EVE Online Will Be Making Changes To The Encounter Surveillance System

eve online ess update bannerCCP Games will be updating how the Encounter Surveillance System works in EVE Online to make it a flashpoint for conflicts in Nullsec and encourage better fights without the “troll-like” tactics usually employed by players. If you’re unfamiliar with the ESS, it’s basically a deployable and raidable structure that can significantly increase the PvE bounty earned by the owner.

“The original ESS was meant to offer Nullsec residents the chance to juice up their systems with better bounty payments at the risk of having of their earnings stolen by roaming player pirates. The concept was strong but clever players highlighted several cases - including risk/reward-related and deployment location issues - that exhibited much opportunity for improvement.”

When the update hits, ESS will no longer be optional and will be present in all Nullsec systems. Its location will be public and will sit behind and acceleration gate that can only be accessible by specific ship classes. Payouts will also automatically be sent to bounty earners instead of being retrieved in person and will be split into two banks: the Main Bank which can be stolen by players at any time and the Reserve Bank which will offer bigger rewards but will need a consumable key to access. CCP promises to reveal more information about these keys but what we do know is that they will be available through normal gameplay content.

Certain abilities and items will also be disabled within a 75km radius around the ESS including warping, cloaking, MJDs, MWDs, cynos, and filaments. “Together, these conditions will demand commitment from anyone hoping to get their hands on someone else’s hard-earned ISK,” said the devs. “All-in-all there is much excitement to see how this new version of the ESS pans out. More action for residents and roamers alike will emerge as players plan heists and protect their space.”

The devs have yet to announce a release date for the updates. More information can be found on the EVE Online official site.