Introducing DUST 514, a Persistent Shooter from CCP

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Introducing DUST 514, a Persistent Shooter from CCP

Hi everyone! I’m the Community Manager for DUST 514, an upcoming title from CCP. This is the first time you’ll have seen DUST 514 highlighted on the PlayStation.Blog and we’re happy that we can reveal more about our game to you.

DUST 514 is a very different type of game. Yes, many people say this about their respective game titles — everyone thinks their baby is special, right? We really mean it though.

When playing your FPS title of choice, have you ever wished that there was something more to it beyond your rank, weapon unlocks, your kill/death ratio and leaderboard prominence? Those things are all great – but what if those matches you fought in actually meant something? What if your successes and failures against your opponents impacted the course of events in a vast setting, potentially changed a virtual world and the gameplay experience of thousands of other players? More than that, what if that impact was felt across two separate games – one on PS3 and one on PC/Mac – that share the same sci-fi universe?

DUST 514 is that game.

DUST 514 for PS3

The Persistent Shooter Concept

Some may know CCP as the creator of EVE Online, a sci-fi MMO with an open galactic setting. It’s a game perhaps best known for its sweeping fleet battles involving thousands of players, its dynamic player-driven economy, and for having (and allowing!) espionage and spycraft. We think of EVE as the ultimate sci-fi simulation, and that’s where DUST 514 comes in. It’s a whole new way of experiencing the EVE universe through what we call a “persistent shooter”.

“Persistence” is the key word here. The world of DUST 514 doesn’t spawn when you fire up your PlayStation 3 — it’s always there and always being experienced and influenced by other players in the EVE universe. When you take part in events in the EVE universe through combat in DUST 514, you’re taking part in something greater than your own individual experience of that world.

Your Battles Have Impact

Your actions have significance. We think that’s a compelling approach to a game, and something that’s currently lacking in the industry. But impact on what? The EVE universe is made up of thousands of solar systems, each with a number of planets within those systems. Those same planets seen in EVE Online, where the MMO players create various planetary structures and colonies, are the potential battlegrounds of DUST 514.

Your fights impact the entire EVE setting, comprised of both DUST 514 mercenaries and EVE Online starship pilots, known as “capsuleers“. When you capture or destroy planetary structures, you are asserting dominance over regions of that planet – perhaps eventually the planet itself. As you profit while wiping out your opposition in DUST 514, the outcomes of these conflicts can affect territorial control of vast regions of space in EVE Online, something of great importance to EVE’s starship pilots.

But making allies of some capsuleers makes rivals of others… and that’s where things get even more interesting. (Can you say, “orbital strike“?) Players of both games will have ways of influencing each other, and actions will ripple between DUST 514 and EVE Online.

Part of what makes EVE Online uncommon among MMOs is that the open setting allows for emergent gameplay. Large-scale fleet warfare is fought among the stars in complex military campaigns that can span months, while spies can infiltrate corps and funnel sensitive intel to the opposition. Industrialists plot and topple rivals on the financial markets rather than through violence; skilled corps of hired guns settle disputes through… aggressive negotiations. This is just a fraction of what players accomplish in the EVE setting, which DUST 514 mercenaries will find their own unique ways to engage in. The possibilities are all there to become a part of this, but what happens is up to you.

Of course, either game can exist on its own without the EVE-DUST Link, but both sides benefit from it greatly when the players of each respective game choose to use the connections for all they’re worth.
DUST 514 for PS3

A Single Community That Spans DUST 514 and EVE Online

Ah, an aspect of DUST 514 that’s near and dear to my heart. Those friends and enemies you make between the games leads to a great deal of player community interaction. CCP provides the setting with the EVE universe but ultimately it’s you, the players, who really breathe life into it. And people have certainly done so already, long before DUST 514 was even a twinkle in our eye.

