What Is Grace In EVE Frontier?

In all honesty I didn't pay any attention to EVE Frontier's Grace system. I looked at the description briefly, saw part of getting Grace involved linking my social media accounts to a third party app, and decided Grace wasn't for me. From there I ignored the feature until I read an article over at MassivelyOP. Here's the key part for me.

...But CCP would very much like you to share impressions of it, which is why it’s offering a free trial starting on June 27th and running through July 7th. You can log in and play for free, and any Grace you earn will convert to EVE Points… assuming you buy a Founder’s account before the end of Cycle 1.

So all of your progress will be retained if you buy in before the deadline, otherwise it’ll all be lost, which feels like it’s so on-brand that if someone wrote it in a script the editor would note that it was a bit heavy-handed...

After reading the piece I was left with the impression the Grace system would allow people to bypass the planned frequent server wipes. Except I knew that wasn't the case. So I fired up Copilot to explain Frontier's Grace system to me.

Grace is a temporary, development-phase progression currency in EVE Frontier, earned during limited-time Cycles. The system tracks players' activity across missions, social engagement, recruitment, and Tribe contributions. At the end of each Cycle, a player's Grace total is converted into EVE Points, which reflect the player's standing during that specific testing period.

However, keep in mind the following details:

• Cycles will end when the game fully launches.
• Grace will no longer be earned or used post-launch.
• EVE Points will not persist into the live game—they’re exclusive to the Founder Access phase.

Those last two points are my understanding as CCP is not touting Frontier as a seasonal type of game upon launch. Also, I should point out EVE Points are not some type of cryptocurrency. The cryptocurrency for Frontier is the EVE Token. If the company later on decides to make EVE Points convertible into EVE Tokens, that's a red flag that maybe the people in charge of Frontier aren't that trustworthy after all.

How does the Grace system work for players? Copilot listed out four general categories:

• Missions & Gameplay: Mining, building, exploring, combat—just playing the game earns Grace.
• Social Engagement: Joining a Tribe, sharing content, or engaging with the community.
• Recruitment: Inviting new players and helping them get started.
• Tribe Goals: Your Tribe’s performance boosts a player's personal Grace total.

The Grace system makes Frontier resemble a seasonal game. Grace is earned within a specific Cycle, which is a limited-time season during the game’s development. At the end of each Cycle, a player's Grace is converted into EVE Points, reflecting the player's standing during that Cycle. However, both Grace and EVE Points will be retired when the game fully launches.

The devs do get something out of the Grace system as well. For example, if they want to test out a particular game system they can skew the list of objectives towards that system. As an example, below is the mission list for Cycle 1.

In-game missions to acquire Grace

Another benefit is access to important pieces of information during a Cycle. For example, how many players logged into the game vs how many players managed to kill an NPC might provide some information about how sticky the alpha experience is for players. Or perhaps the statistic of jumping to systems containing every type of star leads to how much players wish to explore. I can't see how the devs do not have a quick way to reference this type of information to aid in planning what to test during the next Cycle.

I want to address one last concern I had about the Grace system. Players receive Grace for performing certain activities using their social media accounts. Even hooking up a social media account generates Grace. But how easy is it to change your mind?

I found the process, while annoying, fairly easy. I went to the Missions page and selected "Edit Profile". Under "Accounts & Wallets" I made sure that all my social media accounts were disconnected.

My profile page - no social media connected.

I had connected my Twitter and Discord accounts to the Grace system and clicked on the "Disconnect" button. I found that the 3rd party app CCP uses to monitor players' social accounts, Snag Loyalty, still had access to my accounts, so I followed the instructions for each platform to remove the access. Kind of a pain but more inconvenient than difficult. I did leave my email address in because I still want to receive emails about the game.

Looking back, I don't know why the writer over at MassivelyOP had the reaction he had. The Grace system seems like a harmless system designed to keep people playing and testing Frontier engaged. The offer to let people try the game and then allow them to keep their progress if they purchase Founder's access sounds like what CCP has done with login events if they upgrade from Alpha (free) to Omega (paid) status for years. Quite frankly, I haven't heard any complaints from games journalists about that practice. I guess I could just chalk up the criticism to a case of Frontier Derangement Syndrome.