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Giving players the control stick in EVE Online
We heard yesterday that EVE Online is set to start elections for the player council in May, and James over at Kill Ten Rats echoes pretty well the same thoughts that I (and others) have had about this whole idea: is it a good one?It's an interesting idea, to be sure, and if you listen to the people who had it (in our interview with them), it's a great idea. Instead of worrying about the vagaries of forum feedback and CM involvement, the devs are really hoping to have the game really run according to player concerns, allowing "emergent behavior" to appear on a vast scale. But there are lots of problems that could easily arise -- as James says, the players' roles aren't too specifically defined, so what if they decide to ban a corporation from the game, or purposely unbalance the economy?
The architects of EVE society talk player elections
The Game Developer's Conference is a fantastic time to get under the surface of new announcements and game concepts. At GDC, the newest and greatest element in CCP's EVE Online – the one everyone wanted to talk about – was the ambulation system coming soon to a space station near you. Unfortunately the only place the developers of the unique single-server space title were willing to talk about that was 'on-stage' during a session. We covered that session and so we knew there was no way we were getting it any better than that ... but with some time free in the busy CCP schedule we still had the chance to ask some questions. So instead CCP CEO Hilmar Petursson, EVE Online's very own in-house economist Dr. Eyjólfur "Eyjo" Guðmundsson, and Community Researcher/Developer Petur Oskarsson gathered around a small table in their jet-black show booth to answer some questions about a slightly more esoteric subject: the Council of Stellar Management. Earlier today we brought you the general details, but this afternoon we have the word straight from the researcher's mouth. Why set up a governing body? What are the benefits? How does this tie into CCP's economic research mandate? And ultimately ... what does it mean for you as a player? Read on to find out.
Elections for EVE's player council begin in May
MMO players have long regarded the depths of EVE Online as a unique environment - in many ways a unique experience far removed from the simpler plots and machinations of fantasy games. EVE society is typified by vicious politics, corporate skulduggery -- and now democratic elections. The Council of Stellar Management (CSM), announced at last November's CCP Fan Fair, is set to be the first democratically elected body representing the citizens of an online game. They'll have direct contact with the developers and a voice in how the future of EVE plays out.More details have become available as CCP lays out the groundwork for the elections to begin! The call for candidates began yesterday, so if you're thinking about making the jump into politics now is the time to act. Candidate entries will no longer be accepted past April 1st, which gives players about a month to campaign for their cause. Elections will begin on May 5th, run for two weeks, and we should know who the first members of the Council are as of May 21st. For full details CCP has put up a pair of PDFs on the program, one laying out the background and reasons for the creation of the CSM, and the other offering up a summary of the Council's functions.Stay tuned later today for our interview with CCP CEO Hilmar Petursson, EVE economist Dr. Eyjólfur Guðmundsson, and Community Researcher/Developer Petur Oskarsson all about this unique project!
Expressing concerns for EVE Online's player-elected council
As a game developer, CCP has always been the type to do things in a rather unconventional way -- especially when it comes to how they choose to interact with their community. So it's safe to say their approach to dealing with public relations disasters -- such as the now-infamous T20 incident involving a CCP dev -- was going to be interesting. Their decision ended up being the formation of a player-elected council that would serve as a sort of advisory group to the CCP team.Well, Bitter Old Noob was kind enough to give a rundown on this new-fangled idea of putting a bit of democracy into our massively games. The whole post reads as decidedly concerned for what could essentially turn into a popularity contest with the wrong people getting elected and the possibility for CCP to stop listening to non-council players -- it's a valid concern. We'll just have to wait and see, though.Voting apparently begins in May, which gives players interested in earning one of the nine spots on the council time to start campaiging. We'll be keeping tabs on how this all ends up, because this the most extreme case of a developer trying to listen to the voice of their player-base.
