Posted on 06/06/2026 9:07:06 AM PDT by BenLurkin
While spending money on video games is not uncommon, EVE Online stands out because players' assets can be permanently destroyed; their real-world cash outlay gone in seconds.
The game's financial system is so complex that in 2025, a former economist from the Central Bank of Iceland was hired to oversee it.
Players can amass huge virtual fortunes by mining raw materials or fighting as mercenaries, but they aren't allowed to convert in-game wealth back into real-world cash.
Playing EVE Online can take hundreds of hours. Some see it as a second job, dedicating up to 35 hours per week to their virtual duties on top of their real-world nine-to-fives.
Every item in the game - from ships and space stations to weaponry - is manufactured by players, who can sell them to one another for in-game currency. Building these assets can take hundreds of hours, but players can also spend real money to acquire them, generating revenue for Icelandic developers Fenris Creations.
The EVE Online super-fan who contacted the BBC about this war shared a complex spreadsheet and believes gamers' assets worth £700,000 were lost.
But developer Fenris Creations calculates losses to be more in the region of £400,000 - stressing this is not an "official figure
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
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Not a new thing. Open game, few rules, for some reason (whatchawannabet laundering) game items are a big trade in real money, and no or negative scruples.
You will find the best and worst of human beings in that game world. You can commit any crime imaginable there (except of course, sex crimes) and it is all perfectly legal in the game framework. Only thing that's truly illegal is real-money transactions for in-game items. There are a few other things like abusive language or threats, but like anywhere else, the powers-that-be are pretty selective of what they'll enforce. Particularly if it involves a cash-paying player with multiple accounts.
I joined in May 2013. Absolutely fascinating and mind-boggling complex. Some really great people and some real bastards, too. Lot of ex-mil in leadership roles. Most notable was player Vile Rat who turned out to be one of the ones lost in the 13 hour rooftop battle in the Middle East. He is permanently memorialized in the game.
It's an absolutely fascinating game.
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