So I was roaming around the interwebs today and I stumbled across some information that I hadn't even dreamed could happen. APB Reloaded has a new owner and they really want to finally realize the dream of what this game could have been. Needless to say, I'm downloading it again now.
For those that haven't heard about APB, it all started in the late 2000's. Realtime Worlds announced APB: All Points Bulletin. I caught wind of it about a year before release and it was glorious. The customization was nothing short of ground breaking and the gameplay was stunning. In a world ruled by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (which at that point was taking large chunks of my life), this game was something exiting and new.
Despite rumors of Realtime Worlds being out of money, the release date finally came and we jumped into the game. Our excitement quickly faded into anger though when we found out that they were so broke, they couldn't afford anticheat. Hackers ran rampant, the game was immediately overrun by script kiddies, and less than 3 months later, the servers were shut down and RTW was in bankruptcy. It was a truly sad day for gaming.
About a month later, K2 acquired APB for around $2 million (APB took over 100 million to make). They kicked it to GamersFirst and it has been there ever since. It went F2P and just went downhill from there. Since then, cheat detection has been hit and miss but mostly miss. The monetization structure was frustrating, support was near non-existent, and little to none of the promises were ever realized. The game faded into obscurity.
However, two strikes is not out. GamersFirst was just acquired by a new company, Little Orbit. So far, it's actually looking promising. Cheat detection is looking promising. Plans to move to Unreal 4 (instead of 3.5ish) are in the works. Expansions, updates, and long awaited fixes are now finally being worked on. My number one biggest gaming disappointment might actually see its potential after all. I'm so excited.
So for those that don't know about APB, it's a third person shooter with:
Two factions (cops vs robbers)
Objective, team based gameplay
Hands down the most in-depth customization I have ever seen
The most nerve wracking pvp I have ever played
Really even matchmaking system for pvp mission assignment
It also has a suprisingly active community. This is suprising when you consider the age, waves of hackers, and bad history of publishers. The tragic part though is that the potential has always been there to be one of the most amazing shooters on the market. I am so glad to see a publisher eager to see that potential finally seen.
EDIT: If you tried the game out in the past and were unjustly (or unjustly..ish) banned, you should be able to reclaim your account. The new owners have reviewed the banning process that has been going on for years and are, as a result, unbanning a ton of players. From what I understand, the new system employs HID bans. So they are handing out free second chances and looking to solidify cheat protection from this point on.
For those that haven't heard about APB, it all started in the late 2000's. Realtime Worlds announced APB: All Points Bulletin. I caught wind of it about a year before release and it was glorious. The customization was nothing short of ground breaking and the gameplay was stunning. In a world ruled by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (which at that point was taking large chunks of my life), this game was something exiting and new.
Despite rumors of Realtime Worlds being out of money, the release date finally came and we jumped into the game. Our excitement quickly faded into anger though when we found out that they were so broke, they couldn't afford anticheat. Hackers ran rampant, the game was immediately overrun by script kiddies, and less than 3 months later, the servers were shut down and RTW was in bankruptcy. It was a truly sad day for gaming.
About a month later, K2 acquired APB for around $2 million (APB took over 100 million to make). They kicked it to GamersFirst and it has been there ever since. It went F2P and just went downhill from there. Since then, cheat detection has been hit and miss but mostly miss. The monetization structure was frustrating, support was near non-existent, and little to none of the promises were ever realized. The game faded into obscurity.
However, two strikes is not out. GamersFirst was just acquired by a new company, Little Orbit. So far, it's actually looking promising. Cheat detection is looking promising. Plans to move to Unreal 4 (instead of 3.5ish) are in the works. Expansions, updates, and long awaited fixes are now finally being worked on. My number one biggest gaming disappointment might actually see its potential after all. I'm so excited.
So for those that don't know about APB, it's a third person shooter with:
Two factions (cops vs robbers)
Objective, team based gameplay
Hands down the most in-depth customization I have ever seen
The most nerve wracking pvp I have ever played
Really even matchmaking system for pvp mission assignment
It also has a suprisingly active community. This is suprising when you consider the age, waves of hackers, and bad history of publishers. The tragic part though is that the potential has always been there to be one of the most amazing shooters on the market. I am so glad to see a publisher eager to see that potential finally seen.
EDIT: If you tried the game out in the past and were unjustly (or unjustly..ish) banned, you should be able to reclaim your account. The new owners have reviewed the banning process that has been going on for years and are, as a result, unbanning a ton of players. From what I understand, the new system employs HID bans. So they are handing out free second chances and looking to solidify cheat protection from this point on.
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