It is crazy to think that EVE is 22 years old this year. It has been a part of my life for so long, and has vastly influenced my trajectory in life.
I first played EVE in 2007-2008, but didn't fully invest by keeping my character until 2010. Spending time to create a character from each race to then choose the one I liked most. I spent time mining, scanning, running missions, and just chatting in the starter corp chat channel.
However, what really got it's hooks into me was the aspect of developing for EVE. First with the XML api, CREST, and now ESI. I taught myself development, building things like PI applications, mobile contact apps, character management, wormhole mappers, discord bots, and more.
During the process of all the things I have built, I was invited to windows phone developer events, recognized for my expertise in different technologies, built systems millions now use for deployment, became a partner, have tools many use on a daily basis, and even got my current job! I spent so long trying to get into the game industry, and my EVE tools showed that I am not only a very good developer and architect, but I can do what full teams do which lead to me getting a job offer.
On top of that, I have made so many life long friends through this game. I went to Fanfest as a gift to myself over 10 years ago, and I joined a wormhole group there. Despite so many of them no longer playing, I play Dungeons and Dragons with a group of them every week! I went to Paris for the first time to visit another, attended multiple weddings for other capsuleers, and look forward to EVE Meets every time they come up (Vegas, Toronto, Missouri, Iceland, etc).
In general, EVE has become a huge part of my life with friends all around the globe, encouraging even more travel, furthering my career, and helping me with my confidence and ways I go about thinking about problems.
Despite the face EVE can be a scary place, I heavily suggest anyone to jump in and experience this incredible game and community as it is so much more than just a game.
