I've not played EVE but from my understanding of the game, there is a bunch of stuff a player can do besides PVP including mining and othe rindustrial activities, playing the market, and PvE. Thus a new player has a myriad of activities they can enjoy while getting to the point of being ready for PvP if they eventually want that to be their thing. We need to at least have cooperative PvE for this game to thrive. I've been clamoring for this since before Uprising even and still not even a response of "we're working on it"

You are correct. There are missions against NPCs, player-trading, mining, crafting, etc. I don't imagine there'd be such an in-depth array of activities aside from the PVP in DUST, but something else would be nice. My main concern is how unforgiving the game is so quickly after leaving academy. Going five matches out of academy where you could literally go 0/10 or 2/15 because the other side is rocking proto's tends to drive new people away. The number of people I see in Academy vs the number of those people I see on again during pub-matches don't add up to a very positive feeling.

PROTO-STOMPING,

I've also read responses to threads like this saying that "EVE is just as brutal!" Well, not really. I've played EVE, even picked it back up and have been chugging away at a character while I'm in trial-phase. There's the CHANCE, a very slim CHANCE, but it exists, that a decked out ship could swoop in and make mince-meat of me. However, measures are in place to discourage that, and there's an environment where new players have the ability to get their feet under them and start running.
.

Tiericide

My opinion on this, after a few months of people wiser than me saying it. Is ultimately proto gear is bad for the game in pub matches and I think that dusts player base its own worst enemy because of a general win at any cost mentality.

Greedy Goblin-esq moralising about the psychological traits of gamers aside. All too often people have an "alls fair" attitude and expect/let CCP fix it.

Every time someone protostomps a noob in pub and they leave in frustration this game slips a little more into the black hole.
There are some truely amazing players in this game, people whoes skill at thier chosen profession amazes, frustrates, makes me scream and makes me laugh. I think those people have proven thier skill in battle, we really need to think about the game as players, calm down and use public to try new fits, pull back abit and stop with the win and at cost tactics.

I wish those amazing players, you know the ones I mean, would maybe, for a few months of this year use thier powers for good. Your awesome, we know it. Give something back and save the game, your K/D doesn't need you to rock every time you go into pub.

And lets face it, despite everyones bitching, you'll miss dust when its gone.

Perhaps we should try make 2014 the 'year of the militia fit'.

Biggest problem is the ridiculous tiers, tiercide would do a lot for this games health
After all what sounds better, knowing that "Hey this guy beat me since hes knows the layouts but I can learn those as well fairly quick and then be on an even footing" or "Ok this guy beat me since he knows the layout and has a years worth of SP on me so even after I learn the layouts Im at a significant disadvantage anyway due to his gear and skill bonuses"