Impetus Studios

Professor Science sits near the Studios

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a bit of a news junkie. When not out in a ship, either my personal computer or a nearby screen is usually set to Scope to catch any breaking news in  the cluster at large. Even when I’m in my ship and out on assignment, I try my best to keep an eye on active newsfeeds, ready to grab my ship at a moment’s notice if something were to happen that required my attention. I’m sure that I am by no means the only one suffering from an addiction to news. With 24 hours news broadcasts covering over 5,000 systems full of planetary intrigue, capsuleer backstabbings, and the like, there’s always something newsworthy to report about or punditize. The talking heads (an unfortunate name for the pundits, given today’s holographic technology) loved a good scandal, and New Eden was full of them.

A view of the arena attached to the main studio premises

Despite the fact that I was so hopelessly addicted to the news networks, I consider myself surprisingly uninformed about other entertainment available. There’ve been a number of times where I haven’t seen or even heard of one of the more popular holos that were released recently from the big studios (unless, of course, there happened to be a news story about them). Despite my lack of knowledge on this particular cultural zeitgeist, when I was in the area of Impetus Studios, I knew that I had to take a look. I had been visiting Luminaire to see my family, and route back took me close to Tolle, so it was only a minor route adjustment before I was on my way to see what was involved in holoreel production. As I jumped in-system, Aura pulled up some information for me on the particular studio I was visiting:

Impetus has struggled at times to secure stations close to various locations frequently used in their holoreels. Typically, this is due to the heavy financial and logistical investment required overshadowing the projected gains. In other cases, the proximity of certain systems to either criminal elements or other empires and corporations on uneasy terms has been the motivating factor in the construction of small-scale facilities and bases that plug the gaps between Impetus stations. Tolle itself has almost never been used for holoreels. If it had not been for one of their director’s insistence, there would likely not even be an Impetus presence in the system.

A close up of one of the habitable enclosures on the station.

Given that Impetus’ primary business appeared to be holoreel entertainment, I immediately questioned what Impetus was actually doing out here in Tolle if not used for the development of holoreels. Shockingly, no one at the studio appeared willing to tell me much more than was publicly available on GalNet. Still, given the fact that this was a major studio site, with two full Gallente stations and a number of free-standing structures, this clearly wasn’t a minor administrative site either. Indeed, the spacedocks appeared remarkably busy, with a number of cargo vessels either docked or waiting for clearance to dock. The cargo docks seemed laden with goods either coming in or leaving, and the nearby arena seemed to make it pretty clear that there was also permanent inhabitants requiring entertainment on a fairly regular basis. This was no minor settlement.

The studios had a number of standalone complexes, as well as the two primary stations visible in the background.

Even without docking, it was interesting to fly amongst the various ships. Watching cargo ships coming and going, seeing the well-developed infrastructure of a major corporate complex, it was all incredibly fascinating to me. There was even a mobile “pleasure cruiser” for, ahh, certain services stationed near one of the complexes. I paused for a moment as I looked at the cruiser. Clearly I had been in Amarr space too long if I found myself surprised at overt displays of prostitution. I took that as a sign that I needed to come home more often (something I am sure my mother would not dispute). Along with the pleasure cruiser, a Rifter-class vessel and a number of smaller ships could be found among the bustling hub.

The complex has significant storage space, but given the amount of traffic, this probably shouldn't be surprising

I had to admit, being around a major movie studio corporation made me more interested in seeing the finished product now and then. Despite the fact that I rarely see most of the major holo releases, maybe I could squeeze some time out of my schedule of either flying around or watching the news to see what all the fuss is about in one of the new releases. Who knows, maybe there are even a few references out there for the more discriminating individuals. As I set a course for home, I had Aura look up what was playing…

Basic Information:

• Attraction: Impetus Studios
• System: Tolle
• Security Rating: 0.7
• Region: Everyshore
• Potential Hazards: If you’re below a -3.5 in security status, or -5 standing with the Gallente, you’ll have to deal with some rather unpleasant policemen.
• Additional Notes: This is apparently a stop in the Gallente Lvl 4 Epic Arc.