Seleene, a current CSM member made an excellent post on his blog here. What started out as a simple reply quickly turned into something too long to post as a comment so I decidedto just drop it on my own page.
From a purely business perspective CCP's choices make a great deal of sense. "We have standardized and unified our code base. We are expanding our product line. We are creating new environments for consumers to experience over our entire product line, and testing these environments in our current products." All this sounds really good, and to a large extent is. However from a creative perspective these choices are mediocre at best. Its like spending years creating the best canvas possible but never getting around to actually painting a picture on that canvas. Also, all these choices do little to keep consumers interested in their flagship product, the one that actually pays their bills. To rectify these problems its going to take a complete rethinking of what CCP is about, and perhaps a change in management.
Unfortunately there is very little historic precedent for such radical paradigm shifts without major crises. Whether it be within individuals, vast empires, or some mid-size company in Iceland, such large changes in culture and thinking do not come easy to our species. Is this to say its impossible? No, but highly unlikely. Sadly such a crises would probably come from CCP being unable to pay their bills as a company and ceasing to exist. It is exactly this scenario the passionate player base is trying to avoid. Ironically, I think this is exactly what CCP is trying to avoid as well, but addressing the problem from a completely different perspective.
I personally do not completely disagree with the overall choices CCP has made. I think there has simply been a tipping of the scales too far in the direction of business oriented decisions and away from creative iteration. All of the original creative ideas in Eve have had many years to be tested and retested. It is time the results of these years of testing and experimentation be used to rethink some of the underlying core mechanics of Eve that are seen as broken and inadequate by all parties involved. To put it clearly, the limited resources of CCP need to be shifted back in the direction of significantly improving their current product. I really think this is all it would take.
The answer coming from company management for along time has been "Yeah, we will get around to fixing that stuff..." By the time they get around to it there may not be a game left to fix. Irregardless of the CSM or outcry from a devoted, and perhaps dogmatic consumer base, the gamble is theirs to make in the end.
EDIT: All of these thoughts and much more is clearly and articulately expressed in this Eve Radio Chat.
MJ
