Review: Empires of EVE: A History of the Great Wars of EVE Online

• November 11, 2017
• James Skemp
• review

The following is a review of Empires of EVE: A History of the Great Wars of EVE Online, written by Andrew Groen.

As Interesting as Ancient Historical Accounts

First let me say that I have never played EVE Online. The idea of the game appeals to me quite a lot, but I don’t have it in me to actually put in the effort required to be more than the lowest of roles.

However, I’ve heard of EVE Online because of a couple news stories that have hit Hacker News, as well as one that actually hit the mainstream press (when one of the players died in an attack overseas. It is with this history that I finally decided to purchase Empires of EVE: A History of the Great Wars of EVE Online.

Empires of EVE was exactly what I was hoping it would be: a historical look at EVE Online that even someone who knows little about the game itself could understand and enjoy.

Reading about the military campaigns and politics reminds me of my college history classes over a decade and half ago. Despite being a game, the way EVE Online was setup by the developers, where the outskirts of the game’s space could be controlled by normal users, and they could do almost anything they want within.

The forming and breaking of alliances, the fights fought and won by underdogs, and the spying and backstabbing all echo human history. In addition to the text, the book is filled with maps, pictures, and drawings, and add to the stories quite well.

The book itself (I was able to get a hardcover copy direct from the author through Amazon at list price) is fantastic. Great binding and pages, with only the pictures having a slight bumpiness to them (as compared to the extremely smooth text areas).

The only downside to the book is that I’m left wanting more. My hope is that the author is correct, and that one day we might be able to read another tome like this.

If you’re interested in the history of EVE Online, or have heard about the game and some of its conflicts and want to learn more, I highly recommended Empires of EVE: A History of the Great Wars of EVE Online. If you’re interested in history, and aren’t turned off by the fact that the human interactions are taking place in a fictional universe, I once again highly recommend this book. Full five of five stars.

• review