Lately, I've been thinking about starting to play EVE Online, but looking at various sources, it seems like PvP is a pretty big part of the game.
That's a problem for me, because I hate PvP. If I get into combat, I want it to be because I've made an active decision to allow it – that means entering known, hostile territory, or turning on a flag. If I absolutely have to enter such an area, I want there to be a way for me to quickly get out.
I understand that I can't turn off PvP entirely, and I realize I won't be able to see everything without venturing into those areas – indeed, I've read that the best money making potential is in nullsec, so clearly there's an incentive to accept that risk.
However, I don't want to be left horribly behind simply because I choose to avoid that content. It's okay that things go a little slower, but there is a limit – e.g., if I can earn some amount in 1 hour in PvP areas, I don't want it to take 3 days when sticking to a PvE approach.
Alternatively, I can accept having to go into those areas if it's realistic that I can get in there, do what I need to do, and get back out, all while avoiding PvP – I don't want to spend forever finding a sufficiently safe area, and if I do see trouble approaching, I want to be able to get out before it's too late.
Is it even possible to pull this off? Do I need to do anything special to make it feasible? Is the game still enjoyable when played in such a way?
EDIT: Just to clarify: I'm not asking for 100% security. If the game is as PvP-heavy as my impression suggests, I am perfectly willing to accept that there will always be some degree of risk. However, I will want to keep that risk minimal – if the risk for some given task is low, or I can reasonably expect to be able to flee before it's too late, then that's okay.
Best Answer
EvE is a purely PvP game with minimal PvE elements mixed in for money making. It is possible to sit in a station and just trade all day, or do planetary interaction or other extremely dull aspects of the game - but the game mostly revolves around spaceships fighting other spaceships.
There are missions with NPC pirates and space-rocks to fight (mine), however the missions aren't very deep and really there isn't enough content in PvE to enjoy. The game is PvP-oriented in that your internet space ship should be fighting other player's internet spaceships.
Think of it like chess. You can move your pieces around the board for no reason, but ultimately to play the game you need to attack your opponent. It just doesn't make sense to not play competitively.
edit: I would like to add that, there is some interesting PvE content such as group mining, corporation management and wormhole exploration - but all of these come with some PvP aspect to it.