The Daily Grind: Will you be trying out DUST 514?
With the announcement out of GamesCom a couple of days ago, EVE Online players have been buzzing. The new project revealed by CCP, DUST 514, seems like one of the most ambitious things we've heard in some time. Not only are CCP intending to build a completely new MMO strictly for the console, but they're tying that MMO into their other property. Unbalancing EVE Online could upset a great deal of hardcore followers and result in a very large loss of revenue for their company. That said, if they are able to pull it off, without a doubt we'll be witnessing a fairly large evolution of the genre. Companies will likely stop trying to figure out how to shoehorn extant MMOs on consoles (where they have patching issues thus making it prohibitive) and perhaps look into making separate but complimentary MMOs that can play well together instead.
Now having said that, the question is how many MMO players will likely make the jump into an FPS environment on a console to play in the EVE Online IP? As much as I personally tend to suck at FPS games (ask anyone who has played L4D with me, seriously) I really love EVE and have to admit I'm looking forward to playing DUST 514. Truthfully, my little industrial corp really won't likely ever be hiring DUST mercs to protect Sovereign space (we'd have to get some first). But the idea of playing on the planet as a gateway to building connections with a corp and making some ISK sounds like tons of fun. Especially as I have a lot of FPS-fiend friends that I could likely talk into playing with me.
What do you think? Do you think MMO players and FPS players can successfully play together? Is there enough crossover? Will FPS players care, or will it be purely about the ISK, with the highest bidder getting the best players? Are you looking forward to (or dreading) the ramifications of DUST 514 when it comes to control in your corp's Sovereign space? Or are you one of the folks like me who is in a corp that doesn't have Sov, and thinks this could be a fun way to potentially make some ISK - and connections - from the couch while enjoying a nice change of pace? For those of you of a more sinister bent, are you already targeting which corps you plan to merc out as a DUST soldier and then screw over? The questions are myriad - so we'd love to hear from you! Will you be checking DUST 514?
