Entropia Universe

Entropia Universe
Developer(s) MindArk
Publisher(s) MindArk
Designer(s) Multiple
Engine CryEngine 2
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
Release date(s) January 30, 2003
Genre(s) Massively multiplayer online role-playing game, first-person shooter
Mode(s) Online multiplayer

Entropia Universe is a massively multiplayer online virtual universe designed by the Swedish software company MindArk, based in Gothenburg.

Entropia uses a micropayment business model, in which players may buy in-game currency (PED - Project Entropia Dollars) with real money that can be redeemed back into U.S. dollars at a fixed exchange rate of 10:1. This means that virtual items acquired within Entropia Universe have a real cash value, and a participant may, at any time, initiate a withdrawal of their accumulated PED back into U.S. dollars according to the fixed exchange rate, minus transaction fees; the minimum amount for a withdrawal is 1,000 PED. The Entropia Universe is a direct continuation of Project Entropia.

Entropia Universe entered the Guinness World Records Book in both 2004 and 2008 for the most expensive virtual world objects ever sold. In 2009, a virtual space station, a popular destination, sold for $330,000.[1] This was then eclipsed in November 2010 when Jon Jacobs sold a club named "Club Neverdie" for $635,000; this property was sold in chunks, with the largest sold for $335,000.[2][3]

Also of note: in 2014 Planet Arkadia started selling 200,000 Arkadia Underground Deeds (AUD) valued at $5.00 USD each (50PED) making the Arkadia Underground valued at $1 million.[4]

Gameplay

Cost to participate

The game can be played for free, although spending money on the in-game currency allows significant additional options like purchasing items, skills, deeds/shares, services from other players. Nearly all in-game activities (such as firing weapons, crafting items, mining, etc.) require expendable resources which must be purchased from vending machines (or other players). There is no account fee or connection charge. The in-game activities that do not require PED are sweating creatures (called mobs), walking around looking for (and gathering up) fruit/stones/dune on the ground, and socializing. Although Trading or reselling requires some PED to start up, a lot of time is spent advertising and being social.

Character creation

Before beginning the game, a player has to choose a name for his or her avatar, which must be a first name, a last name, and a nickname; all 3 names will be visible to all the players in the game. The name can not have any profanities in it and can never be changed, unless MindArk thinks the name is inappropriate. Next, the new player will need to create and customize their avatar.

During the process of creating an avatar, the player is asked for some personal information. This does not show up in-game, and is only used by MindArk to verify a player's identity when they want to withdraw money from the game.

After initial creation, further physical modifications can only be achieved through services offered by other users.

Unlike most other MMOs, each person is only allowed one avatar, and having more than one could cause a player to be banned from the game, losing any funds they have invested in the game. This measure is implemented to disallow players from having the opportunity to cheat or farm, which could negatively influence the game and its players due to the real money that is involved.

Planets

Entropia Universe (then Project Entropia) was released in 2003 with only one planet, named Calypso.

A second planet was opened on April 6, 2010, called ROCKtropia. It is owned and developed by Neverdie Studios (owned by long-time player Jon Jacobs). The theme of this planet is "music", which is seen throughout the planet.

The third planet to be released was Next Island on December 8, 2010. The theme of this planet is "paradise", with beaches and landscapes.

The fourth planet launched was Arkadia, on May 25, 2011, with a theme of "treasure hunting", which takes place both in-game and outside the game.

The fifth planet to be launched was Cyrene, opened May 1, 2012, by Digital Scryers and Creative Kingdom This was a soft launch to allow existing players to beta-test it.

The sixth planet is Toulan which was released in a beta stage on February 19, 2014.[5] Developed by 'Beladcom' out of Jordan, Planet Toulan is inspired by rich Arabian mythology and culture.

While not a planet, space is a separate area in the Entropia Universe, connecting all planets. Space is developed and managed by MindArk themselves and allows players to travel among planets via space ships.

Development

In 1995, development of Entropia Universe (formerly Project Entropia) was started by two different groups - one in Sweden headed by Jan Welter Timkrans and one in Switzerland, headed by Benny Iggland. Initially taking place on the fictional Planet Calypso, the 2001 version used the NetImmerse 4 game engine. On May 20, 2002, the Commercial Open Trial began, and the game was available to the public. With Version Update 4.2 on 28 January 2003, the game was considered "Gold".

