APB is dead?

Yeah, that game got me excited but turned out to be terribly shitty. I played it for about three hours and gave up on it.
 
I liked it enough to give it a chance... pending anticipated future updates.

The character creator was awesome though... I created one character that looked just like me... it took some time and some 'self honesty'...lol, but I was able to actually make a character that looked just like me IRL; "honey, come here and check this out"...

"No way, that looks just like you. How did you do that?"

I also made one that looked just like Lucy Liu and another just like Alex Baldwin from the random generator and just a couple tweaks. Seriously cool stuff.
 
There was some information goin around about how EPIC might pick it up. But yeah, it's officially dead as of this moment.
 
They should have spent more time on the actual GAMEPLAY, shooting/driving, and not pour all of their time and fun into the character creator.

The whole rpg'ish shooting mechanics nad the higher lv guns being so much beter then the lower lv ones made the gameplay not that fun for peple starting out.

The overall "feel" of both shooting and driving just felt off and generic, wans't that responsive and precise imo.
 
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1547574

The ability to use search or even goto page 2 seems to be dead :p

undertheradar said:
So according to their highly anticipated update, APB is actually toast....

http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2010...king-refunds-now-being-directed-to-retailers/

Wow, so what to do? I spent another $30 on 'upgrades' besides the game itself (that I purchased on Steam). Am I SOL? Seems like that cant be legal.
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Of course it's legal for a company to go bankrupt and leave you with lost money that will never be recouped behind the long list of creditors.
 
undertheradar said:
Wow, so what to do? I spent another $30 on 'upgrades' besides the game itself (that I purchased on Steam). Am I SOL? Seems like that cant be legal.
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Be glad it's only a $70ish video game instead of being one of the ones that got ruined by that guy Bernie Madoff. Unless you did get bilked by Madoff in which case god damn that's some bad luck.
 
It amazes me how difficult it is for a great concept to actually make it out the door in the gaming industry. I sorta wonder if before a game gets greenlighted it has to be tested by a homeless person on PCP.

Defend Grid: The Awakening Interview -

"Yeah, so we saw all these great tower defense flashgames and thought - We can combine all the best elements and make a great game"

and then Defense Grid did insanely well and everyone was happy.
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APB Interview -

"We decided to copy GTA and WoW but only the most boring and easy to recycle elements, but then we got a check for 50million. It's all kind.. of a blur after that. I'm not even sure where we buried those hookers"
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piscian18 said:
It amazes me how difficult it is for a great concept to actually make it out the door in the gaming industry. I sorta wonder if before a game gets greenlighted it has to be tested by a homeless person on PCP.
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It would have been better if it hadn't been an MMO.
 
I'm not surprised that it shut down. I AM surprised that it shut down so fast. Maybe it RTW had bothered to put an actual (fun) game alongside the amazing character creator it would have had some staying power.
 
All these failing MMOs make me wonder... why don't they just release the dedicated server software when they go under? Then the game doesn't HAVE to die for those who like it, and if the company is fucked anyways, what's the harm?
 
djBon2112 said:
All these failing MMOs make me wonder... why don't they just release the dedicated server software when they go under? Then the game doesn't HAVE to die for those who like it, and if the company is fucked anyways, what's the harm?
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Because open-source makes publishers

sad_face.jpg



Except Valve of course.
 
piscian18 said:
Because open-source makes publishers


Except Valve of course.
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It isn't even that it needs to be OSS! The dedicated server is an application just like any other, they could release it under a EULA just like the game itself. Or even charge for it, it doesn't matter. All they have to say is "Here, we're going out of business, and our servers are shutting down, so here's the download link for the precompiled software we ran on said servers", and patch the game (if required) so it can use them. I know a bankrupted company's users are usually not that important to them, but as a last show of grace and support to their community, that would be huge. They'd be sending the message: "The game doesn't have to die with us."
 
undertheradar said:
So according to their highly anticipated update, APB is actually toast....

http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2010...king-refunds-now-being-directed-to-retailers/

Wow, so what to do? I spent another $30 on 'upgrades' besides the game itself (that I purchased on Steam). Am I SOL? Seems like that cant be legal.
Click to expand...


