APB Discussion

[Lithium]

Looks like we are close to release for APB. The next patch takes it from 0.6.2 to 0.9.8. I'm assuming 1.0.0 is when it launches, which means this will be our last big patch before the game goes live, probably in May or June.

eh, that's not typically how build numbers work--it's not a decimal number that rolls over to 1.0 after 0.9--its more of a timestamp and version control. I hope for the sake of the game they have another few months and beta builds beyond .9.x to get these terrible bugs worked out...

[Anamodiel]

I was reading through people's posts on the new patch, and apparently there are some files that I think that we will really, really enjoy.

File named coat_thighlength_trench.

Hopefully they're the traditional, open trench coats that we're used to from MXO.

Oh, a bunch of people are also seeing files dealing with Banks. I don't want to get my hopes up, but maybe we'll actually get to defend banks as enforcers?

Patch notes will hopefully be out tomorrow...

AND someone found this:

http://eu.beta.apb.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=1201&d=1257420769

[Anamodiel]

http://eu.beta.apb.com/news/2010/04/28/proving-grounds-king-of-the-streets-crowned

Lithium came in 32nd in the "Own the Streets"!

[Lithium]

Except I'm Lithium87 on EU.

I'm more like 32nd worst on the street.

[Manic Velocity]

Looks like we are close to release for APB. The next patch takes it from 0.6.2 to 0.9.8. I'm assuming 1.0.0 is when it launches, which means this will be our last big patch before the game goes live, probably in May or June.

eh, that's not typically how build numbers work--it's not a decimal number that rolls over to 1.0 after 0.9--its more of a timestamp and version control. I hope for the sake of the game they have another few months and beta builds beyond .9.x to get these terrible bugs worked out...

Agreed.  While the beta runs relatively well, there are still plenty of tiny dents that need to be smoothed out.

[Phienyx]

Did anyone know we had access to the EU all this past week.  I've been able to log in and play the last few nights.

Cars still handle like shit though.

[Phienyx]

Are we still planning on doing the APB thing as a clan?  I think I have about 60 hours in right now. I hope they delay release because it could use some more tweaking, but its pretty damned fun.

[Tbone]

We took a vote a week or so ago and no one voted to sub to APB. I'm afraid the payment model has killed it for us. I'm sure they'll realize the payment model doesn't work and make it free to play in a year or so. lol

[Phienyx]

Ow....that is disappointing.  I think we could have rocked that shit.

[Tbone]

Yeah, I enjoyed the game, but I don't think anyone enjoyed enough to pay for the game, pay monthly/hourly, and then pay for each item you buy/trade.

[Manic Velocity]

Something that occured to me this morning regarding their convoluted payment plan:

With the Social District being free, and the option to pay for gametime with points earned through selling customizations, it's going to turn the Social District into spam central.  People will be hocking every customization they shit out just so they can make enough RTWP to pay the monthly access fee.

It could be interpreted that paying the monthly access fee is a means to avoid the content that is offered for free.

[Tbone]

Everyone's gonna try to sell to make enough RTW to play the game, but no one is going to buy b/c everyone is trying to save their RTW to play the game. I think you're right that the chat is going to be spammed while the auction house will be fairly empty, especially if they charge a listing fee regardless of whether or not your item sells. Everyone will be trying to avoid that additional cost.

[ArchNemesis]

First off, I’d like to say thanks for all the feedback from our beta community over the months, as we have strived to make APB as much fun as we can for launch, and importantly for what we have planned post launch.

We listened very carefully to the (constructive) feedback on the business model. We think we met our goals of making it both flexible and good value no matter how many hours you want to play APB for.

Many players gave their feedback and concerns, and a concern raised more than once, was manufacturing costs. Our goal on this was to ensure that the marketplace was taken seriously, and for want of a better word, was not inundated with crap, or offensive material. Unlike other online games, where everything on the marketplace was a normal in-game item, this is the first game with a user-generated marketplace. Therefore a small barrier in place to protect its integrity is something we deemed in the best interests of the player. That issue is something we still deem important, however clan leaders and the great creative’s amongst you raised some valid concerns.

SO, today we announce that we are removing the RTW points manufacturing fee for launch. Ideally, we would have found a solution that addressed our own concerns, and that of you the players, but that’s going to take time and something we will continue to look at post launch, so we will address the players concerns first.

Finally, please remember, the reason we have two marketplaces is to give the avid players of APB an opportunity to earn points from the more casual player who would prefer to spend points. It’s purely optional, you can of course just stick to the APB$ marketplace, but remember every player is different and not everyone is rich in APB$ if they have limited time to play. Our goal is to cater to everyone. For some people, spending 50 RTW Points is preferable to spending 100,000 APB$.

Thanks again, and we hope you stick with us as we stay on our mission of making APB into one of the best online fun action games over the coming years.

Dave Jones

http://na.beta.apb.com/news/announcements/2010/05/21/manufacturing-costs-a-letter-from-dave-jones

So For now, the fee is removed.

[Tbone]

Wow, I'm impressed. This is one of the few times I've seen a company change such a huge policy so quickly based on player feedback. For their sake, I hope the damage hasn't already been done.

[Manic Velocity]

That's actually pretty impressive.  I guess those days-long threads of clans deciding to drop the game lit a fire under the dev's asses.