EVE Online Launches New Phase of Citizen Science Initiative to Aid Cancer Research

REYKJAVÍK, Iceland – July 30, 2024 - CCP Games, in collaboration with Massively Multiplayer Online Science (MMOS), today launched Project Discovery: Phase Four, advancing the groundbreaking citizen science initiative within the renowned sci-fi MMO, EVE Online. This ambitious update enables players to actively participate in cancer and immune system research, potentially accelerating real-world medical breakthroughs through collective player contributions.

Announced at EVE Fanfest last year, the latest phase of Project Discovery expands research to critical immune system diseases, including cancer, marking a significant advancement in scope and potential impact. Starting today, players can access an updated version of the innovative in-game minigame, contributing to real-world scientific research while playing EVE Online.

Project Discovery’s flow cytometry technique, introduced in 2020 to accelerate COVID-19 research, has seen over 900,000 EVE Online players make substantial contributions to scientific research. Project Discovery continues to receive significant daily participation from the EVE Online community.

Building on the initiative’s past success, Phase Four adds new visualizations to increase the quality of player results. Players can now examine complex blood samples using new X/Y axis density curves, drawing polygons around cell clusters in flow cytometry data. This process will increase the performance of AI models trained on the data, supporting scientists in decoding immune system interactions with cancer and paving the way for potential treatment breakthroughs.

To reward their valuable contributions, participants in Phase Four can earn exclusive in-game rewards. These include three new SKINR design elements (Insightful Azure Metallic, Citizen Cyan Metallic, and Scientific Panache Satin), the Biosecurity Responders SKIN, and exclusive apparel.

Key Features of Project Discovery Phase Four:

• Expanded research focus on critical immune system diseases, including cancer
• Enhanced minigame with revised tutorial and advanced analysis techniques
• More complex scientific challenges for players
• Exclusive cosmetic rewards

Project Discovery Achievements Since 2020:

• Over 900,000 EVE Online players participating
• More than 500 million citizen science games played
• Two high-performing AI models developed from player-generated data
• One Webby People's Voice Award for contributions to science and society

The far-reaching impact of Project Discovery is evident in the words of key stakeholders:

“Project Discovery’s fourth phase marks a major milestone for citizen science by contributing to the cure for one of the world’s most deadly diseases,” said Bergur Finnbogason, EVE Online’s Creative Director. “The EVE community has a proven track record of helping scientists advance research for important causes. We are calling gamers from all walks of life to join our capsuleers in the fight against cancer.”

“The collective effort of EVE Online players has produced a dataset unparalleled in quality and size,” said Dr. Ryan Brinkman, Distinguished Scientist at BC Cancer Agency and University of British Columbia. “In this new era of Artificial Intelligence, this data is pivotal in developing groundbreaking tools for unprecedented scientific discoveries. We eagerly anticipate sharing these contributions with the scientific community.”

“The EVE Online community’s collective contribution to science over the years is tremendous,” said Jérôme Waldispühl, Associate Professor at McGill University’s School of Computer Science. “Project Discovery is a unique, effective, and reliable resource for major research initiatives. The synergy of this project with the rise of AI techniques is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to push the boundaries of science.”

“Seeing the continuous activity and high-quality contributions of EVE players, we know that Project Discovery is not only a highly valuable tool for science but can also be repurposed to serve many important areas of research,” said Attila Szantner, CEO of Massively Multiplayer Online Science. “After four years, we still have 100-200 data analyses per minute submitted by players, demonstrating the power of this collaboration.”

Progress updates from the team of computer scientists and bioinformaticians based at the School of Computer Science at McGill University can be found at https://games.cs.mcgill.ca/.

To learn more about EVE Online’s Project Discovery, visit the initiative’s website: https://www.eveonline.com/discovery. EVE Online’s press kit contains assets for Project Discovery.

EVE Online can be downloaded for free by visiting www.eveonline.com. For all the latest information about the game, please visit EVE Updates.

About EVE Online®

EVE Online (PC/Mac) is a compelling, community-driven sci-fi MMO game where players can build and pilot a wide variety of spaceships, traverse vast solar systems for free and choose their own path from countless options, experiencing space exploration, immense PvP and PvE battles, mining, industry and a sophisticated player economy in an ever-expanding sandbox. EVE is a captivating game in which hundreds of thousands of players compete for riches, power, glory, and adventure, forging their own destinies in a single thriving universe.

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About CCP Games

CCP is a leading independently operated game developer that has been praised for its artistry, technology and game design that facilitates emergent behavior, empowering players with compelling means of self-expression. Founded in 1997 on the principle of pushing the envelope and breaking new ground on all levels, CCP is on a mission to create virtual worlds more meaningful than real life. With the launch of EVE Online in May 2003, CCP established itself as a pioneer of cutting-edge massively multiplayer games, winning numerous awards and receiving critical acclaim worldwide. CCP is headquartered in Reykjavik, Iceland, and has additional studios in London and Shanghai.

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About MMOS

Massively Multiplayer Online Science (MMOS) is a Swiss start-up bringing innovation to citizen science and gaming by introducing crowdsourced citizen science micro-tasks in major video games, bringing massive contributor communities to advance science and strengthening the connections between academic research and the video game industry. During the last 10 years MMOS collaborated in setting up projects, including the award-winning editions of Project Discovery in EVE Online and Borderlands Science in Borderlands 3. These science mini-games engaged over 7 million players and contributed with over 900 million player submissions to scientific progress, were praised by worldwide media coverage from the New Yorker to the front page of Nature Biotechnology, featured in several documentaries, and received awards, like the prestigious Lovie Award, the Innovation Award of the University of Geneva or the IGDA Community Leadership Award. For more information visit www.mmos.ch.