A packed summer schedule awaits you in EVE Online as the Summer of Streams begins! From now through until September there will be plenty of new official streams, dev blogs, and Q&A’s for you to get stuck into!
Dozens of CCP devs will be doing deep dives into all sorts of topics from Photon UI to updates from Team Security and the state of Factional Warfare. You’ll find those dev blogs here on EVE News and the streams over on CCPTV . You can also follow us on EVE’s official Twitter to stay up to date on upcoming Q&A sessions that will be happening throughout the summer. Be sure to get your questions ready!
It’s been a week since we unveiled EVE Evolved which represents CCP’s commitment to continually invest in the foundations of EVE Online, and we wanted to share with you how CCP are continuing the journey of setting EVE up for its third decade. With a renewed focus on the foundational technology that EVE is built upon, our mission is to bring cutting-edge visual and technical capabilities to the EVE Universe. Through this, we can achieve our goal of visceral supremacy, remaining committed to making EVE the most beautiful, immersive sci-fi game ever made.
In this dev blog, we will be walking through some of the foundational improvements from the June release. You’ll be getting a deeper insight into what’s changed, what’s coming, and how these updates will enhance your EVE experience in the future.
DirectX 12 and Level of Detail
As part of our continuous investments into EVE’s future, we have been hard at work to bring DirectX 12 to EVE in the June release. DirectX 12 will serve as the new foundation for rendering the game on Windows, allowing better utilization of graphics cards, reducing power consumption, and bringing better game performance on supported hardware.
While performance is important, releasing a DirectX 12 capable version of the client allows more modern graphical features to be utilized. It lays a better foundation for EVE so that we could bring even more amazing visuals to all pilots in EVE such as the hangar visual updates that are coming this fall. DX12 also opens the door to even more graphical upgrades in the future such as DirectX Raytracing, which will allow us to implement the next level of visual fidelity and provide an even richer, more immersive experience for all players.
Alongside DirectX 12, we have overhauled how the game calculates the Level of Detail and fidelity for ship meshes, textures, and other objects when they are rendered at different distances from the players’ camera. This improvement will allow our artists to upgrade assets from our previous three levels to as many levels as they desire. It allows assets to smoothly transition from foreground to background, attaining the best balance of performance and fidelity.
These LOD changes are designed to scale based on system hardware and settings to ensure the smoothest possible experience for players.
Along with this, you will also see an improvement in how the in-game camera calculates what it should render, ensuring that objects out of view are not taking up unnecessary system resources. This improvement will lead to better client performance, especially in busy scenes.
Career Agent Site Overhaul
As part of our commitment to providing a more immersive game experience, the career agent mission sites have been given a complete overhaul so that the visual experience in those sites is more in line with the new player experience which has been under constant iteration since its debut in 2021. The placement and appearance of interactable assets in those mission sites have been updated, as well as those in the background. You will also see several structures, effects, and objects that are never-before-seen in those mission sites.
One notable inclusion in the revamp of those missions is new decorative asteroid models. They were generated using a novel art pipeline leveraging modern asset creation tools to help improve the overall sense of dynamism in these assets. We’re looking to expand upon this to include additional variations and shader changes in future releases as we continue to evolve New Eden’s living universe.
High-Res Nebulas
The resolution of every nebula background in-game has been doubled, quadrupling the pixel count and increasing both the level of detail and quality of the starscape. The increased resolution of the cubemap also gave us the opportunity to remove unintended seam errors. In addition, the colors of each nebula have been rebalanced to further enhance and modernize your experience in space.
Sightseeing in New Eden has now become more immersive than ever before!
Cloud Cover Updates
Speaking of sightseeing, how can we miss the reintroduced cloud cover effects? Previously deactivated due to quality and performance concerns at the time, these cloud effects have been brought back in the June release, with improved appearance and better utilization of our latest tech.
These vast cloud formations have now returned to fill our skies with swirling gas funnels, raging stellar storms, and claustrophobic elemental vapor. You will now be able to see these effects throughout sites across New Eden, so keep an eye out for space weather in a system near you!
Texture Compression Improvements
Significant updates have been rolled out in the June release that improve all textures in the game.
In days of yore, developers needed to be very mindful of memory usage and hardware limitations. A common technique was to save space by using fewer color channels from the textures and packing them together in a single, multi-channel texture. This would save space and reduce the data being sent to the GPU. However, doing this has an effect on the quality of the visuals such as blocky artifacts in the normal maps that are highly visible in specular highlights.
