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All Points Bulletin: Reloaded open beta beginning on May 23 for reals!
After the delay of the All Points Bulletin: Reloaded open beta test last week, TechMech announced via the APB blog today that the beta-stopping bug has been fixed and open beta will go forward on May 23rd. TechMech reminds players to keep in mind that the game is still in beta, so players shouldn't expect a perfect gameplay experience simply because this bug has been fixed. He does note, however, that the folks at Gamersfirst are "confident the game will hold up technically while we work on the series of game items we need to improve on and polish." A disclaimer at the bottom of the post also states that, while TechMech is making no promises, "there is a chance we will have some super-double-secret number of accounts enabled to enter the Closed Beta during both Saturday and Sunday leading up to the beta launch, which 'might' permit access to the game for people who had previously registered an interest in the game." So if you registered previously and would like to try out the game, there's no harm in giving it a download and trying your luck. And of course you can register for the upcoming open beta on APB's official site.
All Points Bulletin: Reloaded open beta delayed
As we reported a couple of weeks back, the All Points Bulletin: Reloaded open beta test was scheduled to begin today. Unfortunately, we've got some bad news for all you wanna-be gangsters and law-enforcers out there: The game will remain in closed beta while the team rolls out a new patch this afternoon in an attempt to fix a "player disconnection issue." In the post, TechMech says, "The issue manifests itself in disconnecting some groups of players after one to two hours of gameplay, which clearly is not acceptable in Open Beta." As a thank-you for the continued efforts of all of APB's closed beta testers, the team is preparing a "goodie-pack" of in-game items for everyone who has participated in the closed beta test so far. This bag o' fun will be available to players the week after the open beta is released to the public. When will that be? "If we determine after the next patch that the issue has been resolved, we will then proceed to release the game to the public," the post explains. For further details and any updates, check the official post.
David Jones joins APB Reloaded in 'advisory role'
You know what they say: If at first you don't succeed, join the team doing the remake. Veteran game developer David Jones, responsible for classics like Lemmings, Grand Theft Auto and Crackdown, made an MMO called APB a little while back that eventually closed up shop in record time. Then, a company called GamersFirst bought the rights to APB, and made plans to redevelop it as APB Reloaded. Now, that same David Jones has joined the free-to-play remake in "an advisory role." Really? GamersFirst says it's excited to have Jones around to "share his vast game design experience during critical design stages of the ongoing development of APB Reloaded." That sounds good, we guess. Everybody deserves a second chance, right?
The MMO Report: Beerds!
Today on The MMO Report: World of Warcraft subscription numbers, RIFT's new advertising campaign, Star Wars: The Old Republic's (lack of) release date, Aion's latest patch, All Points Bulletin: Reloaded, and BEER WITH BEARDS! BEERDS! Ahem. Sorry, getting ahead of myself a bit. Today's MMO Report starts by talking about Blizzard's WoW subscription numbers, specifically that they are dwindling. But it's OK -- they'll be back. Next up, RIFT's new advertising campaign, the RIFTcast. Parodying morning news weather forecasters, the advertisements are short, clever, and effective at spreading the word. Massively gets another shout-out for our coverage of the Star Wars: The Old Republic release window, and Casey admits a bit of surprise at TOR's adoption of a subscription model, adding that regardless of pricing, "we'd still play this game if it required half a pint of blood on startup." Aion's patch 2.5 gets some coverage as Casey points out the improved graphics, the mentor system, new instances, and in-game events to celebrate the occasion. And to top it off, All Points Bulletin: Reloaded is entering open beta soon. I swear I'm forgetting something... OH YEAH! Beer with beards! Go check it out after the break!
GamersFirst hires Dave Jones as APB Reloaded advisor
Raise your hand if you saw this one coming: Dave Jones is back on the All Points Bulletin team. The former Realtime Worlds boss and the brains behind APB's original incarnation (as well as Crackdown and the first two Grand Theft Auto games) has joined GamersFirst "in an advisory role and will share his vast game design experience during critical design stages" according to a new press release. Jones has flown under the radar since the meltdown of Realtime Worlds and appears to be excited to get back on the development horse. "The game was my passion back when I was developing it with Realtime Worlds, and I'm extremely excited to be able to participate in fulfilling the long term vision for the title," he said. Jones also goes on to praise GamersFirst's free-to-play vision for San Paro. APB Reloaded is currently winding down its closed beta stage, with open beta scheduled for May 18th.