Sadly .... things like this Happen, I bought Hellgate: London release date, then i played when it worked (because it was glitchy as hell,pun intended) after maybe 6 months.... Flagship studios closed up shop.... this was a game I was anticipating for a long time, hopefully it'll make the comeback as there have been talks.... APB looked cool too bad.
 
djBon2112 said:
It isn't even that it needs to be OSS! The dedicated server is an application just like any other, they could release it under a EULA just like the game itself. Or even charge for it, it doesn't matter. All they have to say is "Here, we're going out of business, and our servers are shutting down, so here's the download link for the precompiled software we ran on said servers", and patch the game (if required) so it can use them. I know a bankrupted company's users are usually not that important to them, but as a last show of grace and support to their community, that would be huge. They'd be sending the message: "The game doesn't have to die with us."
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There are other factors to consider, such as creditors. For instance they may want to try to hold onto the IP of the bankrupt company to sell/license in the future in hopes of recouping some of their lost investment.

There is also the possibility that it uses third party licensed proprietary software/technology that they cannot distribute.
 
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limitedaccess said:
There are other factors to consider, such as creditors. For instance they may want to try to hold onto the IP of the bankrupt company to sell/license in the future in hopes of recouping some of their lost investment.

There is also the possibility that it uses third party licensed proprietary software/technology that they cannot distribute.
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I know there are other factors like that to consider, but I stand by it being a really good way for the company to go out in style.
 
djBon2112 said:
...All they have to say is "Here, we're going out of business, and our servers are shutting down, so here's the download link for the precompiled software we ran on said servers", and patch the game (if required) so it can use them. ...
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That would probably cost money which is obviously something they don't have.
 
saw this in the other thread...
COMPPRO2K7 said:
according to the terms of serivce, they have to give a 30 day notice before removing online features not 1 day like they done. looks like a lawsuit should be in the works.


TO PLAY THE GAME, YOU MUST REGISTER ONLINE WITH THE ENCLOSED SERIAL CODE. PURCHASE INCLUDES 50 HOURS OF ACTION DISTRICT GAMEPLAY. ADDITIONAL GAMEPLAY AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE. ONLY ONE REGISTRATION AVAILABLE PER GAME. INTERNET CONNECTION REQUIRED. USER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL APPLICABLE INTERNET FEES. ACCEPTANCE OF END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT REQUIRED TO PLAY. ONLINE TERMS & CONDITIONS, GAMEPLAY PURCHASE DETAILS AND FEATURE UPDATES CAN BE FOUND AT www.APB.com. YOU MUST BE 18+ TO REGISTER ONLINE AND PLAY THIS GAME. REALTIME WORLDS MAY PROVIDE CERTAIN INCREMENTAL CONTENT AND/OR UPDATES FOR NO ADDITIONAL CHARGE, IF AND WHEN AVAILABLE. REALTIME WORLDS MAY RETIRE ONLINE FEATURES AFTER 30 DAYS NOTICE POSTED ON www.APB.com.
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I dont suppose this APB UA could conflict with Steam's UA or force their hand, now would it? If all Steam is going to do is shrug it off, I dont think I will be buying any games from them anymore that require an ongoing server/support/development/upkeep investment since they may sell it, but sont support it one bit. No more MMO's through steam (not that Im even a big MMO/MMORPG player... I think City of Heroes and APB are the only ones I have like this) seems to be the best solution.

On a side note, a buddy of mine got on EA about this, and EA offered a nice discount on the next EA title he buys. For those that purchased it within the last month, they are giving another new game for free in return. BTW, he has a Steam copy of the game.
 
undertheradar said:
saw this in the other thread...


I dont suppose this APB UA could conflict with Steam's UA or force their hand, now would it? If all Steam is going to do is shrug it off, I dont think I will be buying any games from them anymore that require an ongoing server/support/development/upkeep investment since they may sell it, but sont support it one bit. No more MMO's through steam (not that Im even a big MMO/MMORPG player... I think City of Heroes and APB are the only ones I have like this) seems to be the best solution.

On a side note, a buddy of mine got on EA about this, and EA offered a nice discount on the next EA title he buys. For those that purchased it within the last month, they are giving another new game for free in return. BTW, he has a Steam copy of the game.
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Why do people keep quoting the agreement as it if was worth anything? Legally, it is worth absolutely nothing at all. The minute a company goes into administration, it is for all intents and purposes bankrupt and therefore you are not owed a dime of service or compensation unless you are higher up on the list of creditors. As a subscriber you are at the bottom of the barrel. Realtime Worlds is pretty much liquidated already. Also, all those "online experience is subject to change" disclaimers that everyone has (including steam) exempts them from any liability as well. Steam does not guarantee the stable online experience for anything it sells.

