameplay content would be of value to both Captain and Capsuleer account holders and is meaningful enough to be fun and engaging without being unbalancing. The most significant impact the system could have, if players were prepared to scour New Eden for all the high-end recruits, would be to a have a single +5% bonus to a given statistic. Hardly game-breaking and, as mentioned earlier, can be reduced or left out entirely from premium Capsuleer accounts if "Pay2Win" concerns are an issue.

As importantly (especially for the CCP money men), it provides an alternative non-subscription gaming style that might attract more curious or casual players without interfering with the status quo. If anything, the introduction of player-controlled non-capsuleer vessels would only enrich the universe of New Eden.