These errors were acceptable at the time because of the benefit to memory and processing power, but the technique has become less frequently used as hardware has become more capable. In EVE, texture packing has been removed altogether to ensure these artifacts will no longer appear while also giving a cleaner visual for every asset in game.
Using unpacked textures also gives us more fine-tuned control when compressing each texture, as we’ve now selected a compression type that is best suited for each of the map types. This has allowed us to improve the overall detail of the in-game assets.
In short, these upgrades will ensure that ships and stations now look the way our artists envisioned them with no lost details or unexpected rendering artifacts. And the more power we can give to our amazing artists, the more beautiful EVE can become in its third decade!
Compact Mode in Photon UI
On our path towards modernizing the EVE experience, Compact Mode has been introduced in June as we continue to iterate and improve Photon UI. You can now enable this mode for select windows such as the Overview, Chat, D-scan and more. With Compact Mode, you will see an improved experience with the UI that is more consistent and easier to grasp – sometimes great things do come in small packages!
We’re continually iterating and improving this feature, and we will be sharing more details on that in a dev blog later this summer.
Propulsion Sound Rebalance
Building an enhanced sensory experience that you can get lost in needs more than just graphical improvements. In service of that, we’ve taken player feedback onboard and further improved the audio experience by allowing you to hear the propulsion modules of those around you. Along with this, the diversity of engine sounds has been expanded to give a more unique auditory experience for a wider range of ship sizes. Because after all, flying a Nidhoggur shouldn’t sound or feel the same as flying a Rifter. This improvement focuses on giving you an enhanced and more balanced sound experience in space.
In addition to that, sound effects for career agent missions and other cloud covered sites have also seen an update as we continue to create a much more immersive audio experience for players.
Audio Performance Improvements
Speaking of audio enhancement, we’re currently working on how the client handles audio in heavy scenes. The new audio prioritization system will ensure that scenes with a high number of audio objects such as fleet fights will have improved performance while also ensuring a clear and concise audio experience. Sounds at closer distances will be prioritized, and the number of audio events will be scaled based on machine performance to ensure a smoother audio experience for players. We’ll have more to share on this by early fall, so stay tuned!
Distributed Tracing
In order to keep EVE healthy, we know that it’s important to address any defects or bugs as quickly as possible. In service of this, we have been continuing the work to improve our tooling and have added improved debugging tools with Honeycomb, helping us find and squash bugs faster than ever before. With this improvement, we are now able to see the root causes of an issue more quickly. In addition, we can utilize distributed tracing to more easily identify opportunities for making EVE faster by finding performance bottlenecks.
Future Infrastructure Improvements
In the spirit of making EVE faster, we are also actively working on replacing some of the critical infrastructure under the hood, so that in future you will see EVE features become more responsive. But more on this at a later date.
That about sums things up for now but stay tuned for blogs and streams on topics such as UI to audio as well as game updates in the weeks and months to come, as EVE continues to evolve into the next decade and beyond!
Fly safe! o7
EVE Evolved
Glorious Capsuleers,
Today EVE Online takes another step towards EVE Forever with EVE Evolved. EVE Evolved is CCP Games’ commitment to keep EVE Online at the forefront of visceral supremacy with features designed to enhance the sensory experience of New Eden like never before. Today, you can expect breathtaking visuals in every system with remastered nebulas and an incredible overhaul of dozens of career agent sites.
The updates you’ll experience in this release are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the foundational updates that are always taking place. EVE Evolved commits to an investment in EVE’s underlying tech to ensure New Eden stays at the cutting edge of technology while also continually improving performance. Just one example of this commitment is last year's launch of Quasar. These foundational upgrades to EVE's tech pave the way for a more beautiful, efficient EVE.
You can expect more to come with continual investment into the foundational tech, the graphical fidelity, and the gameplay of EVE.
DirectX 12 and Photon UI – Continuous Foundational Improvements
DirectX 12 will bring a slew of improvements in stability and performance to all citizens of New Eden. Helping modernize the game engine for the third decade, it shortens the opportunity gap for implementing the new level of visual fidelity and allows the building of an exciting narrative for players.
DirectX 12 also opens the door to even more graphical upgrades in the future such as DirectX Raytracing while no longer being hindered by DirectX 9!
Speaking of graphical upgrades, Photon UI continues to see iteration and improvement. Compact mode comes today as a direct result of player feedback. You can enable this with the “More” button adjacent to “Close” in the upper right-hand corner of the active window. From here, select the Compact Mode option from the drop-down menu that appears.
