EVE Online is an online game I know very little about. Fortunately, Magnús Bergsson, the game’s CMO, and Húni Hinrichsen, lead game designer, were willing to fill me in.

They recently took some time out of their busy schedules to answer some questions, and even eluded to the possibility of EVE’s creators working on other projects.

What can you tell me about EVE Online? What makes it so unique?
(Bergsson) EVE Online is a sci-fi based MMOG that has a very different gameplay structure than most, if not all, other MMOGs. Other games mostly use a somewhat scripted gameplay that can be compared to a theme park that evolves around leveling.

EVE Online, on the other hand, uses a freeform gameplay that using the same analogy as before could be compared to a playground. The game offers the players all the toys and tools, but it is very much up to the player how he or she uses that. Therefore, players have a lot more freedom to experience the game they want to and the players have a tremendous impact on the game itself. This freedom requires the player to be involved and make decisions, which adds to the intricacy and depth of the game.

EVE Online is also a single shard game where all players play on, and there have been over 30,000 players logged on at the same time. This massive size allows the game to support a more realistic environment with the same forces that dictate our real life.

How long as EVE been online?
(Bergsson) EVE was launched in May of 2003, so it has been running for a little bit more than three years now and has experienced continuous growth since launch.

I noticed the game's based in Iceland. Is it drawing an international crowd?
(Bergsson) About 99% of the player base is located in other countries, with the largest following in the U.S. and Europe. Actually the U.S. and Europe have almost identical numbers of players. It is truly a global game and that is exactly what we had hoped for.

What did it mean to the folks behind EVE to receive the Most Innovative award from Stratics?
(Bergsson) It was a great award as all awards are. Getting recognition like this is highly motivating for both the employees and the players. CCP is very passionate about its work and it is reassuring to see a respected site like Stratics give awards to games that don’t have the same marketing muscle behind them as some other games do.

Is the new trailer a plug for an upcoming expansion, or just a new look at the game?
(Bergsson) The last trailer was created to promote the latest expansion, but the game is ever evolving and CCP releases about two large and free expansions per year. With those expansions, we have traditionally released accompanying trailers because they give the tone for what is in the new expansion.

What are the future plans for EVE?
(Bergsson) CCP is 100% dedicated to the continued development of EVE Online and there is so much we want to add to the game that we will probably be retired when that list is finished. So as long as users are enjoying the game, we will continue to create the best content we can. The upcoming expansion will be adding a lot of new content on top of a brand new graphic engine that will be a gigantic jump forward and bring a new level of detail to online gaming.

Why should gamers check it out?
(Bergsson) Gamers that want to play a game that is truly massive, challenging, (and has) heart-stopping PvP, and endless opportunities, should take a look.

How did the idea for EVE come about? (My friends who play say it's simply an incredible game with a lot of thought behind it.)
(Hinrichsen) The atmosphere comes from the movies “Blade Runner” and “Alien”; it’s a dark theme but we believe it’s more realistic vision of the future than other Sci-Fi brands. The game play on the other hand is based around concepts from Elite and Ultima Online; these two games gave players the freedom to decide for themselves what they wanted to do. That is in our opinion the ultimate experience for a gamer.

Are there any plans for the folks behind EVE to create other MMORPG titles?
(Hinrichsen) EVE has allowed us to expand the company from 40 people to approximately 140. The knowledge we have gained from it and the structure we have created around it have allowed us to start thinking about new projects without distracting us from the continued development of EVE.

With the subscription base growing (and congratulations on that!) are you all doing anything to ensure the play experience remains enjoyable, i.e., adding new play servers or so on?
(Hinrichsen) We are constantly upgrading our server hardware and we hope that we never have to add a new server so that more people can play it. Our game server is currently the biggest game server hosting a 3D game in gaming existence. More than 30,000 players have been logged in and have played EVE at the same time, in one universe. Having a single universe for the players has been our dream since we experienced online gaming for the first time. We believe that a bigger world improves the universe as the social part becomes a more important aspect of the game.

Players can visit www.eve-online.com for more information.

Thanks for letting us tell the EVE story!