APB Reloaded rolls out new patches, East Coast server move
Looks like we have ourselves a convoy... of patch notes! As All Points Bulletin continues to truck down the highway toward open beta and re-release, the APB Reloaded dev blog continues to deliver the news of progress, and today that includes two sets of patch notes and word of a server move to an East Coast location. APB Reloaded's East Coast server move to Washington, DC will be taking place later this week. This should help improve latency times for those playing in the eastern half of North America. The blog also lists the nitty-gritty details of Releases 79 (May 5th) and 80 (May 10th). These changes include exploit fixes and tweaks to several weapons to bring them in line. GamersFirst is saving the really big bullet points for the May 18th update, which will coincide with the open beta. The blog hints that we should hopefully be hearing about the features for this mega-patch soon. You can read the full details over on the APB Reloaded dev blog.
APB Reloaded character migration now live
We talked earlier this week about APB Reloaded's impending open beta date. Thrown into the mix was a mention of character restoration services for those veterans of the original (i.e., Realtime Worlds) version of the game. Today we're happy to report that the service is live in Reloaded's closed beta. A brief blurb on the official APB forums outlines all the details. Players will need to have an open character slot on their G1 accounts as well as their old RTW login credentials (the process involves logging into the RTW account to initiate the transfer). GamersFirst notes that this is not a comprehensive restoration. "The main items being restored are clothing and symbols. Please understand that no progression, APB cash, RTW Points, Action Time, weapons, or vehicles will be restored," says the post. Also, only two outfits are being restored due to technical issues (though any symbols and clothing items used in other outfits will still exist on your character). Check out the APB forums for more.
APB Reloaded accepting some players in advance of May 18 open beta
Though the original launch of APB could be considered an extremely costly beta for the free-to-play APB Reloaded, GamersFirst is still working out the details of the new version, starting with a closed beta that began back in February. If you're ready to try the cops-and-robbers MMO again for the first time, GamersFirst is hosting an open beta starting May 18. You might actually play before that, as the company is beginning to let new players in now -- to "slowly turn up 'the heat' on our servers before going fully 'open,'" as GamersFirst's Bjorn Book-Larsson described it. You'll need to be 17 (18 outside of the US), have a GamersFirst account, and then sign up online using the same email address. Good luck to those of you trying to get in, and those of you trying to maintain the servers!
APB Reloaded open beta coming May 18th
Mark your calendars, APB fans. May 18th is a big day in the history of the resurrected title since it marks the official start of open beta. Bjorn Book-Larsson broke the good news yesterday on the APB Reloaded blog, and he had a few other interesting nuggets to discuss as well. GamersFirst's character restoration service should make its first appearance today around 4:00 p.m. PDT, and APB veterans from the Realtime Worlds days will be able to reclaim their old avatars and customizations. If you're unsure if you qualify, check your inbox as GamersFirst will be sending out email notices to everyone with an available reclaim. Book-Larsson also talks briefly about some of the company's plans for dealing with cheaters. No details are given, of course, but GamersFirst is apparently very aware of all the attempted aimbotting going on thus far in the beta. Finally, there's a blurb concerning new item rollouts in the coming days, as well as some info relating to the game's payment interface. Head to the official APB Reloaded blog for more.
APB Reloaded beta version 1.5 is live
We've talked a lot about version 1.5 of APB Reloaded's closed beta client in our last couple of updates and today we're pysched to report that the patch has officially made its way onto the live testing shard. The APB Reloaded blog has the extensive patch notes courtesy of Bjorn Book-Larsson's latest post, and you'll want to grab a tankard of your favorite caffeinated beverage and block off some reading time. The notes feature quite a bit of info about everything from open world crimes and witnessing, to spawning and equipment leasing, to progression tweaks. There's also some space devoted to the environmental updates that GamersFirst has been working on, as well as a full listing of the default game controls that should come in handy for new testers. Head to the APB Reloaded blog for more info.