Currently, compact mode is available for windows where information density is important, such as the overview, D-Scan, Chat and Fleet windows, People & Places. Keep an eye on EVE news for details on the continued evolution of this fantastic user interface.
Texture and Sound Updates – The Ultimate Sensory Experience
Building a sensory experience that you can get lost in needs more than just graphical improvement. EVE Evolved represents a threefold strategy to improve and upgrade the EVE Online experience.
Massive strides have been made in texture compression, meaning that the textures you now see in-game will be of higher quality than ever before. This also applies to new high-definition nebulas across New Eden. Additionally, packed textures were removed resulting in fewer graphical artefacts and cleaner visuals for every asset in EVE with minimal impact on client performance.
EVE’s audio experience is also seeing updates with EVE Evolved and it’s better than ever. Engine sounds are now handled better, particularly with the mixing of other ships in each scene. Take a listen the next time you take a warp with your fleet!
Finally, the career agents have had their mission sites completely overhauled with new cloud effects, new asteroid designs, and updates to mission assets and structures. Sound effects have been improved here, too, with features such as bringing back cloud cover in sites and hanging the way that they sound.
All of this comes following the recent massive update to real-time reflections in EVE and last year’s Bring Out EVE’s Colors update. It also allows the team to look forwards to remastering and redesigning older content such as EVE’s Highsec missions.
Setting Players on the Path to Glory
While EVE marches on its own journey, so too does every new Capsuleer entering New Eden. Many of those fresh Capsuleers begin their EVE life with career agents as a first step to finding their place in the universe. With this new update, that journey has evolved with a plethora of improvements to the career agent experience and the brand-new AIR Career Program.
New players getting their teeth into career agents now will be in for a treat. Career agent missions feature remastered environments designed to entice and to create an immersive experience like no other. The Enforcer career agent is seeing further improvements that shape what is to come: a modernized conversation window (when using Photon UI) and highlights to help guide new players.
The AIR Career Program (ACP) works with and follows on from each career agent, taking players down four career paths of recommended EVE content. Players are rewarded handsomely as they complete goals with support from recommended Skill Plans. The ACP culminates in a graduation moment, sending players out as capable Capsuleers ready to tackle the challenges of New Eden!
This Path to Glory aims to improve the experience and retention of new players by giving them a guiding hand that helps them find their role in this incredible sandbox.
ACCELERATE YOUR CAREER WITH REVAMPED PACKS
To help accelerate your career further in New Eden, revamped career packs are coming back to the EVE Store. Whether you’re on a path to being a tough Soldier of Fortune or a budding Enforcer or an Explorer, you can expect great value and expertise to support your journey.
Starting today you can snag the Enforcer Career Pack, Soldier Career Pack, and Explorer Career Pack which contain Omega, PLEX, Skill Points, Boosters, Expert systems, unique attire and several unique ship skins in each- all geared towards your unique career path.
The Industrial Career Pack will also be available in the future to super charge Industry focused capsuleers.
Further Updates – Just on the Horizon
Following the discussions and presentations at Fanfest, a ton of thrilling updates are on the horizon. Veterans and new players alike have a lot to look forward to!
Big updates to Factional Warfare are in the works with the new Frontlines system currently being designed. Interbus Credits are on the way, soon to offer the awesome perks of Heraldry including Alliance logos on ships!
The first narrative arc has already begun so keep your eyes peeled for clues as they appear across New Eden and see if you can piece together what the future holds.
The team looks forward to discussing more throughout the summer in a series of streams and blogs so stay tuned.
You can also look forward to an exciting expansion with these planned updates and more coming later this year with more details this September.
EVE Evolved: Always Iterating – Always Improving
By now it should be clear that CCP is invested in the future of EVE Online. The goal is and will always be EVE Forever. The foundational improvements of the past few years and those arriving today form part of an ongoing story. One that you are a part of as a player of EVE Online.
The future of EVE is bright so look ahead and get ready for so much more later this year with heraldry and EVE’s first arc!
Save 50% on Omega + MCT!
The more the merrier: Save 50% on select Omega + MCT packages from 24 June – 4 July!
Take advantage of this limited-time offer and train skills on a second character alongside your main, with both gaining the doubled training speed of clone state Omega!
With Omega enabling access to all skills, ships, and modules in EVE alongside its bonus to training speed, make full use of this offer to unlock your true potential as a Capsuleer and accelerate toward your goals in New Eden!
