EVE Blog Banter #3: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

Welcome to the third installment of the EVE Blog Banter, the monthly EVE Online blogging extravaganza created by yours truly. 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!
This month's EVE Blog Banter comes to us from Roc Wieler of Roc's Ramblings. Roc's asks us to "write a story about a fellow EVE Blogger, or an EVE player whom has inspired you or affected you in some tangible way. After your story, describe why you chose them, and any Holiday wish you have specifically for them".

Wow, that's a tough one! One EVE Blogger, eh? One player, just one? That would be impossible in my case, because there's more than one individual who has influenced me in doing what I do for the EVE community.

Warp Drive Active is back! Episode #41 is out!

Finally, WDA is back after what must have been the longest hiatus in the show's history. The intro is well done, and though the show is quite long, they do have to play catch up to what they've been up to since Episode #40.

EVE Forums link
VirginWorlds link
iTunes link
EVE-Files link

Great to have you back guys! We missed your hilarious chemistry and quirky intros! And thanks again for the pimp on the EVE Blog Pack and EVE Speedlinking!

At the time of this writing, only the EVE-Files link was available, though I have still included the other links above.

Less than 2 months to EVE Online Fanfest 2008

In less than two months I'll be boarding a plane to start my journey to Reykjavik, the equivalent of Mecca for EVE Online players, hometown of CCP Games. I just checked the EVE Online Fanfest 2008 page to see that there were 52 days left until the beginning of the 3-day conference (at the time of this writing), which means less than 50 days before I leave Montreal.

In effort to control my urge to explode with enthusiasm I've decided to focus my energies in putting together this post on last year's Fanfest.

Here below are links to photos taken during Fanfest 2007 and the personal account of someone who was lucky enough to attend.

Photo Albums of EVE Online Fanfest 2007:

• Hakel Daima's Picasa Album
• Winterblink's Flickr Photo Set
• GamasutraPodcast's Flickr Photo Set
• EVE Online Forum Photo Thread
  

I also highly recommend that you read Winterblink's blog entries of his Fanfest 2007 experience (make sure to start at the bottom of the page) and the article he wrote in EON #010. Both will give you a hint of what I am about to embark on. Me, and a few hundred other EVE fanboys that is!

Oooh, the wait is unbearable!

A login advert for last year's fanfest.

Warp Drive Active #40 is out!

Looks like our two favorite loonies over at Warp Drive Active are at it again. Their fortieth episode was released earlier this week and they haven't lost their touch despite the prolonged hiatus.

EVE Forums link
VirginWorlds link
iTunes link
EVE-Files link


They were also kind enough to mention our EVE Blog Pack. Thanks for the pimp guys!

Now it's up the Benilopax and Lavista Vista to get us WDA:Industry's next episode!

Amazing EVE Alliance Tournament screenshots

For those of you who've missed the first EVE Alliance Tournament V week-end, Winterblink has recently uploaded over 500 screenshots of Day 2 and 3 of the event. I myself only had a chance to view a couple of minutes of the live broadcast, since week-end days are Family time (notice the capital F!). So instead I watched the recorded shows. And since the quality of the stream isn't high, these shots are a blessing as they truly give you an idea of the beauty of Trinity II. Having said that, I'd still like to thank the EVE TV crew for an amazing experience. Let's seen Blizzard do the same!

So make sure you thank Blinky! Please head over to his post and please let him know your appreciation! I'm looking forward to the next week-end session!

What's the longest you've gone without playing? An EVE Online poll.

So as you probably know (or should!), I took the first month of this year off. No blogging, no EVE, no gaming. None, nadda, notin! Though it wasn't planned, it was a breath of fresh air, and aloud me to consider why I consider spending so much of my leisure time in or around EVE Online.

So why did I come back after a month hiatus? For a bunch of reasons actually.

First and foremost, the setting - science-fiction on a space-opera scale never seen before or since. CCP's space MMO is in a league of it's own when it comes to vastness. The lore also has a lot to day with this appeal. And this goes for the official EVE Chronicles and the fan material (EON, forum and all). More, give me more. I can't wait for Tony's book in June, and for CCP White Wolf's RPG books!

Second, it's a virtual world (notice I did not use the term game) that has endless possibilities, one where I can do as I please. It's not a theme park, its much more a sandbox. I can build a castle of any size I choose, I can play with others, or not, and I can share my toys, or not. I like choice; I hate being told what to do, or where to go.

Third, the EVE community, the players. I don't know if you've noticed, but EVE Online attracts a different type of player than your typical theme-park MMO (WoW anyone). It's a more dedicated crowd (hell with the learning curve it has, only addicts get beyond the tutorials!), a more mature bunch of geeks. Though we still know how to throw a god damn amazing party, especially at the top of the world! And how could I forget the unforgettable, unmistakable, Warp Drive Active podcasts by the greatest EVE fanboys out there, winterblink and urban mongral! How could I live without my regular WDA podcast!

So for all these reasons, I came back. I returned home, to New Eden. To have fun, to dream, to get podded. And to try all over again!

So what about you? While you're at it, if the poll is still up (top right of this blog), please cast your vote, let us know why you left, but most importantly, why you came back. Cause you did come back, right?