I thought that was a profound title given some of the events of late:
- Jester’s Trek is shutting down – this makes me sad. I always enjoyed reading and participating in this blog, but the viewpoint hits home. It can mostly be summed up in the following sentence “But over the last few months, I’ve come to realize that something like 85% to 90% of the stuff I’m doing in and around EVE simply isn’t any fun. So I’m going to cut out everything that I’m not finding fun and focus my time on the remaining 10%.” You have my thanks, Ripard Teg, for all you’ve done for our community over the years.
- I’ve been re-reading some of my posts over the last six months – They are all fitness, Roc’s Rules, 3D art, or posts of me apologizing for not upkeeping the blog, trying to again, not finding the motivation to, then apologizing later. This has become most evident lately with the fact that almost every day I’m getting spam comments from bots on all my old postings. This is usually the first sign of a dead blog being prodded by the cyber vultures. It makes me sad and leaves me facing a similar question to Ripard. Do I continue? I haven’t written an inspired story in ages. I haven’t updated the Eve Online in 3D tutorial despite promising to do so back in February. I’ve had a lot on the go and quite honestly, Roc hasn’t been a priority, even though he’s influenced my real life more than any character ever should have. Anyway, more soul-searching required. I’m not ready to let go quite yet.
- The mass exodus from CCP – Even if it’s not indicative of the end of all things as some reviewers online have alluded to, it is change, and nobody likes change. The EVE Online I knew even five years ago is gone. This generation of capsuleers seems incredibly demanding, more immature, more in need of instant gratification and having things dumbed down. There are those that say the changes are welcome, that maybe the game was/is needlessly complex. It reminds me of the same sinking gut feeling I had in the MMO I played since day one before coming to EVE Online – Star Wars Galaxies. We should all know that tragic story by now. I hope this isn’t history repeating itself.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not a doomsayer. I’m the furthest thing from it. There are many great things about the game that should motivate me to play more. I mean hell, my best friend in the real world PyjamaSam is back and playing, not to mention the love of Roc’s life Mynxee has also returned, and they’re both in the same corp/alliance as Roc! There’s a ton to write about there.
Maybe I just need to completely walk away from EVE to find my love for it again as they have. Or maybe I just need to bite the bullet and jump into the pool and remember how good it feels to have New Eden wash over me.
All I know is that doing nothing is killing me slowly inside. And Roc.
ROC'S RAMBLINGS 
I’ve been away for a year or two and am only now getting the itch to get back into things.
Maybe just log in and play without worrying about the stories. Without the play, there are no stories, but even without the stories you can still have a fun time with friends flying around in spaceships. Perhaps you are just over-complicating things in your mind because your approach to Eve has always been so tightly tied to your creative efforts.
Time is a precious commodity for most of us these days and Eve can only get a small slice of it here and there as far as I’m concerned. And I’m okay with that. You might be interested to find out how okay you’d be with it too. The great thing about Stay Frosty is that no matter when you log in, and even if it’s only for an hour, there is almost always a group of us cruising around looking for trouble. It’s delightful…hop in on a few kills and then log off happy! ❤
Honestly Roc, none of us can put in the hours we used to. Life just doesn’t allow it. Factor in the pressures that seem to accumulate as we get older, and any game which seems to be just additional work soon looses something of its appeal.
Mynxee is right. Pull it back. Find the fun again. Go have a blast 🙂
The end is just a new beginning Roc.
It only takes the will to move forward.
My oldest character is 11 years this month. I’ve left and have come back several times over those years. Just something about EVE that keeps bringing me back. I think, as Mynxee and Helena have pointed out, just kick back, relax, and have fun with your fellow corpmates. (Stray in SF here 😉 ) Before you know it, you’ll feel those stirrings of Roc wishing to speak again and creative side will ignite once more.
Let me put it this way: as the above comments show, you still have readers, who also understand that life happens in cycles. Heck, I am myself currently looking for a new storyline to play out as well. So no need to apologize to us.
As the others said – approach EVE as a game for a while, no strings attached. Once you know what you really want, you can always ret-con it into Roc’s development.
Could always be worse mate. I CAN’T dedicate the time for playing or blogging. In other news, Afghanistan sucks.
Damn Roc, don’t judge yourself on your past performance. Get out and have fun doing what you want to do. I always check out your posts regardless if it’s EVE related or not.
Do what you need to do to keep your motivation going. I will admit that I open your posts hoping for another EVE story but you need to find your own balance in what you are doing and follow it. Be damned to all the nay sayers.
Play EVE, work on your fitness, write on your blog about your adventures: doesn’t matter. Just be happy with what you are doing and the rewards will follow.
+1
IM(h)O
You are an institution Roc. Like so many others who come to mind: Mynxee, BorisHotch, Kirith Kodachi, Alekseyev Karrde, Seismic Stan, Dillon Arklight, Warchilde, Garheade, Estel Arador, Chribba, Mittens, Ripard Teg, Arydanika, (so many more) … names that may have faded, may have been rekindled (may have imploded). There are a few, (quite a few actually), people who have without a doubt shaped the game over a long period.
It’s not even so much a game, hell, games are supposed to be fun, and there are times when Eve is downright NOT fun, but it is what it is, a great blank canvas for all you talent heads to come in and make your mark.
My tour in Eve is just coming up to five years, there are definitely times when I shake my head at it, and times when i’m fully addicted to something new i’ve discovered or rediscovered, but Eve is Eve, and Eve (for me at least) IS real.
Yeah it’s a bunch of code and pixels, but that only generates the environment. Eve is you lot … us lot. We congregate in this space in our own time zones, buying, selling, destroying … but also advising and guiding. Not Eve stuff, RL stuff. There is so much chatter in the various fora to do with real life issues that Eve becomes a side show as we play ‘life’.
… and you are a significant part of that Roc.
So take your time, take a breath, bugger off if need be, but don’t forget that you are now, and will be into the future in lore if not in ‘person’, a large part of this game, maybe not to the short term players, but to us oldies, the one’s who pack up the chairs after the party … the stayers.
Take care mate, i’ll keep an eye out.
RTN
Exactly what I needed to hear, from each and every one of you. Thank you. It’s true. I’ve always put more pressure on myself than anyone else ever have. It’s part of what drives me.
I think though I need to not lose focus on the fun of life, of the game, of Roc. Just digesting your comments has reminded me of why Roc exists in the first place. Already I’m beginning to feel better about the state of things.
Roc Nation = best fans ever
Now that is the Roc we’ve all come to respect. Keep the fire burning.
If you’re weighed down by the need for everything to be a story, why not come up with a new character, start a trial account, and experience everything as brand new again? Even if you just play your 14 or 21 days and then go back to flying as Roc, it might be just the little bit of perspective shift that lets you look at the game with fresh eyes. And you can be in a newbie corp chat channel, too, soaking in all the wonder and energy of people just discovering EVE and maybe helping them out a bit.
Just a thought from someone who doesn’t want to lose too many of EVE’s voices.