I've seen a lot of quitting since I started playing Eve Online back in 2008. And before anyone gets their knickers in a knot, I'm not talking about people who move on, get busy, or otherwise leave the game. Life happens. I understand that. No one expects to play a video game forever. And longevity is not the only goal for players to play. However, I remain (as always), shocked by the ways in which some Eve players choose to quit.
If you spend any amount of time on Eve Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, or anywhere else outside of the game (or even inside of it in some cases), you've seen the posts. The boycotts, the rage, the quitters reasons, the extreme search for validation. I'm quitting and I'm taking my 69 alts with me posts. And here are the reasons why. I just wanted to let everyone know my reasons for some temporary feelings of validation. These posts are everywhere and they seem to be multiplying.
Look, I get it. Eve can be very demanding and involved. The pressure that comes from a game that never sleeps can be intense. Every moment you aren't playing is a moment that someone else is playing. And often that pressure comes with a huge downside, which leads to burnout. I feel it all the time, as I expect most Eve players do. That is just the nature of Eve. It never stops, it just keeps rolling along with or without you. And once you've made the decision to jump off that train you want everyone to know the reasons why.
Thing is, no one cares.
I know the truth hurts. And sure, somewhere in the bowels of the universe some machine is keeping tallies on why players leave Eve. Statistics are being compiled. And perhaps someday someone will look at those and wonder at them. But us other players don't give a damn about why you are leaving. All we care about is that you are leaving. We'd rather you stay. But we also understand that Eve isn't for everyone, and that sometimes people want to spend their time doing something else. That's fine. We'll miss you and we hope you stay in touch, but we also understand that you might not. Life moves on.
But telling us that you are butt hurt over changes to the Orca, or whatever new reason is popular at the moment - we don't care. I've been playing since 2008 and I've seen it all. I saw people jump off over the dumbest reasons a dozen times. Over Walking in Stations, over not having Walking in Stations. Over trivia, over legit bad decisions, and ones that shortly were fixed. Or changed yet again. Over CCP not having enough resources, and over CCP being bought so they have more resources. Over changes to the community team, or firings, or roadmaps, or whatever the heck pisses people off next.
It's boring.
Players come and players go, it is the big churn. You leaving isn't changing anything. Your boycott. Your anger. Nothing. Why? Because you don't play anymore. You are no longer a player. And Eve is for the players.
So go ahead and leave. I'm sure you have good reasons. And I hope you find peace and happiness. But stop looking for validation from us players who choose to stay. You don't want to be a part of us anymore? Good for you. The rest of us have things to do.
And yes, some day down the road I might quit playing Eve. And when I do it will be huge news, I'll write a ton of words about it. But no where in those words will I look for validation from anyone. My words will be about the amazing adventures I've had, the incredible players I flew with, and the amazing community I was proud to be a part of. Because that is how you leave. With dignity and respect for a game that has given you so much.
Truth sandwich.
Couldn't agree more. If I hadn't of had a lowsec titan and super to welp (why not? it does no good for anyone leaving those logged forever in limbo!) I would have only told my Thorn corpies and moved on. But I will say, that Titan/Super welp was some of the most fun I've ever had in game. And hopefully, some newbros got to see/get in on their first ever super cap kills. In my mind, it was my way of giving back to the lowsec community that I had loved for so long.
ReplyDeleteThat was certainly one way to leave the game with class my friend. And I do know for certain that a lot of people appreciated it and had a great time.
DeleteMakes me laugh actually when I see people rant and throw their toys out of the pram regards (insert reason here) and they insist they they and their 1000s accounts are leaving, it becomes so tedious to read that ve stopped reading them.
ReplyDeleteI myslef am in a lul with eve, i am doing the most minaml things but I think it i was ever to leave for good, i would slip out the back door and make it as uneventful as possible... no need to put a spotlight on it
We all take breaks, sometimes people leave and come back after years away. I find breaks to be one of the keys to longevity in the game, but that's me. Everyone works differently. I think you landed on the "tedious" moniker, which I find to be so true. It just gets old.
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ReplyDeleteI fondly remember one who quit. Or at least he stopped making public content:
ReplyDeletehttps://thegreybill.com/2018/09/30/the-vanishing-of-jonnypew/
I did an After Hours interview with Johnnypew https://youtu.be/rwzmMhQT11E
DeleteGreat post. I've seen plenty of "i unsubedd my xx number of alts" over the years. i'm starting to think that they just wanted to brag that they have that many alts and didn't actually quit.
ReplyDeleteY'know I never entertained the idea that they might be posing and not actually quitting. That is an interesting idea.
DeleteI "won EVE" permanently when I switched to Star Citizen... and my reason for leaving was Sci-Fi Space Based FPS (WIS if you prefer) gameplay that fulfilled my deepest gaming desires WITH all the deeply detailed FP/FIS (actually FLYING In Space and in atmo too!).
ReplyDeleteI do not want, request nor require anyone else's 'validation'. The deeply immersive gameplay I experience everyday alone is all the validation I could ever want.
I didn't post my outro from EVE on any forum or chat... I wrote my 'Goodbye EVE, and Thanx for all the Fish' post and simply and happily moved on in my gamin' and bloggin'.
Both EVE Online and Elite Dangerous have gone stagnant. For me, after 10 years flyin', dyin' and bloggin about EVE the real problem is that EVE is NOT "growing"... and that is the same as already dead.
Look at the PCU history from 2010 to now... (from EVE Offline)
2010 t0 2016: 37k avg.
2016 to 2018: 34k avg.
2018 to 2020: 31k avg.
2020 to 2021: 33k avg.
2021 to 2022: 28k avg. These number define slow stagnation, not growth.
I mean Ultima Online is still up and running, it's still an active playable game... but it became "irrelevant" in gaming many many years ago. EVE and ED are both in danger of becoming irrelevant... and that's worse than dying.