Steam selling an MMO is just like a store selling a retail box MMO. They have nothing to do with the company or services. Did Best Buy give refunds for opened copies of Hellgate London when the game went under? Nope. The lesson is to never pay for an MMO until it matures and is shown to have a stable population.

Your buddy is lucky EA was nice about that, I'm not sure Steam would have done that. I love Steam as a platform but I've had nothing but bad customer service in regards to purchases or issues with purchased software from Steam and Direct2Drive.
 
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it was extremely fun to play with friends, solo play was obviously worthless to try even grouping up. put in a good amount of hours most in the beta and then the keys to the city, unfortunately once the game came out i had already played most of what it had to offer, so i still have 10 hours of my 50 left from the steam purchase.
 
Crazy.

Beckett MOG had a 4 page preview of APB a few months ago. The hype machine was huge for it. Seems odd to shut down after just one day's warning.
 
EA is doing partial refunds if you contact live support chat and purchased the game after July 15th. Of course I purchased it on June 28th so I'm SOL. But maybe that will help some of you. It's $20 refund from what I heard and some are getting free games. No preorders though.

I heard that if you persist they will relent on the date, but I'm not the type to beg. I'll just let my dollars do the talking. :)
 
Spare-Flair said:
Steam selling an MMO is just like a store selling a retail box MMO. They have nothing to do with the company or services. Did Best Buy give refunds for opened copies of Hellgate London when the game went under? Nope. The lesson is to never pay for an MMO until it matures and is shown to have a stable population.
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Actually, EA is doing something to make good on APB purchases if you bought it via Steam:

EA is offering a free game to customers that purchased APB via Steam - as recompense for the MMO's closure earlier this month.

According to SavyGamer, the publisher is offering disgruntled players one download from any recent game through the EA store.

The range includes Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age: Origins, Spore, The Saboteur, Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and a host of others.
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This is a shame. I wanted to try it for the character creation tools (I love that stuff) more than the actual game mechanics but never got around to it..
 
SwitchFC said:
Sadly Hellgate was interesting but bug-ridden, and it bit off more than it could chew. It lived for about 6 months and then crashed and burned in a fiery mess of hell ridden bugs..... ya it was that great.
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What really hurt it for my friends and I was the ridiculous multiplayer system. None of us bought it because of that.

There's no reason the game shouldn't have had a fairly simple B.Net Diablo 2 style multiplayer setup, with lobbies and hosting sessions between friends etc. Even if they wouldn't allow local LAN, they could have AT LEAST utilized the B.Net model.

The half-mmo/not really an mmo style with no ability to host a game yourself.. awful.
 
Btw I got a free game even though I preordered it on steam. All you have to do is edit the steam email dates and resend it to yourself. I got spore cause its all this laptop can run at all.
 
undertheradar said:
http://i.imgur.com/lUAh2.jpg
So if Steam has NO RELATION to channel partner STEAM, then how could they sell me a legit copy of APB in the first place? I think that means Steam owes me a refund.
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They gave me that answer too. i emailed last weekend.


i bought it a few days after release from steam end of june i think, EA gave me a $20 coupon i didn't really put up a fuss , they basically first told me EA has no relation to steam. then i replied with a simple 1 liner , to please clarify what they're relationship was with steam. then a different guy answered my email explaining it and giving me a $20 which i wasn't really expecting. I would have however tried to have gotten a poster or a coffee mug or something just for fun, but the $20 coupon was pretty nice of them.
 
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I had heard that some people were getting a free game from EA (one that is in their library now, which means 0 to me until Black Ops comes out perhaps). But something about this denial that STEAM is legit makes me wonder... something isn't right, and so either Steam or EA is covering up something I bet.
 
undertheradar said:
I had heard that some people were getting a free game from EA (one that is in their library now, which means 0 to me until Black Ops comes out perhaps). But something about this denial that STEAM is legit makes me wonder... something isn't right, and so either Steam or EA is covering up something I bet.
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EA gave me a free copy of Crysis warhead, they were also giving out $20 coupon codes that can be used on anything in the EA store.
 
I got a free copy of Mass Effect 2 (I got to choose any released game on their online store). Although I did see a post the other day that said they were no longer doing this, not sure if it's true or not.
 
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