The GS review is so old, the game is nothing like it. Read my review to find out more.
Alright now where to start! Really, Eve Online is very much a different MMO than most others. You simply have to play it to see what it is like. It has its own economy, all controlled by players and market demand. Its got a corporation system (Ill explain later), its got some of the toughest PVP around, and many more things.
And yes, you can play Eve and still have time to live life :). The major difference in Eve than in other MMO's is that there is no leveling system. That being said, the only way to check someone's experience is through their age and skill points. Skillpoint in eve, unlike in other MMOs, are NOT spent to get skills, but instead are gained by learning skills. One thing that will take time getting used to is the fact that if you basically want to do anything from fly a certain ship, to using a certain type of ammunition, to equipping a mining laser will require you to buy a skill book to learn the skills necessary to do what you are wanting to do. Some skills can take you days and sometimes even weeks to train! This way, you can live your life if youre waiting for a new ship's skills to train. Currently I am training a skill that takes 10 days to complete so I can get my Industry skill to lvl 5 so I can fly this shiny new Retriver I've had my eyes on :) The game might seem very intimidating at first, but a few weeks in, youll get the jist of it and about a month in, you'll know what you're doing. After all, Ive been only playing for a month and a week so far!
The galaxy of Eve Online is MASSIVE. I once had to travel from point A to point B about 1/8 of the way across the galaxy and I spent over 30 minutes of straight flying, that is without any mishaps or pirates trying to kill me for instance. The regions in the galaxy are divided into security systems ranging from 0.0 space to 1.0 space, being the one with the most security and police. If you decide to become a pirate or something and attack other players and take their stuff, you might want to hunt in the 0.0 space becase at .4 or above space is considered high security space and the intergalactic police force known as Concord will omgwtfpwn your ship in a matter of seconds if you venture there :)
There are SO many things you can do in Eve, and they are helped by the Corporations system. A Corporation is basically a guild as in other MMOs but is so much different. Its got its own name and symbol, and has the ability to build and control space stations in the lower security space. Rival corps can declare war on each other, forge alliances, and fight for control of the 0.0 space regions. Currently there is a war going on between the two largest corps, Band of Brothers (BoB) and ASCN, with each corps' total fighters amounting to over 4,000 people fighting for each side, with hundreds of other players in their industrial divisions making ships and parts for the war effort.. Now to the complicating side of corporations. There are hundreds of types of them. Some corps are mercenary corps, making contracts to other corps to do the dirty work for them. Some corps are industrial corps, mining and manufacturing items for other corps or simply influencing the markets current prices. Seriously some Corp CEOs have the ability to cause a market crash and plunge the world of eve into a great depression just by simpl y sneezing and pushing the wrong button :) There are also pirate corps and stock brockerage corps and corps that have created a lottery and make money that way, and theres corps that help you make a corp, and corps that teach new players how to play (the type im currently enrolled in), and corps that anti-pirate and corps that try to do everything, and so much else I cant think of.
One of the neatest things is that Eve Online is played on a SINGLE server, unlike just about every other MMO and on any given time, the number of active players online can swell from 17,000 to over 30,000, all on a SINGLE server, so you will always be with your friends no matter what, and will always be able to get into the server, with lag baically being nonexistant.
Combat is especially fun in Eve. NPC Agents offer missions that put you into combat with NPCs but nothing compares to fighitng other players. Combat in eve can be horribly expensive at times, and with the hundreds of ships and thousands of different parts for your ships, loosing a ship can really be a kick in the mouth. Your first time in PVP combat will have you sweating with adrenaline as you hope your Shiny new Brutix can beat a Ferox with its missiles flying at you, and hoping that the insurance payment will be enough if you do end up loosing the fight :P IN the larger scale combat operations, each player has a sepcific role with his/her ship fitted out for it, and with commanders in insanely large capital ships, or maybe even in one of the few titans flying around, combat can be a sight to behold!
Oh and the player base is very mature, just about the maturest I have ever seen. None of those little winey twelve year olds are running around asking for free money as in other games. The community is awesome. The forums on the game website has all sorts of subforums for just about every little thing. Players can declare war on each other, or post bounties for pirates, or CEOs can post Press Releases about stuff happening in game, and just about everything else.
This is the most community-involved game ever, and you won't be dissapointed playing it, albeit it might be a hard start at first.