EVE Online has history spanning more than eight years, with a vibrant and (usually) mature community linked together through EVE Gate, a social network for EVE players that is tied in with their characters. EVE Online players use it to communicate with their friends and enemies alike, and interact with their corporation even when not playing the game. We will open EVE Gate up to DUST 514 players as well. Opportunities will always be there for those who want to be part of the social fabric of this linked community, the wider EVE setting.

There are definitely challenges ahead, with a unified console and PC gamer community each influencing a shared setting through their respective types of gameplay. Rivalries, alliances and, dare I say, even some drama. Interesting times.

The Virtual Goods Economy

A strength of EVE Online is the depth of its economy. We are taking a similar approach to DUST 514, though we will do so carefully, with a slow integration of economic activity between both titles. (Fun fact: CCP employs two economists to oversee the EVE universe’s virtual economy, one for EVE Online and another focused on DUST 514.)

Virtual goods will be a major part of the in-game economy, and our business model for DUST 514 is built upon digital distribution and virtual goods transactions rather than following the traditional boxed games model. In fact, that’s another key thing that led us to abandon the FPS label in the first place — as a persistent shooter, our approach to creating and operating DUST 514 is more like an MMO. We will continually develop and improve upon DUST 514, but that won’t be funded by going the ‘map pack sales’ route. DUST 514 will have free expansions, and that development will be funded through virtual goods sales. Plus, everyone likes having customization options, right?

The virtual goods themselves will provide all manner of weaponry and defensive technology, vehicles, and more. This perpetual arms race will provide DUST players with variety in their gameplay and an array of virtual goods that supports a chosen playstyle.

“Would you like to know more?”

We are just now beginning to pull back the curtain and reveal more about DUST 514. So this is an important time for CCP, and we’re very much looking forward to bringing you something that’s quite unique in the gaming world. If you’d like to hear more about DUST 514, be sure to check the following for more info over the coming months:

Official website: www.dust514.com

Facebook fan page: www.facebook.com/dust514

Twitter: @dust514 (hashtag is #dust514)

YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/ccpgames

And if you’re a true masochist, you can follow me on Twitter: @ccp_shadow

Now, do you have questions for me about DUST 514? If so, I’ll do my best to answer as many as I can in the comments below.

Read more about PlayStation at E3!

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242 Comments

93 Author Replies

  • I was logging into my industrialist alt to update my training que when I saw the link to playstation.blog. As someone who’s been a capsuleer since 07 and following Dust since 2010 very closely I have to admit that I have been so engrossed with my reading that my que has been inactive for over an hour. How embarrassing! =p I suppose I’ll have to have to read the dev blogs in the months to come for my answers, but I’m also curious about whether or not there will be skill training in Dust, and about the possibilities of manufacturing in Eve and selling in Dust. As a pilot who’s alliance was recently run out of Branch, all I have to say to PS3 owners who have never heard of or played Eve your in in for one hell of a ride. Enjoy!

    • Hey BDCURL, as you said we’re not ready to reveal that level of detail of the economic interaction/manufacturing/related mechanics yet. And when we are, that info won’t be coming from the Community Manager (me), it’ll come from the people who are directly involved with creating and implementing these aspects of DUST 514. You’ll want to keep an eye on http://www.DUST514.com for the upcoming dev blogs.

  • I’m pretty sure you have the option to use the normal controller, ZeroCyx.

  • I’ve been an EVE player on and off for about 3 years now. For those of you that don’t know much about CCP and EVE, they are extremely dedicated to their players. They even have a group of players, elected by the players in EVE called The Council of Stellar Management (CSM), that they fly from around the world to CCP head quarters for meetings with the developers on what the players want in EVE. If you have concerns about this game losing support, or if it will be half-assed, put them to rest. This is one game company who truly puts their heart and all into their games.

    Sure if you talk to some EVE players you’ll find some gripes about things like Gallente ship balances and UI updates and such *nudgenudge* but most of us have a deep respect for the people at CCP. If you’re looking for proof to back this up, how many other games have someone following their blogs and answering questions about their games and cracking jokes with their players?