New APB Reloaded blog dishes on beta version 1.5.0
The newest APB Reloaded dev blog is up, and this week finds GamersFirst in the midst of an "insane crunch" to get the 1.5.0 version of the beta client ready for prime time. Bjorn Book-Larsson gives us the details in his latest dev diary, and he also takes the time to answer many of the questions that fans are likely to have as the week wears on. Most of the pre-emptive Q&A pertains to beta invites, and there's also a blurb relating to possible future character wipes (aside from the one that we know is coming with 1.5.0). In addition to participating in the question-and-answer session, Book-Larsson lists a few of the core changes that the GamersFirst team has already completed. These include a new spawning system, the witnessing mechanic, modifier tweaks, and fixes for memory usage (as well as a reduced client size). Despite all the progress, there's quite a bit of work left to do as APB Reloaded's beta rolls on, and you can read all about it on the game's official dev blog.
Rise and Shiny recap: CrimeCraft
The first thing I want to do when hearing about a game's poor quality is try it myself. I've found that unless the complaints specify performance issues, the real problem is that the gameplay just didn't mesh well with the person issuing the complaint. Often, those folks talk in general specifics like "Everyone hates the skillsets" or "No one liked that last patch." Gamers are great at declaring what "everyone" likes or dislikes, as though they have access to information that not even the developers themselves have. A good rule of thumb is that the more a player mentions "everyone," the more he is probably wrong. CrimeCraft is one of these games, but for different reasons. As I asked around about the game, most people I heard from simply complained about its resemblance to the original All Points Bulletin. And since APB had issues, surely CrimeCraft must as well. Players also commented on how they heard it was busted or that didn't play well at all or that it was just a really bad game. So I had to dig in. What did I find? Click past the cut and I'll tell you.
GamersFirst gearing up for more APB testing invites, looking toward open beta
Open beta time is approaching for APB Reloaded, and GamersFirst's Bjorn Book-Larsson is back with his weekly blog post to give us all the juicy details. It seems that GamersFirst devs are working overtime to squash a number of pesky bugs in the 1.5.0 version of the game. As soon as they're finished, 1.5.0 will be made available to the game's 25,000 closed beta testers, followed by subsequent releases for the EU servers, a mass invite for another 25,000 closed beta testers, and then an invite for the remainder of closed beta applicants. If all of this goes off without a hitch, testers will be granted a temporary premium account to poke and prod at its associated functionality, after which GamersFirst will enable monetized content. After that, "if there are still no major issues, then we will open up the floodgates and formally go into open beta," Book-Larsson explains. While that's a lot of "ifs," the takeaway is that APB Reloaded's official release is drawing steadily closer. Book-Larsson notes that the team expects to "be in monetized open beta until August" and will be iterating on quite a bit of new content throughout the process.
APB Reloaded blog details the matchmaking makeover
This week's APB Reloaded blog entry is a pretty lengthy one, and Bjorn Book-Larsson has a lot to say about the game's matchmaking system as well as a warning for the hackers who have showed up in the free-to-play title's closed beta. Matchmaking is a huge issue for GamersFirst's APB redesign, and Book-Larsson relates that "it was a bit of a shocker to discover that in spite of relying almost exclusively on computer-generated matchmaking... no real thought was made to create a decent skill rating system to feed those matchmaking decisions." Book-Larsson also provides some insight into how GamersFirst is tackling the problem, illustrating several approaches to matchmaking including algorithms founded on Chess ratings, Glicko, and Microsoft's TrueSkill system. Read all about these topics and more on the official APB Reloaded blog.
APB Reloaded developer opening studio in Scotland
We know that events in the video gaming industry are cyclical, but we never expected them to cycle quite this fast. Dundee, Scotland-based developer Realtime Worlds developed APB before being shut down last year. The IP was then picked up by developer GamersFirst, who is now opening a new studio in Edinburgh, Scotland under the moniker Reloaded Productions. The new studio will import the staff that's currently working to rebuild the interrupted online FPS, and will also open up 22 additional positions for folks who live in the area. Perhaps some Realtime Worlds staffers who haven't quite gotten back on their feet yet could land in these new openings! Not only would that add to the cyclical nature of the project, but it would also be a great example of human resource recycling. Go green, Reloaded Productions!
All Points Bulletin: Reloaded -- breaking news from San Paro!
