Eve Online's Free-To-Play Expansion, Ascension, Launches November 8th
The day I line up at the ballot box to vote for myself—November 8th—is also the day Eve Online is launching its next expansion, Ascension, which will allow pilots to roam the galaxy for free.
Free players' skill points will be handicapped, enabling them to pilot select ships: Frigates, Destroyers, and Cruiser. If they want to unlock their full potential—launching missiles from a Battleship—they'll have to subscribe and upgrade their clone to an Omega Clone State.
It looks like CCP has also revamped the new players experience, which has been needed. If Eve Online is going to keep its new citizens it has to slowly work them into the game's daunting universe.
In addition to this, the first phase of a completely re-worked new player experience will offer new pilots more assistance and guidance than ever before as they take their first steps into the vast expanse of New Eden.
Our own Roedyn has provided an in-depth overview of the upcoming hybrid free-to-play transition and what it means for the future of Eve Online in an editorial titled "Alpha Clone State – A Hybrid Business Plan." It's well worth reading if you plan on exploring, and surviving, New Eden.
The Ascension Expansion will also introduce player built structures called Engineering Complexes: "This set of structures adds Industrial capability to the new types of structures that players are able to build and maintain, complementing the Citadels in the eco-systems that players are able to create within New Eden."
It's an exciting time for Eve Online, and you can be sure I'll be signing in with my account on November 8th.