Do you like your combat close-up, chaotic, and on the edge of control? Then head over to the Abyssal Proving Grounds for a four-player Thorax free-for-all from 24 June-to-26 June.
Hosted as part of the Federation Day celebration, this Proving Grounds round has been structured to emphasize the close combat that Thoraxes excel at. To really focus the action on getting up-close-and-personal, all ships that enter this Proving Grounds round will receive a bonus that decreases turret optimal range by 50%, and increases turret falloff by 50%, meaning you’ll need to focus on close-quarters attacks.
And there also happens to be a 40km wide tachyon cloud lurking in the centre of the arena, which dramatically increases your speed. Ships in the cloud will see velocity lift 300%, while inertia will drop by 50%.
Close range combat and wild fluctuations in speed? This round will bring chaos and fun to all who join in!
While in the arena they will also enjoy double the benefits gained from overheating the following module groups:
Thorax’s that step into the Proving Grounds for this event will be limited a maximum of one fitted local repair module (shield or armor). Capsuleers, meanwhile, will be restricted to using Meta 4 modules and implants. Additionally, sensor dampeners, weapon disruptors, shield boost amplifiers, shield rechargers, shield power relays, shield flux coils, and core defence field purgers are all banned in this event.
Ready to take the battle as close to your rivals as possible? Then grab those Proving Filaments and head to the Proving Grounds between 24 and 26 June. And as is always the case, the Proving Grounds leaderboards will allow you to track Capsuleer performance and rewards through the event.
Gallente Federation Day Returns
Proud Capsuleers!
Gallente Federation Day returns running until 28 June, offering you the chance to grab log-in rewards, take part in new challenges, and pick up some special offers!
Federation Day Parades
The glorious Federation Day parades return for 2022, offering pilots the chance to show off their firework-flinging skills at parades in the Luminaire, Villore, Dodixie, Lirsautton, Alentene, Orvolle, and Octanneve systems.
Also returning from last year’s celebrations are the special mining blitz events, and stunning monuments where you can pay tribute.
A new Gallente Grand Prix
This year’s celebrations also go hand-in-hand with a special Grand Prix event. While you raise a glass to the glorious Gallente Federation, why not take part in a race around New Eden to further show your support?
Cloudy with a chance of carnage
No event would be complete without a fresh new Proving Grounds challenge to tackle. Taking place between 24-27 June, this Proving Grounds event focuses on turret damage, and includes an intriguing new twist.
A huge Tachyon Cloud at the center of the arena provides a 300% boost to velocity, and a 50% reduction in ship inertia. As well as finessing your ship fits, you’ll also need to play carefully with this environmental effect if you’re to emerge victorious.
Celebrate with the EVE community
On 25 June you can also enjoy a player hosted event taking place in Luminaire from 18:00 UTC! Throw your fireworks around, light up your ships, and wow the crowd to earn cash prizes and a selection of SKINs.
There’ll also be a bonus trivia quiz, poster design competition, and plenty more besides. Head over to the thread on the official forums for all the details.
Free gifts and new challenges
Log in for at least eight days during the event and you’ll earn a selection of SKINs, and boosters! Fresh seasonal challenges will also be available, giving you even more opportunities to earn rewards.
Special sales & the return of Federation Police SKINs
The Federation Police SKINs will make a very welcome return to the New Eden Store for the duration of the event, along with an expanded collection of Luminaire Rising SKINs.
A selection of Federation-themed bundles will also be available on the EVE Store, packed with Skill Points, boosters & SKINs. Dress up in style as you race around New Eden!
See you at the celebrations!
1v1 Battleship APG for Anger Games 5
Battle-hungry Capsuleers!
To mark Anger Games 5, another intense Proving Grounds awaits you. This time, you’ll need to fit your best battleships and go toe-to-toe in a 1v1 showdown scheduled for 12 June.
To spice things up, you and your opponents will enjoy double the benefits of overheating the following module groups: - Tackle Modules - Propulsion modules - Repair Modules - Resistance Modules - Energy Warfare Modules - Turrets - Launchers
In other words, expect this one to go off with a bang!
A tough challenge demands juicy rewards, of course. Dish out at least 15,000 damage to your opponent, and you’ll receive a 100m ISK reward for your efforts. Even better, the challenge is repeatable, giving you the opportunity to make some serious bank throughout the day.
As always, there are certain restrictions to keep you on your toes when planning your fits. You won’t be able to enter the combat arena if you have a ship within your frigate escape bay, and you must only fit a single Local Repair Module (shield or armor).
