HELSINKI, Finland — Fenris Creations, the newly independent studio formerly known as CCP Games, announced this week the upcoming release of EVE Online: Cradle of War, a new expansion launching June 9 that players are already describing as, quote, “a reskin of the same conflict we have been in since 2003.”
The expansion promises to connect multiple star systems through a series of military campaigns, adding new ships, a non-PvP starter region, and quote, “a refreshed approach to New Eden’s enduring conflict.” Veteran pilots, however, were quick to point out that this description bears a remarkable resemblance to every patch note released in the game’s 22-year history.
“We are thrilled to introduce Cradle of War, which represents a bold new chapter for EVE and our community,” said a Fenris Creations spokesperson in an official press release. The spokesperson, whose name was redacted from all public communications at their own request, added that the expansion represents a departure from previous expansions which represented the same departure from previous expansions that players had already rejected.
Longtime EVE Online player Marcus Chen, a CEO of a mid-tier nullsec alliance, offered a different perspective on the announcement.
“Let me get this straight,” Chen said in an interview from his Titan pilot chair. “They are selling us an expansion called ‘Cradle of War’ that adds military campaigns to connect star systems, new ships, and a starter region. You know what we call that? EVE Online. We have had that since launch. I genuinely cannot tell if this is a real expansion or a parody of an expansion.” Chen paused, then added, “I am going to subscribe for another year anyway.”
The announcement comes just weeks after Hilmar, the founder of what is now Fenris Creations, published a letter titled “A New Era” describing the studio’s transition to independent ownership. Players quickly noted that Hilmar has announced a new era for EVE Online approximately every 18 months since 2006, with the previous new era having been declared obsolete by the next one.
Additional features of the Cradle of War expansion include what Fenris describes as quote, “a deeper narrative experience” and unquote. When pressed for specifics, the Fenris communications team provided a graphic showing a spaceship firing a large laser at another spaceship, captioned “DYNAMIC COMBAT.”
The community response on r/EVE was immediate and enthusiastic in the way that only EVE Online players can be.
user StrategicHusbandAlt wrote: “Cradle of War sounds terrifyingly accurate. My alliance has been in a cradle-to-grave war for 6 years. At least this expansion will finally give it a title.”
user PochvenPurgeLord commented: “I have been waiting 22 years for Fenris to finally acknowledge the war. The war was me the whole time.”
user JitaLocalMod added: “New era, new expansion, same Jita gankers. Some things are eternal.”
Fenris Creations has stated that Cradle of War will launch exclusively on PC, with a Mac version described as quote, “coming when the heat death of the universe makes it strategically relevant.” The studio has also confirmed that the existing EVE Online subscription model will remain unchanged, which multiple players interpreted as a promise that nothing would fundamentally change, which they characterized as both good and bad depending on their subscription status.
Pre-orders for the expansion, which is included at no additional cost for all Omega subscribers, open June 1.
Editor’s note: EVE Online has been in a state of perpetual war since its launch in 2003. Players have destroyed an estimated 12?% of all ships ever manufactured in the game’s history, with the majority of those losses occurring in the last 72 hours.