    Much love CCP Shadow and to all the others at CCP! I will be grabbing this as soon as it comes out. Until then, I’ll see you on EVE!

  • CLAYMORE_STRIKE

    I’ve been waiting for Dust514 for sooo long. It’s a great concept. I have a xbox and a ps3; with the announcement of Dust being a Playstation exclusive. My full attention(well, not all. I do have a EVE Online account) will be on the ps3.

  • is this going to be in bluray or just on psn?

  • This looks and sounds like a great game, built from great ideas. Just one question, will the PS3 players be the grunts, battleing it out and the PC users be the big wigs choosing our wars?

  • looks pretty cool

  • Im excited to see you are bringing the great Eve Universe to a new audience of gamers. Definitely looking forward to Dust 514.

  • I don’t care what anyone says. This game has some definite potential and I’ll be keeping my eye on it! :) HAPPY E3!!!!!!!

  • As cool as it looks, and as addicted to EVE I am… I dunno if I am gonna get this. I’m not interested in playing an FPS with a controller. Will there be KBAM support? I know PS3 can do this!

  • Hello there. I’m an 2007 Eve Online player. I have one question. I noticed in both, this video and the Future Vision of Eve, there are ships around the battlefield of where the mercs are fighting. From Eve Online side, would we be allowed to assist the fight from the stars? Shooting things that the mercs tag for us to shoot such as tanks, and things in the air that the mercs may not be able to take out?

    I have a few friends that I am thinking about buying the game for them since we play most FPS games together and have done so for years. I am the only one out of them that play Eve Online though. Now I feel I could be a benefactor of them. They will all work for me now… muhaha.

    This would be awesome.

  • Hey.
    I was just wondering, will Dust 514 have female mercs as well as male?

  • Already thinking of ways to use Dust to further my EVE online pirate lifestyle

    Current plan, find someone doing profitable PI on a planet, send them a message telling them they will lose the planet unless they pay up, if they dont get corp onto Dust and attack the planet. So my question will we be able to fight over any planet, or will High-sec systems still be “safe” unless war decs are paid for etc…?

  • James I know you’ve probably already stopped answering questions, but this is big for me. I’m not going to ask exactly how because you can’t disclose that at this time, but WILL our actions they really make short and term differences in the Dust 514 community, and even EVE? MAG boasted the whole persistent and constantly evolving world thing too and the only thing the wins and loses between PMCs did was give minor bonuses to certain factions.

    If you can promise that then you got my 60$ cause thats what I’m looking for in a game.

    • TG-Raylock, the short answer to your question about your actions making a difference is “YES.”

      CCP will be able to elaborate upon this more in the future. For the time being, what I described in this PlayStation.Blog post and what our Creative Director on DUST 514, CCP Praetorian, touched upon in his dev blog is all the info we can convey right now.

      http://www.dust514.com/en/news/article/1980/beginnings

      (Though, there are some interviews and media coverage happening at E3 this week that may shed some more light on the scope of interaction and impact between DUST 514 and EVE Online.)

  • @Dahlian
    If i know CCP as well as i think i do (and didn’t imagine the concept art from a while ago) Dust 514 will have both female and male mercs.

    And it will be assume.

  • Been playing Eve since 2006 (in game Davin Intaki) and the only real issue I have with this game is the prices on the land based items… 120 million isk for a Planetary Hover Barge??? I paid less than half that for my Dominix Battleship! That is like saying a UH-60 Blackhawk costs the same as the USS Missouri. I understand the equity issues with combining our economies, however, we are pod pilots and they are grunts/mercs. I don’t believe that their gear and equipment is on par with the equipment that I have to utilize everyday in Eve. Sorry to sound conceited about it but you have to admit that is a bit strange and I hope your economists take a deeper look at that. Pod Pilots should have more resources available not only by Eve canon but by the fact that we have paid monthly subscriptions. Just my two cents. The game looks amazing and I cant wait to play next summer, Sony is really lucky they managed to acquire this game!

