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On an otherwise unremarkable day, May 30, 2016, the gaming community was struck a grievous blow by the shutting down of Dust 5-14, the console cousin of the infamous PC game Eve Online. To me, Dust wasn't about shooting people and dying without consequence; no, it was proof that the Console Confederate could live hand in hand with the PC “Master” Race. To those of you who've never heard of Dust, whether by your allegiance to Xbox or blissful ignorance, I have only three words for you.
You lucky bastards.
Simply put, Dust was a futuristic sci-fi shooter that affected, in real time, the world of Eve. Immortals, boots on the ground and capsuleers in space, who could go toe to toe with anyone from the sci-fi community with brutal, merciless warfighting.
Spartans never die, they merely go MIA? Bitch please; I've died thousands of times as an Immortal Dust Bunny, and every time I came back stronger, smarter, faster, more unrelentless than before. All without being kidnapped; fuck, I volunteered for it!
WH40K Space Marines? Ha! Don't make me laugh; it's obvious from that armour that all of you overgrown old fuck's have an achilles heel for a shoulder. Your gods and fanbase don't frighten me, I've wiped out the biggest and meanest of squads with my shottie and assault rifle. I'm a fucking Black Eagle!
Standby for Titanfall? Forget that wall running, mech playing bullshit; I got an inertia dampener, a heavy dropsuit and a forge gun. Good luck, BT! You'll need it when I blow your torso and pilot into scrap and splatter. Two percent survive? Hell, there won't be any survivors after a Dust squad is done with you; only thing those jetpacks will be good for is buying an extra second or two of life.
Think you know a navy that could take on ours? Two words; Goon Squad. I hope you enjoy getting blown to bits by the worst of the worst. “We’re bad at this game!” being one of, if not the main battle cry you'll hear as you're overran. Sorry, Spock, logic isn't in their vocabulary.
Bye-bye, USS Enterprise! It's been real; real fun, that is!
You lucky bastards; you never knew the pain that I've endured nor that which I inflicted to devastating effect. You've never jumped onto the barrel of a tank before it could flatten you, planted enough explosives to level a city block and leap to safety with a backdrop of sheer awe inspiring doom behind you while wearing your last prototype dropsuit.
You've never had a chance to fall in love with a game as unforgiving as Dark Souls with the fate of millions of real player in your hands. I've changed the galaxy, time and time again…
And I've never had a love-hate relationship with another game to such extremes ever before or after.
On that day, a day which shall live on in infamy, a piece of me died… and didn't respawn.
Dust 5-14, I miss you… and this may be goodbye… but you know, in your heart, that goodbyes and death aren't forever…
I'll be back, rearmed and refitted, in your spirital ancestor.
Project Nova...
I'm ready for conscience transfer.
This is Gee Four Cee Zero Dee of the Gallentean Peacekeeper Force, Black Eagle Division, patiently awaiting orders.