How the heck did SOE achieve such faction loyalty?

[Raka Maru]

It wasn't hard at all to be loyal to your faction.

* The uniqueness of each empire.
* Band of Brothers.
* Being able to help strangers in your faction felt natural.
* Spies were very much hated and dealt with.

The game was built in such a way that it was very easy to help anyone in your faction. Lodestar could be parked and someone would CE the area, another would set up an angis shield on it. Not even being in the same squad. Maxes locked down and engies and medics keeping an eye on them. This happened even before SEP was introduced.

If they broke through, we were all gonna die, if we couldn't push out, we would be pushed back. The distinct weapon sounds that you heard right before the respawn screen. I grew to hate/respect the Chaka-Chaka and pew-pew. Looked up as the VS maxes were flying around and thought how to kill them.

Easy trash talking by hot keys. "Your best is my worst!". I would get caught as a cloaker surrounded by NC and they would taunt me and hold fire until I decided to run. All this built up to make you loyal to your faction and hate the others in game. If you didn't respawn fast enough, they would defile your corpse.

Most reasons have already been given, just wanted to add a few of mine.