Some important additions to the game since have been:

4.228 January 2003Personal storage system
5.324 November 2003Housing system, space travel
5.65 April 2004Mentor & Disciple system
5.71 June 2004Crystal Palace Space Station
6.010 August 2004New graphics engine (GameBryo)
6.16 October 2004Amethera continent, Landgrabs
7.34 May 2005Land Area Management, Auction Procurement Orders
7.51 July 2005New avatar creation process, Beauty Professions
7.823 November 2005Animal Taming
8.019 December 2005Asteroid Space Resort
8.818 December 2006Shopping Malls

In August, 2009, Version 10.0 was released, using CryEngine 2 from Crytek. With the new engine, almost everything in the game required changes, including the overall land maps. This change was retconned into the storyline as attacking robots crashing their large spaceship into the planet, changing the land. There were some systems (like pets taming) that were disabled right after the implementation of the CryEngine; some of these were returned after a few weeks, whereas some took months or even years. There are still systems that were in place before CryEngine that have not yet returned as of August 2014.

11.0.06 April 2010New Planet (ROCKtropia)
11.2.021 June 2010Vehicles
11.3.028 September 2010Voice chat system
11.5.1 8 December 2010New Planet (Next Island)
11.10.2 25 May 2011New Planet (Planet Arkadia)
12.0 21 June 2011Space
12.6.01 May 2012 New Planet (Planet Cyrene)
12.910 Dec 2012 VirtualTycoon mobile app released for Android devices
15.015 Oct 2014 Taming & Pets (Reintroduced)

Awards and recognition

In February 2007, Entropia Universe won game of the month on MPOGD.[6] In December 2008 Entropia Universe won game of the month on MPOGD for the second time.[7]

Significant events and virtual property sales

References

  1. "Man buys virtual space station for 330k real dollars". Retrieved 2010-06-23.
  2. "Planet Calypso Player Sells Virtual Resort for $635,000.00 USD". Retrieved 2010-11-13.
  3. "And the asteroid goes to". Retrieved 2010-11-20.
  4. Planetarkadia.com
  5. "Entropia Universe - Entropia Universe 14.5 Release Notes".
  6. "MPOGD's GAME OF THE MONTH MARCH 2013". Multiplayer Online Game Directory. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  7. "MPOGD's GAME OF THE MONTH MARCH 2013". Multiplayer Online Game Directory. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  8. "Article: "Gamer buys $26,500 virtual land."". BBC News. 2004-12-17. Retrieved 2012-09-25.
  9. "Gamer buys virtual space station". BBC News. 25 October 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  10. "Virtual property market booming". BBC News. 9 November 2005. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  11. "Cash card taps virtual game funds". BBC News. 2 May 2006. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  12. Neha Tiwari (October 10, 2006). "Teen pays siblings' college fees by selling virtual weapons". cnet News. Retrieved 2009-03-17.
  13. "500k Users Press Release". Gamedaily.com.
  14. 1 2 "NEVERDIE Bank Interview" (PDF). 2007-05-04. Retrieved 2010-05-21. Some may say they are like pawn shops, but in Entropia they are banks. There is no other way to get money forwarded or loaned securely.
  15. 1 2 Chloe Albanesius (2007-05-09). "Tycoons Buy In to New Virtual Banks". PC Magazine. Retrieved 2010-05-21.
  16. 1 2 3 "VIRTUAL WORLD ENTROPIA UNIVERSE ISSUE FIRST EVER VIRTUAL BANKING LICENSES FOR $446,000 MindArk Announces the Five Winners of the World's First Virtual Banking Licenses; Real World Banks and Celebrities Among the Buyers". PC Magazine. 2007-05-08. Retrieved 2010-05-21.
  17. Fox News Archived May 13, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
  18. 1 2 3 C. Albanesius (2007-05-25). "Wirecard Explains How Virtual Banking Will Work". PC Magazine. Retrieved 2010-05-21.
  19. Pcmag.com
  20. SOURCE: Planet Calypso (December 8, 2009). "PR: Planet Calypso Announces Online Auction To Acquire Massive Virtual Space Station - UPDATED".
  21. ANP (December 30, 2009). "Recordbedrag betaald voor virtueel ruimtestation".
  22. Entropiaplanets.com (December 28, 2009). "Crystal Palace - And the winner is...".
  23. "Financial reports" (PDF). MindArk. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
  24. Johnson, Stephen (2010-10-28). "Universal Monsters MMO Incoming". G4tv.com. Retrieved 2012-09-25.
  25. "Entropia Universe introduces citizenship and revenue sharing system with expected annual returns of up to 30%". Entropiauniverse.com. November 16, 2011.
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