EVE Online is all about the players. In the New Eden gameworld, players are considered the primary content, the creators and the destroyers.

In the yearly Alliance Tournaments, the participants ascend to a higher status, taking centre stage in a prestigious eSports event that will give them the opportunity become heroes or villains as all of their peers look on.

For tournament participants, everything is at stake. The pilots are the best of their alliance – player organisations sometimes thousands strong – and they have the weight of expectation on their shoulders.

The first weekend has already passed and we have seen desperate struggles, noble efforts, and match-losing mistakes. After months of preparation, a pilot's single moment of madness in a high pressure situation can leave months of preparation in tatters. We can only guess at the team reaction to a mistimed armour repair, an unplanned boundary violation, or a poorly executed manoeuver.

For the participants, The Alliance Tournament is their Hunger Games, their Gladiator, and their Lord of the Flies all in one.

NEXT: Elise Randolph (Pandemic Legion)

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All the EVE Alliance Tournament XI Viewing Resources You Need (Popcorn and Beer Not Included)