EXODE: A Space Colonization Game, coming to HIVE

I don't know of any exactly similar game but here is a possibility:

The Star Wars Old Republic game (a RPG by Bioware) has companions, a starship and fun space and planetary quests.

Startrek Online has fully developed crew missions and some planetary quests too.

(edit: I don't know much about Star Wars Galaxis however, which could also fit what you described)

These follow the "old" MMORPG formula, though I believe they are great games, they require a lot of focused time.

You raise an interesting point here. This will update the FAQ!

First there are two different kind of resources in EXODE:

Permanent assets are never lost; when you "use them" you actually connect them to your game. If, for whatever reason, you lose your colony, your permanent assets become usable again to power up a new game (with a short cooldown). Many purchases from packs are actually permanent assets "to connect" to a game you launch.

Supplies is the other kind of resources which makes up your current colony and its resources. Supplies are actually provided thanks to the colony you settle. Supplies can be "invested" voluntarily in PVE events (such as exploration, combat, etc) and you can "wound them" (put them on cooldown) for some and lose a few consumables (food, fuel, etc) for others that you can produce.

Other specific PVE events can be triggered. This is the part you are specifically asking about; I wanted to be clear about the other content above ;-)

I think that cooperation can only happen if there is information and allowed time. This means proper informed players, not ambushed unfairly, and time to gather up and have some fun.

Aggressive events always happen with fair warning and a (long) time window. This time window allows players to gather some support. Defeating these events can net an interesting reward. Once you have your friends online, and feel ready, you can "activate" resolution of said event.

If a player expects to be offline for some time, he can activate a "stealth mode" for his colony, which depending on how well configured his colony is for all this, can make him completely immune to aggressive events for the time being. It is not necessary for just sleeping time, but can be for long holidays.

Unprepared colonies or beginning players are rather "not" immune to these events. such events are useful to wipe out fake accounts etc. This means that the older the account, the larger the time window and the easier the stealth.

This, however, can be partially nullified if a player builds an "unsafe" colony, with high production, lot of space and radio activity (=scans) but also extremely low stealth. But the players will be informed of their lack of stealth in very clear fashion.

Some origins (= character classes) give access to many passengers and are able to build large colonies, but they are warned that such colonies may be less safe in the beginning.

Such origins are recommended (and very rewarding) for a group of friends and not players alone.

Imagine a group with a Cruise Ship Captain, who has many passengers, and a friend who is an Outlaw captain with a stealthy ship. The colony from the Cruise Captain is large and unsafe in the beginning, while setting up. Whereas the Outlaw captain, with his stealthy ship, can explore more of the galaxy without triggering the alien scans and gathering some remote resources. Also, the Outlaw captain has a specific outlaw crew (hackers, etc) with some incredible skills, but that's another point.

If an alien threat comes, and they feel it is too much for them, they could still transport the colony away and settle to the new planet - stealthily thanks to the outlaw captain. That's "an escape", but it keeps you alive ;-)

Of course, if they have another friend who is a combat officer, they could study more daring options. And see if it holds once combat begins. After all, the loot can also be good.

In addition, losing is not the worst thing that could happen as it unlocks specific "legacy rewards"; the longer you survived, the better the rankings, and the Legacy Loot :-)

So, "after one lost game", you restore your Permanent Assets and you also receive an additional Legacy Loot (which can also be sold - and considering how hard they are to get, as they also depend on your character class and activity and time survived, this can have some impressive market value).

And can get ready for a new game, and see how long you last!