  • I’ve played EVE online with some of the pros and had some great times, and now a EVE FPS style of gaming.
    It can’t fail, it looks fantastic and I hope playability is great as well as looking great graphically.

  • Thanks for answering. I kinda thought so since it’s ccp, but you never know. I’m just a bit tired that most fps have only male characters, it sorta destroy’s realism or variation. =)

  • Ummm….did that video just show a bunch of console gamers, in a crazy firefight, blasting a PC gamer’s 1.5B ISK dreadnaught out of orbit?!?!?!? That is a beautiful thing…..I can’t wait!

  • Hmmm Could this pip ‘Planetside Next’ on PC as this is going to be big draw on PC?

    Will be curious to see how Sony treats dust and ‘Planetside next’.

  • PLEASE BRING EVE ONLINE TO PS3!!!!! I love the game but playing on my weak computer is irritating. My dreams would all come true if EVE came to ps3. Sadly, it will never happen simply because of controls

    • To the best of my knowledge, this is not on the table. DUST 514 is how we’re bringing the EVE universe to PlayStation.

  • It will also never happen because your PS3 is weak ;)

  • With full move support (and I assume Sharp Shooter). Will you guys be trying your hardest to make sure that this FPSs SS support will make it possible for users to be highly competetive? (Socom4’s push for modal/L2 turning system works brilliantly)

  • What do you mean when you say the actions will afect both eve online and dust p.s will the virtual store require credit card or can we use point card or psn money card

  • ang3l0_p3r3z_23

    This is awesome kind of reminds me of Halo thought

  • Looks very cool! It’s an interesting (and probably over due) step away from BF and COD. Although I also thought BlOps, MOH, and Homefront looked like good games… haha.

    Good luck in the saturated market, looks like a great contender.

  • never played eve but i found the concept and some of the stories from the game incredible given that its the players that pretty much control the game and i will definatly try Dust 514 when ever it comes out you guys att ccp definatly stole the show in my book.

    • Hey Ninja-KiLLR,

      It’s those stories from the EVE universe that first caught my attention years ago, and led me to jump in and play. The story in particular was of a group called the Guiding Hand Social Club, and the simultaneous assassination of an player alliance leader and the largest player-corp heist ever pulled off (at that time) in EVE Online. Needless to say, I was blown away that something like this was even possible in a video game – but that’s something fairly unique about the ‘sandbox’ approach CCP has to EVE, where we provide the setting and it’s very much player-driven from there.

      If you’re interested, that article was put online again:

      http://www.computerandvideogames.com/180867/features/murder-incorporated/

    • (Btw, not everyone’s a ‘bad guy’ in EVE of course, but it’s got its fair share of player villains. And that certainly keeps things interesting.)

      EVE Online is also one of those games where the stories have a lot of broad appeal to non-MMO gamers, and even gets picked up by the mainstream press. So, in part at least, what DUST 514 is doing is making that setting something a bit more accessible to a wider group of gamers. One of our goals being that more people will become part of those stories. More people can feel they are a part of this.

      Hope you’ll join us.

      — Shadow

  • Yes at the end of the trailer it kinda gave me a Halo feel. I hope this game stands out as a good exclusive to come to the PS3. I will cross my fingers that it will be as good as the trailer.

  • Is there any special way to guarantee a spot in the closed beta?

    • If you happen to be a Playboy centerfold, I’d say your chances are pretty good. ;)

      *ahem* j/k (…unless you are said centerfold, though I doubt it being named ‘Jonny’), it’s still going some months before we open DUST 514 up for beta, but I’m glad to hear that you’re interested. All I can really say at this point is ‘stay tuned’!

  • Wow! Sooo many shooters to buy for this system. :) I will never be able to level up in any of them since I will be playing all 50 of em. :) But this is another one that looks too good to pass up.

  • Would love clarification on maximum players in a session. One of my favourite MAG features is the very high player count battles. Will we be looking at anywhere near MAG’s 256 player battles? or something closer to 64, 40 or 32?

    Just wondering.

