This is the post where I'm supposed to pretend I'm standing in front of a podium, thanking the Academy, and my mom, etc. etc.. I'll avoid all that, if I can.
I did want to pause and at least recognize the date, and thank all y'all for stopping in and reading my ramblings.
I'm a firm believer that in order to see where you're going, sometimes you have to look behind you and see where you've been. It's the sum total of the parts of the journey that makes us who we are, looking at the end state of where we ended up only tells part of the story.
So, here's what I wrote for the very first post:
Sunday, June 1, 2014
Obligatory Foundational First Post
First!
No, wait. That doesn't have the same impact here as a forum thread.
Who Am I?
Abavus Durden -- I'm a former CEO, former alliance lead, beta player that's been in and around EVE since late 2002. Although I don't claim to be a master of all EVE mechanics, I've touched about all the content in the game at one point or another.
In 2008, before being a bittervet was a thing, I left in a huff, upset with CCP's handling of the game's direction. I didn't intend to come back. I guess I was ahead of the bittervet curve. At that point, I'd invested 5+ years into the game, and I felt like CCP owed me something personally for hanging with them. I felt frustrated that they didn't see the obviousness of their mistakes, and I voted with my wallet when I saw them pushing the game down a narrow field of view.
I dabbled in other games. (Okay, more than dabbled.) I gained some perspective. It took me a couple of years, but I've limped back. My free time for gaming is now more limited than ever, and that has also changed my perspective on what EVE could and should be.
Dog's Breath?
Pukin' Dogs is my corp. This is where the Dogs speak. Hence, you're getting doggie breath on you, right now. Don't make a face, it's good for you.
What's This Blog About?
I'm here on this blog because I have a few things to say about EVE. The forums are the wrong place; you all know why.
There are a series of posts running around in my head that I want to get out in text and share. After that, we'll see where this goes or if it becomes another abandoned wreck on Blogger.
But I see trends on other blogs and comment sections, and I see a voice beginning to gain traction that I want to help amplify. I call it post-bittervetism.
If you say it like that, it sounds like a fancy political movement, which I think it could be.
The term post-bittervet really never clicked, but it was initially useful for me to describe what I am. It's the notion that once you become a bittervet, there's really no going back to being a fanboy, but you don't have to stay in bettervet-land forever. There is something after; and that "something after" can be something positive, more balanced - some parts fanboy, optimist, pessimist, and skeptic.
There are things that have happened in the past year that I never thought in my foggiest that CCP would implement. A year ago, the notion of new lvl4 content was laughable, and here we sit waiting for the 3rd wave of burners to be deployed (single frigs, team frigs, and now BCs). A year ago, Caroline's Star hadn't happened, and the idea of massive lore evolution and things like Jove constructs in highsec was wishful thinking. Or the introduction of npcs that pod you or destroy your POS. A year ago, the notion that CCP would be working on a procedurally-driven PVE system was simply crazytalk.
I don't claim credit for any of this, of course. Not even close. But it was a very good time to start a blog that whined about needing a revamp of PVE.
To wrap up, it's been a good year for me in EVE. I'm still picking around the edges, an hour or two a night, but I find myself looking for ways to get more involved and recapture the feelings I had for the game a decade ago; to look behind every asteroid, to build my own empire, to develop a network of friends and allies and not just watch from the sidelines. And that's a very positive thing.
PS: To be honest, I lightly regret the blog's name. I got to the point of the blog setup menus and thought "oh gawd, what am I going to call this mess?" It was spontaneous. I could have done better. I suppose there could be a rebranding sometime down the road, but we'll let it ride for now.
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