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ENTROPIA UNIVERSE EXPOSé (PART II) Posted by Zac Simpson on Sep 13, 2009 06:46 (106 days ago) |
[This feature is part two of That Gaming Site’s Exposé on the Entropia Universe. Part one is available here.]
The real world just isn’t real enough anymore. Gone is our attachment to the earth, when human beings had to subsist on what we could create, sell or find. Since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution we have hurtled into a new age: an age powered by rapidly accelerating technological discovery; an age where many of the tasks that kept us tied to the heartbeat of the natural world have become redundant. In the 21st century we no longer build our own homes, hunt, grow crops or travel for days on end to reach markets to sell our goods. In this century we commute to work, live in comfortable apartments and enjoy a measure of free time unequalled by any society recorded in the pages of history.
But on the Planet Calypso, a sci-fi mish-mash of futuristic living and wild-west colonialism, the pursuits of yesteryear exist in parallel with the technological promise of tomorrow. And to get there, all you have to do is plug in. 810,000 social butterflies have already made the journey, and many of those have found virtual fame and real life fortunes in the pixel world. So just what is it about the Entropia Universe that captivates so many people?
Epiphany Epibail Bailey (AKA James Burrows), a new arrival to the Planet Calypso, may have the answer.
“It was the Real Cash Economy (RCE) aspect that drew me in. The idea that everything in-game, skills and items, had a real world value suddenly gave me the feeling that the excitement I’d felt from achievements in other games I’d played was less real or tangible,” he said.
Burrows also believes that Entropia’s competitor MMORPGs cannot offer the depth of gaming experience found on the Planet Calypso.
“The EU (Entropia Universe)... is not really comparable to [other MMORPGs] that offer scripted storylines. EU leaves a lot more up to the individual and community imagination,” he said.
 Epiphany Epibail Bailey.
Burrows is not alone in his interpretation that the RCE and community driven play embodied by the EU are fundamental cornerstones to its success. In fact, almost every loyal Entropian will tell you that the RCE was the bait that enticed them in, whilst the vibrant community that drives the economy (and many of the definitive advancements in the gameplay) kept them there.
The RCE works in an interesting and compelling way. For a deposit of US$10 players are credited with 100 PED minus a small transaction fee. Players can then use this cash to buy any item of monetary value. These items are as varied in condition, price and availability as any item in the real world, which has created a unique free-market exchange system upon which the economy of Entropia is built. This market is largely player driven – prices rise and fall with demand, sought after items sell at exorbitant costs, and even a haircut or new shoes may cost you dearly (depending on just how Pimp you want to be).
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Sep 14, 2009 18:08:08 (104 days ago)
) great article!
