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Report: EVE Online Creators CCP Being Eyed For Buy-Out


Posted on December 11, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

It looks like the developers of popular MMORPG EVE: Online and the in-universe VR flight title EVE: Valkyrie might be entertaining offers from unknown 3rd parties interested in buying up the company from its current owners Novator Partners & General Catalyst Partners LLC. Supposedly CCP has been valued as high as $955 million US dollars, making the potential acquisition one of the highest in recent years.

All of this comes from unnamed sources cited by the reputable Bloomberg News Service but no official confirmation has been made by CCP, their owners and any potential buyers are not yet known. The last time a value for CCP was publicly disclosed was back in November 2015 when $300 million USD was raised from current stakeholders Novator Partners Inc. More than a year ago CCP was appraised at 1/3rd of its estimated current value, $330 million USD.

On the official EveOnline reddit /r/EVE players voiced their concerns about a potential buy-out by a larger corporation or publisher. Some worried that if CCP ends up being sold that the transaction would negatively impact the development of EVE Online and related titles. Other opined that CCP being purchased could end up just as negative as Electronic Arts’ acquisition of Mythic, a company that EA later shuttered after cancelling Warhammer Online.

As Jackalime wrote:

“The company that purchases EVE might be hoping to make it oriented for the type of market / store they are involved in, which would affect all future development. It would likely be with the intention of exploiting it to their advantage in the short-term future, since even assuming long-term interest for EVE remains the same, it would take decades to get a return on it.”

While wiiki24 drew comparisons to the aforementioned Mythic acquisition:

 “Just to point out, Mythic had bitten off way more than it could chew with Warhammer. They were out of money, and they had to sell, or the company never could have lasted as long as it did.

The ironic part was the EA suits buying into the Mythic guy’s promises to be able to make a WoW competitor in three years. Why anyone ever believed that is beyond me, since that’s pretty much impossible (9 women can’t give birth to 1 baby in a month), but they did.”

Still others like Leshoyadut maintain that EVE Online has been a stable niche product for over 13 years now and to expect huge changes would be messing with a successful formula:

“ Also, much as EVE has a niche market, it’s still a long-term money maker. It’s been making money for 13 years, and recently had a pretty positive reception of F2P, meaning its slow decline has been pushed off by probably at least another couple years on top of whatever life was already left (assuming alpha players keep coming at a moderate pace in the months ahead).

For all that CCP doesn’t have a huge market, it’s actually pretty successful.”

Personally I feel like the release of the latest expansion EVE Online: Ascension has provided CCP with a lot of positive press and visibility over the past couple of months. With the introduction of free-to-play Alpha Clones and concurrent player numbers their highest in three years it is no surprise that larger companies & publishers might be submitting purchase deals to CCP. Also just because CCP’s owners have offers on the table doesn’t necessarily mean that they will sell the company, failed mergers & business deals happen all the time.


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EVE Fanfest 2017 Details Revealed


Posted on November 3, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

EVE Online developer CCP Games has revealed details about the 2017 EVE Online Fanfest to be held in Reykjavik Iceland from April 6th through 8th 2017.

This 3 day gathering allows EVE Online capsuleers to gather and discuss their shared interest in massive multiplayer internet space ships. Attendees will be able to partake in panels, a live-streamed keynote, meet their favorite CCP dev and join in on a pub crawl in Iceland.

Fanfest tickets are quite pricey – costing $227 USD through EventBright for those who are interested in pre-ordering. Purchasing a ticket grants attendees access to all of the on-premise events as well as CCPS large party held at The Top of the World and an exclusive Fanfest goodie bag. In order to attend Fanfest attendees must be over the age of 18.

CCP will take EVE Online free-to-play on November 15th with the launch of the Ascension expansion. Alongside a skill limited Alpha Clone free-to-play state Ascension will bring changes to NPC mining belts, brand new industrial arrays allowing miners to have a brand new home among the stars and brand new ship explosion animations that looks pretty awesome.

For more information check out the official FanFest website.


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Eve Online Celebrates Its’ 13th Birthday


Posted on May 7, 2016 by Rae Michelle Richards

Can you believe that CCP’s baby, EVE Online, has turned 13? Usually, the teenage years are a time for rebellion, Defiance and not a Tabula Rasa for long time fans. But since all of those games no longer exist – it’s actually an amazing milestone for a massively multiplayer online title to be live for such  a long time.  EVE: Online joins the leagues of games like Ashron’s Call, Everquest 1 and Lineage II as being one of the few games from the golden age of MMOs in the mid-00s to still welcome new players.

Developers CCP is celebrating this major anniversary with an in-game event known as “Capsuleer Day” this weekend, sponsored by the in-universe technology conglomerate Upwell Consortium. All active pilots will be given a new Upwell themed skin for their capsules and a set of “festival launchers” allowing pilots to launch celebratory fireworks into the vacuum of space

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Joining in on the festivities this weekend it’s third hard at all – you can snag a 21 day trial through the following referral link, download a 14 day trial from the Steam Store or if you’re ready to commit you can purchase the Eve Core Bundle on Steam at 75% off ($5.75 CDN).

The core starter pack includes:

  • A Venture mining frigate
  • A full set of modules & equipment
  • Over two dozen primary skills unlocked and ready to train
  • A deployable mobile depot
  • Prototype skill booster
  • 30 days of game time

CCP haven’t been letting EVE Online sit idle – their latest major expansion Citadel launched just last week and is part of a larger plan to update player owned structures over the foreseeable future. The next structures – Drilling Platforms and Mining Arrays are expected to be rolled out in the summer and winter respectively.


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Dust 514 Beta Registration Begins


Posted on May 18, 2012 by Daniel Shannon

CCP has announced that you can now register for the DUST 514 beta. DUST is a PS3 exclusive, free to play, MMO FPS that is connected to CCP’s EVE Online universe. In DUST, players can act as mercenaries for EVE players, and the outcome of DUST battles could result in the conquest of planets for EVE’s numerous player run corporations and alliances. If you are interested in trying this out, then you can sign up for the beta here.


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First In-Game Footage Of World of Darkness MMO Released


Posted on March 26, 2012 by Daniel Shannon

While this year’s Eve fanfest was devoted to the sci-fi shooter Dust 514, CCP held a panel on its upcoming MMO based on the World of Darkness series of tabletop RPGs. Senior Producer Chris McDonough, CCP founder Reynir Harðarson, and Chief Marketing officer David Reid answered some questions about the upcoming MMO before revealing the first in-game footage, which may be seen below.

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