Two hundred fifty thousand criminals and enforcers wait outside the city limits of San Paro, hoping to claim the city as their own. Fortunately, only a few criminals have been able to slip inside the city limits at this point. However, the enforcers are preparing to allow many members of their faction across the line to help police with the influx of the criminal element. Sources claim that these lawbreakers have been able to forge the keys necessary to allow their allies to cross the security checkpoints into the city. Our friends at the Nantego News Networks have the full story. GamersFirst is well on its way to setting up the open beta servers APB: Reloaded. In a statement on the official blog, CEO Bjorn Book-Larsson states that the network routing equipment is still on its way to the server facility, and he promises to give an update on Monday. In the meantime, the team has put together a "news" video regarding the current state of San Paro. Beyond the break, we have the full report from the N3 Network. Take a look for yourself.
GamersFirst opening studio in Scotland
The GamersFirst team is feeling pretty confident about the work put into APB: Reloaded -- so much so that the company is planning another studio in Edinburgh, Scotland. The studio will employ at least 22 people at first with an eye toward expansion later, says Bjorn Book-Larsson: "Our hope is to expand the Scottish presence and increase the size of the team over time as we add more creative game projects as part of our global MMO development efforts." Michael Boniface, former IT director for Realtime Worlds, has been hired as the general manager for the new studio and will be handling recruitment and overseeing development. APB: Reloaded is currently preparing for open beta.
APB Reloaded prepping for open beta
The beta train for APB Reloaded is rolling right along, according to the latest dev blog update. As of March 20th, GamersFirst has welcomed 25,000 testers to the title's closed beta, with 250,000 waiting in the wings -- and apparently champing at the bit. GamersFirst is also looking to the future, and Bjorn Book-Larsson writes that "the dev, design and art teams are still working on a few minor tweaks in [closed beta], but are mostly now focused on the open beta build that's coming up." While there's no word on an open beta date as of yet, we're not anticipating a lengthy wait given the speed at which GamersFirst is powering through updates and the enthusiasm permeating the entire enterprise. Book-Larsson also gives fans an update on the European closed beta, which has suffered a slight delay thanks to a pair of crucial networking components that were held up by EU customs. He notes that at least 25,000 testers will be needed when the EU servers are up and running, and "anyone already playing closed beta in the US can also play on the EU location, just for the heck of it."
[UPDATED] Enter to win one of 20 APB: Reloaded closed beta keys from Massively!
[Update: All winners have been chosen and contacted. Check your email, and congratulations to our winners!] Last week, the powers that be at GamersFirst gave us 100 closed beta keys for APB: Reloaded. We shared them with our readers, and they proved to be a hot commodity! The keys were gone in the blink of an eye, scooped up by those lucky enough to be around at the right moment. GamersFirst has given us one more batch of keys, and we decided to share the wealth a little more evenly this time! We've been passing them out on our Twitter and Facebook pages, but what if you missed those -- or worse yet, don't follow us on Twitter or Facebook? Take heart, because we've reserved 20 for one last giveaway! Leave a comment here letting us know what you are most looking forward to in the game. At 2:00 p.m. EDT on Thursday, March 17th, we'll choose 20 comments and email each of those commenters a key for the next APB:Reloaded closed beta event. We're leaving the event up for 24 hours to give everyone a chance to participate regardless of his or her schedule, so hit that comment button and good luck! [Editor's note: We're thrilled to see so many of you coming out to snag a key! Just remember that in this and all other Massively threads, commenters are expected to abide by our site-wide code of conduct. Keep it clean, and good luck!]
GamersFirst hands out over 10,000 APB Reloaded closed beta invites
It's Christmas in March for a lot of former San Paro citizens rendered homeless by the demise of their favorite MMO. Yes, GamersFirst has cracked open the APB Reloaded beta door a bit further as of Tuesday afternoon according to a post on the free-to-play developer's official forums. "Today is your lucky day," reads the short message. "We're sending out 10,000 plus invites. Check your email (don't forget the spam box)." GamersFirst has been slowly but steadily ramping up the media assault for its reborn open-world shooter, and whether you're looking for videos, exclusive interviews, or beta key giveaways, Massively's got your back as you look to make the streets of San Paro your personal playground.
