Set tens of thousands of years in the future, EVE Online is a breathtaking journey to the stars, to an immersive experience filled with adventure, riches, danger and glory. With nearly a quarter of a million subscribers worldwide inhabiting the same virtual universe, EVE features a vast player-run economy where your greatest asset is the starship, designed to accommodate your specific needs, skills and ambitions. EVE offers professions ranging from commodities trader to mercenary, industrial entrepreneur to pirate, mining engineer to battle fleet commander or any combination of these and much more. From brokering business deals to waging war, you will have access to a diverse array of sophisticated tools and interfaces to forge your own destiny in EVE.

Players have great things to look forward to in EVE Online: Quantum Rise. Corporations will be able to set their products apart from the rest by building trust in their goods through customizable storefronts. The backbone of EVE’s vibrant economy, industrial ships are being rebalanced and optimized to better suit the needs of haulers and industrialists—including the latest edition to the fleet, a massive capital industrial ship dubbed the Orca. A new certificate system will give a quick and verifiable means to discern a pilot’s skill level in trading, gunnery or countless other professions, providing plenty of bragging rights. Meanwhile, the introduction of a medal system allows corporations to distinguish their most valued pilots and honor them for their achievements.

EVE Online players have already begun to enjoy the performance-enhancing improvements of the StacklessIO and EVE64 initiatives which were introduced in an earlier phase of the expansion’s release, and both of which have set the stage for truly limitless combat. Several times in recent weeks, over 1,000 players have participated in single-system battles with extremely minimal lag thanks to these new industry-leading advancements.

These previously unannounced features will debut in EVE Online: Quantum Rise:

• The introduction of In-game Subscription Services. You can now convert your 60-day EVE Time Codes (ETCs) into two 30-day items in game. These “30-Day Pilot’s Licenses” can be traded freely through all regular means (via market or contract or directly between players) and can be activated at any time. This feature will be available on November 11th or shortly thereafter
• Assembly Array upgrades for those wanting to produce on a grand scale
• Alchemy allows moon materials to shift the whole landscape of Tech 2 production
• UI changes include a moveable HUD, module recharge timers and weapon grouping
• More efficient bomb production. Producers get more boom for their materials.
• Upgrades to the Trinity Premium graphics content for the ubiquitous stargates of New Eden
• A rebalancing of ship speeds for vessels of all sizes to rediscover their combat viability, making player vs. player strategy and tactics more important than ever
• 10 new beautifully haunting music tracks by EVE soundtrack composer RealX

Already revealed features of Quantum Rise include the ability for corporations to create and distribute their own custom medals for whatever accomplishments they see fit to bestow on their members. Pilots will find a newly-designed certificate system provides a quick and verifiable way to prove their worth in gunnery, trading or countless other professions. The shipyards of New Eden have been busy rebalancing industrial ships and are almost ready to undergo production of the mighty capital ship, the Orca. For easier navigation, all ships will feature autopilot avoidance options and a few new routes will open up in New Eden.

This winter EVE Online: Quantum Rise will be available on Nov. 11, 2008 for subscribers as a free download, non-subscribers should visit the EVE website to sign up for a free 14-day trial account.