EVE Online developer CCP Games is ramping up the narrative heading into November's Havoc expansion, and the team breaks down the design process behind the new Zarzakh region and the Deathless Circle at the center of the expansion.
EVE Online's New Zarzakh Region Looks Beautifully Brutal And Ripe For Chaos
23.09.2023 - 17:45 / mmorpg.com / Eve Online / New
As I walked into the main hall at EVE Fanfest 2023, prepped for the keynote announcements, the giant screen in the Laugardalshöll Arena was tuned into the Twitch stream of the MMO. In front of me was the giant Jovian stargate, tiny blips representing capsuleers eager to see what was happening in orbit around the structure.
Within moments of me finding my seat, the lights on the stargate turned on, the gate itself shaking itself to life. Almost immediately, capsuleers began jumping into the unknown — a new system uncovered as part of the unfolding events of August's Epiphany update.
Warping in, the screen filled with clouds suspended in space. It was an awesome sight, full of movement, energy, and chaos. And that last feeling is fitting, thanks to the system being owned by the new Deathless Circle, a new mysterious faction that has come on the scene in EVE Online as part of the recent narrative push.
For years, we've heard, and at times seen, talk from CCP Games about their EVE Evolved initiative. Effectively, the initiative is all about modernizing the tech underlying the MMO, as well as boosting the visuals of the world. Things like volumetric clouds, better shadows, reflections on ships, or improved animation work have been drip-fed over a series of updates in the past few years.
However, in that first glimpse of Zarzakh, everything was there. Violent, chaotic clouds dominate the sight line, the shimmer of a bubble that notes the point of no return in space off in the distance. Visually, it's the most interesting system I've seen in EVE since the Triglavian invasion, and possibly the most visually busy overall. Normally, the starfield dominates the screen, and while still beautiful, it can feel one note.
In Zarzakh it's drastically different. Every pan of the camera is a visual treat, especially as the black hole in the distance comes into view. The new station in the region looks so incredibly distinct from the normal structures we see in EVE Online that I can't help but feel drawn to it whenever I see it, whether on the stream or in the new trailer for the Havoc expansion.
It's great to finally see all of this culminate in such a beautiful, but brutal setting within EVE Online.
The Gravity Hazard. It's a new mechanic in the Zarzakh system that fundamentally changes the way capsuleers can navigate and engage with each other in the system. Outside of specific pockets in Zarzakh, general space has what's known as the Gravity Hazard. Leaving the safety of the area around a gate, or the station itself, the gasses, particles and more of Zarzakh slowly crush your ship, making travel hazardous.
Deadly is actually more like it.
This can fundamentally change how travel is done in the system, as many times, players
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