  • ..so since its like EVE will it also have a sub like eve does…i really hope not looks awesome but i refused to pay to play…its why i turned down dcuo loved the game but not paying monthly…sorry just wont happen..

  • Looks awesome I’ll be getting it on launch. Will it be free to play or pay to play?

  • There is not a monthly subscription for Dust 514.

  • Ok, so I’m a long time EVE player. Ever since you folks at CCP revealed Dust to us, I was very “meh” about it. I should be honest, I’ve never been a fan of fps. At the time of the Dust announcement I didn’t even own a current generation console. Well, I got my PS3 for Christmas. Always wanted one due to the great hardware (and you know, blu-ray is nice to have).

    So, flash forward to yesterday. I see that Dust is going to be PS3 exclusive (cool, I have one – good to know that if I wanted to play it, I’m set on hardware). Then, I watch that trailer… Right, so I’m converted. I’m pretty much going to have to own this. Seeing that Moros get “reverse nuked from orbit” was jaw dropping. I remember the folks on the EVE-O forums asking about being able to nuke Dusties from orbit and a dev saying something akin to “yeah, pretty much a mandatory option lol”… Well, fair play CCP. This trailer was amazing, and as a non-fps guy, I’m damned excited. Good show!

  • Hi there, I’m realy glad Dust 514 has come to the PS3. I’ve really wanted a deep and engaging multiplayer experience from an FPS for a very long time, and I am so very happy I’ll be able to experience it on my playstation.

    How are you going to deal with the animosity most Eve players seem to have toward the console players (in particular PS3 gamers, if the current state of the forums is anything to go by)?

    Will you attempt to integrate the two communities by way of some as yet unknown networking system and eliminate cross-platform stereotyping and disdain? Or is this a plan by you to augment the Fleet/Infantry relationship in which conflict in space is clear-cut and precise, while skirmishes on the ground are chaotic and difficult to coordinate, thereby leading to vastly different mindsets and the relationships between various corporations and mercs throughout Eve?

    Also, will this be pay-to-play, or will Dust 514 follow the PSN’s current ethos of free online play?

    • GenTech4,

      Good to hear that DUST 514 might be the game you’ve been waiting for. Also, interesting questions on the community management side of things. It’s still way too soon for me to go into the specifics of how I’ll approach this. And in truth, EVE’s gameplay is emergent, what players accomplish in the setting still keeps us on our toes. We like this. So there will of course be a lot of surprises in store over time, not *everything* can be planned for. ;)

      But the connections will in part be supported by EVE Gate – the social network used in EVE Online, which will be extended to DUST 514 players – and in general CCP’s own efforts in helping to foster communication and cooperation between DUST and EVE players, revealing the potential for interaction and making the possibilities known.

  • @GenTech and everyone else who asked it’s free to play and will have micro transactions DLC will be free.

    Go to http://www.dust514.com to read up on it some more!

  • @DICard thank you.

  • You’re a real trooper, Shadow. Very excited about this game, thanks for answering questions.

    Two from me:

    1) Integration. EVE caps/DUST mercs interact within the same universe, but say you’re both. Do you know if there will be “account linking” per se?

    2) Accessibility. Corps are going to be a big part of DUST 514 too, that’s cool. But what about FPS players that aren’t big on clans and like to go lone wolf? Will it be easy for them to just pop in and sate their bloodlust?

    • Oh, I’m not such a trooper, but I do try.

      Good questions. As to integration, I want to be clear that a DUST 514 mercenary cannot be an EVE Online capsuleer, and vice versa. They are distinct types of players in the EVE universe. You may choose to play both games, but you’ll be doing so with two separate characters. That said, both your DUST merc and your EVE capsuleer can be part of the same corporation/alliance, hence working towards the same collective goals. That’ something I personally feel is really interesting, hope I’m not alone in that. :)

      As to accessibility/solo play. Anyone can play DUST 514, but those who’ll have the greatest impact on the setting will be doing so through collective action as part of a corp or alliance, rather than being a one man army. Unless you’ve got mad skills, but even then…

  • will dust n00bs actually be able to blow up my moros?

