What returning EVE Online players need to know before undocking

This guide is based on a video by AloneInFinland, an EVE Online player and fantastic content creator who covers gameplay, fitting advice, and the state of the game from a veteran's perspective. Full credit to him for the insights, warnings, and hard-won lessons that follow. 

You can watch the original video on which this guide was built below. 👇

Overview

As I've mentioned before in recent posts, if you're coming back to EVE Online after a long break — whether that's five years or fifteen — there are a handful of changes that can ruin your day before you even realize what happened. In AloneInFinland's opinion, the biggest and most dangerous of these is the introduction of lawless systems in what used to be safe high-sec space. This guide walks you through what changed, how to protect yourself, and what else you should double-check before you undock that expensive ship.

Hauling safely in EVE Online: Hard-won lessons from high-sec gankers

After a few months back in New Eden, one major shift stands out from my time away since 2011: ganking in high-sec has gone from occasional chaos to predictable business. It's not random violence anymore—it's optimized, profit-driven hunting. Which means you need to stop thinking of high-sec as "mostly safe" and start thinking of it as "safe only if you're not worth killing."

This guide distills practical hauling wisdom I've been collecting as I rebuild my instincts. Most of it comes from watching experienced players review catastrophic losses—particularly MarkeeDragon's "Ganked Awards" killboard reviews, which are equal parts hilarious and educational.

If you're new to EVE, returning after years away, or just tired of losing ships you didn't need to lose, these rules will help.

EVE Blog Banter #25: And by Alliance you mean.....?

Welcome to the twenty-fifth installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week or so to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed to crazykinux@gmail.com. Check for other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

This month's topic comes to us from @Tetraetc - "Tetra's EVE Blog" - who asks: "Have Alliances and the sovereignty system limited the amount of PVP and RP potential in Null sec? Imagine a Null Sec where anyone could build outposts, wherever. Would the reduction of the Alliance game mechanic, and the removal of the sovereignty game mechanics (and the modifcation of it from Alliance level to Corp level for that matter) force more PVP into Null sec, or would giant power blocs like the NC still form themselves?"

This is one of those rare occasions where it's hard for me to state my opinion. The reason is simple: I just don't think I know enough to grasp the various issues at hand when it comes to Alliances, sovereignty and how all this ties into 0.0 space. I do understand the basics, but to actually suggest that the current alliance game mechanics have a positive or detrimental effect on PvP or RP, and be able to defend my arguments is beyond such understanding. 

DUST 514: EVE Online to get its First Person Shooter

Oh boy am I excited about this one! I've been dreaming for quite some time about an FPS for EVE, and now CCP has announced that its Shanghai studio has been working on such a game! I first mentioned this desire of mine back in May of last year when I hinted that an EVE Online shooter would look somewhat like the dark and gory Gears of War XBOX 360 game. Later that year we got a glimpse of such a game (check the last video) but the details weren't too clear. Was this some sort of tease, or teaser? And then as recently as June of this year, I wrote an article about a possible EVE FPS. Man do I like to be proven right!

Here are some additional details provided in the Press Release:

DUST 514, featuring first-person shooter and RTS-style gameplay, will interact directly with EVE Online, CCP’s critically acclaimed flagship MMO. This interplay between the two games opens the EVE universe to console gamers and gives them a chance to become part of one of the most massive cooperative play and social experiences ever.

[...]

The primary gameplay of DUST 514 features brutal ground combat that takes place on the surface of planets from EVE, delivering the visceral, adrenaline-fueled experience of futuristic firefights. Developed for the current generation of consoles, DUST 514 combines equal parts battlefield reflexes and strategic planning, giving commanders and ground infantry real-time configurable weapons and modular vehicles to manage dynamic battlefield conditions.

Now entering its third year of production, DUST 514 is the primary development focus of CCP’s Shanghai studio. The team includes veteran designers of EVE Online and experienced talent from various sectors of the video game industry.

Add to that the fact that the idea behind my latest contest is about integrating planetary conquest into the EVE the MMO, and you'll understand why I'm pretty proud of myself at this very moment!

OK, that's enough chest pounding alpha-male behavior for one day! Back to my humble self I return. Still, I'm fracking excited about this one. Seriously!

[Press release]

[Dev Blog]

EVE Blog Banter #9: If I were a CCP Dev I would...

Welcome to the ninth installment of the EVE Blog Banter and its first contest, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by CrazyKinux. The EVE Blog Banter involves an enthusiastic group of gaming bloggers, a common topic within the realm of EVE Online, and a week to post articles pertaining to the said topic. The resulting articles can either be short or quite extensive, either funny or dead serious, but are always a great fun to read! Any questions about the EVE Blog Banter should be directed here. Check out other EVE Blog Banter articles at the bottom of this post!

"Last month Ga'len asked us which game mechanic we would most like to see added to EVE. This month Keith "WebMandrill" Nielson proposes to reverse the question and ask what may be a controversial question: Which game mechanic would you most like to see removed completely from EVE and why? I can see this getting quite heated so lets keep it civil eh?"

Since I'll be judging this banter for the contest, along with my fellow judges James Egan and Richie Shoemaker, I've decided not to participate and to focus my attention on going through the articles. Please remember that the banter and article submission is open for one (1) week. After which, no additional articles will get added or be open to the contest. 

Good luck to all!