Reynir Hardarson, art director and co-founder of CCP explains the reasons for this short delay. "We have always stood firm on the commitment to release Eve only when felt it was time. Although the game is nearly finished, we felt it would be best to hold off an additional six weeks. This will allow us to fully optimize the performance of our new server cluster, implement features we have promised, and continue testing to assure the elimination of bugs that would interfere with the players' ability to enjoy the Eve experience to its fullest potential."

Chief Technology Officer of CCP Games, Hilmar V. Petursson also commented. "Integration of the cluster hardware and release class software took longer than expected, now we are focusing on the tweaking and balancing of various game play elements. With the support of the beta testers, we expect this time to be well spent adding polish to EVE, before we release.

Developer Chat Scheduled

A chat with CCP Games is scheduled for this evening at 11 PM GMT / 6 PM ET / 3 PM PT. Guests will be Reynir Hardarson (Solaris), art director of CCP Games, Mike Wallis (Campion), producer from Simon & Schuster Interactive, Hilmar Petursson (Hellmar), chief technology officer, and Hrafnkell Oskarsson (Clover), game designer. The chat will be held in Eve-Gate IRC Channel. Details:

EVE ONLINE DEVELOPER CHAT

11 PM GMT / 6 PM ET / 3 PM PT
gate.shadowworld.net
or IRC.shadowworld.net
Channel: #evegate

BECOMING A BETA TESTER

Gamers who would like to become an EVE ONLINE beta tester can sign up via the EVE ONLINE web site at www.eve-online.com Beta testing will continue until Eve ships to retailers in May. To date more than 125,000 gamers have signed up.

ABOUT "EVE ONLINE"

A Galactic Scope

Eve is a massively multiplayer game, set in a world of galactic proportions. This online universe is governed by a hyper-capitalistic economy where space flight is the path to all commerce, communication, and conflict. Your mission is to establish yourself as a major competitor, trusted by your friends, feared by your enemies. To accomplish this, your principle tools -- apart from an impressive array of sophisticated equipment, customizable space ships and in-game corporations -- will be your natural business acumen, social skills, Machiavellian thinking and cunning combat strategies.

Spectacular Environment

The world of EVE spans over 5,000 solar systems in astounding visual environments packed with adventure and intrigue. Pirate infested regions, military border zones, rich mining tracts, constellations controlled by terrorist organizations and militant religious cults, politically disputed territories, trade routes, war zones, rebel uprisings, black holes, asteroid fields, glorious vistas and ion storms are among the scenarios and phenomena you will encounter on your way to glory.

Choose Your Destiny

Begin by creating a character and choosing a career. You can opt to become an employee of a mega corporation, pick a career in the military or law enforcement, work as a scientist of a research institution, etc. To get started, you will receive equipment and missions, as well as contacts. Eventually you might want to break free and start your own operation, form a corporation, join a pirate clan, dabble in smuggling, become a bounty hunter. The choices are virtually endless. Good or evil, honest or devious, rich or poor, strong or powerless, you are the master of your destiny.

Unique Characters

Choose from four races: Amarr, Caldari, Gallente, and Minmatar. Customize the appearance of your character down to the smallest details. Create a look that is uniquely your own. Then, advance through an extensive skill and training system, which reflects your character's profession. You may seek to perfect your combat skills or study to be an award-winning scientist, join the military or dive into the world of Eve on your own. There are no skill point maximums, race or class restrictions. You are truly free to create a character that is individually tailored to suit your interests with a myriad of skills. Pirate, mercenary, stockbroker, spy or all of the above... the choice is yours.

NPC Factions and Agents

There is a multitude of Non-Player Characters in Eve to interact with. They run the gamut from a mining corporation to a multinational terrorist organization. Developing contacts within the factions can provide you with access to specialized equipment, missions or top-secret information to help you succeed faster.

NPC and Player Generated Missions

Missions can be played out at any time during the game. These can involve a courier mission for a trade contact, the assassination of an Amarrian ambassador, hunting down a notorious criminal or a full-scale assault on a Caldari military base involving dozens of other players and careful planning.