Tech 2 rigs are also banned, along with the following modules and rigs: - Sensor Dampeners - Weapon Disruptors - Shield Boost Amplifiers - Shield Rechargers - Shield Power Relays - Shield Flux Coils - Core Defense Field Purger Rigs - Core Defense Capacitors Safeguard Rigs - Core Defense Operational Solidifier Rigs - Auxiliary Nano Pump Rigs - Nanobot Accelerator Rigs
Start preparing now for this single-day Proving Grounds event, and make sure you pack a punch if you want to make the most of those repeatable ISK rewards!
Be sure to check in on the finals of the Anger Games tournament action too. Watch live on CCP TV.
Anger Games Proving Grounds, round 3!
First-class Capsuleers,
The Abyssal Proving Grounds are home to some of the most dramatic, entertaining and energetic PvP action New Eden has to offer. And for 11 June only, they are open for an event that’s perfect for new pilots... and nostalgic veterans that like a unique challenge.
If you’re new to EVE Online, or still to taste the thrill of Proving Grounds combat, this is the event for you and your starter ship. And if you’ve put hundreds of hours into mastering competitive play, it’s time to prove how skilful you really are by showing what’s possible with a classic corvette and a friend.
2v2 corvette combat is the focus, meaning diving into the action at the helm of one of EVE’s most basic, underpowered spacecraft – the corvette that is every Capsuleer's first class of ship. The result will be fun and frantic in equal measure, as pilots join this Anger Games special. And thanks to the 2v2 nature, you’ll be working side-by-side with an ally – another reason this is the ideal time for new players to take a trip to the Proving Grounds.
Still haven’t got your first corvette? Pick one up for free at any citadel or station!
This Proving Grounds round is open to Impairor, Ibis, Velator, and Reaper hulls. Furthermore, fleets entering this round can only include one of any specific corvette hull.
All ships that enter will also receive a bonus that doubles the benefits gained from overheating the following module groups:
Tackle Modules
Propulsion Modules
Repair Modules
Resistance Modules
Energy Warfare Modules
Turrets
Launchers
Ships that join the action are limited a maximum of one fitted local repair module (shield or armor). Pilots will also be restricted to Meta 0 modules. Additionally, sensor dampeners, weapon disruptors, shield boost amplifiers, shield rechargers, shield power relays, shield flux coils, and core defense field purgers are all banned in this event.
Want to join in with the action? Then pick up some Proving Filaments and get yourself over to the Proving Grounds on 11 June. As ever, the Proving Grounds leaderboards will allow you to track Capsuleer performance through the event.
And make sure not to miss out on the main Anger Games tournament action. You can keep up with the full schedule here, and watch live on CCP TV from now until 12 June!
An Anger Games Proving Grounds nears
Furious Capsuleers,
With the return of the Anger Games now underway, the next round of Abyssal Proving Grounds action is dedicated to the beloved community-run tournament.What does that mean? This time 1V1 cruiser combat comes with a hot-headed twist. All ships that enter this Proving Ground clash will receive a special bonus that doubles the benefits gained from overheating the following module groups:
Tackle Modules
Propulsion Modules
Repair Modules
Resistance Modules
Energy Warfare ModulesTurrets
Launchers
That means you can expect furiously intense, dramatic action throughout the one day this 1V1 event, which takes place on 4 June exclusively.
The 1V1 is open to Omen, Caracal, Thorax, Stabber, Maller, Moa, Vexor, and Rupture hulls. Those preparing to enter should also know that sensor dampeners, weapon disruptors, shield boost amplifiers, shield rechargers, shield power relays, shield flux coils, and core defence field purgers are all banned for this special.
Pilots that join this event will also be restricted to Meta 4 modules, with their ships limited to a maximum of one local repair module fitted (shield or armor).
To get involved with the Angry Games Abyssal Proving Grounds event, grab those Proving Filaments and get yourself to the Proving Grounds on 4 June. And, as ever, the Proving Grounds leaderboards will allow you to track Capsuleer performance through the event.
From 26-30 May, you can take advantage of a 2 for 1 offer on both Skill Extractors and Alpha Injectors!
With a Skill Extractor applied to your account, you can take existing Skill Points from a character, and then re-assign them elsewhere. If you’ve traveled down a training path that no longer serves your goals, you can use these Extractors to quickly catch up elsewhere.
Alpha Injectors, on the other hand, make it easy to quickly apply 50,000 Skill Points to your Alpha pilot of choice. It’s the perfect way to speed up your training goals, and get your new career off to a faster start!
