What I love about EVE

(Stupid stupid flu has me bed-ridden, so no pics this week)

The main thing about EVE that differenciates it from other games is always the sandbox part. Players have the freedom to do whatever they want, there are no restrictive classes, and no closed storyline.
But another thing I very much like about EVE is that it's not based on a previous franchise.

I think this is important, as it takes the player's and CCP's freedom to another level. There are no limits.
If you play Lord of the Rings online, for example, you can only stick to the storyline. Of course there's alot of things the devs can implement as new content, but how many expansions will they be able to cram in before they have to reach some conclusion? The story has to advance, the ring has to get to Mordor sometime!
In that end, EVE has the advantage. No previous story, no end to the expansions. (Also, EVE expansions are free. That's another HUGE advantage)

But then more doesn't always mean good things. World of Warcraft has a new expansion, and frankly, I can't say I'm thrilled. Sure, there's new content, new stories, but expanding the game vertically like that isn't always good. It's always the same old thing, just in a new package.
WOW got boring after you reached top level, then it was only about grinding those dungeons over and over and OVER again, just to get that gear. What's the gear to be used for?
It's like Dragon Ball Z! You get stronger and stronger and then when you can snuff out worlds with a flick of your hand, there's still new enemies that somehow appear.

Er, got a bit sidetracked there, sorry.

The point is that in the end, you never have an impact in those games. They're good for fantasies and bragging points, but then, how many out of the playerbase actually KNOW the names of the "best"?
And, (comming back to the original point of this post), those "best", no matter how many demon Lords they vanquish or how many armies they defeat, somehow they still have to be weaker than, say Aragorn. But in the story, Aragon never did half the stuff they did!
...

There's always hopes and preconceptions for new players, but unlike WOW, star wars, star trek or LOTRO, we don't have to worry about hordes of rabid fans wailing about how their favorite character isn't in the game, or that "X would NEVER do THAT, YOU'RE RUINING THE ORIGINAL STORY!!!"

What we get instead are hordes of rabid players fighting about how their ship/module/implants aren't to their liking, but that's part of what gets the game forward. The gameworld continues to expand, and hopefully improve, thanks to the player having some measure of contol over CCP's decisions.

So that's my 2 ISK for this week. I feel this post ought to have been a bit more researched and organised, but screw that, I'm going back to bed.

EDIT: Just to make it clear, I love story-based games. A good story makes a good game.
I've played WOW and LOTRO, and plan to take on Star trek and Star wars as well.