The CEO of CCP told the New York Times it will sponsor elections and bring player-chosen representatives to Iceland to audit the company in response to resentment and skepticism over perceived developer bias toward one in-game faction in its MMOG, EVE Online.
In a New York Times article concerning the political intrigue and player base discontent in the space-based MMOG EVE Online, the game’s parent company, CCP, said it will sponsor the creation of an elected board of representatives to take stock of the developers’ actions.
“Perception is reality, and if a substantial part of our community feels like we are biased, whether it is true or not, it is true to them,” Hilmar Petursson, CCP’s CEO, told the newspaper. “EVE Online is not a computer game. It is an emerging nation, and we have to address it like a nation being accused of corruption.”
Petursson said it will hold elections so that players can select people to send to Iceland, where the company is headquartered, to report back to the player base. He added that the company will also use election monitors from Western universities.
Long-simmering controversy in the game recently exploded amid renewed allegations of developer favoritism towards one powerful player faction, and was amplified by the fact that the primary complaining party is GoonSwarm, the largest and most vocal in-game alliance.
CCP has not yet elaborated upon – or even mentioned – the proposed election on the game’s website or its developer blog.
