After a nearly month-long hiatus, Rixx and I are back from the summer lull and easing into one of those deceptively simple EVE questions that quickly opens up into something much bigger: what does it actually mean to win in a game that never really ends?
We start with vacation, heat, and the usual New Eden summer slowdown, then wander into sandbox metaphors, piracy, loss, leadership, friendship, aging, and why EVE is less a game you beat than a place you keep returning to.
No guest this week — just Rixx and me catching up, comparing notes, and accidentally wandering into one of those bigger EVE conversations: what actually makes the game work after all these years. A little summer lull, a little corp movement, a little real-life desk tinkering, and then straight into the rules beneath the rules.
It's late. I've been dabbling with my Caldari Navy Hookbill fitting for the past hour. Trying to figure out what's the best setup for my first foray into Faction Warfare (or Factional Warfare?). I think I've got a good fit, but I'm not convinced.
Then comes the next question: what next?
I've joined the Caldari faction, read through all the WARNINGS, but I have not a clue where to go next. The Militia tab popped up, but the conversation doesn't seem too friendly (aren't we supposed to be in the same camp?), and I resist the urge to ask. I'd rather test the waters by myself first, though that might be a bad idea, since I'm now a flashing little blip on someone's overview.
Then I remember Rixx telling me about using Plexes to get into PvP.
So I message him. "I'm in a Hookbill, looking to find Plexes. How does one do that? Please don't laugh..."
Ten episodes! 10!!
I honestly can't believe we've hit double digits. Most podcast series — EVE or otherwise — never make it past the first handful before fading out, so the fact that Rixx and I are still here, still recording, and still having an absolute blast feels like a milestone worth celebrating.
And we're not slowing down. No siree, Bob!
We've got so much more in store.
So, in this episode we welcome Black Rise Regional News — let's call him "Burn" short for BRRN — to The Safe Spot. Burn is a Caldari faction warfare pilot, UCN director, and the creator behind one of EVE's most unique written content projects: a regional newspaper covering the wars, politics, and shenanigans of Black Rise and surrounding space.
Rixx and I dig into how Burn went from flu-ridden backlog gamer to militia diplomat and propagandist-in-chief, and I listen in while the two of them swap faction warfare war stories along the way.
I mostly listened and took notes on this one — these two had a lot to talk about!
This one's our reaction episode to EVE Fanfest 2026, which wrapped up the day before we recorded. Rixx and I sat down Sunday evening to talk through everything — the Polaris Award he picked up while not even being in Iceland, the Cradle of War reveal, the Google DeepMind sit-down, where Vanguard and Frontier are headed, and a pile of asides along the way.
It's a long one, but a good one.
Pour something cold (or hot, in Rixx's case) and dig in.😂
In episode 6, Rixx and I dig into the biggest EVE Online announcement in a while — CCP's Exordium, a 53-system PvP-free region for new players. We've got strong opinions, open questions, a healthy dose of skepticism, and a quick recap of the latest Frigate Free-For-All. I was also fresh off a trip to France and still a bit jetlagged, so bear with me.
In this episode, recorded back on March 24th, Rixx and I dive into what happens when CCP pulls the rug out from under your favorite ship mid-stride. Rixx has been on a PvP tear, stacking up fights and cracking the mystery of his disappearing video recordings, while I'm still reeling from the Catalyst major update that basically nerfed my entire gameplay loop.
We get into patch notes philosophy, Pochven lore, blockade runners, abyssal arenas, and why the best advice in EVE often comes from the guy who just blew you up.
First things first: congratulations to every creator who made the EVE Creator Awards shortlist. This is CCP's first crack at a formal recognition program, and the names on that list represent real work, real passion, and real contributions to New Eden.
Well deserved, all of you!
This post isn't about any of them. It's about a name that's missing.
Earlier today, CCP Games published the finalists for the EVE Creator Awards — eight categories covering streamers, video creators, podcasters, writers, app developers, and more. It's a genuine effort to celebrate what makes this community unique. But when I scrolled through all forty finalists, one absence hit me immediately.
Rixx Javix is nowhere on this list.
Even when you're away from the game for a long period of time, you still remember that first undock into the unknown... and getting instantly podded the moment you jumped into nullsec. That moment where you had to decide: am I done, or am I learning something here?
That's the spark behind The Safe Spot — a new podcast Rixx Javix and I are launching.
The above is "After Hours Podcast – Episode 3", and it’s a nearly-decade-old (May 2016) chat between the infamous pirate Rixx Javix, and myself — looking back on the “golden age” of EVE blogging and how that whole scene shaped a lot of us.
I came across that old episode while researching for an upcoming project on EVE Online podcasts, past and present (more on that later).