Player vs. Player

A large portion of the game is centered around player versus player activity -- it's always more fun to compete against a human opponent. Keep in mind that if you're timid, you'll find a safety zone within the borders of the empires, as killing of innocents is not tolerated within their borders. You can seek protection with the local law enforcement and make a good living under their wing, but remember that glory comes only to those who dare. No one will give you power-real power is something you must take!

Combat

Combat in Eve is incredibly fast and furious and will have you constantly strategizing about what measures you should take to best deal with each situation. Group tactics involve formation flight and squad-based communication, allowing for massive fleet battles with military standard hierarchies.

Large Scale Economy

Everything that can be bought in Eve is manufactured in specialized space stations, using a variety of raw materials. Activities such as mining, selling and transporting raw materials, as well as manufacturing products, are core components of Eve's economic system. Trade and commerce can take place in global markets or directly between players.

Player-Run Corporations

As you enter Eve, you will be assigned to an in-game corporation. At any time you can choose to quit and create your own corporation and recruit other players. Corporations can own and colonize planets and build space stations from where they can run mining operations and manufacture equipment. More sophisticated equipment can enter the marketplace where trade monopolies are enforced with military power.

Corporate Warfare

Competition over limited resources and territories can give rise to corporate warfare. On this level Eve becomes a grand-scale strategy game, where mercenaries, highly trained spies and computer hackers can plot to eliminate high-ranking officers and CEO's.

Ships - Over 80 Different Types

Ships range from small frigates to the massive titan-class, reaching over a mile in length. A multitude of equipment and weapons can be fitted in a myriad of combinations to best suit your individual combat style. Add your corporate logo and other details to fully customize your ship.

World Events and a Progressing Storyline

The world of Eve is ever changing and will be affected throughout the game by colossal events, such as exploding stars, rebel uprisings, famine, deadly epidemics, presidential elections, and kidnapping of corrupt politicians. All this is part of a greater story being played out by the gamers themselves-- unfolding day by day as the game progresses.

Social Interaction

With thousands of players online from around the world, Eve is an incredible social experience. You have the option of making in-game notes about people you encounter throughout the game - friend or foe - a database of information about their behavior. Next time you meet the guy who ambushed you, he will pay! Notorious players can be tracked down by bounty hunters craving justice - and cash!

Rich Background

The stories behind Eve are multifarious. You can dig deep into the world to gain valuable information, including a detailed history of the races, articles about people, places and world-based phenomena. A complete in-game encyclopedia is included.

Photo Realistic Real-time Graphics

The graphics engine in Eve is capable of doing photo realistic rendering in real-time of surfaces such as rusty steel, dirty glass, oxidized aluminum and volumetric fire and smoke, as well as environmental effects such as asteroids falling on the planet's surface, comets and the aurora borealis. The Eve engine is built on DirectX9 and utilizes the latest graphics and hardware technology.

Cinematic Feel

Eve is played from a 3rd person perspective. You see the world through the eyes of a camera drone hovering outside your ship. This gives you a much better feel for the world over the traditional first person viewpoint in classic space simulators. A 3rd person camera lets you watch as your turrets aim and fire at an enemy target. You'll see missiles flying overhead and your ship in flames if you are running into trouble. This also allows for more sophisticated options, such as controlling large battleships, attacking multiple targets, remotely controlling combat drones, etc.

Easy to Learn

Every action in Eve is accessible through the graphical user interface. There is no need to learn any keyboard shortcuts. The user interface is mouse operated and uses traditional point and click, drag and drop. Every visible object in the scene and on the radar can by interacted with directly.

Already a Massive Community

Eve has created quite a stir in the gaming community, with already over 60 fan sites and strong coverage on gaming websites all over the world. Eve has been listed as one of the most anticipated games of the year and has received incredible enthusiasm among gamers and press alike.

EVE ONLINE WEB SITE

For very detailed information on EVE ONLINE: THE SECOND GENESIS, please visit the web site: www.eve-online.com

AVAILABLITY

EVE ONLINE: THE SECOND GENESIS will be available in May 2003 and will ship simultaneously in North America and Europe.