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The MMO biz is a capricious one, and most online games tend toward a naturally short lifecycle. Five years is a big deal for EVE, which distinguishes itself through both its aim to develop a realistic player "society" and its sophisticated in-game economy - they were the first MMO I'm aware of to hire a real-world professional economist in Dr. Eyjo Guðmundsson to manage it, and since then other virtual worlds and online games, such as Gaia Online, have followed suit. Many critics, like the PC gaming mavens of Rock Paper Shotgun, believe the industry can learn a lot from EVE.

Full release follows the jump, in which CCP has delineated what it considers EVE's "milestones" over its five-year run.

EVE Online Celebrates Five Years of Unprecedented Achievements in Online Gaming

The unique Sci-Fi MMO celebrates its 5th year of non-stop growth with an anniversary gift for subscribers

REYKJAVIK, Iceland—(BUSINESS WIRE)—CCP, one of the world's leading independent game developers, this week celebrates the five-year anniversary of its leading sci-fi massively multiplayer online game (MMO), EVE Online. What began as a highly advanced game, requiring a tremendous amount of skill and dedication from its players, has evolved into a fully functional, complex society that continues to attract loyal, active players. To commemorate EVE Online's five-year anniversary, current subscribers will receive a surprise in-game gift upon logging in after May 6, 2008.

Since its inception, EVE Online has achieved milestones in online gaming every year. Highlights include:

2003

May 6, 2003 - The highly anticipated EVE Online goes gold and comes out of beta to launch to the public.

August 13, 2003 - EVE Online earns CCP a place as a finalist for the prestigious 'Develop Industry Excellence Awards' in the category 'Best Online Development Studio'.

2004

April 26, 2004 - EVE Online breaks the 10,000 peak concurrent users threshold, with 10,396 players logged in at the same time in the same world, thus confirming the viability of the "one world" game vision.

2005

September 22, 2005 - In a little more than two years, EVE Online surpasses the 70,000 active subscriber mark.

2006

September 14, 2006 - EVE Online implements the massive improvements to its hardware infrastructure, enabling the capacity for up to 50,000 concurrent users.

November 11, 2006 - CCP merges with White Wolf Publishing, Inc., the world's second largest developer of offline role-playing, strategy and collectible card games, to become one of the industry's largest independent developers of virtual worlds.

2007

June 26, 2007 - CCP appoints the first Ph.D. economist, Dr. Eyjo Guðmundsson, to monitor and report on the status of EVE Online's economy, track political trends and follow the value of EVE's in-game currency, interstellar kredits (ISK).

November 16, 2007 - EVE Online's subscriber base shatters the 200,000 mark.

2008

March 9, 2008 - EVE Online sets a new peak concurrent user (PCU) record of 42,711.

March 19, 2008 - CCP announces the formation of the Council of Stellar Management (CSM), the first democratically elected governing body in a virtual world. Elections for the CSM began on May 5, 2008.

"As the EVE universe has evolved into a sophisticated society, it has attracted and maintained the interest of highly skilled, enthusiastic players at steadily increasing growth rates," said Nathan Richardsson, executive producer at CCP. "Looking ahead, CCP is focused on making EVE Online even more immersive and invigorating, and advancing the online gaming industry as a whole."

The next free expansion of EVE Online, called EVE Online: Empyrean Age, is slated to launch in summer 2008 and will give players the opportunity to support one of the four major empires with the introduction of Factional Warfare.

About EVE Online

Set tens of thousands of years in the future, EVE Online is a breathtaking journey to the stars, to an immersive experience filled with adventure, riches, danger and glory. With over 220,000 subscribers worldwide inhabiting the same virtual universe, EVE features a vast player-run economy where your greatest asset is the starship, designed to accommodate your specific needs, skills and ambitions. EVE offers professions ranging from commodities trader to mercenary, industrial entrepreneur to pirate, mining engineer to battle fleet commander or any combination of these and much more. From brokering business deals to waging war, you will have access to a diverse array of sophisticated tools and interfaces to forge your own destiny in EVE. Learn more and sign up for a free, 14-day trial at www.eve-online.com.

Definition of Subscribers

EVE Online subscribers include individuals who have paid a subscription fee or have an active electronic time code (ETC) to play EVE Online, as well as those who have purchased the game and are within their free month of access. The above definition excludes all players under free promotional subscriptions, expired or cancelled subscriptions and expired ETCs.

About CCP

CCP is recognized internationally as an industry-leading pioneer of the single-server persistent universe architecture as the developer and publisher of EVE Online, the critically-acclaimed, science fiction-based massively multiplayer online game (MMOG). Utilizing a cross-discipline approach combining cutting-edge technology and artistic excellence, CCP is dedicated to providing vibrant, compelling products that transcend the boundaries of conventional MMOGs and facilitate social networking through virtual worlds. Founded in 1997 and privately held, the company is headquartered in Reykjavik, Iceland, with offices in Atlanta, London and Shanghai. More information about CCP is available at the company's website, www.ccpgames.com.