EVE Online celebrates 16-year anniversary with a host of free gifts and rewards

While it's May 4th and everybody's celebrating a certain sci-fi franchise, EVE Online is also celebrating. From now until May 20, 2019, you'll find a host of in-game goodies—one available for every day of the 16-day celebration—in honour of the game's sixteenth anniversary.

"We’re super happy to announce that from May 2nd through to May 20th, all pilots can join in the festivities and celebrate EVE Online’s sixteenth birthday, regardless of their clone status!" says an update on the official website. "Log in over the course of the celebration between these dates and collect your free gifts as you go. There’s a total of sixteen days of gifts, celebrating more than a decade and a half of amazing player stories."

Both Alpha and Omega pilots can claim rewards on a daily basis, although the Omega rewards will be "a bit more valuable". If you’re an Alpha pilot and you like the look of the rewards that Omegas have up for grabs, don't panic—if you can upgrade after the celebrations start you be able to receive all the omega rewards you missed retroactively.

"There’s all manner of gifts and rewards up for grabs including celebratory trinkets, faction ammunition, exclusive XVI anniversary SKINs, apparel and even a monocle, as well as Society of Conscious Thought hulls, celebratory Permaband SKINs and clothing, along with fireworks and abyssal filaments," the update reveals.

Log in every one of the sixteen days and you could also win a share of over a million skillpoints, too.

EVE Online's developer CCP Games caused quite a stir a few weeks ago when it permanently banned Brian Schoeneman, a real-life lobbyist who leveraged his real-world political experience to get elected into EVE's own council of in-game politicians. 

At the time, CCP accused Schoeneman, known in-game as Brisc Rubal, and two others of using confidential information protected under a non-disclosure agreement to gain a financial edge in-game—EVE Online's own version of insider trading. But after conducting a full investigation, CCP Games has announced they got it all wrong and the affected parties have been unbanned.