  • I just read an interview from another site about Dust 514. Max 32 players is kinda lame; if you could make it to 64 it’d be awesome. That said…

    OH MY GOD! We can really take over planets?! You guys are great if this is true!!!

    • Hey Etero_Narciss,

      Conquest, control… these are big aspects of the game.

      And hi to all you guys over at DUST 514 fansite http://www.dust514.org. Glad to see the discussions taking place on your forums there, and thanks for all the support you’ve given us and your enthusiasm for DUST 514. This is recognized and much appreciated by CCP.

      07

      — Shadow

  • CLAYMORE_STRIKE

    I’ll be watching closely to release date and be sure to have Dust 514 locked and loaded into my PS3.

  • @ Etero

    Fanfest 2009 interview stated, “What is the maximum number of players supported for a single battle?

    We currently support 64 and our maps are pretty big. They are designed so we can scale that up a bit after release. Maybe 88 is the new 64.”

  • @ Etero_Narciss CCP From what The REGIS recently heard it will be max 64 at launch and they will add more in.

  • I hear you Regis, but I’m basing my comment on this interview:

    http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/06 … 4-and-eve/

    Now, unless I’ve misread (can always happen) it clearly stated that it would be 32 players at most for now, though they’re considering adding more.

  • It looks really nice, good job. They somehow made me think of Half Life 2, the soldiers.

  • Great, just what we all need, another FPS. It’s like deja vu all over again.

    • bluesfromagun,

      (nice name btw, Jesus and Mary Chain… )

      Well, about that deja vu, when other shooters start offering true persistence and world impact, rather than just leaderboards and stat porn, please let us know. ;) To each their own, but we think we’re doing something pretty different here with DUST 514.

  • Who knows maybe 32 and add as more goes on but with maps that are 5K by 5K I hope it will be 64 or hell 88 sounds good to

  • Indeed. I hope so too, Regis.

  • Thank you for the informative response to my question. I look forward to finding out more as the year goes on, however, I do have one more question I feel I have to ask.

    How specialised will the skill sets be?

    There seems to be a general practice in shooters to have everyone be able to do everything they want to within a few button presses, or relatively shallow work toward upgrades and experience points. While this okay for the casuals, I find it detracts a great deal from the sense of achievement and pride to be, for example, supporting your team having sacrificed most of your combat abilities to better augment the overall effectiveness of your team.

    In addition to that, the ability to instantly switch classes and specialisations give most shooters a very shallow feeling, unlike EVE, in which skills and equipment are extremely varied, specialised, take a long time to learn/acquire and can be difficult to come by resulting in a far deeper experience.

    So, will you have an extremely diverse class system, with deep customisation options for each class?

    Also, sorry if this post is set out badly, I’m feeling kinda weird at this point.

    • OK I’m back. :)

      DUST 514 isn’t really about levels, ranks, or the latest gun you unlock when you hit a milestone, and it’s certainly not what I – or anyone for that matter – would call a casual game. Certainly, there are some gratifying things that happen along the way, but the true sense of achievement will come from what you accomplish collectively, especially when opposed (collectively) by other corps. That’s really a key thing that differentiates DUST 514 from the other games out there. Conflict, achievement, and failures on that scale are a new thing in shooters. It all depends on how much you want it, how much you’re willing to work with others, and to what degree you want to cooperate with EVE Online players to reach certain goals.

    • Also, the gear that can be used in DUST 514 can be used in some very interesting ways, allowing for a huge number of potential loadouts and a great deal of flexibility in how you approach combat. There’s a bit more on this in an interview with DUST 514 producer Thomas Farrer and EVE Online creative director Torfi Frans Olafsson over at Rock, Paper, Shotgun:

      http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/06/08/interview-ccp-on-dust-514-and-eve/

      I realize my response may not provide you with the specifics you’d like to hear, but that’s what I can speak about right now.

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